Conflict Over Germany, 1947-49 Flashcards
1
Q
How did the powers coordinate their actions in Germany?
A
- through the Allied Control Council (ACC)
- this was to enable economic and political unity in Germany to be maintained
- decisions made by the ACC had to be unanimous and it was this that enabled each power to remain independent of each other
2
Q
What 4 political parties did the USSR accept in their zone of influence?
A
- the communists (KPD)
- German social democrats (SPD)
- Liberals (LDPD)
-Christian democrats (CDU)
3
Q
What did the USSR impose on east Germany from 1945 onwards?
A
- harsh reparations
- dismantled 1500 factories
- shipped resources such as coal + industrial equipment to the Soviet Union
4
Q
How much was exploited (in terms of reparations) from the soviet zones in the first 8 years?
A
- estimate of $16 billion
5
Q
What were the Soviets aiming politically in east Germany?
A
- for the communist party to emerge as the most dominant
6
Q
What parties in east Germany merged in February 1946?
A
- the SPD and the KPD were forcibly merged by the Soviet military administration of Germany
-known as the German socialist unity party - significant opposition to this amongst the SPD member - led by Kurt Schumacher
7
Q
How was the Soviet Zone in Germany perceived?
A
- increasingly perceived as a place of tyranny and repression by germans in the western zones - mainly due to the fact that coercion was used to suppress any forms of opposition
8
Q
What other unilateral policies did the Soviets introduce in their zones?
A
- unilateral = (not approved by ACC)
- unification of the left wing parties
- land reform
- nationalisation of large industrial production
- compulsory tuition in the Russian language for German school pupils
= increasingly apparent that the soviet zone was being subjected to the Soviet model of peoples democracies emerging across the rest of Eastern Europe
9
Q
How many people did the British zone consist of?
A
- ## 22.5 million people + included the major port of Hamburg and the Ruhr industrial area
10
Q
Why was the population and the specific zone a problem for the British?
A
- the large population was costly to feed and increased Britain’s dependency upon the US
- Britain was concerned about both soviet and french efforts to influence the control of the Ruhr
- the i=economic importance of the Ruhr had political implications
11
Q
Why was it important that the USSR did not have control over the Ruhr?
A
- access to the Ruhr would provide access to further German reparations, which could weaken Germany’s economic recovery and strengthen the possibility of a shift towards support for the communists among disaffected Germans
- the primary British fear by the spring of 1946 was that a revived Germany might either cooperate with the USSR or become dominated by it
12
Q
What did British create in August 1946?
A
- the state of North-Rhine Westphalia
- significant because it was at this point that Britain committed itself to the merger of the British and American zones
13
Q
What was the Office of Military Government, United States?
A
- administrative organisation set up by the US to help manage its zones in Western Germany and West Berlin
- Led by general clay
- dismantled in 1949
14
Q
What was America’s initial attitude to joint occupation in Germany?
A
- willing to make it work
15
Q
What was Clay’s position towards joint occupation by spring 1947?
A
- less compliant, his position was to say no to:
- the soviet demand that Ruhr should be placed under joint allied control
- the continue social and economic deprivation of the German population in the US and British zones
- the soviet desire to create a centralised Germany
16
Q
What was the French occupied zone in Germany like?
A
- for the french, Germany was to become a number of small autonomous states
- France was a major factor in ensuring that the ACC could not function effectively
- the French position was to support the creation of two German states with the Western part closely allied an influenced by the Western powers
- this conformed to the French determination to see the dismemberment of Germany and its strategy of ensuring France’s long term security against a resurgent German state
17
Q
What were the British and Americans keen to establish in the Western Zones by 1946?
A
- a degree of economic recovery
- the British were absorbing huge numbers of German refugees expelled by the poles and Czechs
- continuing despite with the USSR over the scale if reparations that it could demand from the western zones
18
Q
How much of western reparations did the USSR collect?
A
- 25% was agreed upon
19
Q
What did general clay announce in May 1946?
A
- announced that no further reparations to the USSR would be allowed until there was an overall plan agreed for Germany’s economic recovery
20
Q
What was the soviet response to Clay’s announcement regarding western reparations?
A
- viewed it as an American strategy designed to create a German economy based on the Western capitalist system
21
Q
When did the British and American zones join?
A
- January 1947 - known as Bizonia
22
Q
Why was the creation of Bizonia significant?
A
- clear indicator that the four power control of Germany had failed
- the merging of Bizonia and the Marshall plan was a fundamental factor in the development of a divided Germany
23
Q
What was the soviet response to Bizonia?
A
- to oppose it
- at the council of ministers held during March and April 1947, the USSR demanded that a new central administration should be created - this attempt failed and no firm decisions on the future of Germany were reached
- another conference was held in London during November and December in 1947 - also a failure
- the USSR accused the west of unjustly denying it the reparations it was due + the west feared that a centralised administration would lead to a Soviet controlled Germany
- the outcome of this conference was that the Western powers now recognised that four power control of Germany would not work - a new urge to strengthen the economy of the western zones
24
Q
When was the new Western-backed Deutsch mark introduced?
A
- 23rd June 1948
25
When did the Berlin blockade begin?
-24th June 1948, as a response to the new Deutsch mark
26
What happened during the Berlin blockade?
- USSR cut off all land and river transit between West Berlin and West Germany
- road and rail links blocked
27
What was the allied response to the Berlin blockade?
- the Berlin airlift :
- American and British air forces flew over Berlin more than 250,000 times, dropping necessities such as fuel and food, with the original plan being to lift 3,475 tons of supplies daily
- By the spring of 1949, that number was often met twofold, with the peak daily delivery totalling 12,941 tons.
28
When did Stalin end the blockade?
- May 1949
- he failed in his aim to prevent the creation of a separate west German state
- containment had proved to be a success by 1949
29
When was the west German constitution approved?
- early 1949
30
Who was the first elected leader of the new state?
- Konrad Adenauer
31
What was the Occupation Statue?
- the west German state was subjected to this despite its independence
- set up a high commission that gave Britain, France and the USA the authority to determine any final decisions on West German foreign policy and security
32
What was the USSR’s response to the creation of a west German state?
- USSR’s objective was to create a pro-soviet united Germany
-by march 1949, a constitution for the new East German state had been assembled
- constitution was based on a one party state despite the democratic facade
33
When was the Federal Republic of Germany Created?
- May 1949
34
When was the German Democratic Republic created?
- October 1949
35
When was the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation formed?
- April 1949
36
What were the aims of NATO’s creation?
- NATO was a means of reassuring Western European states in the face of possible Soviet military aggression
- gave the USA a regional defence organisation that would complement containment and in which the USA was a key player
-For the US, NATO was primarily a political defence system rather than a military organisation that could undermine long-term objectives for Europe
37
What was Article 1 of NATO?
“To settle any international disputes[…] by peaceful means”
38
What was Article 5 of NATO?
“An armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all”
39
What was the soviet response to NATO?
- The soviet ambassador of the US argued that NATO was an aggressive organisation designed to pressurise states into complying with the interests of Britain, the USA and their allies
-USSR emphasised its lack of intent to attack any state in Europe
40
