Division of Germany

Question 1

Allied zone control

Answer 1

• Nazi Germany’s collapse left a vacuum
• there was no clear government coming from the German population, so the Allies assumed responsibility for running their respective zones
• temporary measures were introduced to maintain law and order

Question 2

unifying the zones

Answer 2

• due to the ideological conflict between the western allies and the USSR the idea of unifying zones was an unlikely possibility

Question 3

western v. eastern running of zones

Answer 3

• British, French and US zones were run with capitalist economies
• free trade used to stimulate economic growth
• soviet sector in contrast was run with communism
• good produced in Germany were confiscated by Stalin’s government for the Soviet Union

Question 4

Economic problems

Answer 4

• harsh winter 1946/7
• shortages in Germany
• rationing was introduced
• $700 million was spent on food important each year
• zones clearly needed to co-operate

Question 5

Bizonia

Answer 5

• British and US zones unified economically to create Bizonia

Question 6

Trizonia

Answer 6

• France joined the US/British partnership to create Trizonia in April of 1949

Question 7

Walter Ulbricht and the Soviet Zone

Answer 7

• Ulbricht was a member of the communist party
• he and the communists came to Berlin in April 1945
• German Communist Party was rebuilt

Question 8

Political parties in soviet zone

Answer 8

• political parties were permitted in June 1945
• the KPD and SPD were formed
• however, in 1946 the two parties were forced to merged and the Socialist Unity Party (SED) was formed

Question 9

SED

Answer 9

• took control of multiple areas e.g. administration and education
• opposition parties e.g. CDU, were absorbed into the National Front for Democratic Germany, controlled by the SED
• the democracy rouse was dropped in 1948, when the party was rebranded in the image of Marxist-Leninism