The Berlin Crises (6) Flashcards
What spread throughout East Germany in 1953?
Protests by workers in East Germany spread.
What were the workers demanding? (4)
- Greater political freedom
- Union with West Germany
- The end of communism
- Withdrawal of Soviet forces
Who crushed the uprising?
The uprising was crushed by the Soviet Army and over 600 East Germans were executed. A further 300 000 fled to the West.
What was the result of the uprising?
The East German government introduced some reforms and the USSR allowed East Germans greater independence.
What did new Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev demand?
He demanded that the West hand over Berlin to West Germany.
When did he make these demands and what was Western response?
- The West ignored these demands, and Khrushchev did nothing to enforce them.
What did Khrushchev’s response seem to indicate?
That relations between the USA and USSR were improving.
In 1960, Khrushchev and US President ___ planned to meet in Paris to discuss the future of ___.
Eisenhower
Berlin
Why was the meeting between Khrushchev and Eisenhower cancelled?
It was cancelled when an American spy plane was shot down while it was flying over the USSR.
What had the spy plane been doing?
It had been photographing military installations there.
What did the US government do when accused? And why were they forced to admit their involvement?
They strongly denied any knowledge of such a plane, but when the Soviet authorities produced both the equipment and the pilot, the Americans were forced to admit their involvement.
Did Eisenhower take responsibility ?
No, he refused to apologise so Khrushchev stormed out of the Paris meeting in protest.
Why did many people criticise American actions?
They were labeled irresponsible, at such a sensitive time. This incident increased tensions between the superpowers once again and the left the issue of Berlin unresolved.
When did Berlin become the main focus of attention again?
In 1961
Since the creation of East Germany in ___, over ___ East Germans had fled to the West, many of them young and highly skilled.
1949
3
How many people a week were leaving by July 1961 and why?
Ten thousand people a week were leaving for the higher standard of living and greater freedom which the West offered.
What did the USSR view people leaving as?
A challenge to Soviet Control in Eastern Europe. It wanted to stop the loss of people, and the skills they took with them to the West by leaving through Berlin.
When was the wall built and how?
In August 1961, the East German authorities, with Soviet backing, built a wall to divide East and West Berlin, cutting the city in half overnight. This highly fortified Berlin Wall, with its machine-gun posts and searchlights stopped the flow of refugees.
The West seemed ____ to prevent the building of the Wall, but the status of West Berlin remain unchanged, an island of _____ and ____ surrounded by East Germany.
Powerless
Capitalism
Democracy
Many East Germans died trying to escape across the Wall, which became a famous ___of the Cold War period.
Symbol
