Europe Post World War II
After World War II, Europeans often exchanged the expression, "never again." This tells a lot about what it was like after World War II - they saw that the neighboring countries needed cooperation, not competition.
After the war, Germany was separated into East and West Germany. The West was occupied by British, American, and French influences. This means that they practiced a western style democracy. East Germany was controlled by the Soviet Union. And, from what I can tell, the Berlin Wall went straight through the city of Berlin on the Soviet side of Germany.
If anyone has taken APUSH, they know all about the Marshall Plan - the largest, most successful, reconstruction project in history. In order to keep the European nation in affluence, and to prevent another Great Depression, the US pumped billions of dollars into food plans, rebuilding projects, and government organizations.
Trading alliances began to take place between democratic nations and between communist nations. The Soviets, as well as countries from Poland to Bulgaria were a part of the Warsaw Pact. Western Europe allied into the North American Trade Alliance (NATO).
The alliances, the devision of Germany, and so much more contributed to the Cold War - a petty competition between the Russia and the US that took up almost the rest of the century.
After the war, Germany was separated into East and West Germany. The West was occupied by British, American, and French influences. This means that they practiced a western style democracy. East Germany was controlled by the Soviet Union. And, from what I can tell, the Berlin Wall went straight through the city of Berlin on the Soviet side of Germany.
If anyone has taken APUSH, they know all about the Marshall Plan - the largest, most successful, reconstruction project in history. In order to keep the European nation in affluence, and to prevent another Great Depression, the US pumped billions of dollars into food plans, rebuilding projects, and government organizations.
Trading alliances began to take place between democratic nations and between communist nations. The Soviets, as well as countries from Poland to Bulgaria were a part of the Warsaw Pact. Western Europe allied into the North American Trade Alliance (NATO).
The alliances, the devision of Germany, and so much more contributed to the Cold War - a petty competition between the Russia and the US that took up almost the rest of the century.
I think it's really interesting to look at the aftermath of the war and the Holocaust and how the cooperation of many different nations was able to bring Europe back and stabilize them. Although countries like the Soviet Union and Britain had entirely different governments, they were able to trade and help each other out. This is the complete opposite of what happened during WWII and the way that Hitler saw Europe.
ReplyDeleteThe transition from a fascist government to Germany's current democratic government is really intriguing. The fact that Germany went from an occupied nation to being one of the leaders in the EU is an incredibly display of diplomacy. Additionally, Germany resurgence as a political powerhouse, under Angela Merkel, displays the power of alliances.
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