Thesis:
Investment in Germany was a direct result of US / Soviet relations during the Cold War; in effect, unified Germany could never have become the economic powerhouse of Europe without going through the experience of the Berlin Wall.
Definitions:
East Germany - the former independent nation created in 1949 from the area of Germany occupied by the former Soviet Union after World War II. It was reunited with West Germany after the fall of its communist government in 1990.
West Germany - After being defeated in World War I, Germany was taken over in the 1930s by the Nazi dictatorship that led to a policy of expansionism and eventually to complete defeat in World War II. Germany was occupied for a time by the victorious Allies and was partitioned. The western part (including West Berlin), which was occupied by the US, Britain, and France, became the Federal Republic of Germany or
a fortified and heavily guarded wall built on the boundary between East and West Berlin in 1961 by the communist authorities, chiefly to curb the flow of East Germans to the West. It was opened in November 1989 after the collapse of the communist regime in East Germany and subsequently was dismantled.
USSR - a former federation of communist republics that occupied the northern half of Asia and part of eastern Europe; capital, Moscow. Created from the Russian empire in the aftermath of the 1917 Russian Revolution, the Soviet Union was the largest country in the world. After World War II, it emerged as a superpower that rivaled the US and led to the Cold War. After decades of repression and economic failure, the Soviet Union was formally dissolved in 1991. Some of its constituents joined a looser confederation, the Commonwealth of Independent States
Types of Sources:
Secondary Sources – I have a book specifically on the Berlin Wall that can be used also as a primary source because it had pictures from the years that the Berlin Wall was up. Another book I have to use is A History of Berlin. I have another book about the Berlin Wall that deals with the construction of the wall and what happened after the wall was knocked down. Another book to be used is The Second World War, focusing on WWII that I may use to explain and analyze how Germany was before the Berlin Wall was put up and then knocked down.
The Second World War – John Keegan
The Berlin Wall – Cindy Mur
The Berlin Wall: A World Divided – Frederick Taylor
Faust’s Metropolis: A History of Berlin – Alexandra Richie
Primary Sources: I have photographs to use as primary sources. I am also using primary source websites, one being the Chronology of International Events, which was issued by the Department of State in 1941. I also have many books with direct quotes from people during this time period.
http://www.ibiblio.org/pha/events/events.html
http://www.bartleby.com/33/21.html
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/germanunification.html
1. “Berlin’s symbolic significance to capitalist and Communist forces during the Cold War brought about the Berlin crisis” (Craig, 1999).
- Berlin was in the middle of a military and political rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union.
- This rivalry continued from the end of World War II until the Berlin Wall was built in 1961.
- The powerful countries in the West refused to abandon West Berlin, and they were supported by the United States who had superior nuclear capabilities (Craig, 1999).
- The occupation of the United States, Britain, France, and Soviet troops in Germany was a constant reminder of the political and military effects of the cold war. (Craig, 1999)
- Berlin was the only place where Russian and American forces could face each other directly.
- “The evolving status of Berlin from 1948 to 1961 represents quite accurately the growth of the Soviet military power to the point of effective thermonuclear parity with the United States (Craig, 1999).
- The Cold War turned the United States, Britain, and France into enemies against the Soviet Union.
2. There were many differences between East and West Germany.
- West Germany was controlled by France, Great Britain, and the United States
- East Germany was controlled by the USSR, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, making it a Communist country.
- West Germany was able to have advanced technology and up-to-date living situations because it was controlled by advanced countries.
- East Germany did not see the advances in technology prevalent in the United States and Great Britain.
- One of the main concerns of President Kennedy was what was going on in East Germany.
- When the Wall was built and the Soviet Union was not going to advance to West Berlin, Kennedy said, “This is the end of the Berlin crisis. They’re not going to overrun Berlin” (Reeves, 1999).
3. The United States Secretary of State, George C. Marshall, suggested Western support for the rebuilding of Europe.
- Marshall thought that food should be supplied, along with other products.
- The United States was supplying money to sustain Western Germany so that it was in competition with Russia who was controlling East Germany.
- President Harry S. Truman agreed that an economically recovered Europe would be more politically stable and would therefore have a less chance of becoming completely Communist.
- West Germany would have to give up money and put forth products to subsidize East Germany’s economy and get them up to par with the rest of the world.
4. East Germany was a “struggling social experiment” (Taylor).
- The West was booming in pursuit of political freedom and a higher standard of living.
- Between 1945 and 1961, around two and a half million people fled to West Germany.
- East Germany was losing educated professionals and skilled workers.
5. The expansion of the Soviet Union into Eastern Germany worried liberal democracies of the west, specifically the United States.
- “By 1947, the Cold War (1945–91) clearly was the most threatening issue dominating international affairs.” (Endangered Berlin)
- There was a battle of social and political ideas between the United States and the Soviet Union.
- John F. Kennedy: "It would be a mistake for others to look upon Berlin, because of its location, as a tempting target. The United States is there; the United Kingdom and France are there; the pledge of NATO is there—and the people of Berlin are there.” (John F. Kennedy: Berlin Crisis)
- There was not a peace treaty between the United States and the Soviet Union even in 1958, and Nikita Khrushchev sent a letter to Western powers. (John F. Kennedy: Berlin Crisis)
- "It shall be the policy of this Nation to regard any nuclear missile launched from Cuba against any nation in the Western Hemisphere as an attack by the Soviet Union on the United States, requiring a full retaliatory response upon the Soviet Union." (John F. Kennedy: Soviet Arms Buildup in Cuba)
- There was much hostility between the Unites States and the Soviet Union.
- The United States was fighting to keep West Germany safe and under control. If the wall was not up and East Germany was not under Communist rule, then the United States would not invest so much into West Germany.
6. “And let us hear at that time from the two and one-half million refugees who have fled the Communist regime in East Germany. (JFK)
- This displayed that the people were voting for Western-type freedom.
7. German people were hesitant about the unification of East and West Germany.
- “Anxiety concerning the possibility of German reunification has been voiced, from time to time”
(http://chnm.gmu.edu/1989/items/show/324).
- These fears cannot be dismissed because that would be like concentrating too much on
“demarcation” propaganda statements from East Germans.
8. West Germany was not in a good geographical area to be fighting East Germany and its controller.
9. West Germany itself bounced back from an economic decline in 1949. (Taylor, 2009)
- Steal industry was prevalent in West Germany.
- February 1951 – economic policy reached a turning point with the Federal Government’s decision to suspend trade liberalization.
- It was ruled by up-to-date and modern countries, while East Berlin was ruled by Communists who did not have technological advancements, and East Germans were lucky to have clean water.
- The United States was feeding money to West Germany.
10. People were overwhelmed at the fall of the Wall.
- Andres Ramos writes his personal account of experiencing the fall of the Wall.
- “We could hear the sound of heavy machines. With a giant drill, they were punching holes in the wall. Every time a drill poked through, everyone cheered” (Ramos, 1989 p. 92).
Reeves, Richard. (1999). How the wall prevented world war 3.
Craig, Campbell. (1999). Berlin crisis p. 24- 27
Taylor, frederick. (2009). The berlin wall: a world divided. New York:
"Endangered Berlin." Cold War Primary Sources. UXL-GALE, 2005.eNotes.com. 2006. 8 Mar, 2011 http://www.enotes.com/cold-war-primary-sources/
endangered-berlin
"John F. Kennedy: Berlin Crisis." Cold War Primary Sources. UXL-GALE, 2005. eNotes.com. 2006. 8 Mar, 2011 http://www.enotes.com/cold-war-primary-sources/
john-f-kennedy-berlin-crisis
"John F. Kennedy: Soviet Arms Buildup in Cuba." Cold War Primary Sources. UXL-GALE, 2005. eNotes.com. 2006. 8 Mar, 2011 http://www.enotes.com/cold-war-primary-sources/
john-f-kennedy-soviet-arms-buildup-cuba
Mur, Cindy. (2004). The berlin wall. Farmington Hills:
Ramos, Andreas. (1989). A personal account of the fall of the berlin wall: the 11th and 12th of november 1989
