COLD WAR GERMANY By Jessica Flynn 1950- 89
Jan 14, 2016
COLD WAR GERMANY
By Jessica Flynn
195
0-
89
West Germany: Pre-wall
Joined NATO (1955) A place of economic growth
Wirtschaftswunder (1955)Joined the European Economic
Community (1957)
East Germany: Pre-wall
The Soviet Union had seized most of their industrial equipment so their economic conditions were dire
1953 Uprising: 40,000 construction workers revolted but were suppressed by Soviet troopsJune 17 became a national holiday in
remembrance in FDR Joined the Warsaw Pact (1955)
THE BERLIN CRISIS
1958: Nikita Khrushchev demanded all Western troops leave West Berlin within 6 months. Unlike
the Blockade in 1948, the city was too large to be supported via air shipments, so it became a
concern how it was to be dealt with. They came to a temporary agreement in Geneva, but
tensions rose again after the U2 incident in 1960. Eisenhower refused to give in and met with Khrushchev in Austria (1961) for discussion
which did not lead to any resolutions. Instead, a wall was erected and Soviet and American troops
stood on either side of the wall in a stand-off manner.
195
8-
61
The Berlin Wall (August 31, 1961)
Despite Ulbricht’s claims that there was “no intention to build a wall”, an “anti-fascist protection barrier” is erected regardless
1961
Life in East Germany Farmers were forced to divide their land between
each other equally and give up their harvests to the people
Monetary award system for having children Stasi (1950)
Secret police force similar to the Gestapo Youth Groups
Thälmann Pionier Frei Deutsche JugendMilitary training one month each year
CultureSocialist realismGerman-centric
Party Opposition
West Germany RAF
Guerilla army force that caused 289 bombings
KBWA Maoist
organisation
East Germany Barely any
opposition as fear was prevalentTowards the end,
Monday Demonstrations were common
“Ich bin ein Berliner!”
Kennedy’s speech to West Berlin to address the US’s standpoint in regards to the Wall and their unchanging support to the FDR
1963
“Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”
Ronald Reagan stood in the same place as Kennedy had and demanded for the completion of the arms race and called for the fall of the Berlin Wall
1980
Fall of the Berlin Wall 9 November,1989
Günter Schabowski was late to a press conference in which he was supposed to announce that East Germans were now able to apply for a travel visa into West Germany, but he made it seem like every East German could leave immediately, hence reuniting the two halves of Germany.
1989
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8GzptqhT68