Germany: Cold War to Reunification

Transcription

1 Germany: Cold War to Reunification

2 What happened to Germany after the war? The leaders of the Allies met to discuss the future of Germany at what is known as the Potsdam Conference.

3 Germany Divided Here they decided that Germany would be divided and occupied by the four major Allies: USA, UK, France and the Soviet Union Why did the Allies decide to occupy Germany?

4 Other Terms of the Potsdam conference Some of the terms reached at the conference were as follows: Prosecution of all Nazi war criminals Reversal of all German annexations after 1937 Destruction or control of all military potential

5 In 1948, the U.S., U.K, and France combined their territories into West Germany and the Soviet controlled territory became East Germany East and West Germany Even the capital of Berlin in East Germany was divided into East and West.

6 BERLIN DIVIDED.

7 : Berlin Airlift

8 How were West and East Germany different? The Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), which was West Germany, developed into a capitalist country with a democratic government. The German Democratic Republic (GDR), which was East Germany, developed into a communist country with an autocratic government.

9 What is the main idea of this cartoon?

10 What s the difference in Governments? This idea was very different from capitalism found in the United States. The United States believed that business should be privately owned.the U.S. also believes in holding free elections (democracy) The Soviet Union was a communist country that believed a powerful central government should control the economy as well as the government. The USSR was also ruled by a dictator and did not have free elections

11 The Rise of the Superpowers The Soviet Union and the United States emerged as the world s superpowers. Tension between these countries led to a fierce competition in the fields of technology (space race), weapons (nuclear arms race), and even sports (Olympics). This competition led to the fear of nuclear war. also known as the Cold War.

12 The Cold War The Cold War ( ) was a period of great tension and competition between the democratic countries of the West and the communist countries of the East led by the USSR. The two sides formed alliances: NATO (Western alliance) and the Warsaw Pact (communist alliance) NATO stands for North Atlantic Treaty Organization

13 Blue=NATO countries Red=Warsaw Pact countries Yellow=Non-alliance countries

14 The Iron Curtain o The Iron Curtain was an invisible wall that rose between Eastern and Western European countries after WWII. The eastern side was communist and the western side was democratic. o People of the East were restricted from leaving their countries, and people of the West who wanted to visit the East were restricted as well.

15

16

17

18 The Berlin Wall Tensions grew. In 1961, communist leaders built the Berlin Wall. It separated the communist part of the city from the democratic sections.

19

20 The Berlin Wall Built to stop daily migration of huge numbers of professionals and highly skilled workers from East to West Berlin. It split families and cut people off from their jobs. East Germany claimed it was constructed as a border protection system.

21 Walled In

22 The Berlin Wall Initially constructed on 13 August 1961 Improved reinforcements over the years Dismantled on 9 November 1989

23

24 The Berlin Wall 96 miles long 45,000 sections of reinforced concrete (12 feet high; 4 feet wide) Top lined with smooth pipe Reinforced with fencing, barbed wire, anti-vehicle trenches Mined and booby trapped with tripwires 116 watch towers; 20 bunkers

25 Checkpoint Charlie

26 Satellite View of the Berlin Wall The yellow line indicates the length of the Wall.

27

28 Which side is east Berlin and which side is west Berlin?

29 Escape from Berlin

30 German Reunification

31 Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.

32 In November 1989, the Berlin Wall was torn down, and Germany began the process of unifying. People around the world celebrated.

33 Two Plus Four Talks Involved East and West Germany and the four occupation forces of USA, UK, France, and the Soviet Union Signed in Moscow on 12 September 1990 Led way to reunification on 3 October 1990

34 The Cold War was over.

35 Terms for Reunification Germany limited to number of armed forces Could not manufacture or possess nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons No foreign armed forces or nuclear weapons stationed in former GDR Germany accepted the border made between Germany and Poland after 1945 Four Powers renounced all rights in Germany, including Berlin all occupation forces left in 1994

36 Effects of Reunification West Germany absorbed most of the cost of rebuilding East Germany. East German businesses collapsed when competing with West German businesses. Most of former GDR de-industrialized, causing a 25% unemployment rate in some parts of the country.

37 Problems with Reunification Since the fall of communism, East Germans have freedom and more choices; but many are having difficulty with the loss of free child and medical care, more expensive living costs, and no guarantees for jobs. Since the West Germans helped to rebuild the East s economy, many feel that the East Germans should be more grateful.

38 Collapse of the Soviet Union After the fall of the Berlin Wall, people in other Soviet controlled countries demanded independence. By 1991 the Soviet Union was no more. Many countries were created from the former Soviet Union. Russia was the largest.