2. What caused the Berlin Blockade (underlay the conflict)
● One of the main causes of the Berlin Blockade was the
Cold War which was just getting started. Stalin was
taking over eastern europe by salami tactics (divide and
conquer process of threats and alliances to overcome
opposition) and Czechoslovakia had just turned communist
(March 1948). And then the U.s. had just adopted the
Truman doctrine to try and contain the USSR.
3. What caused the Berlin Blockade (underlay the conflict)
● Another reason for the Berlin Blockade was that the U.S.
and The USSR had different aims for what they wanted to
do with Germany. Stalin wanted to destroy Germany, he was
already stripping East Germany of its wealth and
machinery. And on the other side Britain and the U.S.
wanted to rebuild Germany’s industry to become a wealthy
trading partner. This was done so the mistakes of
Versailles would not repeat themselves. Their differences
led to the Blockade. Their policies were so different
that conflict was bound to break out.
4. What caused the Berlin Blockade (actual events)
● In January 1947 Britain and the U.S. joined their two zones.
They called the new zone Bizonia which means “two zones”. The
combination of the American and British occupation zones made it
easier to run the area economically. It also led to the creation
of the German Economic Council with powers of taxation. With the
creation of this they changed directions in what they wanted to
do to Germany. It went from control of the Germans to increased
political autonomy for the Germans. The USSR realized this and
that the U.S. and Britain were trying to create a new strong
Germany and they were quite upset at this. The Russians were
trying to change Germany into an area they could take over and
destroy, not an area which would regrow and become allies with
them all.
5.
6. What caused the Berlin Blockade (actual events)
● Then on March 31st 1948, Congress voted for Marshall Aid. The
goals of this were to rebuild war-devastated regions, remove
trade barriers, modernize industry, make Europe prosperous once
more, and then lastly prevent the spread of Communism. The
Marshall Plan (also know as the European Recovery Program ERP)
required a lessening of interstate barriers, a dropping of many
regulations, and it encouraged an increase in productivity,
labor union membership, as well as the adoption of modern
business procedures. Stalin saw all that as an attempt to
undermine Russian influence in eastern Europe (he was right).
Because of the ERP the communist influence was greatly reduced
and the party’s popularity faded.
7. What caused the Berlin Blockade (actual events)
● Then finally on June 1st, the U.S. and Britain announced that
they wanted to create the new country of West Germany. They
introduced new currency into Bizonia and western Berlin on June
23rd. The people of eastern Europe began to change all their
money into the new western currency because they believed it was
worth more. Because of this the next day the Russians stopped
all road and rail traffic into Berlin. This was the first time
Stalin officially blocked off the borders of Berlin.
Currency
8. The Americans claimed that Stalin was trying to force the
U.S. out of Berlin and that the blockade was Russian
empire-building in eastern Europe. And on the other hand
Stalin claimed that by introducing the new currency, the
U.S. and Britain had been trying to wreck the east German
economy. Stalin also claimed that the airlift was simply a
propaganda move intended to make the Cold War worse.
9.
10. What was it
● The Berlin Blockade began in June of 1948 and was withdrawn
in May of 1949
● The Blockade was essentially a threat brought on by Stalin
to show his efforts to gain control of Europe, also in
retaliation of the threats from the U.S.
● It blocked all types of transportation EXCEPT by air
● Shut down other things including industry and electricity
● The main goal for the Blockade was to withhold access to
necessary goods in Berlin to practically starve the people
until they would submit under his power
● Also, lack of supplies would allow the Soviet Union to have
an upper hand at a time where Western Europe was flourishing
11. Solution?
● As the Blockade was a huge issue, it was essential to
find an answer very quickly
● Pressure was put onto President Truman to make a decision
because his input was very important
● It was a true test on Truman’s idea of ‘Containment’- he
was determined not to let USSR take west Berlin
● President Truman made the call on whether the United
States would stay in Berlin- “there was no discussion on
that point, we are going to stay-period”
● This is significant because it could have been the
tipping point for Stalin to declare war on the USA, and
Truman knew that but still stayed with Berlin
12. Berlin Airlift
● Many countries including the United States, Britain,
Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa all
worked together to form a solution which we now know as
the Berlin Airlift
● This solution was by no means an easy or simple task
though, as the goal was to sustain a city of two million
people only by air
13.
14. Berlin Airlift
● Participation in the Airlift was a huge
commitment that did not guarantee victory
● The Airlift lasted over a year - from June of 1948 to
September of 1949
● Constant inflow of supplies by air came in to Berlin - a
new plane landed in Berlin approximately every two minutes
- both day and night
● Supplies would include anything from coal and paper to food
● More than 2 million tons of goods were delivered within the
15 month operation
15. Result
● Why didn’t Stalin do something about the Airlift?
-A violent retaliation would have ignited tension between
the allies, thus potentially beginning a possible WWIII
● The Airlift ended up being a huge success that not only
allowed West Germany to re-stabilize, but also to thrive
in celebration of this major propaganda win against USSR
● Major failure on Stalin’s part as the blockade ended up
accelerating Western growth
● As a result of the conflict however, Germany would stay
divided politically- Democratic Western Germany and
Communist East Germany
16. Why it didn’t succeed
The Berlin Blockade was not successful because of strong
determination from defending western allies. Western Berlin
had been on the rise of growth before the Blockade, and the
purpose of the Blockade was to interrupt this growth. The
determination of victory on the U.S. and Britain’s part
aided in the Blockade’s failure for self-satisfying
incentives. If the airlift were to be successful, Germany
and Berlin would have them to thank and could continue to
support them economically. Stalin had no choice but to
withdraw the blockade since it had proven not to work.
