Berlin Crisis: Blockade and Airlift 1948 Flashcards
Cause 1 - Stalin started to see West Berlin as a threat
West Berlin was beginning to recover due to Marshall Aid in 1947 and Stalin saw this as a threat to Communism in his sector of Germany.
Cause 2 - The USA and its allies created a new zone and currency which angered Stalin even more and made him act
The Allies had begun to rebuild Germany. By 1948 the UK, USA and French had joined together to create Trizonia. Also, they were going to introduce a new currency, the Deutschmark, to kick start the economy again.
Feature 1 - Stalin decided to block off land routes into West Berlin to try and force out the Western powers
On 24th June 1948 Stalin closed all roads, canals and railways between West Germany and West Berlin to starve the West Berliners and force the allies to abandon West Berlin.
Feature 2 - Truman decided to supply the citizens of West Berlin by airlift rather than give in to Stalin
The USA began to fly in supplies to West Berlin in what was code named ‘Operation Vittles’. By Spring 1949, 8000 tons a day were being flown in with a flight landing every 3 minutes.
Consequence 1 - Stalin was forced to back down but the whole event showed that the Grand Alliance had completely broken down
Stalin called off the blockade on the 12th May 1949 when he realised the allies would not give in. The blockade had demonstrated a complete breakdown of the war time alliance and the west realised that Stalin would not keep the promises made at Potsdam.
Consequence 2 - Because the blockade had threatened war, NATO was formed and West Germany joined to protect it from any future threats.
The blockade had threatened war and so in 1949 the western powers formed NATO, a defensive military alliance against attack from the East-In September 1949 West Germany became an independent state called the Federal Republic of Germany. In October 1949 East Germany became the German Democratic Republic. Any hope of a united Germany ended.
