IB History Cold War Crises - Berlin Blockade Notes

Key Questions

1. What were the economic and political causes of the Berlin Blockade?
2. How did the Soviet blockade of West Berlin unfold from June 1948?
3. Why was the Western airlift significant in demonstrating Cold War resolve?
4. What was the long-term significance of the crisis for the division of Germany and Europe?

Causes of the Berlin Blockade

1. After World War Two, Germany was divided into four occupation zones controlled by the USA, Britain, France, and the USSR.
2. Berlin, located deep inside the Soviet zone, was also split into four sectors - making it a flashpoint for superpower rivalry.
3. The USA and Britain merged their zones in 1947 to form Bizonia, later joined by France to create Trizonia in 1948.
4. The Marshall Plan (1947) offered economic aid to rebuild Western Europe - the USSR rejected it as an attempt to spread American capitalism.
5. In June 1948, the Western Allies introduced the Deutschmark as a new currency in their zones and West Berlin.
6. The currency reform threatened Soviet control because it signalled Western commitment to a strong, unified capitalist West Germany.
7. Stalin feared that a prosperous West Berlin would act as a "shop window" for capitalism, undermining communist ideology in the Soviet zone.
8. Deep ideological mistrust meant that economic decisions were interpreted by both sides as deliberate acts of aggression.

The Soviet Blockade (June 1948)

1. On 24 June 1948, Stalin ordered all road, rail, and canal links between West Germany and West Berlin to be cut.
2. The blockade aimed to force the Western Allies to either abandon West Berlin or reverse the currency reform.
3. Over 2 million civilians in West Berlin faced starvation - they had only enough food and fuel for approximately 36 days.
4. The USSR also cut electricity supplies to West Berlin, increasing the pressure on the civilian population.
5. Stalin calculated that the West would back down rather than risk military confrontation with the Soviet Union so soon after World War Two.