Potsdam Conference
The Potsdam Conference was at Cecilienhof, which was the home of Prince Hohenzollern. The conference was named the Potsdam conference, because it was held in Potsdam, Germany. This conference lasted from July 17, 1945 to August 2, 1945. I think it is amazing that one conference lasted that long, but I know that the leaders were making very important decisions that would affect lots of people. This conference was held to negotiate terms of the end of World War 2. The major leaders at the conference were Joseph Stalin, from the Soviet Union, the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, and the U. S president, Harry Truman. Clement Attlee also participated at the conference, because Great Britain was still waiting for the outcome of the 1945 general election. Attlee later replaced Churchill at Prime Minister of Great Britain. Though I don’t know much about Attlee or Churchill, I find Churchill’s loss surprising. It seemed to me that after World War 2, Churchill was well liked, and considered a hero by the public, so I found it shocking that he lost. As I said earlier, I don’t know much about either of the two, and many things could have affected the results of this election.
The Potsdam Conference’s goals were to figure out how to punish the Nazis, establish post- war order, what to do about the effects of the war, and what to do about peace treaties. During the conference, the leaders decided to divide Vietnam at the 17th parallel (Da Nang) for convenience. They also decided that Japanese forces in the southern half of Indochina would surrender to the British, and that the Japanese forces in the northern half would surrender to the Chinese. The Potsdam Declaration was later issued. This outlined the terms of surrender for Japan in Asia. During the country, decisions about the Nazis and Germany were frequently being decided upon. It was decided that Germany would have to reduce the nation’s army, weapons, and military vehicles, the Nazi group was to be disbanded, Germany would become more democratic, there would be a redistribution of powers, and the national economy would transition from a monopoly, to a free market economy. It was also agreed upon that Germany and Austria were to be divided into four zones, Berlin and Vienna were to also be divided into four zones, all German annexations in Europe were to be reversed, and Germany’s size would be reduced by approximately 25% compared to its size in 1937. Also, there were to be no German people remaining beyond the new eastern borders of Germany, 10% of Germanys industrial capacity would be transferred to the Soviet Union within two years, and German standards of living did not exceed the European average.
One of the main focuses in the Potsdam Conference was the demilitarization of Germany. Like I said before, demilitarization is the reduction of a nation’s army, weapons, and military vehicles. To ensure demilitarization would occur in Germany, all German civilian shipyard and aircraft factories were destroyed. The production of all war- potential items such as metals, chemicals, and machinery were also reduced. This was determined by the Allied Control Commission. Again, like I talked about earlier, decartelization was to occur in Germany. To ensure that decartelization would happen, all research and international trade was to be controlled. The economy was also supposed to be reorganized, and be more peaceful. Germany was also supposed to focus on being a more agricultural country. In 1946, it was decided that Germany’s exports were to be coal, beer, toys, textiles, and other products, in place of heavy industrial products, which were most of Germany’s exports before the war.
During the conference, it was brought to the leader’s attention, that the Soviet Union still had control of part of Poland. It was later decided that the Poles (people from Poland) were serving in the British Army would be free to return to Poland, but they would not be guaranteed safety in returning to their communist country. Also it was agreed upon that Poland’s border on the western frontier should await the peace settlement, which would later be decided in the Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany in 1990. The Soviet Union also agreed that pay for Poland’s damages during the invasion, and also agreed to make amends with Poland.
I thought that having this conference as a good idea, because the countries needed to make sure that another war like this wouldn’t happen. It was also important, because it disbanded the Nazis. This was very important, because if we didn’t disband the Nazis, there would have been more violence, and who knows, maybe years later the Nazis could have gained power and there would have been another Hitler. Overall, the outcome of the conference seems to have had positive effects, because so far there hasn’t been a World War 3. If we did have a World War 3, it would be devastation to everyone, because I’m sure there would be more deaths that any other war before.
“I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” – Albert Einstein
sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potsdam_Conference
http://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/PotsdamConf
Comments
Interesting quote by Einstein!
Excellent job Jenna! Well written!