Lecture 27: The Colonization of Europe

History 5 - Spring 2008: The Making of Modern Europe, 1453 to the Present

Intro: August 1944: Paris and Warsaw - divergent fates give different meanings to the “outcome” of  WWII. The division of Europe between the peripherial powers (later dubbed Super Powers), Russia & the U.S., was unintended, but built into the Anglo-American strategy in WWII. The Cold War meant the loss of the sovereignty for Europe’s states, turning them (especially the Eastern, but to some extent also in the Western ones) into “colonies” of the 2 powers on their periphery. Milestones in the Cold War:  the Soviet blockade of Berlin – and the U.S. airlift of July 1948 - May 1949; Berlin workers’ uprising 1953; Polish and Hungarian uprisings 1956 - while NATO looks on; Berlin Wall goes up in 1961, making the “Iron Curtain” more than a metaphor. Berlin – and Germany – now a “tripwire” should the Soviets try to move further West. The nuclear arms race and the shadow of Armagedden. Paradoxes  of nuclear power: you can’t use it. Bernard Brody and the rationale of “deterrance.”