LibGuides: HASS12 Modern History ATAR: The changing European world since 1945

The Berlin Wall and the Iron Curtain

Churchill delivers Iron Curtain speech
Article on Winston Churchill's Iron Curtain speech.
Making the history of 1989 [Center for History and New Media]
A collection of resources about the fall of Communism in 1989.

Berlin Wall - closing the Iron Curtain

This drama documentary reveals the shocking events that happened the night the Berlin Wall went up, through the eyes of journalist Adam Kellet-Long, who was there.

Source: ClickView, SBS One, 2014, 48:04, URL: https://online.clickview.com.au/libraries/videos/760/berlin-wall-closing-the-iron-curtain

The rise and fall of the Berlin Wall

Konrad H. Jarausch details the history of the Berlin Wall. Click on the orange title above for a link to an online interactive lesson to accompany TED-eD video with an interactive quiz, further research sources and discussion questions.

Source: TED-eD, 2017, Duration 6:25, URL: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-berlin-wall-konrad-h-jarausch

Churchill's Iron Curtain speech

During his address at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, Mr Churchill spoke of the situation in Europe and the "iron curtain" which has descended between the east and west of the continent.

Source: YouTube, British Movietone, 2017, 5:25, URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2FM3_h33Tg

World Book Online Advanced articles

Capitalism
Takes a closer look at definitions and meanings of Capitalism.
Communism
Describes Communism in theory and practise.
Democracy
Definition and features of democracy.
Yalta Conference
The agenda at the Yalta Conference included the major problems in a postwar Europe.
Potsdam Conference
Potsdam Conference was the last meeting among the leaders of the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States during World War II, and confirmed earlier arrangements for dividing Germany into British, French, Soviet, and U.S. military occupation zones.
Cold War
Cold War describes the intense rivalry that developed after World War II (1939-1945) between groups of Communist and non-Communist nations.
Harry S. Truman (Truman Doctrine)
An overview of his personal and political life and achievements.
Marshall Plan
Marshall Plan encouraged European nations to work together for economic recovery after World War II
Berlin Airlift
Berlin Airlift was the historic effort by which France, the United Kingdom, and the United States supplied West Berlin entirely by air during a Soviet blockade.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
NATO seeks to protect the freedom and security of its member countries through political and military efforts.
Warsaw Pact
Warsaw Pact was a treaty that held most Eastern European nations in a military command under tight Soviet control in response to the formation of NATO.
Common market
Common market is an economic union of nations.
European Union (EU)
European Union (EU) is an economic and political partnership among 27 European countries, which form a single economic market without internal barriers to trade, labor, and investment.
European Free Trade Association (EFTA)
European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is a trade organization of four European nations. It works to remove tariffs and other trade obstacles throughout the world for the benefit of its members.
Monnet, Jean
Jean Monnet (1888-1979), a French businessman and statesman, led the movement to unify Western Europe in the 1950's and 1960's.
Group of Twenty
Group of Twenty, often called the G-20, or G20, is an organization of finance ministers and central bank governors from 19 countries and the European Union. The G-20 works to promote global growth and development.
Helsinki Accords
Helsinki Accords consist of several international agreements reached by the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) in the 1970's and 1980's.

Foreign relations

The history of the European Union [European Union]
The European Union is set up with the aim of ending the frequent and bloody wars between neighbours, which culminated in the Second World War.
The post-war European idea and the first European movements (1945-1949) [University of Luxembourg]
Western Europe realised that its recovery from WWII would come through unity, through the pooling of its economic resources — where necessary with US financial, technical and military support — and through the creation of jointly run, efficient institutions.
U.S. - Russia nuclear arms control [Council on Foreign Relations]
Over the decades, the United States and Soviet Union signed various arms control agreements as a means to manage their rivalry and limit the risk of nuclear war.
Proposed Prevention of an Arms Race in Space (PAROS) Treaty [Nuclear Threat Initiative]
A PAROS treaty would build on the efforts of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty to preserve space for peaceful uses.
What is NATO? [NATO]
The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation’s purpose is to guarantee the freedom and security of its members through political and military means.
The Maastricht Treaty [Encyclopaedia Britannica online]
The Maastricht Treaty (formally known as the Treaty on European Union), which was signed on February 7, 1992, created the European Union.