Revision Notes

Berlin Crisis – Overview

In March 1948 the Russians began to regulate traffic on the road to Berlin in their section of Germany. Train departures from Berlin were stopped and in June all traffic was stopped.

Why Russia did this:

  • Berlin was deep inside the Russian zone and only 100 miles from the Polish border.
  • In January 1947, U.S.A. and Great Britain had joined their zones into one economical unit and France joined in 1948. A new currency, the Deutsche Mark, was introduced in the western zones in June 1948. These movements made Russia feel isolated since it wasn’t included in any of the discussions.
  • Russia felt threatened by the economic prosperity in the westerns zones so it looked as if Communism was failing.