The Marshall Plan, 1947

After World War II, America needed Europe and Japan to be economically strong in order to oppose the combined Communist threat of the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe.  The U.S. also needed Europe to be strong because “Europeans could not buy U.S. products unless they received dollars from the United States” (Moss, 2010 p.29).  The Marshall plan was instituted to tie America and Europe together both financially, and can easily be viewed as the foundation of the current Global Economy.  “It also proved to be a major stimulus to American economic activity” (Moss, 2010 p.30), as well as allowing Western Europe to get back on its feet economically after the costly War.

Many Western European nations were assisted by the Marshall Plan.  The Marshall Plan created strong economic ties between Western European countries and the U.S., which would become foundational to the Global Economy with the creation of the European Union.  Click here to link to the original image.  

Europe in Ruins and the Marshall Plan (2009) details the consequences of WWII, and the effects of the Martial Plan to bring Western Europe back from the brink of economic failure.  Click here to link to video on You Tube.

References

loc.gov. (n.d.). Western europe's recovery. Retrieved from http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/marshall/images/wholemap.jpg 

 Moss, G. D. (2010). Moving on, the american people since 1945. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. 

youtube.com. (2009, June 7). Europe in ruins and the marshall plan. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUt7Lr3lubc&feature=related