Marshall Plan

The Marshall Plan, known officially following its enactment as the European Recovery Program (ERP), was the main plan of the United States for the reconstruction of Europe following World War II. The initiative was named for United States Secretary of State George Marshall and was largely the creation of State Department officials including William L. Clayton and George F. Kennan.

Early ideas

Long before Marshall's speech a number of figures had raised the notion of a reconstruction plan for Europe. U.S. Secretary of State James F. Byrnes presented an early version of the plan during a speech held at the Stuttgart Opera House (Germany) on September 6, 1946. In addition, General Lucius D. Clay asked industrialist Lewis H. Brown to inspect postwar Germany and draft "A Report on Germany" in 1947, containing basic facts relating to the problems in Germany with recommendations for reconstruction. Undersecretary of State Dean Acheson had made a major speech on the issue, which had mostly been ignored, and Vice President Alben W. Barkley had also raised the idea.

Related Topics:
James F. Byrnes - Stuttgart - Lucius D. Clay - Lewis H. Brown - A Report on Germany - Dean Acheson - Alben W. Barkley

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The main alternative to large quantities of American aid was to take it from Germany. This notion became known as the Morgenthau plan, named after U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau, Jr. It advocated extracting massive war reparations from Germany to help rebuild those countries it had attacked, and also to prevent Germany from ever being rebuilt. Closely related was the Monnet plan of French bureaucrat Jean Monnet that proposed giving France control over the German coal areas of the Ruhr and Saar and using these resources to bring France to 150% of prewar industrial production. In 1946 the occupying powers agreed to put strict limits on how quickly Germany could reindustrialize. The problems inherent in this plan soon became apparent. Germany had long been the industrial giant of Europe, and its poverty held back the general European recovery. The continued scarcity in Germany also led to considerable expenses for the occupying powers, which were obliged to try and make up the most important shortfalls. Thus the Monnet and Morgenthau plans were rejected. By April 1947 Truman, Marshall and Undersecretary of State Dean Acheson were convinced of the need for substantial quantities of aid from the United States.

Related Topics:
Morgenthau plan - Henry Morgenthau, Jr. - War reparations - Monnet plan - Jean Monnet - Ruhr - Saar - Dean Acheson

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The idea of a reconstruction plan was also an outgrowth of the ideological shift that had occurred in the United States in the Great Depression. The economic calamity of the 1930s had convinced many that the unfettered free market could not guarantee economic well-being. Many who had worked on designing the New Deal programs to revive the American economy now sought to apply these lessons to Europe. At the same time the Great Depression had shown the dangers of tariffs and protectionism, creating a strong belief in the need for free trade and European economic integration.{{ref|Hogan}}

Related Topics:
Great Depression - New Deal

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~