Role of the Marshall Plan in Europe’s Economic Development

Running Head: HISTORY ESSAY 0
Role of the Marshall Plan in Europe’s Economic Development
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HISTORY ESSAY 1
Role of the Marshall Plan in Europe’s Economic Development
After World War II, Europeans countries suffered a huge loss, including the leading
industrial countries such as Belgium, Italy, Great Britain, France, and Germany. Due to these
losses, there were some of the regions, which had the extreme scarcity of food. This brings
the crucial crisis in Europe and to improve the conditions, implementation of the Marshall’s
Plan became necessary. In 1948, the United States helps Europe in the financial crisis, under
the program named ‘Marshall Plan’. The other name of the Marshall Plan was ‘European
Recovery Program’. The Series of reforms and strategies, which can help in rebuilding the
economic structure of European Countries, specified in the ‘Marshall Plan’ (Marshall Plan,
1948, 2009). This crisis happened after World War II. This plan established in the
controversial period, when European countries suffering from very bad economic conditions.
To remove destructions and poverty in European countries, the United States made the
‘Marshall Plan’ to recover the economic stability in Europe. Under this act, the U.S. gave
Europe more than $12 billion to cure Europeans countries. This aid helped the European
nation in economic development. Officially, the plan established on April 3rd, 1948 and in
1951, U.S. funding ended (Elder, 2015). This discussion explains the role of the Marshall
Plan in Europe’s economic development.
In January 1947, Harry S. Truman, who was the President of the U.S., appoints
George C. Marshall, as the Secretary of State. He was a military officer who headed the army
of World War II at that time. In Addition, Marshall earned the position in the administration
of the American public. President appoints him as a secretary of state to bring stability in
economic conditions of European Countries (George Catlett Marshall, 2019). George C.
Marshall knew that economic stability would only happen, when the condition of the
European people stabilized. Soon after the appointment of Marshall, critical conditions took

HISTORY ESSAY 2
place in Greece. Marshall realized that only U.S. was economically able to help Greece. In
World War II, the U.S. was the only place not suffered with the crisis. Hence, the American
decides to help them, to rebuild their economic conditions. The major losses where Europe
needed help were the areas related to agriculture, roads, factories and transportations. In
addition, the U.S. had a fear that the scarcity of food, poverty, and unemployment would
boost the formation of the Communist party in Europe and Marshall does not want that
Communism spread in Europeans countries. Therefore, in the White House, President
Truman called off a meeting with congressional leaders, Secretary of State Marshall and
some of the important authorities. At that meeting, they all had debated on Greece conditions
and then they decided to support Marshall Plan. After this, Marshall faced many political
obstacles against the European Recovery Program. Some of the European authorities strongly
opposed this idea, as they do not want their country dominated by Americans. However, at
the end, Marshall conquered beliefs of European people and convinced them for the
execution of Economic Recovery Program.
The roots for Marshall Plan initiated in the year, 1946 (Gimbel, 1978). The State
Department, Russian specialist, George F. Kennan analysed the Soviet intentions and wrote a
telegram about it. This telegram published as an article, by a magazine named as Foreign
Affairs. This article had a greater impact as it was widely discussed. According to Kennan,
the Soviets were unsecured because of the surrounded capitalist countries. In order to secure
the Soviets, they needed their power expanded. Marshall, the Secretary of State had
appointed Kennan for heading a plan. This plan accomplished to assess the condition of
European nations, that whether they need the expansion or not. Kennan reported Marshall
about the declining condition of the European people. Many of the people were homeless,
unemployed and not able to bear their necessities (Knapp, 1979). Because of inflation, the
people who had a job were also suffering from these problems. All the water resources,