On June 24th, 1948, the Soviet Union placed a blockade on Berlin's American, British, and French

occupied zones. No food, fuel or supplies could enter the area known as West Berlin.

Many people thought that either the allies would have to capitulate or engage in an armed

conflict.

However, the American and British eventually figured out another way around the blockade. Learn more about the Berlin Airlift and how it shaped post-war Europe

on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Book your ticket to happiness with Sun Express Airlines. To understand why the Berlin Airlift happened, we have to turn the clock back several years

to understand what was happening in post-war Germany.

As the war was nearing its end, the ally leaders met in the

Yalta in the Crimean Peninsula to plan what the post-war order was

going to look like in Europe. The primary thing that the powers agreed on was

that Germany would be divided amongst the Allies.

Each country would be given a zone that they would control, and the Americans in British

eventually agreed that they would give part of their zone to the French. In addition to dividing up Germany, Berlin itself would be divided amongst the four powers into zones of control.

And likewise, Austria would be divided into four zones, as was its capital Vienna.

One thing that all the Allies could agree on was that after two world wars

Germany couldn't be allowed to become a military power again.

At the Potsdam conference in August of 1945 after the war,

further agreements about Germany's future were made. The S.S. the Gestapo, the German

Army, the Navy, and every other institution that existed in Germany were

disbanded and all Nazi laws were nullified.

The desire to punish Germany after the war among some people was quite high. For example, the United States Secretary

of the Treasury Henry Morgenthaw proposed a plan whereby Germany would

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