Page 35 - The Making of the German Post-war Economy

PART I

CONCEPTION AND

COMMUNICATION

We will work, be happy with our lot, modest – and trust in God.
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Maybe one day there will be a new, admirable Germany again.
(Ursula von Kardorff, 1945)

In May 1945 German administration virtually disintegrated and any
reconstruction of governmental and institutional structures could come
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only from outside. Initially, however, there was a vacuum not only in
German government, but also in Allied policy regarding the economic and
political reorganisation of post-war Germany. Although the occupying
powers’ determination to reform German policy, economy and society
was resolute, there was neither a common Allied approach, due to a lack
of consensus, nor were there singular and coherent individual plans on
how to best achieve these goals. The conferences of Casablanca, Teheran,
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and Yalta did not make statements on these subjects, but instead
proclaimed the supremacy of the Allied Control Council, and demanded
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the Germans’ full and unconditional compliance with its instructions.
First the communiqué of the Potsdam Conference, released on 2
August 1945, contained detailed, indeed inconsistent, declarations which
had a decisive impact on the development of German political life and
thus on the reorganisation and development of the economy in post-war
Germany. The agreement, or proclamation, on policy for the occupation
and reconstruction aimed at outlawing National Socialism and abolishing
its ramified system. In its place, the Potsdam Agreement sought to restore
local self-government throughout Germany on democratic principles, and,
in particular, through elective councils. Therefore, democratic parties with
the right of assembly and public discussion were to be allowed and
encouraged. Further, representative and elective principles were to be