Soviet occupation zone of GermanyThe Soviet occupation zone (Sowjetische Besatzungszone (SBZ) or Ostzone, "East Zone"; Советская оккупационная зона Германии, Sovetskaya okkupatsionnaya zona Germanii, "Soviet occupation zone of Germany") was an area of Germany that was occupied by the Soviet Union as a communist area, established as a result of the Potsdam Agreement on 1 August 1945. On 7 October 1949 the German Democratic Republic (GDR), commonly referred to in English as East Germany, was established in the Soviet occupation zone.
Yalta ConferenceThe Yalta Conference, held 4–11 February 1945, was the World War II meeting of the heads of government of the United States, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union to discuss the postwar reorganization of Germany and Europe. The three states were represented by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and General Secretary Joseph Stalin. The conference was held near Yalta in Crimea, Soviet Union, within the Livadia, Yusupov, and Vorontsov palaces.
BaltiyskBaltiysk (Балти́йск; Pillau; Old Prussian: Pillawa; Piliava; Yiddish: פּילאַווע, Pilave) is a seaport town and the administrative center of Baltiysky District in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located on the northern part of the Vistula Spit, on the shore of the Strait of Baltiysk separating the Vistula Lagoon from Gdańsk Bay. Population: Baltiysk, the westernmost town in Russia, is a major base of the Russian Navy's Baltic Fleet and is connected to St. Petersburg by ferry.
Evacuation of East PrussiaThe evacuation of East Prussia was the movement of German civilian population and military personnel from East Prussia between 20 January and March 1945, that was initially organized and carried out by state authorities but quickly turned into a chaotic flight from the Red Army. A part of the evacuation of German civilians towards the end of World War II, these events are not to be confused with the expulsion from East Prussia that followed after the war had ended.
MiędzyzdrojeMiędzyzdroje ('mjɛnd͡zɨˈzdrɔjɛ;), historically known as Misdroy in English and German, is a city and a seaside resort in northwestern Poland on the island of Wolin on the Baltic coast. The city is located in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, and is a seat of the Kamień County and the municipality of Międzyzdroje. In 2016, it was inhabited by around 5,500 people. The town is often referred to as The Pearl of the Baltic. It is situated between wide sandy beaches with high cliffs and the forests of the Woliński National Park (which includes a bison reserve).
Morgenthau PlanThe Morgenthau Plan was a proposal to weaken Germany following World War II by eliminating its arms industry and removing or destroying other key industries basic to military strength. This included the removal or destruction of all industrial plants and equipment in the Ruhr. It was first proposed by United States Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau Jr. in a 1944 memorandum entitled Suggested Post-Surrender Program for Germany.
GrudziądzGrudziądz 'grudzionc (Graudentum, Graudentium, Graudenz) is a city in northern Poland, with 92,552 inhabitants (2021). Located on the Vistula River, it lies within the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship and is the fourth-largest city in its province. The Old Town of Grudziądz and 14th-century granaries were declared National Historic Monuments of Poland. Grudziądz is located close to the east shore of the river Vistula, approximately north-east of Świecie, south of Gdańsk and south-west of Kaliningrad.
Curonian SpitThe Curonian (Courish) Spit (Kuršių nerija; Ку́ршская коса́; Kurische Nehrung; Kuršu kāpas) is a long, thin, curved sand-dune spit that separates the Curonian Lagoon from the Baltic Sea. Its southern portion lies within Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, and its northern within southwestern Klaipėda County, Lithuania. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site shared by Lithuania and Russia. The Curonian Spit stretches from the Sambia Peninsula on the south to its northern tip next to a narrow strait, across which is the port city of Klaipėda on the mainland of Lithuania.
BizoneThe Bizone (ˈbiːˌt͡soːnə) or Bizonia was the combination of the American and the British occupation zones on 1 January 1947 during the occupation of Germany after World War II. With the addition of the French occupation zone on 1 August 1948 the entity became the Trizone (ˈtʁiːˌt͡soːnə; sometimes jokingly called Trizonesia (Trizonesien, tʁit͡soˈneːzi̯ən)). Later, on 23 May 1949, the Trizone became the Federal Republic of Germany, commonly known as West Germany.
Beneš decreesThe Beneš decrees were a series of laws drafted by the Czechoslovak government-in-exile in the absence of the Czechoslovak parliament during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in World War II. They were issued by President Edvard Beneš from 21 July 1940 to 27 October 1945 and retroactively ratified by the Interim National Assembly of Czechoslovakia on 6 March 1946. The decrees dealt with various aspects of the restoration of Czechoslovakia and its legal system, denazification, and reconstruction of the country.
