Summary
Highlights
Following World War II, Europe grappled with fundamental questions regarding governmental responsibilities, economic organization, and the balance between large international markets and smaller economic groupings. These questions were explored across the Iron Curtain and remain relevant today.
Communist governments pursued rapid industrialization with massive projects like the steelworks at Nova Huta. Both East and West saw agriculture industrialized with chemical fertilizers and machinery, increasing yields and reducing farm labor. In the East, land was collectivized, while in the West, farms remained private, but larger ones absorbed smaller ones.
Cross-border trade revived in Western Europe, aided by Marshall Plan funds. Governments also established state-sponsored institutions for health and education, leading to the development of the welfare state. Pioneered by Sweden, these programs aimed to combat poverty, ensure sufficient living standards, and provide education, seen as essential for a thriving democracy. The British National Health Service, instituted in 1948, is a prominent example of these expanded social safety nets.
In communist countries, welfare programs were accompanied by the confiscation of private property, aiming for collective ownership. In Western Europe, while strengthening the public sector, these programs also bolstered private industry by fostering a healthier and more capable populace. Government-sponsored public schools and transportation further supported this growth.
Post-war planners, inspired by figures like Jean Monnet and Robert Schuman, created key institutions like the European Economic Community (EEC), also known as the Common Market. Preceded by the Organization for European Economic Cooperation and the European Coal and Steel Community, the EEC aimed for broader free trade. The Treaty of Rome in 1957, signed by six European countries, abolished tariffs and promoted the free flow of labor, aiming for a 'United States of Europe.' Despite initial resistance from figures like Charles DeGaulle and Britain, the EEC flourished, leading Britain to join in 1973.
Post-war scarcity gave way to prosperity and a burst of consumerism in Western Europe, with a high demand for household appliances. Teenagers emerged as a distinct consumer group, contributing to continental integration through travel. This era also saw anxieties about 'Americanization,' dubbed 'coca-cola zera' by Germans. In Eastern Europe, consumerism grew after Stalin's death, leading to 'goulash communism' under Nikita Khrushchev, which aimed to improve living standards.
The Cold War impacted daily life, including product design. East German designers promoted a 'communist style' of furnishings as functional and beautiful, contrasting with perceived 'kitschy' capitalist goods. This ideological battle over consumer benefits was highlighted in the 1959 'kitchen debate' between Richard Nixon and Nikita Khrushchev. Philosophers like Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sartre explored existentialism, seeking meaning in a post-Holocaust world, emphasizing individual action in creating an authentic existence. Simone de Beauvoir applied this to women, arguing that womanhood was a cultural construct.
Despite the 'thirty glorious years' of prosperity, the legacies of Nazism and Cold War anxieties persisted. Efforts like denazification and the Nuremberg trials sought to address past atrocities, but questions remained about their adequacy. Anti-semitism continued, and conspiracy theories about the Holocaust emerged. Gender roles also differed, with West German women largely staying home, while East German women were encouraged to work. Furthermore, European economies continued to benefit from colonialism, highlighting enduring injustices despite post-war recovery.