4/3【歷史上的今天】戰後美國對歐洲的援助——馬歇爾計劃

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每天一篇《美國歷史上的今天》，提煉和總結歷史在今天發生的重要事件：誰，在哪裡，什麼時候，做了什麼，這件事為什麼重要、以及在寫關於什麼主題的論文的時候可以作為潛在論據引用。每天半分鐘，輕鬆積累史實，為AP歷史拿5分打下堅實基礎！

When: April 3, 1948

What: President Harry S. Truman signed off on legislation establishing the Foreign Assistance Act of 1948, more popularly known as the Marshall Plan.

Why significant: The act eventually provided over $12 billion of assistance to aid in the economic recovery of Western Europe.

In the first years following the end of World War II, the economies of Western Europe was bad: unemployment was high, money was scarce, and homelessness and starvation were not uncommon. U.S. policymakers considered the situation made for a fertile breeding ground for communist propaganda. To contain the influence of the Soviet Union and to better equip western european nations to fight the threat of communism, U.S. policymakers decided that strengthening the economies of Western European countries would be necessary. （註：DBQ和LEQ的開頭，contextualization就可以像這麼寫呀！好好體會一下嘛？）

In June 1947, Secretary of State George C. Marshall called for a massive economic recovery program, which led to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1948. The act provided an initial grant of $4 billion for Western Europe. By the time the program came to an end in late 1951 over $12 billion had been expended.

Although the Marshall Plan was not an total success, as the influx of aid money led to rampant inflation in some areas, it did stabilize and revitalize the economies of Western European nations.

Tags: WW II, Marshall Plan, Cold War, President Harry S. Truman

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