International School History - Western Europe 1939-2000

IB History Route 2 - Higher Level Subject 10 - The Second World War and Post-War Western Europe 1939-2000

This section of the website is an extension of our chapter in the IB History of Europe and the Middle East Course Companion. It examines subject 10 from the IB History Guide for Higher Level, "The Second World War and Post-War Western Europe 1939-2000",

This section deals with the Second World War, post-war recovery, European integration, and the effects of the Cold War on Western Europe with particular focus on Germany and Spain. By 2000, these states had a great deal in common; politically, as members of the European Union, militarily, as allies within NATO, and philosophically as modern, market-economy, liberal democracies. Such an outcome would have seemed implausible in 1939, and it is from that point that this section traces each state’s history through the second half of the 20th century.

The emphasis on Western Europe recognises the fact that for most of this period Europe was divided between the Eastern Soviet Bloc and the non-Communist West under US protection and that each side of this artificial and temporary divide developed in distinct ways. For Eastern Europe see this website.

From this website you will be able to..... • Describe the role of these two countries in the Second World War. • Assess the impact of the Second World War on Western Europe. • Explain how Western Europe recovered from the War. • Understand how each state was affected by the Cold War. • Explain how Western European states moved from conflict towards political and economic integration. • Identify the social, political and economic issues facing these states and the methods used to cope with the challenges.