George Marshall's Contribution Of World War II To Europe

655 Words3 Pages

After WW II, Europe was in ruins and on the verge of losing it all. George Marshall, a WW II general saw this and decided that he needed to take action. He conducted a speech and took a stand at Harvard University and President Truman passed it the same year. George Marshall had great leadership and left a great legacy. George Marshall led the launch of the Marshall Plan, made Europe more economically stable, and helped end hunger and poverty that WW II left to Europe.

First, George Marshall led the launch of the Marshall Plan. The Marshall Plan was a relief that would send $17 billion to Europe as an attempt towards European recovery (George Marshall). Although George Marshall was Secretary of State, he didn’t have the power to launch the Marshall Plan on his own and needed support to have it passed. So, he decided to speak his ideas to the public and he gave a speech at Harvard University on June 15, 1947. George Marshall also wrote this speech as his Harvard Commencement speech (George Marshall). After George Marshall gave his …show more content…

Given that the European Recovery Plan gave Europe $17 billion over 3 years (Gerard Bossuat), Europeans were given a chance to rebuild and get started on restoring their economy. When Europe got destroyed in WW II, they couldn’t make any money because they couldn’t make any goods to export or deliver services. When the European Recovery Plan gave money to Europe, Europeans were given a chance for hope and restoration that had started to be recognised all around Europe. As soon as Europe’s businesses were being rebuilt, money could come in again because as this quote states: "The United States ought not to forget that the emerging European Union is one of its own greatest achievements: It would never have happened without the Marshall Plan," (Former German chancellor Helmut Schmidt). Even though Europe asked for $22 billion (Gerard Bossuat), Europe was still able to