American Economic Journal:
Applied Economics
ISSN 1945-7782 (Print) | ISSN 1945-7790 (Online)
A Glimpse of Freedom: Allied Occupation and Political Resistance in East Germany
American Economic Journal: Applied Economics
vol. 15,
no. 1, January 2023
(pp. 68–106)
Abstract
This paper exploits the idiosyncratic line of contact separating Allied and Soviet troops within East Germany at the end of WWII to study political resistance in a non-democracy. When Nazi Germany surrendered, 40 percent of what would become the authoritarian German Democratic Republic was initially under Allied control but was ceded to Soviet control less than two months later. Brief Allied exposure increased protests during the major 1953 uprising. We use novel data on the appointment of local mayors and a retrospective survey to argue that even a "glimpse of freedom" can foster civilian opposition to dictatorship.Citation
Martinez, Luis R. ⓡ Jonas Jessen ⓡ Guo Xu. 2023. "A Glimpse of Freedom: Allied Occupation and Political Resistance in East Germany." American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 15 (1): 68–106. DOI: 10.1257/app.20200456Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D72 Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
- D74 Conflict; Conflict Resolution; Alliances; Revolutions
- N44 Economic History: Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation: Europe: 1913-
- P16 Capitalist Institutions; Welfare State
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