Europe 1947: Paris Peace Treaties

Even as relations between the Soviet Union and the West were deteriorating, the former Allies still had to work together to reshape Europe. At the Paris Peace Treaties they laid down terms to the countries that had sided with Germany in the War in Europe: Italy, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Finland.

Main Events

20 Nov 1945–1 Oct 1946 Nuremberg Trials

In November 1945, 24 high-ranking Nazi officials were tried by a joint American-British-French-Soviet tribunal for conspiracy, waging wars of aggression, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. All but two were convicted, twelve were executed, and several more received prison sentences or died or went missing before they could be sentenced.in wikipedia

30 Mar 1946 Greek Civil War

After the Axis powers occupied Greece, the Greek contingent of the allied war effort became divided between the government-in-exile of King George II’s and the predominantly Communist partisans of the Greek People’s Liberation Army (ELAS) which oversaw the German withdrawal in 1944. Fighting resumed in March 1946 when a group of 30 ex-ELAS members attacked a police station in the village of Litochoro, killing the policemen, the night before national elections. Operating in Greece’s mountains, ELAS reorganized into the Democratic Army of Greece (DSE) and fought a guerilla war against the Kingdom before eventually collapsing in 1948 due to lack of foreign support.in wikipedia

1 Jan 1947 Bizone

In response to the growing economic isolation of the Soviet occupation zone– in violation of the Potsdam Agreements– the United States and United Kingdom agreed to merge their occupation zones and ensure the free movement of agricultural and industrial goods to rebuild the German economy.in wikipedia

10 Feb 1947 Paris Peace Treaty with Finland

Under the Paris Peace Treaties, Finland ceded Petsamo to the Soviet Union, as had been agreed in the 1944 Moscow Armistice Agreement.in wikipedia

10 Feb 1947 Treaty of Peace with Italy

In its 1947 peace treaty with the Allies, Italy agreed to cede Istria and Dalmatia to Yugoslavia, the Dodecanese to Greece, and to grant independence to all of its colonies. It was agreed that the city of Trieste and its environs—also claimed by Yugoslavia—would become an international “free city”, effective as of 15 September. Trieste would remain a free city for several years, until later partition between Italy and Yugoslavia in 1954.in wikipedia

10 Feb 1947 Paris Peace Treaties

Under the Paris Peace Treaties, Hungary’s borders reverted to those which had existed before the 1938 Munich Agreement. So too did Czechoslovakia, except for Ruthenia, which was ceded to the Soviet Union. Romania agreed to return to its prewar boundaries, with the exceptions of southern Dobruja, which was ceded to Bulgaria, and Bessarabia and Bukovina, which were restored to the Soviet Union.in wikipedia