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History of the Warsaw
Pact map
by James Mayfield (Chairman, European Heritage Library)
 Print
this Article About
the Author Bibliography/Sources
Below is an map the EHL has
published charting the historic power and influence of the
Soviet Union on the former Axis nations in Central and Eastern
Europe, specifically the Warsaw Pact union of Soviet allies
in the so-called "Eastern Bloc" (the Warsaw Pact)
from its formation in 1955
until its dissolution and that of the Soviet Union in 1991.
If you have any questions,
feel free to notify us.
Mapping Information &
Extra Notes:
In short, the Warsaw Pact
has typically been identified as a collection of Soviet "puppet
states" that obeyed the dictate of Moscow during the
Cold War. In reality, this notion is extremely short-sighted
and oversimplified. After 1953, when Khrushchev's denunciation
of Stalin's supposed excesses opened the way for alternate
roads to independent socialist development, the "satellites"
of the Eastern Bloc cultivated their own independent ideologies
and pursued highly independent courses so long as they did
not challenge the primacy of the Soviet Union. Poland and
Romania were independent all but in name. Albania and Yugoslavia
spat on the Kremlin and broke entirely. The "Eastern
Bloc," like Communism, was by no means one singular unit
during the Cold War. Nonetheless, the "Communist"
nations of Eastern Europe maintained an economic partnership,
as well as a ceremonial alliance, to check the expansion of
the "capitalist" initiatives like NATO and the Marshall
Plan. To read my dissertation on most of the world's conscious
break from both "East" and "West" during
the Cold War, including that of Eastern Europe, read this
article.
The Soviet Union (USSR) is
shown in red to show the borders
of the host power in contrast with the puppet Warsaw Pact
states. So too, the Jugoslav republic is shown in green,
as each of the three powers remained relatively independent
but offered mutual assistance both ideologically and financially
under Khruschev. Yugoslavia formally broke from the East (the
Warsaw Pact did not yet exist) after 1948, when the USSR was
ruled by Stalin, and resumed peaceful relations when it was
ruled by Khrushchev. The Warsaw Pact is shown in blue,
including Albania until 1968.
Dates and information are
shown by each nation to show the duration of membership in
the Warsaw Pact union, and any noted revolts and revolutions
against the Soviets.
Click the below map
for the full-size version! Click on the map to zoom.
If an error has been made,
please notify the EHL Staff.
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ABOUT
THE AUTHOR:
James Mayfield is a historian
and the Chairman of the European Heritage Library. I have
a Cum Laude BA in History with a Minor in Germanic Studies
(language and history), am presently working for my Masters
in History, and plan to immediately progress to my PhD Doctorate.
I have a special academic interest in Europe's diverse ethnic
identities, languages, and cultures, and the political struggles
of native European and immigrant minority identities. See
my staff entry for more information.
BIBLIOGRAPHY/SOURCES
USED:
The image used as the basis
for the map is widely redistributed and is not protected.
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