Potsdam Conference Opens: Allies Decide Germany's Fate
Truman, Churchill, and Stalin gathered at Cecilienhof Palace in Potsdam, outside the bombed ruins of Berlin, on July 17, 1945, to decide the future of defeated Germany. During the conference, Truman told Stalin about the atomic bomb; Stalin already knew from his spies. Churchill lost the British election mid-conference and was replaced by Clement Attlee. The leaders agreed to divide Germany into four occupation zones, prosecute war criminals at Nuremberg, and extract reparations primarily from the Soviet zone. The Potsdam Declaration also demanded Japan's unconditional surrender, warning of "prompt and utter destruction" without specifying the atomic bomb. Japan initially rejected the ultimatum.
July 17, 1945
81 years ago
Key Figures & Places
Allies of World War II
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Winston Churchill
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Joseph Stalin
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Harry S. Truman
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Potsdam Conference
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Potsdam
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Allies of World War II
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Winston Churchill
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Harry S. Truman
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Joseph Stalin
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Potsdam Conference
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Potsdam
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Germany
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Cecilienhof
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