Yalta, When Stalin Split the World – a WW2 Special



Indy and Sparty take you through the negotiations at Yalta as The Big Three thrash out the shape of the postwar world. As the splits between East and West continue to deepen, who will come out on top?

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Hosted by: Indy Neidell & Spartacus Olsson
Director: Astrid Deinhard
Producers: Astrid Deinhard and Spartacus Olsson
Executive Producers: Astrid Deinhard, Indy Neidell, Spartacus Olsson
Creative Producer: Marek KamiΕ„ski
Community Management: Ian Sowden
Written by: Indy Neidell & Spartacus Olsson
Research by: Indy Neidell & Spartacus Olsson
Map animations by: Simon J. James
Edited and color grading by: Simon J. James
Artwork by: MikoΕ‚aj Uchman
Sound design by: Marek KamiΕ„ski
Colorizations by: MikoΕ‚aj Uchman

Source literature list: https://bit.ly/SourcesWW2

Archive footage: Screenocean/Reuters – https://www.screenocean.com

Image sources:
Source – Image Name/Number

Soundtracks from Epidemic Sound:
Cold Conclusion 2
Conquered Territory
Convinced
Enigma
Night Shift
The Red Line

A TimeGhost chronological documentary produced by OnLion Entertainment GmbH.

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44 thoughts on “Yalta, When Stalin Split the World – a WW2 Special”

  1. Stalin was a one of a kind political poker player, constantly increasing the stakes, calling the opponents hand whenever they were bluffing, bluffing the bluff, and relentlessly raking in the chips. Imagine what he could have achieved as a force for good instead of the murderous despot he was, or is that hoping for the impossible? Can you do good while being this dishonest at the negotiating table?

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  2. This is so weird I have never heard of this again we are always told that big three and France had close relationship but FDK is like super super against France and is trying to stick it to them every chance he gets I can’t imagine that Churchill of all people is fighting for France wow thank you this is so incredibly interesting and important to know cheers and greetings from Kuwait

    Reply
  3. Stalin didn't so much "outsmart" the Western allies. The USSR having their demands met was only a reasonable consequence of having won the war on behalf of the Allies. Anything less would be to the discredit of Stalin and his team.

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  4. Jak nowa – rezydencja carΓ³w

    SΕ‚uΕΌba swe obowiΔ…zki zna

    Precz wysiedlono stΔ…d TatarΓ³w

    Gdzie na Ε›wiat wyrok zapaΕ›Δ‡ ma

    Okna juΕΌ widzΔ…, sΕ‚yszΔ… Ε›ciany

    Jak kaszle nad cygarem Lew

    Jak skrzypi wΓ³zek popychany

    Z kalekim demokratΔ… w tle

    Lecz nikt nie widzi i nie sΕ‚yszy

    Co robi GΓ³ral w krymskΔ… noc

    Gdy gestem w wiernych towarzyszy

    Wpaja swΔ… legendarnΔ… moc

    Nie miejcie ΕΌalu do Stalina

    Nie on siΔ™ za tym wszystkim kryΕ‚

    PrzecieΕΌ to nie jest jego wina

    Ε»e Roosevelt w JaΕ‚cie nie miaΕ‚ siΕ‚

    Gdy siΔ™ Triumwirat wspΓ³lnie braΕ‚

    Za Ε›wiata historyczne ksztaΕ‚ty

    Wiadomo, kto Cezara graΕ‚

    I tak rozumieć trzeba Jałtę

    W resztce cygara mdΕ‚ym ogniku

    PΕ‚ywaΕ‚a Lwa Albionu twarz

    Nie rozmawiajmy o BaΕ‚tyku!

    Po co w Europie tyle paΕ„stw?

    Polacy? Chodzi tylko o to

    Żeby gdzieś w końcu mogli żyć!

    Z tΔ… PolskΔ… zawsze sΔ… kΕ‚opoty

    Kaleka troszczy siΔ™ i drΕΌy

    Lecz uspokaja ich gospodarz

    PoΕΌΓ³Ε‚kΕ‚y dΕ‚oniΔ… gΕ‚aszczΔ…c wΔ…s

    MΓ³j kraj pomocnΔ… dΕ‚oΕ„ im poda

    Potem, niech rzΔ…dzΔ… siΔ™, jak chcΔ…

    Nie miejcie ΕΌalu do Churchilla

    Nie on wszak za tym wszytkim staΕ‚

    Wszak po to tylko byΕ‚ Triumwirat

    By Stalin dostaΕ‚ to, co chciaΕ‚

    Komu zaleΕΌy na pokoju

    Ten zawsze cofnie siΔ™ przed gwaΕ‚tem

    Wygra, kto siΔ™ nie boi wojen

    I tak rozumieć trzeba Jałtę

    Ściana paΕ‚acu sΕ‚uch napina

    Gdy do Kaleki mΓ³wi Lew

    Ja wierzΔ™ w szczeroΕ›Δ‡ sΕ‚Γ³w Stalina

    Dba chyba o radzieckΔ… krew

    I potakuje mu Kaleka

    NiezΕ‚omny demokracji strΓ³ΕΌ

    Stalin to ktoΕ› na miarΔ™ wieku

    Oto mΔ…ΕΌ stanu, oto wΓ³dz

    Bo sojusz wielkich – to nie zmowa

    To przyszΕ‚oΕ›Δ‡ Ε›wiata – wolnoΕ›Δ‡, Ε‚ad!

    Przy nim i sΕ‚aby siΔ™ uchowa

    I swojΔ… czΔ™Ε›Δ‡ otrzyma – strat

    Nie miejcie ΕΌalu do Roosevelta

    PomyΕ›lcie, ile musiaΕ‚ znieΕ›Δ‡

    Fajka, dym cygar i butelka

    Churchill, co miaΕ‚ sojusze gdzieΕ›!

    WszakΕΌe radziΕ‚y trzy Imperia

    Nad granicami, co zatarte

    W szczegΓ³Ε‚ach zaΕ› juΕΌ siedziaΕ‚ Beria

    I tak rozumieć trzeba Jałtę

    WiΔ™c delegacje odleciaΕ‚y

    UcichΕ‚ na Krymie carski grΓ³d

    Gdy na zachodzie dziaΕ‚a grzmiaΕ‚y

    Transporty ludzi szΕ‚y na wschΓ³d

    Świat wolny Ε›wiΔ™ciΕ‚ potem tryumf

    OpustoszaΕ‚y nagle fronty

    W kwiatach juΕΌ prezydenta grΓ³b

    A tam transporty i transporty

    Czerwony Ε›wit siΔ™ z nocy budzi

    Z woli wyborcΓ³w odszedΕ‚ Churchill

    A tam transporty ΕΌywych ludzi

    A tam obozy dΕ‚ugiej Ε›mierci

    Nie miejcie wiΔ™c do TrΓ³jcy ΕΌalu

    Wyrok historii za niΔ… staΕ‚

    Opracowany w kaΕΌdym calu

    KaΕΌdy z nich chroniΕ‚, co juΕΌ miaΕ‚

    Mógł mylić się zwiedziony chwilą

    Nie byΕ‚ Polakiem ani BaΕ‚tem

    Tylko ofiary siΔ™ nie mylΔ…

    I tak rozumieć trzeba Jałtę

    Kaczmarski "JaΕ‚ta"

    Reply
  5. Many biographies of Stalin describe him as lacking charisma and intelligence but he appears to be very witty and a great tough negotiator. The Soviet eastern territorial gains for just a few months of war against Japan is an insane return.

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  6. Churchill fought hard for Poland, guranteeing Polands Independence was the reason Britain declared war in the first place.
    But there was little that could be done so long as the Red Army occupied Poland.

    Churchill knew what was going on, he foresaw the iron curtain and the fate of the eastern european nations, even till the end of the war had some whacky ideas like Operation unthinkable to somehow prevent the soviets from claiming hegemony over all of eastern Europe and as he put it 'to get a square deal for Poland'.
    But ultimately of course this was unrealistic. short of full scale war there was nothing they could realistically do.

    Reply
  7. Hindsight is 20-20 of course but the pretensions that US/UK believed they were negotiating the Poland situation with anything close to powerful enough to counter the Soviet’s occupation of Poland seems very silly. Seems this was a vain attempt to avoid the embarrassment of making promises to the Polish government in exile which they were inevitably going to be powerless to keep.

    Reply
  8. The general consensus seems to be that Stalin played his hand well, played the other's perfectly and got almost everything he wanted out of this conference.
    The western leaders were by contrast shaky in their resolve and gave in to pretty much all of stalin's demands.

    Stalin was undisputably the big winner of Yalta, and the dire consequences of this for Europe and The world will begin to show over the next few years.

    – might i add that FDR seeking Soviet entry into the war with Japan, was now in hindsight, was an enormous geopolitical mistake, and perhaps the greatest US foreign policy disaster of the 20th century.

    In reality, what ended up happening, was that the Soviets, for minimal involvement, managed to carve out their spehere of influence in manchuria and North Korea, DIRECTLY leading to the events of the Korean War a mere 5 years down the road.

    IN Addtion, the US will fail to support the Nationalist government of China enpughsuch that within 4 years the Communist regime under Mao Zedong will defeat the Nationlaists and sieze control of Mainland China.

    The result of this US foreign Policy debacle will be that In a mere 5 years the Entirety of East Asia will fall to communism.
    The US will be involved in no less than 2 Major wars in Korea and Vietnam Respectively, suffering tens of thousands of casualties.
    And by the end of the century the PRC will rise to be the greatest threat to US hegemony in the world order, the consequences of which we are reeling from to this day.

    So i ask you again, what does the US get for bearing the brunt of the war agaisnt japan over a gruelling 4 years and hundreds of thousands of lives lost. And ultimately attaining victory after 4 years of bitter fighting in the Pacific.

    In exhange for a few weeks involvement by the Soviets in mopping up operations in Manchuria and a free land grab in Korea and stregnthened position in China.

    The results speak for themselves.
    I firmly believe – That the US foreign policy campaign on East Asia in the immediate Aftermath of ww2 was THE Greatest diplomatic and geopolitical and foreign policy disaster of the US in the 20th century. For whose consequences we are living with To this very Day.

    Reply
  9. Yalta will forever mark the peak of terrible FDR's foreign policy towards USSR which played key role in leading to Cold War and half of Europe becoming Soviet playground. People can glorify him all they want for dealing with Great Depression and his stand against Axis Powers, his policy towards Soviet Union should forever burst this bubble and showcase how delusional he was by the time of his 4th term and never should have went for it.

    Reply
  10. This was an excellent account of the disastrous Yalta conference because of the reliance on original records. To my mind, the root of the problem was that the two western allies, GB and USA, were too deeply committed to Big Three unity and were prepared to give up much to achieve this. Stalin knew it and milked this weakness like a cow.

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  11. i wish we had a way of knowing what would have come out of the conference if Roosevelt was in better physical shape or if the conference had taken place somewhere that didn't require him to travel so far. At the time of the conference, he is only 2 months away from the coffin.
    Also i wonder how talented he was at international negotiation. America just came out of 2 decades of isolationism, one can wonder how good his diplomatic army was, and how good was their leader in this field.

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  12. Firstly, great, great show, boys. So eye opening, so well researched. πŸ‘πŸ» Hindsight being that wonderful thing, the West should have united against the USSR by saying – we are about to be rid of Naziism and the world can ill afford another like-threat in a different colour. You, Mr. Stalin, will not be permitted to be the next Hitler. For each concession you demand, one must be conceded in return and you will be held to it. For Joe to get just what he wanted perhaps indicates a little naivety on the part of the West, not to say a lack of cohesion too in their unity. The world still turns, however.

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  13. Churchill being so worried about democratic rights of Eastern Europe while ruling over the largest land empire the world has ever seen seems on the face of it rank hypocricy. But I think it was more a reflection of British foreign policy for about the last 500 years about keeping the balance of power in Europe so they could have their free hand elsewhere when they were strong and not be invaded when they were weak, and out of the war the Soviets had definitely shifted the balance of power in their favour.

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  14. It was 90 days after the surrender of Germany that the Soviet Union declared war on Japan.

    By then events have changed also
    The U.S has successfully tested β€œ Trinity β€œ
    On August 6th the bomb was dropped to show the world the atomic age.
    It’s no coincidence that on August 9th the same day the Soviet Union declared war on Japan that the United States dropped their second atomic bomb.
    The second bomb was also a warning to Stalin. That the west had the ability to destroy cities let alone armies with a single bomb.
    That this was the means to an end.

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  15. During the negotiations in Vienna following the Napoleonic wars in 1814 and 1815, discussions about the fate of Poland also dominated the whole conference. It's so fascinating that Poland occupies so much import in history.

    Reply

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