The conception

A General now statesman, Secretary of State George C. Marshall would give a speech only a few months later that would again change the world. On June 5, 1947, on the steps of Memorial Church at Harvard University, he outlined an ambitious European Recovery Program (ERP) that would soon carry his name, the Marshall Plan.

He stated: "The modern system of the division of labor upon which the exchange of products is based is in danger of breaking down.... It is logical that the United States should do whatever it is able to do to assist in the return of normal economic health to the world, without which there can be no political stability and no assured peace. Our policy is not directed against any country, but against hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos."

Although the plan was designed primarily by William L. Clayton and George F. Kennan, both members of the State Department, it was Marshall who presented the concept to the American people and Congress, in such a manner, as to avoid the mistakes that had been made in post-World War One Europe from re-occurring. It was the policy of American isolationism that had allowed the Treaty of Versailles to endanger Europe and brought forth a second bitter war to the continent. Marshall realized this mistake must not repeat itself.

Sixteen nations met in Paris, outlining the assistance that each required and how this aid was to be divided. The final proposal agreed upon by delegates asked for $22 billion in aid; a figure that President Truman could not justify in Congress. Although Truman cut the request to $17 billion, the plan still met with strong opposition and after much filibustering, Congress approved $12.4 billion. President Truman officially signed the Marshall Plan into law on April 3, 1948.