Question 17
Which countries were referred to as "Allied Occupying Powers" in Germany after World War II?
German original: Welche Länder wurden nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg in Deutschland als "Alliierte Besatzungsmächte" bezeichnet?. In the test, all questions are asked in German.
Answer options
- Soviet Union, Great Britain, Poland, Sweden
- France, Soviet Union, Italy, Japan
- USA, Soviet Union, Spain, Portugal
- USA, Soviet Union, Great Britain, France — Correct answer
Explanation
After World War II, Germany was divided in 1945 into four occupation zones: the USA (south), Great Britain (northwest), France (southwest), and the Soviet Union (east). Berlin was also divided into four sectors.
Key terms in this question
- Germany — Germany is a country in central Europe with a parliamentary democracy. It is a member of the European Union and its capital is Berlin.
- Which — An interrogative word used to ask about a selection from a group (e.g., 'Which party won?').
- Federal state — A federal state is one of the 16 regions that together form Germany. Each state has its own government, parliament, and areas of responsibility.
- was / became — 'Wurde' is the simple past form of the German auxiliary verb 'werden', used to form the passive voice or express becoming. For example: 'Das Gesetz wurde verabschiedet' means 'The law was passed'.'
- world war — A world war is an armed conflict involving many countries from different parts of the world. In the 20th century, there were two world wars (1914–1918 and 1939–1945) that caused millions of casualties.
- federal states — The federal states are the 16 regions that make up Germany, such as Bavaria, Berlin, or Hamburg. Each state has its own government and is responsible for certain areas like education and policing.
- second — An ordinal number indicating position number 2 in a sequence. In the citizenship test context, it often appears in phrases such as 'after the Second World War'.
- were (passive past tense) — 'Wurden' is the past passive form of the German verb 'werden'. It is used to describe something that happened to multiple people or things in the past, e.g., 'The laws were passed.'