Download SS5H7 The student will discuss the origins and

Michelle Stone
EMAT 681-Dr. Bush
Spring 2010
GACE Study Guide
Standard:
SS5H7 The student will discuss the origins and consequences of the Cold War.
a. Explain the origin and meaning of the term “Iron Curtain.”
b. Explain how the United States sought to stop the spread of communism
through the Berlin airlift, the Korean War, and the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization.
c. Identify Joseph McCarthy and Nikita Khrushchev.
The “Iron Curtain”
 The "Iron Curtain", a phrase coined by Winston Churchill, was a symbol of the
differences between communist and noncommunist countries. It was an invisible
fence dividing Europe after WWII.
 The “Iron Curtain” countries are: Soviet Union, Poland, East Germany,
Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia. All but
Yugoslavia were members of the Warsaw Pact.
 The term Iron Curtain was used in literature, but made famous by Churchill in his
speech in March 1946.
 It was first a mental barrier of separation, but then it became an ideological
barrier as well.
 Berlin Wall was a symbol of the separation.
 In some countries, the division was a fence, others an area with men standing
guard.
U.S. stops the spread of communism
 The United States sought to stop the spread of communism through several
means: the Berlin Airlift was a response to the blockade of Berlin by the Soviet
Union; the United States, with the backing of the United Nations, entered the
Korean War to prevent communist North Korea from taking over noncommunist
South Korea; the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an alliance
among the United States, Canada, Great Britain, and most of the noncommunist
countries of Europe created to prevent the Soviet Union from forcing communism
on other countries.
 Berlin Airlift: American and British planes flew in supplies and food for 327 days.
During the airlift, pilots decided to drop candy in parachutes made of
handkerchiefs to help boost the children’s spirits.
 Korean War: U.S. fought in South Korea to help contain Asian Communism in
nations split by Soviets.
 North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO): Established by a treaty in 1949
where its members agreed to mutual defense in an attack by another party. The
original members were: U.S., U.K., Canada, France, Iceland, Italy, Norway,
Denmark, Belgium, Portugal, Luxemburg, and the Netherlands. Later, Greece
and West Germany joined in. The communist response to NATO was forming
the Warsaw Pact in 1955. Members of the Warsaw Pact were: Poland, East
Germany, Hungary, Bulgaria, Albania, USSR, Romania, and the Czechoslovak
Republic.
Joseph McCarthy
 He was elected to Senate in 1946. He became one of the most infamous
anticommunist activists.
 He said he knew of men in the State Department who were members of the
Communist Party who were part of a spy ring.
 People believed him for years and in 1954, Eisenhower and the U.S. Army fought
back after he made accusations against them.
 The investigation was televised and people had had enough of him and his
popularity decreased greatly.
 He died in 1957 due to health related problems from alcohol abuse.
Nikita Khrushchev
 1953 takes over the USSR when Stalin dies and led them during the Cold War.
 He was not known, unlike Stalin, for his firm version of Communism.
 He was able to release thousands of political prisoners whom Stalin had
imprisoned in Siberian labor camps.
 He tried to raise the Soviet standard of living and expand his country’s space
program. He also changed the Soviet foreign policy. He wanted to avoid war in
the west and at the same time increase the economic competition between
Communist and Non-communist countries. This is called peaceful co-existence.
 In 1962, he wanted to place nuclear missiles in Cuba to restore the balance of
the Cold War. This was supposed to be done in secret, but the Americans had
discovered the missiles. This led to the Cuban Missile Crisis. Khrushchev did
not know what to do, but in the end he got the American missiles removed and
the U.S. promised not to invade Cuba.
 2 years after the Cuban Missile Crisis, Khrushchev was removed from power due
to Communist Party Officials not being pleased over the agreement.
References
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-was-the-iron-curtain.htm
http://www.slideshare.net/udteacher/cold-war-1945-1960
http://www.nps.gov/archive/elro/glossary/khrushchev-nikita.htm
http://library.thinkquest.org/11046/people/khrushchev.html