Download USA TOPIC # 5 : 20th CENTURY HISTORY

USA TOPIC # 5 : 20th CENTURY HISTORY
WORLD WAR ONE
During the early stages of the First World War, the US tried to avoid conflict and help bring peace. To
begin with, Britain was afraid that if the US participated in the war, it would be on the side of the so-called
Central Powers and against Britain. This was because Americans were generally opposed to the British
Empire, which was the largest empire the world had ever seen. Various factors led the USA to declare war
on Germany in April 1917. These factors included the Germans' submarine warfare activities and their
proposal that Mexico should join Germany against the US. Soon, thousands of American soldiers were
sent to Europe, a response which the Germans were not expecting.
WORLD WAR TWO
In December 1941, while German armies were freezing to death in Russia, Japan suddenly pushed the
United States into the Second World War by attacking the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Four days later Hitler declared war on the United States. Germany had by far the largest military power,
and Americans struggled to help provide the Allies (Britain, France and Russia) with support. The first
U.S. troops arrived in the British Isles in January 1942, but nearly a year passed before they went into
action against the Axis (Germany, Italy etc). Meanwhile, air power provided virtually the only means for
the Allies to strike at Germany. The Royal Air Force began its air offensive against Germany in May 1942,
and on 4 July the first American crews participated in air raids against the Continent.The Americans
followed the advice of British prime minister Winston Churchill and the War started turning in the Allies'
favour. On 6th June 1944 (D-Day), the Allies invaded Normandy, liberated Paris and reached the River
Rhine in Germany. Americans and Russians met at the River Elbe. In August 1945, the Americans
dropped an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima in Japan. It destroyed most of the city and killed or
wounded more than 160 000 people. A second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. This time the Japanese
agreed to surrender, and World War II was over. At least 17 million soldiers and 18 million civilians had
died.
THE UNITED NATIONS
The UN was established by 51 nations in 1945. Since then, more than 100 nations have joined, and they
meet in New York City. The purpose of the UN was to maintain peace and human rights in a world that
had seen two terrible wars and the loss of millions of lives. Still today, the United Nations aims to bring
countries together and to encourage respect for international law. The General Assembly consists of all
the member states and this is where general issues are discussed. The Security Council is made up of
15 members and takes responsibility for keeping international peace and security. Five of the members
are permanent members of the Council and these are called the Big Five. They are the US, the UK,
France, Russia and China. If one of these Big Five permanent members votes against taking action, then
no action is taken. The United Nations has often been criticized for not being effective enough, and
although many people agree it should be reformed, there is little agreement as to how it should be
changed...
THE COLD WAR
One of the most important results of World War II is that two countries became world leaders. They were
the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR). These two countries had been allies during the Second
World War, but after the War that alliance fell apart. After 1945, the Americans began to see the Soviet
Union as an "evil empire" and tried to stop the spread of international communism. The US signed
treaties with many countries and gave economic and military aid to them to stop the USSR from
expanding. A so-called "Cold War" followed between the Soviets on one side, and the US and other
western democracies on the other.
1
Neil Armstrong, 1930-2012
20th century Miami
THE KOREAN WAR
In 1950 fighting broke out in Asia between North Korea and South Korea. The Soviet Union supported
the pro-Communist North Koreans with military supplies. Communist Chinese soldiers also came to help
North Korea. The USA and the UN, on the other hand, supported South Korea. Although thousands of
soldiers fought in Korea until the war ended in 1953, the boundaries between North and South Korea were
left almost the same as they had been in 1950 - so the war did not bring good results.
THE VIETNAM WAR
In the 1960s, fighting broke out in Asia between North and South Vietnam. After the North Vietnamese
had attacked American ships in 1963, the US organized air attacks on North Vietnam naval bases. By
1968, half a million American soldiers were involved, and whole towns, factories and schools were
bombed. Back in America, huge peace marches were organized and many protests were held by
university students. More than 46,000 American soldiers had died in Vietnam by the end of the War in
1973. The Communist North Vietnamese took control of the whole of Vietnam, and Vietnam remains to
this day a Communist state. There were no celebrations in America after the war - the country had lost
against a Communist enemy, and far too many soldiers had lost their lives. Like Germany after World War
II, it took the Americans many years to come to terms with what had happened...
MAN ON THE MOON
"That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind". With these words, Neil Armstrong, an
American astronaut, became the first person ever to walk on the moon. Millions of people watched
Armstrong take his historic step in 1969, because there was a television camera on the rocket. It had
taken the spaceship about four days to reach the moon, but it took two seconds for the television picture
to go from the moon to the Earth. The astronauts set up scientific instruments that would send back
information to scientists on Earth, and brought back with them about 25 kilos of soil and rocks from the
moon that could be studied later. Getting astronauts to the moon first was a great success for the USA,
especially as it seemed for a while that the Soviet Union might get there first!
THE 1980s
During the eighties, Presidents Reagan and Bush succeeded in improving relations with the USSR and
in reducing the number of nuclear weapons of the two countries. The "Cold War" was over, and, by the
end of the decade, so was the Soviet Empire.
Sources: „English Speaking World” + JG
2