Download THE COLD WAR - Fort Bend ISD

THE
COLD
WAR
BEGINS
50 year era of competition between US and USSR
Opposites in economics, governments and societies
Both sides try to spread influence under the threat of
nuclear war creating constant world tension
United States
Soviet Union
vs.
Differing Philosophies
• Believed
in democratic forms of
government
• Believed economic stability would
keep peace in the world
• Believed the free enterprise system
was necessary for economic growth
• Believed in a communistic forms
of government
• Believed in workers revolting
(striking) against business owners
and taking control of government
• Revolution would be spread and
eventually be worldwide
Soviets
take over
Eastern
Europe
Soviet troops move into Germany near the end of World War II
As World War II ended,
the Soviet army occupied
the countries of Eastern
Europe that Germany had
conquered during the war
The Iron Curtain
Poland, Romania,
Czechoslovakia,
Hungary, Bulgaria
and East Germany
became satellite
nations of Soviet
Union
“An iron curtain has descended across the Continent”
– Prime Minister Winston Churchill
Aid for Europe
Children in a London suburb, waiting outside wreckage of what was their home
Secretary of State
George Marshall
toured Western
Europe; witnessed
widespread
homelessness and
famine.
Fearing Europeans
would turn to
communism as an
answer to their
economic problems,
Marshall proposed
the U.S. help to
rebuild Europe,
leading to…
Marshall
Plan
U.S. plan for rebuilding
Western Europe, and repelling
communism after World War II
Plan made U.S. heroes to
people of Western Europe
Plan pumped
billions of dollars
into Western
Europe for food
and supplies
George C. Marshall
Marshall Plan aids Western Europe
The Marshall Plan proved to be a great success
Within 4 years, countries receiving aid saw a
41% higher industrial production than on the
eve of World War II
Countries were stabilized and exports were
rising rapidly
Countries receiving aid under Marshall Plan
Letter from U.S. diplomat
George Kennan that led to
the U.S. policy of
containment of
communism.
Kennan said the Russians were concerned about
invasions from the west and wanted a buffer zone
Russians wanted to spread communism world-wide
U.S. should use diplomatic, economic and military
actions to keep communism contained
Truman Doctrine
U.S. foreign policy established by President Truman saying
the U.S. would protect democracies throughout the world
“It must be the policy of
the United States to
support free peoples
who are resisting
attempted subjugation
by armed minorities or
outside pressures”
-- Harry Truman
Truman Doctrine
It pledged that the United States
would fight Communism worldwide
American tanks provided by the Truman Doctrine roll through Turkey
Truman Doctrine was
an extension to the
U.S. foreign policy set
forth in the Monroe
Doctrine (1823) and
the Roosevelt
Corollary (1904)
The Potsdam Conference
The Potsdam Conference was a meeting of the Allied leaders
during World War II to decide what to do with Germany
Germany
Divided
British
Soviet
French
American
After World War II,
Germany was divided
into four zones,
occupied by French,
British, American,
and Soviet troops.
Occupation zones
after 1945. Berlin is
the multinational area
within the Soviet zone.
East and West
Germany
formed
East Berlin
West
Germany
East
Germany
West Berlin
In June of 1948, the
French, British and
American zones were
joined into the nation of
West Germany after the
Soviets refused to end
their occupation of
Germany.
In response, the Soviets
cut off West Berlin
from the rest of the
world with a blockade.
Berlin Blockade
1948 – Soviets try to squeeze
US out of West Berlin
USSR sets up roadblocks
Nothing allowed in (food or fuel)
June
East and West Germany
The Soviet side of their checkpoint on the
autobahn at Helmstedt.
Berlin Airlift
President Truman
decided to avoid the
blockade by flying in
food and other
supplies to the needy
people of West Berlin
At times, over 5,000
tons of supplies
arrived daily
C-47
Flight Schedule
Citizens of
West Berlin
anxiously
await another
food drop.
 Problems
 Jamming of radios
 Search lights
 Buzzing by Russian fighters
 Success
 Allies make 277,000 flights to deliver
2.3 million tons of supplies
Soviets
saved
lift blockade. West Berlin
Berlin Airlift
The airlift continued for
11 months before Stalin
finally lifted the blockade
The Berlin Airlift saved
the people of West Berlin
from falling under
Soviet Union control
Soviet blockade of West
Germany convinced many
Americans that the
Soviets were trying to
conquer other nations
Buddy System
– North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (1949)
 US and allies (mostly western
Europe) form alliance in case of
Soviet invasion
 Warsaw Pact (1955)
 Soviets form military alliance after
being rejected from NATO
 USSR and satellite nations
 NATO
Birth of NATO
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Formed in 1949 to protect Western
Europe from Soviet aggression
The Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact was the Soviet Union’s response to
the creation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
???
???
???
Anti-Communist
Fear Gripped
the Nation
???
???
???
House Un-American
Activities Committee
Committee set up to investigate Communist activities in the U.S.
HUAC searched for Soviet spies
and Communist sympathizers.
House Un-American Committee meeting in 1948
“Are you now or have you
ever been a Communist?”
The Hollywood Ten
People who were accused of being Communists
were often “blacklisted”
A group of Hollywood actors who were
blacklisted for refusing to answer HUAC
questions became known as the “Hollywood
Ten”
Movie stars Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart lead a
protest during height of Hollywood Blacklist controversy
If
someone
was
blacklisted, it meant
they were denied work
or ostracized from
society
Alger Hiss
 Former
State
Department
official
 Accused of being
a Communist
It was too late to charge with espionage, but
Congressman Richard Nixon wanted to pursue charges.
He was convicted of perjury and sentenced to 10 years.
Hiss maintained his innocence for the rest of his life.
Julius & Ethel Rosenberg
Physicist Klaus Fuchs
admits that he gave
information to the USSR
about the atomic bomb
 Rosenbergs were
implicated, tried and
convicted of espionage
 Only people in the US
ever executed for
espionage

McCarran Act
 Said
that the Loyalty Review
Board did not go far enough
 Cannot plan any action that might lead
to a dictatorship in the US
 Truman vetoes the bill: “In a free
country, we punish men for the crimes
that they commit, but never for the
opinions they have.”
 Congress overrides the veto
Loyalty
Review
Board
 Truman
accused of
being soft on
communism
 Board would investigate
government employees
 3.2 million were
investigated, 212 were
dismissed
McCarthyism
In 1952, U.S. Senator Joe McCarthy
began holding Senate hearings
Numerous Americans accused of
having ties to the Communist Party
McCarthy turned the hearings into witchhunts, destroying numerous people’s
reputations on rumor and weak evidence
McCarthyism
 McCarthy
was careful to only accuse
people while in the Senate (immune
from slander lawsuits)
 Lost favor during the Army-McCarthy
hearings and was censured by the
Senate in 1954
 Died in 1957
 Have you read The Crucible?
New Red Scare
U.S. citizens in 1950s feared
Communists wanted to take
over the world. This fear was
known as the Red Scare.
This Red Scare was similar
to the one in the 1920’s
after the communist
revolution in Russia. Both
threatened the civil liberties
of American citizens.
Red Scare contd.
“In God We Trust” becomes
official motto of the U.S. to
distinguish from USSR which
was an atheist state.
To fight against communist
infiltration, Truman will create
the Central Intelligence
Agency (CIA). It specializes in
espionage, sabotage and
subversion
ARMS RACE
U.S. developed the Atomic Bomb in
1945. Soviets developed one in 1949.
The superpowers spent huge amounts of money to
develop more & more powerful weapons. This
raised fears the superpowers might begin a conflict
that would destroy the world.
Nuclear Weapons: Who Has What?
NUCLEAR WARHEAD STOCKPILES
1945-1995
(NOTE: Totals are estimates)
1945
1955
1965
U.S.
6
3,057
31,265 26,675 22,941
U.S.S.R.
0
200
6,129 19,443 39,197
BRITAIN
0
10
310
350
300
FRANCE 0
0
32
188
360
CHINA
0
5
185
425
0
1975
1985
Arms Race
Arms Race
 Hydrogen
bomb (700x as powerful)
US–‘54, USSR–‘55
 Mutual assured destruction –
If 1 side attacked ->
the other side would retaliate ->
both sides annihilate each other
 “Military-Industrial
Complex” –
President Eisenhower warned of military
contractors having influence on Congress
U-2 Incident
US
conducting secret spy
missions by flying U-2
planes over USSR
Col. Francis Gary Powers’
spy plane was shot down
over Soviet airspace in
1960
Soviets were irate. Incident cools
Soviet-U.S. relations
Russians launch Satellite
Sputnik
The Russians have beaten America into space!
They have the technological edge!
This will start the Space Race
Impact of Sputnik
Congress
establishes the
National Aeronautics
and Space Agency (NASA) to
conduct research in rocket
and space technology
Congress also passed the National Defense
Education Act, which provided money for
education and training in science, math and
foreign languages
The Space Race Begins
In 1961, Russian cosmonaut Yuri
Gagarin blasted off into space,
making the Soviet Union the first
nation to launch a human into orbit
Kennedy said he wanted U.S. to
land a man on the moon by the
end of the 1960s
The Space Race Begins
On July 20, 1969, Neil
Armstrong became the first
human to step foot on the
moon
“That’s one small step for
man, one giant leap for
mankind.” – Neil Armstrong
Nuclear Family



Unable to control their fates,
Americans tried to control the family
Movies, TV, magazines and
Advertisements created the image
of the “perfect family”
Most important this was to Conform
Stereotypical Roles



Mom – Stay at home, Cook, Clean,
Always happy
Dad – Work, Provide, Disciplinarian
Children – Perfect attendance, Good
grades, Grateful, Obey parents
Nuclear Family Reality




People couldn’t meet the standard
Moms depressed; Dads stuck in jobs
they didn’t value; Half of children didn’t
finish high school
High rates of alcoholism, illegitimate
births, divorce
Lack of minority representation

25% of
Americans
lived
below the
poverty
line