The Cold War 1945-1991

The Cold War 1945-The Cold War 1945-19911991

Two sides of Cold War

• NATO – North Atlantic Treaty Organization

• USA, France, Great Britain, West Germany

• CAPITALISMCAPITALISM

• Warsaw Pact – pro Soviet countries – USSR, and all countries controlled by the USSR.

• COMMUNISM

Causes of the Cold War in 1945 American fear of communist attack Truman’s dislike of Stalin USSR’s fear of the American's atomic bomb  USSR’s dislike of capitalism USSR’s actions in the Soviet Zone of Germany America’s refusal to share nuclear secrets USSR’s expansion west into Eastern Europe + broken

election promises USSR’s fear of American attack USSR’s need for a secure western border USSR’s aim of spreading world communism This feeling of suspicion lead to mutual distrust and this did a great deal to deepen the Cold War

Cold War

• 1945-1990

• Era of confrontation between the Soviet Union and the United States

NATO – North Atlantic Treaty Organization- all free nations

Warsaw Pact – all communist nations

YALTA (in the USSR)YALTA (in the USSR)Date: Feb 1945Date: Feb 1945

Present: Churchill, Present: Churchill, Roosevelt and StalinRoosevelt and Stalin

POTSDAM (Germany)POTSDAM (Germany)Date: July 1945Date: July 1945

Present: Churchill, Present: Churchill, Truman and StalinTruman and Stalin

Iron CurtainIron Curtain – – A term used by A term used by Winston Winston

Churchill Churchill to describe the to describe the separating of separating of Those Those

communistcommunistlands of East lands of East Europe from Europe from

the the West. West.

Improve your knowledge

• The Russians took very high casualties to capture Berlin in May 1945. They spent the early occupation trying to take over all zones of the city but were stopped by German democrats such as Willy Brandt and Konrad Adenauer. Reluctantly the Russians had to admit the Americans, French and British to their respective zones.

Berlin Wall

• Berlin is Germany’s capital city.

• The Soviets built the wall to keep communists from escaping to the American sector.

Berlin WallBerlin Wall

Wall torn down in 1989.

Significance is that this symbolizes and end to the Cold War.

Improve your knowledge

• The nuclear bomb gave America a lead which was expected to last at least 5 years. The rapid Russian development of nuclear technology, helped by the work of the “atom spies” was a shock.

Significantly, Russia hurriedly declared war against Japan at the beginning of August 1945 and rushed to advance into Asia to stake out a position for the post-war settlement. This helped make both the Korean and Vietnamese conflicts more likely.

Marshall Plan

USA’s plan to send food, blankets, fuel to Europe to help them. AND to keep

them from turning communist.

Berlin blockade led to Berlin Airlift

Space Race

• The USA and the Soviet Union raced as the world watched to be the first to conquer space.

1957 Sputnik – first satellite

Score 1 for Soviets!

First man in space

• Score: USA – 0

• Soviets - 2

Apollo program (NASA formed)

• USA spent the 60s trying to catch up to the Soviets.

Armstrong lands on moon!

• What is the purpose of a space program?

Nuclear Missiles!

Truman DoctrineThe Truman Doctrine in

March 1947 promised that the USA “would support free peoples who are resisting” communism.

This led to containment – policy of containing communism where it is.

Domino Theory

Communism spreads like a disease- if one nations falls, others will follow

Korea and Vietnam

• USA tried to contain communism. In both wars, communist troops fought armies trained and funded by the USA.

Communists invaded from the north.

China sent a million

troops to help reds.

Korean War

• After the failure of the promise of Korean independence by the Allied nations, on June 25, 1950, communist North Korean troops invaded South Korea. Poorly armed, the South Koreans were no match for the North. The United Nations ordered North Korea to withdraw its troops. General MacArthur was appointed to command all UN troops in Korea. After three years of fighting a stalemate, more than 54,000 American troops perished.

How Is The US Reacting to all of the Soviet moves such as Sputnik?

• Under Eisenhower the National Defense Education Act is passed.

• Intended to push math and science education to be able to keep up with the Soviets.

•Red ScareRed Scare was Americans response to the fear of

Communism

•Senator Joseph McCarthyJoseph McCarthy accused 205 US Govt.

officials of being Communist.

•McCarthyismMcCarthyism to destroy or assassinate one’s

character without proof and it ruined the careers

of many Americans.

red scare

Became a witch huntwitch hunt that led to Americans pledging a “loyalty oathloyalty oath” to the United

States…….

•House House Committee for Committee for Un-American Un-American

ActivitiesActivities

•1938–75, Congress

investigated Americans

suspected as communists

red scare3

•HUACHUAC committee warned of civil rights violations.•Witnesses who refused to answer were cited for

contempt of Congress.

McCarthy’s “Big Lie”

Tactic used to create the impression that people were affiliated with Communism

Repeated the lies until people began to believe them, thus ruining people’s reputations.

Usually did this to Democrats because he thought they were soft on Communism.

What Finally Brings McCarthy Down?

The hearings were televised Made him look like a bully Last straw was his accusation that the United

States Army was a Communist organization. Was he totally wrong about the spies? No BUT he ruined enough reputations that it

cost him his political career and he left the Senate a shamed man.

What is the United Nations?

United Nations

• International Organization where countries try to find peaceful solutions

United Nations

• It has no army but uses troops from other countries.

Vietnam War 1960s-1973

• Through the Kennedy years, US troops trained S. Vietnamese troops to fight the Reds.

• After the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, under LBJ, US troops started to fight more.

VietnamDivided into North and South atthe 17th parallel

Our first presence there was as military advisors to the SouthVietnamese army

Under Kennedy, we actually began to train the troops for them

We wanted to be able to trade with them because they had resourceswe don’t have.

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

Vietnam, 1968

Helicopters!

Napalm!

Seeing this on TV led to a Seeing this on TV led to a loss of support at homeloss of support at home

Hippie bashing!!!Hippie bashing!!!

Hippies/Anti-war

Meanwhile. . .

• After Korea and before Vietnam got really bad, America felt they had a problem closer to home.

Bay of Pigs 1961

• The CIA trained and funded an invasion of communist Cuba. The invasion failed, and Castro had some powerful friends!

1962

Castro takes Castro takes sidesAmerican Properties with Soviet Union

Try Bay of American spy JFK puts navalPigs invasion planes photograph blockades aroundFirst nuclear missile sites Cuba

there

After 13 days theUSSR pulls out

Significance: It’s the closest the US and Soviet Union came to armed conflict during the Cold War.

Soviet response.

• Don’t worry comrade Castro. We got your back!

A U2 spy plane found these missile silos in Cuba, 1962.

Kennedy Khrushchev

People built more bomb shelters.

End to a crisis!

• The Soviets removed the missiles in Cuba.

• In exchange, USA pledged to not invade Cuba again. And to remove missiles in Turkey (right).

Afterward

• A direct phone line was set up between their offices to bypass other channels.

November 22, 1963

• LBJ took the Presidency

• JFK was shot in Dallas

How did the USA try to contain communism?

Helped anti-communist troops

Embargoes

• Refusing to trade or aid countries in order to punish them

Cuba embargo

• Still today, the USA has an economic embargo on communist Cuba.

• Their only cars are from before the embargo!

Detente

• A permanent relaxation in international affairs

• Why did we experience this?– The horrors of Vietnam shocked people– Growing fear of a nuclear holocaust especially

with the growth of nuclear weapons

This powerpoint was kindly donated to www.worldofteaching.com

http://www.worldofteaching.com is home to over a thousand powerpoints submitted by teachers. This is a completely free site and requires no registration. Please visit and I hope it will help in your teaching.