Mr. Judd Streetsboro High School

YALTA (Feb 1945) Present: Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin Germany divided Germany divided into 4 zones of occupation Prosecution of War Criminals Free Elections In Europe Create a United Nations organization

POTSDAM (Germany) Date: July 1945 Present: Churchill, Truman and Stalin U.S. And Soviets disagree about German reparations. Soviets discuss joining war against Japan. The U.S. is not sure that’s a good idea. Why? Truman learns about the atomic bomb. Does not tell Stalin.

U.S. and Soviet soldiers meet at the Elbe River near the end of World War II. Why did these allies become bitter enemies for the next 45 years?

Introduction Cold War: The state of hostility, without direct military conflict, that developed between the U.S. and the Soviet Union after WWII and lasted until 1990.

I. Origins of the Cold War The origins of the Cold War lay in profound economic, political, and philosophical differences between the two nations.

II. The Early Cold War Years The conflicting aims in Germany and Eastern Europe led to tension between the United States and the Soviet Union after World War II.

The Iron Curtain Descends Stalin installed communist governments in Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Poland. These countries became known as satellite nations, countries dominated by the Soviet Union. The phrase “iron curtain” came to stand for the division of Europe.

United States establishes a policy of “containment”. Taking measures to prevent any extension of communist rule to other countries. This policy will serve the United States throughout the Cold War.

Truman Doctrine 1947 What: Gives military help to free countries that communists are trying to take over. Why: The “Domino Theory”: If one country falls to communism, the neighboring countries will fall too.

Marshall Plan 1948 What: Gives U.S. money to free countries to rebuild homes, factories, and farms. Why: To make countries strong enough so they will not need Communist help. General George C. Marshall

Superpowers Struggle over Germany At the end of World War II, Germany was divided into four zones occupied by the U.S., G.B., France, and the U.S.S.R.

Berlin Airlift 1948 *After plans to reunify Germany ended in failure, the Soviet Union blockaded all land routes into West Berlin. *The U.S. and G.B. responded with an airlift. For 327 days, planes delivered 2.3 tons of supplies to West Berlin.

The NATO Alliance 1949 The U.S., Canada, Iceland, and nine European Nations form a defensive military alliance called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

The Chinese Revolution 1949 After WWII, civil war erupted between Chinese Communists and Chinese Nationalists. U.S. aid was not enough to save the Nationalists as they were forced to retreat to the island of Taiwan in After more than 20 years of struggle, the Communists now ruled all of mainland China. Chiang Kai-shek Nationalist Mao Zedong Communist

The Korean War 1950 Only five years after WWII ended, the U.S. became embroiled in a war in Korea. The policy of containment had led the U.S. into battle to halt communist expansion. In this con- flict, however, the enemy was not the Soviet Union, but North Korea and China.

III.The Cold War and American Society During the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, fear of communism led to reckless charges against innocent citizens. The House Un- American Activities Committee (HUAC) investigated alleged communist activities in Hollywood.

Spies Among Us Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were executed in June 1953 for allegedly giving the Soviet Union atomic bomb secrets. They became the first U.S. civilians executed for espionage.

Mc Carthy Launches His “Witch Hunt” In the early 1950’s, Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin began accusing members of the state department of being communists. Since that time, “McCarthyism” has referred to the unfair tactic of accusing people of dis- loyalty without providing evidence.

Bomb Shelters The threat of nuclear attack led Americans to build bomb shelters and practice air-raid drills. Fear of nuclear war became a constant in American life for the next 30 years.

Duck and Cover 1951 Civil Defense Duck and Cover Film

IV. Eisenhower’s Cold War Policies President Eisenhower believed that maintaining a large army was too expensive. Instead, he favored a massive arms buildup. Nuclear weapons, he said, gave “more bang for the buck.” His willingness to use nuclear weapons to maintain world peace was called “massive retaliation.” Critics called this “brinkmanship”- the willingness to go to the brink of war to force the other side to back down- and argued that it was too dangerous.

Sputnik launches a Space Race 1957 On October 4, 1957, The Soviets launched Sputnik, the world’s first artificial satellite. Sputnik traveled around the earth at 18,000 miles per hour, circling the globe every 96 minutes.

U-2 Is Shot Down 1960 In 1960, the Soviets shot down an American U-2 spy plane. The pilot, Francis Gary Powers, was forced to parachute into Soviet-controlled territory. The Soviets sentenced Powers to ten years in prison.