The Cold War 1945-1991

What is the Cold War? The Cold War was a long period of tension between the democracies of the Western World and the Communist countries of Eastern Europe. The west was led by the United States and Eastern Europe was led by the Soviet Union. These two countries became known as superpowers. Although the two superpowers never officially declared war on each other, they fought indirectly in proxy wars, the arms race, and the space race.

When was the Cold War? The Cold War began not too long after WWII ended in 1945. Although, the Soviet Union was an important member of the Allied Powers, there was great distrust between he Soviet Union and the rest of the Allies. The Allies were concerned with the brutal leadership of Joseph Stalin as well as the spread of communism. The Cold War came to an end with the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Proxy Wars The Cold War was often fought between the superpowers of the United States and the Soviet Union in something called a proxy war. These were wars fought between other countries, but with each side getting support from a different superpower. Examples of proxy wars include the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Yom Kippur War, and the Soviet Afghanistan War.

Arms Race and Space Race The United States and the Soviet Union also tried to fight the Cold War by demonstrating their power and technology. One example of this was the Arms Race where each side tried to have the best weapons and the most nuclear bombs. The idea was that a large stockpile of weapons would deter the other side from ever attacking. Another example was the Space Race, where each side tried to show that it had the better scientists and technology by accomplishing certain space missions first.

ARMS RACE Nuclear Bomb: can destroy an entire city and kill tens of thousands of people. The only time nuclear weapons have been used in war was at the end of WWII against Japan. Hydrogen Bomb: more powerful version of the nuclear bomb. US detonated the first hydrogen bomb in 1952; Soviets exploded their first in 1953. ICBMs: in the 1950s both countries worked on developing Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs). These missiles could be launched from long range as far away as 3,500 miles. Mutual Assured Destruction: (MAD) This meant that both countries could destroy the other country in the case of attack. It wouldn’t matter how successful the first strike was, the other side could still retaliate and destroy the country which first attacked. For this reason, neither side ever used nuclear weapons. The cost was too high. During the Cold War the United States and the Soviet Union became engaged in a nuclear arms race. They both spent billions and billions of dollars trying to build up huge stockpiles of nuclear weapons. Near the end of the Cold War the Soviet Union was spending around 27% of its total gross national product on the military. This was crippling to their economy and helped to bring an end to the Cold War.

Defense As both sides continued to develop new and more powerful weapons, the fear of what would happen if war broke out spread throughout the world. Militaries began to work on defenses such as large radar arrays to tell if a missile had been launched. They also worked on defense missiles that could shoot down ICBMs. At the same time people built bomb shelters and underground bunkers where they could hide in the case of nuclear attack. Deep underground facilities were build for high ranking government officials where they could reside safely. Duck and Cover: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKqXu- 5jw60

Underground Bunkers https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=Vq3lsFtypp8

On October 4, 1957 the Russians placed the first successful satellite into orbit. It was called Sputnik I. The Russians had taken the lead in the Space Race. The Americans successfully launched their first satellite four months later called the Explorer I. Space Race During the Cold War the United States and the Soviet Union engaged a competition to see who had the best technology in space. This included such events as who could put the first manned spacecraft into orbit and who would be the first to walk on the Moon. The Space Race was considered important because it showed the world which country had the best science, technology, and economic system.

The First Man in Orbit The Soviets again won the race for putting the first man into space. On April 12, 1961 Yuri Gagarin was the first to orbit the Earth in the spacecraft Vostok I. Three weeks later the US launched the Freedom 7 and astronaut Alan Shepherd became the first American in space. Shepherd’s craft did not orbit the Earth, however. It was nearly a year later on February 20, 1962 when the first American, John Glenn orbited the Earth on the Friendship 7 spacecraft.

Race to the Moon The Americans were embarrassed at being behind in the Space Race. In 1961, President Kennedy went to congress and announced that he wanted to be the first to put a man on the Moon. He felt this was important for the country and the western world. The Apollo Moon program was launched.

Man on the Moon After many years of experiments, test flights, and training the Apollo 11 spacecraft was launched into space on July 16, 1969. The crew included astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins. The trip to the Moon took three days. Upon arriving Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin moved to the Lunar module, called the Eagle, and began their descent to the Moon. There were some malfunctions and Armstrong had to land the module manually. On July 20, 1969 the Eagle landed on the Moon. Neil Armstrong stepped outside and became the first man to walk on the Moon. With his first step on the Moon, Armstrong said “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”.

End of the Space Race With the Apollo program the US had taken a huge lead in the Space Race. In July of 1975 with relations between the US and the Soviet Union beginning to thaw, the first US- Soviet joint mission occurred with the Apollo-Soyuz project. The Space Race was over. Cosmonaut Aleksei A. Leonov and astronaut Thomas P. Stafford display the Apollo Soyuz Test Project commemorative plaque during training. February 1975

Capitalism: An economic system based on private ownership (rather than government ownership) and the free market system Eastern Bloc: Name given to the Soviet Union and its communist controlled states in Eastern Europe such as Poland, East Germany, and Bulgaria Eisenhower Doctrine: stated that a country could ask for military support from the US if it was threatened by another country. It was based on a speech President Eisenhower gave to Congress and was a warning to the Soviet Union Glasnost: a policy introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev that allowed for more openness in the Soviet government as well as some level of freedom of speech Iron Curtain: a descriptive term or symbol used to describe the border between the communist and democratic countries of Europe. The idea of the iron curtain was that it kept information and people from crossing from the communist east to the democratic west. McCarthyism: term given to accusations of treason or disloyalty without having evidence. It comes from a time when Senator McCarthy of the US made several accusations of people being communists and traitors during the Cold War NATO: stands for North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It is an alliance of democratic and western countries including much of Western Europe, Canada, and the US

Perestroika: term used by Mikhail Gorbachev to describe a reconstruction of the Soviet economy and industry. It included some private ownership of businesses Red Scare: time of extreme anti-communism in the US. People were scared that communists had infiltrated the government SALT: stands for Strategic Arms Limitation Talks. It was when the US and the Soviet Union agreed to limit the number of nuclear weapons they made Solidarity: a movement in Poland to create a trade union that was not controlled by the communist party. It was led by Lech Walesa who became President of Poland in 1990 Superpower: is a country that is significantly stronger, especially in regards to their military, than most other countries. During the Cold War the Soviet Union and the United States were the two world superpowers Truman Doctrine: an effort to stop the spread of communism. It said that the US would help countries that were threatened by “armed minorities or outside pressures” Warsaw Pact: an alliance between the Soviet Union and other Eastern Europe communist nations