1. The Cold War

2. After WWII
At the end of World War II, America and the Soviet Union were the strongest countries left standing. 
The Soviet Union was a communist country, where the government controlled the economy, and was ruled by a brutal dictatorship.
The United States was a democratic country with a free economy.
Soviet Union
United States
Strongest after WWII
Democratic
Free economy
Communist
Ruled by dictator

3. Friends or Not? USA and Soviet Union remained friends…at first
But soon after WWII The Soviets began imposing communism on other countries. 

4. And so it begins…
In 1947, U.S. President Harry Truman announced that America would help the countries of Greece and Turkey fight attempts to turn them into communist countries and allies of the Soviet Union.
Viewed as the beginning of the Cold War.
Even though the main struggle was between the Soviet Union and America, they never engaged in a direct, all-out "hot war" from the beginning until the end in 1991.

5. Berlin Wall
1961 the communist East Germans and their Soviet friends suddenly put up a barrier, soon to be called the "Berlin Wall.“
They wanted to stop people who were running away to the free part of German.
The wall separated Berlin and the rest of German into pro-Soviet and pro-American sides
The communists used dogs, guns and landmines to keep their people from escaping.
JhwaRYOgxo ( Kid President)

6. Berlin Wall: Think About It
The wall got so high that people had to climb ladders to wave to their family and friends on the other side.
What would you do if you were on a different side of the wall from your family and friends?

7. Tear Down This Wall
In June 1987, President Ronald Reagan visited Berlin and issued a challenge to the Soviet Union.
“General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization, come here to this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”
After the wall fell, the Soviet Union itself followed soon after. It was officially dissolved in December 1991, creating the Russian Federation and, in effect, freeing most of the various countries forced in the Soviet Union.
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8. (Nuclear)Arms Race
An arms race indicates a rapid increase in the quantity or quality of instruments of military power by rival states in peacetime.
August 29, 1949: Soviet Union successfully tested its first atomic bomb
1952 : United States detonated the first hydrogen bomb. This was an even more powerful version of the nuclear bomb
1953: Soviets explode their first Hydrogen Bomb
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.
It is estimated that by 1961 there were enough nuclear bombs built to destroy the world.

9. Arms Race : Think About It
How would you feel if you were shown that video in school?

10. Rosenberg's
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were convicted of conspiring to steal designs for America's atomic bomb and delivering them to Soviet secret agents. (1951)
The Rosenberg's were sentenced to death row
Were offered a deal in which their death sentences would be commuted in return for an admission of their guilt
Did not say they were guilty so they were killed

11. Rosenberg’s: Think About It?
Do you think the Rosenberg’s were guilty? Why or why not?

12. Cuban Missile Crisis
In 1962, a super-fast American U2 spy plane spotted Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba, a country close to the State of Florida.
They put missiles in Cuba because we had missiles in Turkey
President Kennedy called a meeting with his main security advisors.
He decided to put in place a Naval Blockade
Eventually the two sides reached an agreement. The Soviet Union would remove the missiles from Cuba as long as the United States agreed to never invade Cuba again.
vTqprgCM784&nohtml5=False (JFK)

13. Cuban Missile Crisis: Think About it
Not everyone in the US was happy about the outcome. General Curtis LeMay called it the worst defeat in US history. Do you agree or disagree with him?

14. Credits http://www.ducksters.com/history/cold_war/summary.php
Youtube.com