The Cold War: 1945-1991

1. The Cold War: 1945-1991 Capitalism vs. Communism and the Atom Bomb

3. What was the Cold War? • A time period (1945-1991) of heightened tension between the 2 superpowers after WWII ended. • The U.S.A. and the Soviet Union ( USSR) were both competing for power and influence across the globe.

5. The roots of the Cold War are found in the 2 ideologies of both nations. .

6. U.S.A. = capitalism/democracy - believes that private ownership is best - believes that competition between business weeds out the good from the bad businesses.

7. - capitalism believes that if you work hard, a worker can get rich. - if one is poor, it is your fault you are poor…you are lazy. • government stays out of economy…let the free markets run the economy. • democratic elections decide the government. - freedom of speech and press protected.

8. USSR = communism/dictatorship • USSR founded by communist revolution in 1918. • Communism is based on government ownership of all means of production…no private owership. • Key belief is to redistribute the wealth equally.

9. Wealthy capitalist “steal” the wealth created by working class. • Wealthy exploit the working class…working class struggles and remains poor. • A violent revolution would kill of the wealthy class…they won’t share willingly.

10. The revolution would be chaotic to society…until peace and calm returned a dictatorship would make decisions for all to follow. • No democratic elections in the USSR! • No freedom of press or speech. • Secret police ( KGB) established to enforce government decisions and get rid of those who disagreed with the dictator.

11. The Potsdam Conference • Near the end of WWII, the western democracies ( UK, USA) met and agreed that after Hitler was defeated, the new enemy would be the USSR and communism. • US president Roosevelt and UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill planned to unite and block the growth of the USSR and communism.

13. Berlin Divided • After the Nazi collapse in 1945, Germany was occupied by the allies. • Berlin was also carved up into zones of control…The Soviet Union decided to stay in East Germany and create a new communist nation. • The allies were shocked and concerned by this power grab!

15. The Secret Weapon • During WWII the USA developed the first weapon of mass destruction…the atom bomb. • Some say the USA dropped the bomb on Japan to intimidate the USSR…Japan was already defeated.

17. Directly after WWII, the USA felt superior and confident that with the atom bomb, they were the only superpower on the planet. • Little did the US government know, but a Soviet spy was part of the US team building the atom bomb in a secret lab in New Mexico…the spy took notes and photos the whole time!

19. The US government was shocked to hear • that the USSR tested their first atom bomb in 1949…The US was not the only superpower anymore! • So begins the competition between the 2 nations …who will win? Democracy and capitalism? Or, communism and dictatorships?

20. The Iron Curtain • After the USSR successfully tested their atom bomb, Winston Churchill, PM of the UK, made a speech: “From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic aniron curtain has descended across the Continent.”

21. “Communist parties constitute a growing challenge and peril to Christian civilization.”

22. “I do not believe that Soviet Russia desires war. What they desire is the fruits of war and the indefinite expansion of their power and doctrines.”

23. “From what I have seen of our Russian friends and allies during the war, I am convinced that there is nothing they admire so much as strength, and there is nothing for which they have less respect than for weakness, especially military weakness.”

24. The ‘Truman Doctrine’ • Truman had been horrified at the pre-war Allied policy of appeasement and was determined to stand up to any Soviet intimidation.The Truman Doctrine in March 1947 promised that the USA “would support free peoples who are resisting subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures”.

25. Nuclear Annihalation • With the creation of this new weapon came the unsettling realization…the earth could possibly now be destroyed…all life killed off if a war started and these new bombs used.

27. Weapons Race • Rather than use common sense, both sides increased their weapons research. • New, more powerful bombs were created: hydrogen bombs, nuclear bombs, ( 10 times more powerful than the small atom bombs dropped on Japan in 1945.)

28. Domino Theory • The USA felt that it was dangerous to allow any country to become communist. • Like a stack of dominos, if one country fell to communism, they would all fall to communism.

30. Containment Policy • The USA response to communist expansion was to face off, and aggressively stop communism ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD it popped up. • This will lead to “hot spots” where the US will send troops to stop communism ( eg. Korea, Vietnam, Berlin, Nicaragua)

31. Deterrance • Stupid as it sounds, both sides believed that if the other side knew they had more weapons…this would “deter” the other side from attacking…. • “Don’t attack us…we have more bombs than you do…and we will use them!”

32. ICBM’s • A new weapon was introduced in the 1950’s. • A missile with a rocket engine could carry a nuclear payload and travel from Moscow all the way to the USA or vice versa. • These missles are called ICBM’s ( intercontinental ballistic missiles).

35. Nuclear Submarines • New, powerful submarines were developed by both sides. • These subs were powered by nuclear engines ( did not need to surface for a year!) • These subs could also fire nuclear missiles while underwater. • Why scary? Now a sub could be offshore and launch a nuclear attack without being detected!

38. Mutually Assured Destruction • Basically, during the entire Cold War, the 2 superpowers were playing “chicken” with the planet…whoever “blinks” first loses! • If one side launched a nuclear missile, radar would track it.

39. Radar tracking would allow enough warning time to allow the nation being attacked to launch ALL THEIR MISSILES AT ONCE! • “You may hit us with one missile…but we will annihilate you completely by firing all we’ve got at you!” • This game of chicken was quite stressful for all involved…high tension!

41. The Chinese Revolution • In 1949, after many years of fighting, China became a communist nation. • Mao Tse Tung bacame the dicator. • The USA takes the news with anxiety…another giant nation turns communist.

43. In 1964, China conducts its first successful test of an atom bomb. • China began to pour $$$ into building up a giant military to compete with the western powers.

46. The Red Scare • All throughout the Cold War, western capitalist nations went on a “witch hunt” to demonize and find anybody suspected of being a communist. • Attack words like “commie” were used to label suspected symphathizers.

47. A sense of paranoia swept over the US and Canada… “Commie spies were everywhere!” • A popular slogan was “Better dead than red!” ( red was the communist colour of revolution).

49. This paranoia went overboard in the US when a Senator named Joseph McCarthy formed an investigation committee to search for communists spies hiding in the USA. • This “Red Scare” spread quickly…many thousands were arrested and detained and assumed guilty without evidence.

50. Slide # 5 CAPITALIST OR COMMUNIST