This topic falls under CORE CONTENT: OPTION B. It is topic number 4.
The Cold War was a period of hostility which lasted from 1945 to 1991. It was a bunch of proxy wars and involved the battle of two conflicting ideologies – Communism led by the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics (USSR) and Capitalism led by the United States of America (USA). It started with ending of World War II where the temporary alliance between the USA and the USSR was terminated as the common enemy – Germany – was defeated. The ending of WWII sent most of Europe in a downward spiral and placed the USSR and the USA in superpower positions. The two superpowers clashed on an ideological, political, military and economical scale with each thinking that their respective ideas were the best.
Why did the Cold War start?
There is no known reason(s) for why the Cold War started; however, it has been a popular topic of debate amongst historians. Over the years, historians have coined three justifications for the start of the Cold War. The three are however very much conflicting.
1. The USSR is at fault. This is so because Stalin had desired to dominate the world under Communism. His takeover of Eastern Europe was seen to be his first step towards this.
2. The USA is at fault. This is so because the USA wanted to control and influence her sphere of influence without any intervention by another nation but she wouldn’t allow the USSR to do the same for her sphere of influence. As a result, any action taken on the part of the USSR is seen to be defensive.
3. Neither the USSR nor the USA is at fault. This is so because the Cold war is seen to be an inevitable war that was beyond the control of the two.
The Cold War however can be traced back to as early as 1917 when the Russian Revolution War began. With this revolution, Communism became the ruling force in Russia which fueled the Western powers want to “kill” its influence. The Western powers were staunch anti-Communists who did not agree with the ideals of Communism.
THE CONFERENCES
~The Yalta Conference (February 1945)
In February of 1945, the allied leaders met in Yalta, Ukraine with the intention of discussing what was to become of Europe seeing that Germany was about to be defeated. Stalin of the USSR, Roosevelt of the USA and Churchill of Britain were present. The three agreed on the following:
1. Stalin would enter the USSR into the war against Japan.
2. Germany would be divided into four zones. The four zones would be the American, French, British and Soviet zones. Berlin would also be divided into these four zones.
3. They would all punish the individuals who were responsible for the concentration camps and the ill treatment of the Jews etc.
4. All the countries that were liberated from Germany would elect a government they desired by free and fair elections.
5. They would all join the United Nations (UN) which took over from the League of Nations to preserve peace.
The three however disagreed with what should happen to Poland. Stalin wanted to move the borders of the USSR westwards into Poland. Churchill was not fond of the idea but could not do much as the Red Army control both Poland and East Germany. Roosevelt, like Churchill had the same feelings towards this idea. He was however persuaded by Churchill to accept it.
~The Potsdam Conference (July – August 1945)
Germany had surrendered in WWII and Hitler had committed suicide. The three allied powers once again met, but this time in Potsdam, Germany. The relationship of the three allied leader were however affected this time around for the following reasons:
1. Stalin was having his armies occupy most of Eastern Europe. By July 1945, the USSR was controlling Poland, Finland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and the Baltic states.
2. President Roosevelt of the USA died and Vice-President Harry Truman took over. He was however an aggressive leader.
3. An atomic bomb was tested in the desert of the USA.
N.B: Halfway through the Potsdam Conference, elections occurred in Britain where Churchill was replaced by Clement Atlee who also took his position at the Potsdam Conference.
The following disagreements occurred between the three allied leaders at the conference:
1. Stalin wanted to cripple Germany so she would be protected from future threats but Truman did not want a repeat of the Versailles treaty.
2. Stalin wanted Germany to compensate her for the 20million Russian who died while Truman did not want a reoccurrence of the mistake made with the Versailles Treaty.
3. Stalin had received the “go ahead” from the initial representatives from the USA and Britain to set up governments in Eastern Europe but Truman was not fond of this and assumed a “get tough” approach towards Stalin.
THE “IRON CURTAIN” SPEECH (March 1946)
At Fulton, Missouri, in March of 1946, Winston Churchill made speech that would forever be famous. This speech is termed the “Iron Curtain” speech which declared that Europe was divided into two by Soviet policy. Under this, Western Europe was free and democratic led by the Western powers while the East was under Soviet rule and subject to Communism. The East was behind an “Iron Curtain”. As a result of this speech, Stalin accused Churchill of trying to stir up war with the Soviets.
STALIN’S TAKEOVER OF EASTERN EUROPE
This occurred in three phases:
Phase 1: Poland
Phase 2: Romania & Bulgaria
Phase 3: Hungary & Czechoslovakia
Poland
in 1945
Stalin had promised to set up a joint Communist/non-Communist government at Yalta, but then he invited 16 non-Communist leaders to Moscow and arrested them. Thousands of non-Communists were arrested, and the Communists won the 1947 election which strengthened their power.
Bulgaria
in 1946
In the 1945 elections, a Communist-led coalition was elected, but the Communists executed the non-Communists. In 1946, the monarchy was abolished.
Romania
in 1947
In the 1945 elections, a Communist-led coalition was elected to power. The Communists gradually took over and in 1947 they abolished the monarchy
Hungary
in 1947
The non-communists won the 1945 elections with Zoltan Tildy as president. However, the Communists' leader, Rakosi, took control of the secret police (the AVO), and executed and arrested his opponents. Tildy was forced to resign and Cardinal Mindzenty, head of the Catholic Church, was imprisoned. By 1948, Rakosi had complete control of Hungary.
Czechoslovakia
in 1948
A coalition government was set up and led by the non-Communist Benes. However, the Communists' leader Gottwald made sure they controlled the radio, the army and the police. Gottwald became prime minister and set up a secret police force. Non-Communists were arrested. In 1948, Communist workers went on strike, the non-Communist minister Masaryk committed suicide and Gottwald took over the government.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
¥ CASE STUDY OF GREECE (1947}
From 1944, Britain had been supporting the Greek government in its civil war against the Communists. However in February 1947 Britain ended her support. The Greek government turned to the USA for help. Truman provided $400 million in the form of aid. Truman did this because he thought that once one country fell to Communism, the nearby ones will also fall in its trap. This thought is referred to as the “domino theory” – where one falls nearby one will too. This resulted in the USA taking up a policy of containment. This here is the Truman Doctrine. (See information under next heading)
In the end, Greece ended up defeating the Communists resulting in the rivalry between the USA and the USSR increasing. The USA was now fully committed to its policy of containment. The events in Greece led to the creation of Cominform – the Communist Information Bureau – which linked Communist parties in Eastern Europe and the world together.
THE TRUMAN DOCTRINE (1947) & MARSHALL PLAN
The Truman Doctrine stated that the USA would help any country in the fight against Communism.
Marshall Plan was where aid was given to European countries to get their economies up and running again. It was introduced in March 1948 after Czechoslovakia became Communist however it was sent to Congress by General George Marshall and Truman in June 1947 after Marshall saw the destruction in Europe but Congress said no at that point. Aid was given in the form of food, grants to buy equipment, improvements to transport systems, and everything "from medicine to mules".
THE BERLIN BLOCKADE & AIRLIFT (1948 – 1949)
In 1948 Stalin had planned to starve the people of West Berlin but this failed. Stalin closed off all roads and railway systems that led into West Berlin which was run by the Western allies. To get to West Berlin, one would have to pass through East Germany ran by the USSR. This closing of the roads and railway systems to West Berlin was done in an effort to cease the transportation of goods to West Berlin resulting in the people being starved. This was therefore the blockade of Berlin.
This came as a surprise to the Western powers. USA was not sure how she should respond. She had two options:
1. Let Stalin have his way as 2million people would soon starve.
2. Use force by sending troops and tanks to blast the blockade.
If the latter was used, a full scale war could have resulted and this made the USA wonder if she should use this option. It was a dilemma for the USA. She needed to make her decision quickly. The government later decided it would not be wise to provoke the USSR as war could very well result. They decided that in order for them to undermine Stalin, they had to supply the West Berliners with suppliers through airlifts.
The airlift plan succeeded. In May 1949, the Soviet Union ended their blockade. It must be noted, during the time of the blockade, over 200,000 airlifts occurred. This is a testament of how much the USA wanted to fight off and contain Communism.
THE CREATION OF NATO (April 1949) & THE SUBSEQUENT CREATION OF THE WARSAW PACT (1955)
NATO is an alliance between the Western powers that was created in April 1949. It stands for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. The dominant country here is none other than the USA with every single commander of NATO being an American. This alliance provided troops on ground for its members. As a result of NATO, the Soviets created their own version which became known as the Warsaw Pact.
The Cold War was a period of hostility which lasted from 1945 to 1991. It was a bunch of proxy wars and involved the battle of two conflicting ideologies – Communism led by the Union of Socialist Soviet Republics (USSR) and Capitalism led by the United States of America (USA). It started with ending of World War II where the temporary alliance between the USA and the USSR was terminated as the common enemy – Germany – was defeated. The ending of WWII sent most of Europe in a downward spiral and placed the USSR and the USA in superpower positions. The two superpowers clashed on an ideological, political, military and economical scale with each thinking that their respective ideas were the best.
Why did the Cold War start?
There is no known reason(s) for why the Cold War started; however, it has been a popular topic of debate amongst historians. Over the years, historians have coined three justifications for the start of the Cold War. The three are however very much conflicting.
1. The USSR is at fault. This is so because Stalin had desired to dominate the world under Communism. His takeover of Eastern Europe was seen to be his first step towards this.
2. The USA is at fault. This is so because the USA wanted to control and influence her sphere of influence without any intervention by another nation but she wouldn’t allow the USSR to do the same for her sphere of influence. As a result, any action taken on the part of the USSR is seen to be defensive.
3. Neither the USSR nor the USA is at fault. This is so because the Cold war is seen to be an inevitable war that was beyond the control of the two.
The Cold War however can be traced back to as early as 1917 when the Russian Revolution War began. With this revolution, Communism became the ruling force in Russia which fueled the Western powers want to “kill” its influence. The Western powers were staunch anti-Communists who did not agree with the ideals of Communism.
THE CONFERENCES
~The Yalta Conference (February 1945)
In February of 1945, the allied leaders met in Yalta, Ukraine with the intention of discussing what was to become of Europe seeing that Germany was about to be defeated. Stalin of the USSR, Roosevelt of the USA and Churchill of Britain were present. The three agreed on the following:
1. Stalin would enter the USSR into the war against Japan.
2. Germany would be divided into four zones. The four zones would be the American, French, British and Soviet zones. Berlin would also be divided into these four zones.
3. They would all punish the individuals who were responsible for the concentration camps and the ill treatment of the Jews etc.
4. All the countries that were liberated from Germany would elect a government they desired by free and fair elections.
5. They would all join the United Nations (UN) which took over from the League of Nations to preserve peace.
The three however disagreed with what should happen to Poland. Stalin wanted to move the borders of the USSR westwards into Poland. Churchill was not fond of the idea but could not do much as the Red Army control both Poland and East Germany. Roosevelt, like Churchill had the same feelings towards this idea. He was however persuaded by Churchill to accept it.
~The Potsdam Conference (July – August 1945)
Germany had surrendered in WWII and Hitler had committed suicide. The three allied powers once again met, but this time in Potsdam, Germany. The relationship of the three allied leader were however affected this time around for the following reasons:
1. Stalin was having his armies occupy most of Eastern Europe. By July 1945, the USSR was controlling Poland, Finland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and the Baltic states.
2. President Roosevelt of the USA died and Vice-President Harry Truman took over. He was however an aggressive leader.
3. An atomic bomb was tested in the desert of the USA.
N.B: Halfway through the Potsdam Conference, elections occurred in Britain where Churchill was replaced by Clement Atlee who also took his position at the Potsdam Conference.
The following disagreements occurred between the three allied leaders at the conference:
1. Stalin wanted to cripple Germany so she would be protected from future threats but Truman did not want a repeat of the Versailles treaty.
2. Stalin wanted Germany to compensate her for the 20million Russian who died while Truman did not want a reoccurrence of the mistake made with the Versailles Treaty.
3. Stalin had received the “go ahead” from the initial representatives from the USA and Britain to set up governments in Eastern Europe but Truman was not fond of this and assumed a “get tough” approach towards Stalin.
THE “IRON CURTAIN” SPEECH (March 1946)
At Fulton, Missouri, in March of 1946, Winston Churchill made speech that would forever be famous. This speech is termed the “Iron Curtain” speech which declared that Europe was divided into two by Soviet policy. Under this, Western Europe was free and democratic led by the Western powers while the East was under Soviet rule and subject to Communism. The East was behind an “Iron Curtain”. As a result of this speech, Stalin accused Churchill of trying to stir up war with the Soviets.
STALIN’S TAKEOVER OF EASTERN EUROPE
This occurred in three phases:
Phase 1: Poland
Phase 2: Romania & Bulgaria
Phase 3: Hungary & Czechoslovakia
Poland
in 1945
Stalin had promised to set up a joint Communist/non-Communist government at Yalta, but then he invited 16 non-Communist leaders to Moscow and arrested them. Thousands of non-Communists were arrested, and the Communists won the 1947 election which strengthened their power.
Bulgaria
in 1946
In the 1945 elections, a Communist-led coalition was elected, but the Communists executed the non-Communists. In 1946, the monarchy was abolished.
Romania
in 1947
In the 1945 elections, a Communist-led coalition was elected to power. The Communists gradually took over and in 1947 they abolished the monarchy
Hungary
in 1947
The non-communists won the 1945 elections with Zoltan Tildy as president. However, the Communists' leader, Rakosi, took control of the secret police (the AVO), and executed and arrested his opponents. Tildy was forced to resign and Cardinal Mindzenty, head of the Catholic Church, was imprisoned. By 1948, Rakosi had complete control of Hungary.
Czechoslovakia
in 1948
A coalition government was set up and led by the non-Communist Benes. However, the Communists' leader Gottwald made sure they controlled the radio, the army and the police. Gottwald became prime minister and set up a secret police force. Non-Communists were arrested. In 1948, Communist workers went on strike, the non-Communist minister Masaryk committed suicide and Gottwald took over the government.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
¥ CASE STUDY OF GREECE (1947}
From 1944, Britain had been supporting the Greek government in its civil war against the Communists. However in February 1947 Britain ended her support. The Greek government turned to the USA for help. Truman provided $400 million in the form of aid. Truman did this because he thought that once one country fell to Communism, the nearby ones will also fall in its trap. This thought is referred to as the “domino theory” – where one falls nearby one will too. This resulted in the USA taking up a policy of containment. This here is the Truman Doctrine. (See information under next heading)
In the end, Greece ended up defeating the Communists resulting in the rivalry between the USA and the USSR increasing. The USA was now fully committed to its policy of containment. The events in Greece led to the creation of Cominform – the Communist Information Bureau – which linked Communist parties in Eastern Europe and the world together.
THE TRUMAN DOCTRINE (1947) & MARSHALL PLAN
The Truman Doctrine stated that the USA would help any country in the fight against Communism.
Marshall Plan was where aid was given to European countries to get their economies up and running again. It was introduced in March 1948 after Czechoslovakia became Communist however it was sent to Congress by General George Marshall and Truman in June 1947 after Marshall saw the destruction in Europe but Congress said no at that point. Aid was given in the form of food, grants to buy equipment, improvements to transport systems, and everything "from medicine to mules".
THE BERLIN BLOCKADE & AIRLIFT (1948 – 1949)
In 1948 Stalin had planned to starve the people of West Berlin but this failed. Stalin closed off all roads and railway systems that led into West Berlin which was run by the Western allies. To get to West Berlin, one would have to pass through East Germany ran by the USSR. This closing of the roads and railway systems to West Berlin was done in an effort to cease the transportation of goods to West Berlin resulting in the people being starved. This was therefore the blockade of Berlin.
This came as a surprise to the Western powers. USA was not sure how she should respond. She had two options:
1. Let Stalin have his way as 2million people would soon starve.
2. Use force by sending troops and tanks to blast the blockade.
If the latter was used, a full scale war could have resulted and this made the USA wonder if she should use this option. It was a dilemma for the USA. She needed to make her decision quickly. The government later decided it would not be wise to provoke the USSR as war could very well result. They decided that in order for them to undermine Stalin, they had to supply the West Berliners with suppliers through airlifts.
The airlift plan succeeded. In May 1949, the Soviet Union ended their blockade. It must be noted, during the time of the blockade, over 200,000 airlifts occurred. This is a testament of how much the USA wanted to fight off and contain Communism.
THE CREATION OF NATO (April 1949) & THE SUBSEQUENT CREATION OF THE WARSAW PACT (1955)
NATO is an alliance between the Western powers that was created in April 1949. It stands for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. The dominant country here is none other than the USA with every single commander of NATO being an American. This alliance provided troops on ground for its members. As a result of NATO, the Soviets created their own version which became known as the Warsaw Pact.