14. The Arms Race

Question 1

What did nuclear weapons act as?

Answer 1

A deterrent as once both sides had nuclear weapons, each now had the power to retaliate an attack and each side feared retaliation for striking first known as mutually assured destruction (MAD)

Question 2

What was behind the idea of a country having nuclear weapons?

Answer 2

The country had to have as many nuclear weapons as possible so that they couldn’t all be destroyed if the other side was to attack first

Question 3

How long was the arms race?

Answer 3

From 1949-1955

Question 4

What were the reasons for the development of the arms race and creating nuclear weapons?

Answer 4

• with nukes, each side had the power to attack
• the arms race tested a countries strength and capabilities and both the us and su wanted to look better than the other
• nukes were cheaper than convectional weapons and so it was more cost effective than to pay for large standing armies

Question 5

What was the most important reason for the arms race to have occurred?

Answer 5

The fact that nuclear weapons acted as a deterrent because this later created MAD and so made the possibility of a hot war much less likely

Question 6

What happened in 1945 August?

Answer 6

The USA tested and dropped the first atomic bomb over Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Question 7

What began the arms race?

Answer 7

After the dropping of the atomic bomb over japan

Question 8

What effect did the atomic bomb over japan have over the SU, how they react ?

Answer 8

Made atomic research his top priority pouring massive money into developing them. Towns like Arzamas 16 were created to hous the scientists and engineers.

Scientists pay were trebled too

Question 9

What happened on 29th August 1949? How did Truman respond ? How did Su respond to Truman’s response ?

Answer 9

The soviets successfully tested their own atomic bomb, shocking us public . Now both sides had it.

Truman increased spending for Defense and ordered h bomb to be made

They increased their spending too

Question 10

How much did spending increase for both in 1949 to 1953

Answer 10

America more than tripled and Su doubled

Bith 13 in 1049, 50 America and 25 Su in 1953

Question 11

What did the USA do in March 1954?

Answer 11

Tested biggest ever hydrogen bomb = 15 million tons of tnt level

Question 12

What did the su do in September 1954?

Don’t need to know btw

Answer 12

Dropped its own smaller test H bomb from a bomber and developed the bison jet bomber and longer range TU-95 bomber which could hit us cities with nuclear weapons bomber gap

Question 13

How did the USA close the bomber gap?

Why did Churchill describe it as a balance or terror?

Answer 13

President Eisenhower ordered new B-52 bombers to close the gap with the SU, which could wipe out Moscow .

Even though the Su was behind the USA in terms of nuclear missiles they could stil, wipe them out. This k stent threat was a balance of terror.

Question 14

What misunderstanding did US politicians create?

Answer 14

They claimed the us had fewer nukes than the su when really the su only had around 50 atom bombs in 1953 and didn’t catch up with the USA until 1978 however the su did have a huge convectional army of soldiers, tanks and artillery

Question 15

Who was winning the arms race between 1945 and 1955?

Answer 15

America

Question 16

What was Polaris?

Answer 16

A missile developed by the USA by 1960 and could be launched from submarine

Question 17

What happened in November 1952?

Answer 17

The USA built the first H bomb, 1000x more powerful than the atomic bomb and by 1953, the soviets had done the same

Question 17

What was brinkmanship?

Answer 17

Where each side would push the other to the brink of using weapons knowing they would eventually back down

Question 18

In what occasion were nuclear weapons likely to be used?

Answer 18

During the Berlin blockade and Korean War but the Cuban missile crisis of 1962 almost sent the world into destruction

Question 19

What was a great social significance of the Cold War?

Answer 19

The bomb in popular culture as it made people see the situation as entertainment

Question 20

What were the impacts of the arms race?

Answer 20

• The ‘ban the bomb’ movement
• preparation for nuclear attack
• the bomb in popular culture
• brinkmanship
• MAD

Question 21

Give examples of the way the arms race affected popular culture

Answer 21

Inspired many works of literature, film and tv for example the film ‘Dr.strange love’ which points out the danger and absurdity of the situation

Question 21

Give examples of the way the arms race impacted movements

Answer 21

Ban the bomb protests

Question 21

What was difference in nuclear power by 1961 (in terms of ICBMs , SLBMS and long range bombers ?)

Answer 21

ICBMs = USA 60, Su 50+
SLBMS USA = 96, Su 0
Long range = as 600, Su 200

Question 22

Give examples of the way the arms race affected brinkmanship

Answer 22

• any tensions in the 1950s brought fear of nuclear war

- in the Berlin blockade, leaders decisions were informed by knowing of nuclear weapons

Question 23

Give examples of the way the arms race affected MAD

Answer 23

• On 30 Oct 1961, the su detonated 50 tonnes of dynamite and neither side used weapons for fear of retaliation
• it was the main reason there wasn’t a hot war

Question 24

How did the ICBM’s show the su and USA’s rivalry?

Answer 24

In 1959, the USA developed their own ICBM systems as Atlas and Minuteman that could reach the SU who had ICBM’s that could reach the USA

Question 25

How were relations looming by 1961 due to arms race and why were there no signs of Improvements?

Answer 25

As each side felt more and more threatened , alliances were made more and more weapons made.

2) U-2 crisis in 1960 and Berlin events in 1961 stoped any signs of I prove,ent
3) Cuban missile crisis 196, closest 2orld has got to nuclear war

Question 26

What was one advantage of the arms race in terms of nuclear development?

Answer 26

The fact that conventional development could drips its levels