cold war origins 1941-56

Question 1

explain what the early tension between the east and west was like

Answer 1

The USA entered WW2 against Germany and Japan in 1941, creating a Grand Alliance of the USA, Britain and the USSR. This uneasy alliance would break down into the Cold War.

The alliance of the USA and the USSR brought together two sides that were divided by political ideologies. The political and economic systems of the USA and Britain were based on capitalism, while the USSR had based its economy on communism.

Question 2

How did the actions of Germany and Japan bring the usa and ussr together

Answer 2

Britain was at war with Germany since Germany’s invaded Poland in 1939.
Despite the fact Stalin invaded Poland in 1939 with Hitler, the USSR allied itself with Britain in 1941 when Germany began to invade its territories.
In December 1941, Germany’s ally, Japan, launched a surprise attack on the US naval base at Pearl Harbor. This brought the USA into World War Two on the same side as Britain and the USSR.

Question 3

main aspects of capitalism

Answer 3

-Several political parties represent different sectors of society
-Governments are chosen by democratic elections
-People can set up private businesses and make money for themselves
-Individual rights and freedoms are important
-Freedom of speech and freedom of the press

Question 4

main aspects of communism

Answer 4

-one party state
-No democratic elections and no opportunity to change government by election
-All businesses and factories are owned by the state
-Individual rights and freedoms are less important than obedience to the state
-Censorship and state controlled media

Question 5

explain the tehran conference of November 1943

Answer 5

big three
uk-churchill
ussr-stalin
usa-roosevelt

the conference was to discuss the group’s planned invasion of Nazi occupied France. Stalin, leader of the USSR, wanted to see this happen, as at the Soviet Red Army was the only army fighting the Nazis on land.

Outcomes:

the USA and Britain would invade France by May 1944
-USSR would join the USA and Britain in the war against Japan, once Nazi Germany was defeated

Question 6

explain the yalta conference of february 1945

Answer 6

Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin - met again at Yalta in Crimean region of the USSR.

Objectives: aim
to decide what to do with Germany once it was defeated. the Yalta Conference set the scene for the rest of the Cold War in Europe.

Outcomes:

Germany to be divided into 4 zones of occupation with USSR, Britain, France and USA controlling a zone. France was free from Nazi Germany and included at conference due to pressure from French leader, General de Gaulle, because Britain wanted European ally to share cost of the post-war reconstruction of Germany.

Berlin, was 100 miles inside Soviet zone and was to be divided into 4 zones, each controlled by one of the Allied powers. Berlin would become a continuing source of tension once Cold War began.

All countries freed from Nazi control were guaranteed the right to hold free, democratic elections to choose own governments. This was released as a statement, the Declaration on Liberated Europe. But Stalin was offered a sphere of influence in Eastern Europe where communist ideals would dominate.

And, Stalin would join war against Japan, once Germany was defeated. This was important to Americans who were suffering heavy losses in the Pacific, despite the fact they were pushing back the Japanese.
All the leaders made a commitment to put on trial, suspected Nazi war criminals.
The Allies agreed to set up United Nations= dedicated to international cooperation and the prevention of war.

Question 7

explain potsdam conference in july 1945

Answer 7

uk-attlee
usa-truman
ussr-stalin

Objectives:
to finalise a post-war settlement and put into action all the things agreed at Yalta. Potsdam Conference had disagreements, which were result of significant changes that took place since Yalta Conference.

1. A new US President:

Roosevelt died and replaced by Vice-President, Truman. While Roosevelt was willing to work with Stalin, bc he needed USSR to join the war against Japan, Truman made his dislike for communism and for Stalin personally.

2. Nuclear threat:

Image of the first nuclear weapon was part of Manhattan Project.
The first detonation of nuclear weapon was part of Manhattan Project.
Just before potsdam Conference, USA exploded an atomic bomb at their test site in New Mexico.

At Potsdam, Truman told Stalin the US possessed a new weapon of unusual destructive force. Although Stalin knew details about the Manhattan Project through his spy networks, he could complain at this treatment and the fact there were secrets between supposed Allies.

3. Expansion of communism:

Despite agreeing at Yalta that free elections would be held in Eastern Europe after the defeat of Nazi Germany, there was little evidence at Potsdam that Stalin wanted to allow them. the Red Army was in control of Poland and the USSR was in the process of setting up a communist government.

Question 8

explain who truman was

Answer 8

Truman became president when Roosevelt in 12 April 1945
-heserved in France during the last five months of World War One and had been a successful officer.
-he was a Baptist and, this guided his morality and ethics.
-Truman was unaware of the Manhattan Project (the scheme developing the USA’s nuclear weapons).

Question 9

what happened in hiroshima on the 6th of august 1945

Answer 9

the USA dropped an atomic bomb on Japanese city Hiroshima. The blast destroyed an area of 5 square miles, destroyed more than 60 per cent of city’s buildings and killed 140,000 people. 3 days later the USA dropped a second atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Nagasaki, killing around 74,000 people.

Question 10

why did the usa drop bombs on hiroshima

Answer 10

The official US justification for the dropping of the two atomic bombs was to force the Japanese government to surrender, which it did on 14 August 1945. Some say that the bombs may have been dropped to send a warning to the Soviet Union about the strength of the American arsenal.

the USA had changed the nature of warfare, and for the remainder of the Cold War the threat of atomic weapons and nuclear war would be a constant theme.

Question 11

howdid espionage worse the superpower relations

Answer 11

The Manhattan Project, the USA’s secret project to develop atomic bomb, begun in 1939 based on the fear that the Germans were developing something – Albert Einstein had warned them of this. The USA’s top scientists worked on the Manhattan Project with some European and Jewish scientists.

The Manhattan Project was top-secret even in the US : Truman didn’t know about it when he was Vice President, and found out when he became President. Truman was told that the US was the only nation which could produce a weapon so destructive it could destroy the whole world. But, the USSR was expected to catch up within four years.

After the american bomb was tested in New Mexico on 16 July 1945. Truman did not fully explain the test and its success to his allies. after the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 stalin was informed on the weapon’s existence by Truman.

However, in 1943, two spies for the USSR, Klaus Fuchs and Rudolf Peierls, started working for the Manhattan Project and sent information back to the USSR. it did not help in terms of the strength and honesty of the East – West relationship.

Question 11

howdid espionage worse the superpower relations

Answer 11

The Manhattan Project, the USA’s secret project to develop atomic bomb, begun in 1939 based on the fear that the Germans were developing something – Albert Einstein had warned them of this. The USA’s top scientists worked on the Manhattan Project with some European and Jewish scientists.

The Manhattan Project was top-secret even in the US : Truman didn’t know about it when he was Vice President, and found out when he became President. Truman was told that the US was the only nation which could produce a weapon so destructive it could destroy the whole world. But, the USSR was expected to catch up within four years.

After the american bomb was tested in New Mexico on 16 July 1945. Truman did not fully explain the test and its success to his allies. after the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 stalin was informed on the weapon’s existence by Truman.

However, in 1943, two spies for the USSR, Klaus Fuchs and Rudolf Peierls, started working for the Manhattan Project and sent information back to the USSR. it did not help in terms of the strength and honesty of the East – West relationship.

Question 12

explain the soviet expansion into eastern europe

Answer 12

Despite the promises made by Stalin at the Yalta Conference to allow free elections, he started turning Eastern Europe into a buffer zone between Soviet Union and Western Europe.

Albania-1945 A communist government took power at the end of WW2.

Bulgaria 1946 the Bulgarian monarchy was abolished and a communist government was elected and got rid of its opponents.

East Germany 1945- was part of the Soviet zone of occupation agreed at Yalta Conference and in 1945 the Soviets set up a communist regime.

Romania -In 1945 elections, a communist-led coalition government was elected. The communists removed their coalition partners and abolished the Romanian monarchy.

Poland 1947 Fearing that a non-communist government would be elected in 1947, Stalin invited 16 non-communist politicians to Moscow, where they were arrested. With their political opponents removed, the Polish communists won the election.

Hungary 1948 -Although non-communists won the 1945 election, a communist politician, Rakosi, took control of secret police and used it to arrest and execute his political opponents. By 1948 the Communist Party was in complete control of the country.

Czechoslovakia 1948- the last country in Eastern Europe to fully fall to communism . At elections that year only Communists were allowed to stand and a communist government was duly elected.

Question 13

reactions to the soviet expansion- what was the

Answer 13

for western allies, it felt like the nazi dictatorship was replaced with communist dictatorship

Question 14

reactions to soviet expansion-
what was the long telegram in feb 1946

Answer 14

In 1946, George Kennan, an official at the US Embassy in Moscow, was asked to give a summary of what the Soviets were up to. His response was known as The Long Telegram because at 8,000 words,

It said the USSR was heavily armed and feared the outside world. It was determined to spread communism so there could be no peace between USSR and USA. However, the USA was stronger than the USSR and so communism could be ‘contained’.

Question 15

explain reactions to soviet expansion- what was the sovet reaction to the long telegram

the novikov telegram 1946

Answer 15

The Soviet response to The Long Telegram was The Novikov Telegram, where the Soviet ambassador to the USA, Nikolai Novikov, warned that the USA had emerged from World War Two economically strong and bent on world domination. As a result, the USSR needed to secure its buffer zone in Eastern Europe.

These two telegrams set the scene for the Cold War in Europe. The USSR would attempt to dominate Eastern Europe and spread communism where possible. The USA would commit to a policy of ‘containment’.

Question 16

what was the iron curtain speech

Answer 16

On 5 March 1946,former British Prime Minister, Churchill, condemned the Soviet expansion in Eastern Europe in his famous Iron Curtain speech. In that speech he noted that an iron curtain descended across the continent.

He meant that the Allies had spent six years fighting for the freedom from Fascism in Europe, only to have half the continent now under Soviet dictatorship.

Question 17

what was the truman doctrine

Answer 17

12th March 1947- American and British politicians were concerned about events in Greece and Turkey. Britain was no longer in a financial position to support governments who would be pro-Western. Communism already spread around Greece and the Greek Communist Party was becoming popular: there were concerns that Greece would be communism next.
The USA was the only Western ally in a financial position to stop this.

In March 1947, President Truman made a speech to the US Congress where he promised that the USA would provide aid to any country that stood up to communism. This was developed into The Truman Doctrine. The USA was now fully committed to a policy of containment, or stopping the spread of communism

Question 17

what was the truman doctrine

Answer 17

12th March 1947- American and British politicians were concerned about events in Greece and Turkey. Britain was no longer in a financial position to support governments who would be pro-Western. Communism already spread around Greece and the Greek Communist Party was becoming popular: there were concerns that Greece would be communism next.
The USA was the only Western ally in a financial position to stop this.

In March 1947, President Truman made a speech to the US Congress where he promised that the USA would provide aid to any country that stood up to communism. This was developed into The Truman Doctrine. The USA was now fully committed to a policy of containment, or stopping the spread of communism

Question 18

what was the marshall plan

Answer 18

Fearing that all of Europe could become communist, in 1947 President Truman sent General George Marshall to see what could be done to ensure this didn’t happen. Marshall recommended spending lots of money - over $12 billion . This Marshall Aid money would be spent to help economies of Western Europe recover after WW2 and make them less likely to fall into communism.

Marshall Aid was a propaganda tool - a way of saying “Look how wealthy we are, you don’t need communism. Stick with us and you’ll be wealthy too”.

The Aid was offered to all countries, but Truman knew that the conditions were such that they would probably not take it up.

Stalin blocked Czechoslovakia when they considered accepting the financial assistance on offer.

Question 19

explain the soviet response to the marshall plan

Answer 19

It said the Marshall Aid was ‘dollar imperialism’ and said the USA was throwing its economic weight around and used it to gain influence in Europe.

In September 1947 it set up Cominform – the Communist Information Bureau – to tighten Soviet control in Eastern Europe, to build collective heavy industry in those countries and to create a trade network between Communist countries.
It published its own newspaper to spread Communist ideals and held conferences in the Eastern Bloc. But, its effectiveness was limited, e.g. when Yugoslavia left the group in June 1948.

In January 1949 it established Comecon – the Council of Mutual Economic Assistance – to administer its own Molotov Plan of financial aid to keep the Eastern Bloc countries on side. Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland and Romania all joined the Soviet Union in this group and were joined by Albania and East Germany after. The group was not as successful as it might have been as the USSR dominated terms of industrial production and total economy size, but countries were committed to Communist economic theory. The group became more important after Cominform disbanded in 1956.

Question 20

why was it clear that berlin was going to be a flashpoint for the cold war

Answer 20

Germany was divided into four zones of occupation each controlled by the Allies.
Berlin, lay inside the Russian zone and was also divided into four zones of occupation.
Access to Berlin for the Allies was by way of road, rail and canal, and via three specific air corridors.

Question 21

what caused the berlin blockade

Answer 21

Stalin wanted Germany to remain weak, and as a ‘buffer zone’ between it and the West. He lost patience with the way the West were acting in Berlin and decided to push them out.

Question 22

what did western allies do which annoyed stalin

Answer 22

-Using money from the Marshall Aid programme, the Allies were helping the Germans to rebuild their economy – they learnt their lesson from the Treaty of Versailles and did not want to make Germany poor again. This meant introducing a new, stable currency and more jobs for workers in the Western sectors. Stalin was angered by this.

-Under the Marshall Plan, USA supplied goods to German shops for workers to buy. This was a nice way of showing the communists that America’s capitalist economy was flourishing.

-At a meeting in London in January 1948, Britain and USA joined zones together to create ‘Bizonia’ and make it easier to administer them. (France would later join and they’d change the name to West Germany).

so On 24th June 1948, Stalin cut all land access to Berlin for the Allies. This became known as the Berlin Blockade.

Question 23

what did the berlin blockade mean for west berlin

Answer 23

Berlin could now only be accessed by air, resulting in a restriction on the freedom to travel outside Berlin for all Germans.
A shortage of food - West Berlin only had enough food for 36 days.
A lack of basic goods like fuel and medicines.

Question 23

what did the berlin blockade mean for west berlin

Answer 23

Berlin could now only be accessed by air, resulting in a restriction on the freedom to travel outside Berlin for all Germans.
A shortage of food - West Berlin only had enough food for 36 days.
A lack of basic goods like fuel and medicines.

Question 24

what were the reaction of the western allies to the berlin blockade

Answer 24

The Berlin Blockade was the first test for the American policy of containment. As forcing their way into the city by land couldve led to another war, the Allies decided that their sectors of Berlin would be supplied by airplanes. This was known as the Berlin Airlift and it lasted for 11 months until the Blockade was lifted in May 1949.

At the height of the Berlin Airlift, a plane landed at Berlin’s Templehof Airport every minute. Keeping West Berlin supplied in this way cost the USA $350 million and Britain £17 million.

Stalin was powerless to stop the Berlin Airlift. To shoot down the planes could have provoked WW3, and at this stage, unlike the USA, the USSR did not have nuclear weapons.

Question 25

what was the aftermath of the berlin blockade

Answer 25

Berlin would remain as a source of tension in Europe for Cold War.

In April 1949 the USA, Britain and France announced the formation of the German Federal Republic (West Germany).

Elections in the Germany Federal Republic in August 1949 resulted in victory for the anti-communist politician, Konrad Adenauer, and the Christian Democratic Union.

The formation of NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) in April 1949 – an alliance of countries around the North Atlantic for their mutual defence.

The USSR responded to the formation of NATO with the Warsaw Pact -May 1955– an alliance of the communist countries of Eastern Europe for their mutual defence.

29 August 1949, the USSR exploded its first atomic bomb. The USA no longer had a monopoly on nuclear weapons.

Question 26

how did the western actions match the ussr actions

Answer 26

Politics: Truman Doctrine (1947) vs Cominform (1947)

Economics: Marshall Plan (1948) vs Comecon (1949)

Military: NATO (1949) vs Warsaw Pact (1955)

Question 27

what was the aim of NATO

Answer 27

formed in april 1949
its aim was to resist an attack by the USSR on the USA or its Allies in Western Europe, based on the principle of collective security and that an armed attack on one of its members was an attack on them all

members of NATO
USA, UK, Canada, West Germany, Portugal, France, Belgium, Holland, Denmark, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg

Question 28

what was the aim of the warsaw pact

Answer 28

formed may 1955
it aim was to resist an attack on the Soviet bloc by the USA or its NATO allies. This group, along with Comecon, would become even more important in keeping the Soviet bloc together after 1956 when Cominform disbanded

members of the warsaw pact
USSR, Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, Romania, East Germany (GDR), Albania

Question 29

explain what the arms race was

Answer 29

For a long time, the USSR was aware of the atomic bomb’s possibilities. But ever since the USA dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima in 1945, the USSR was more determined to develop its own nuclear weapons. It finally succeeded in 1949 and this began a nuclear arms race, with both sides racing to develop more and bigger bombs.

=it was matched with similar competiton with the race to the moon

Question 30

why was the usa and ussr in a intense battle with the arms race and the space race

Answer 30

the battle was to develop the best technology and try to produce the most advanced weapons. By keeping so many weapons, they guaranteed their own safety under the theory of MAD (Mutually Assured Destruction). Neither side would be willing to launch their weapons because they knew the other side could retaliate and wipe them out as well.

This situation didn’t help to calm relations between the two sides and neither could afford to fall behind in either race. For the USSR especially, the cost of the Arms Race and the Space Race was a burden that would store up problems for later in the Cold War.

Question 31

what was the hungarian uprising

Answer 31

In November 1956, Soviet tanks invaded Hungary - a country that was already under its control. The Hungarian people took to the streets and to fight the Soviet Red Army.

Question 32

Why were the Hungarian people unhappy and what were they fighting to defend?

Answer 32

Although non-communists won the 1945 election, by 1948 the communists took over by taking control of the secret police (the AVH) and eliminated political opponents. The Hungarian leader, Matyas Rakosi, was a communist fully in league with Moscow.

-they had no freedom of speech. The AVH created fear, arrested anyone who spoke out against communism. Even listening to Western music could lead to arrest.

-Soviet troops and officials were stationed in Hungary, which were a drain on the Hungarian economy, creating economic hardship for ordinary people.

-The Russian language was forced upon the people - Hungarian street signs being replaced with Russian versions, and Russian being the language in schools.

Question 33

what was khrushchev’s secret speech

Answer 33

In February 1956, new Soviet leader, Khrushchev, made an important speech to communists at a closed meeting. what he said did not remain a secret. He denounced Stalin’s crimes and human rights abuses and outlined his de-Stalinisation policy – that he would be less hard-line than Stalin had been
This encouraged people in the Eastern Bloc to think that greater freedoms was possible.

The speech had an impact in Hungary. In June 1956 the Hungarian people protested against Rakosi’s regime, and he was replaced with Erno Gero. Gero was no more popular and, following huge demonstrations, the Soviets agreed to the formation of a new government under the more liberal reformer Imre Nagy.

Question 34

what did nagy’s reforms include

Answer 34

-Free elections to choose the government.
-An impartial legal system to ensure fair trials.
-The total withdrawal of the Soviet army from Hungary.
-Farmers to be allowed private ownership of their land (instead of it being state owned).
-Hungary to leave the Warsaw Pact and declare neutrality in the Cold War.

Question 35

what happened after khrushchev refused to have hungary leave the warsaw pact

Answer 35

Khrushchev refused to accept Hungary leaving the Warsaw Pact as it would leave a gap in the USSR’s buffer zone with Western Europe.

Soviet tanks and soldiers entered Hungary to break protests. they tried to flee but were blocked from leaving the country; others killed or injured. Hungarians were arrested and 26,000 Hungarians were tried with additional imprisonments and executions as a result.

Nagy was arrested and executed. He was replaced by János Kádár who crushed the remaining resistance.

The international reaction to the attempted revolution indicated that, despite its declaration that the countries of NATO were unwilling to intervene in Soviet bloc countries.

The UN declared its disgust at the treatment of Hungarians by their government, and aid money was raised for the refugees.

Communist parties in Western European countries like Italy, Britain and France, began to change their opinion of the USSR.

However, there was no military intervention to support the Hungarian rebels.