Cold War

Capitalism vs Communism Economic Systems

Capitalism was the economic system of the West based on private ownership (rather than government ownership) and the free market system. Communism encompassed the economic system of the East based on government ownership and the control of resources.

How Was The Situation Between US And The Soviet Union Before The Cold War?

During World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union fought together as allies against the Axis powers. However, the relationship between the two nations was a tense one. Americans had long been wary of Soviet communism and concerned about Russian leader Joseph Stalin's tyrannical, blood-thirsty rule of his own country. For their part, the Soviets resented the Americans' decades-long refusal to treat the USSR as a legitimate part of the international community as well as their delayed entry into World War II, which resulted in the deaths of tens of millions of Russians.

How Many People Died?

During the Cold War, over 11 million people died in various conflicts where the Americans supplied one side and the Soviets supplied the other.

Origins Of The Cold War

Following the surrender of Nazi Germany in May 1945 near the close of World War II, the uneasy wartime alliance between the United States and Great Britain on the one hand and the Soviet Union on the other began to unravel. By 1948 the Soviets had installed left-wing governments in the countries of eastern Europe that had been liberated by the Red Army. The Americans and the British feared the permanent Soviet domination of eastern Europe and the threat of Soviet-influenced communist parties coming to power in the democracies of western Europe. The Soviets, on the other hand, were determined to maintain control of eastern Europe in order to safeguard against any possible renewed threat from Germany, and they were intent on spreading communism worldwide, largely for ideological reasons. The Cold War had solidified by 1947-48, when U.S. aid provided under the Marshall Plan to western Europe had brought those countries under American influence and the Soviets had installed openly communist regimes in eastern Europe.

Why The Cold War Began?

Growing out of post-World War II tensions between the two nations, the Cold War rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union that lasted for much of the second half of the 20th century resulted in mutual suspicions, heightened tensions and a series of international incidents that brought the world's superpowers to the brink of disaster.

Warsaw Pact

Its a eastern allies and Satellite nations of the Soviet Union (military alliance)

Iron Curtain

Its imaginary wall that splits East and West Europe (The East is the Communist and West is the Democracy)

The Berlin Blockade

The Berlin Blockade was the first major crisis of the Cold War. The Soviet Union tried to limit the ability of France, Great Britain, and the United States to travel to their sectors of Berlin. The United States and Britain responded with history's largest air supply campaign.

Cold War Space Race

The Cold War Space Race (1957 - 1975) was a competition in the exploration of space between the United States and the Soviet Union.

When did the Cold War end?

The Cold War ended after a period of 46 years when the Soviet Union fell in 1991 ending the Cold War.

Strategies and Doctrines

The Cold War lasted for 46 years from 1945 - 1991. Many of the Key events of the Cold War occurred over several years such as the Cold War Arms Race and the Cold War Space Race. Various strategies and doctrines were also a feature of the Cold War although not related to specific events. These include the Detente, Raprochement, Glasnost, Perestroika, Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD), and the Domino Theory.

The Struggle Between Superpowers

The Cold War reached its peak in 1948-53. In this period the Soviets unsuccessfully blockaded the Western-held sectors of West Berlin (1948-49); the United States and its European allies formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a unified military command to resist the Soviet presence in Europe (1949); the Soviets exploded their first atomic warhead (1949), thus ending the American monopoly on the atomic bomb; the Chinese communists came to power in mainland China (1949); and the Soviet-supported communist government of North Korea invaded U.S.-supported South Korea in 1950, setting off an indecisive Korean War that lasted until 1953.

When did the Cold War start?

The Cold War started in 1945 at the end of WW2 as the United States developed the first Atomic Bomb and the power struggle between the USA and the USSR began.

Definition And Summary Of The Cold War (1945 - 1991)

The Cold War was a period of "non-hostile belligerency" primarily between the USA and the USSR. It was a 'war of words' and competition involving the Cold War Space Race and Arms Race involving the nuclear build-up between the USA and its allies in the West and the Communist world dominated by the USSR and China in the East.

Why was it called the Cold War?

The Cold War was so called because of the icy relationship between the USSR and USA starting at the end of WW2. Because two great powers never directly fought each other it was called a "cold war", meaning there was no physical fighting and described as "non-hostile belligerency". It was a "War of Words".

The Red Scare

The First Red Scare was sparked by fear and suspicion of Russia and Communism following the Russian Revolution (1918-1919). The Second Red Scare erupted following WW2 with anti-communist hysteria in the United States sparked by fears of the Cold War Nuclear Arms Race and communist spies.

What Countries were involved in the Cold War?

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was the military alliance of the West during the Cold War that was established in 1949. The members of NATO were the United States, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Canada, Portugal, Italy, Norway, Denmark and Iceland. Three years later, on 18 February 1952, Greece and Turkey also joined.

The Domino Theory

The US Policy of Containment led to the Domino Theory which related to the spread of communist rule during the Cold War. The theory speculated that if one region came under the influence of communism, then the surrounding countries would follow in a falling domino effect. U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower put the theory into words, although he never directly used the term "domino theory", when referring to communism in Indochina during a news conference on April 7, 1954.

Key People - The Soviet Leaders

The main Soviet Leaders during the Cold War were Joseph Stalin who was Dictator of the Soviet Union from 3 April 1922 - 16 October 1952. Nikita Khrushchev who came to power in 1953 after the death of Stalin. Khrushchev was in power until 1964, when Leonid Brezhnev had him ousted. Leonid Brezhnev was the leader of the USSR for 18 years from 14 October 1964 - 10 November 1982. Two short-lived leaders emerged. Yuri Andropov ruled the USSR from 12 November 1982 - 9 February 1984 followed by Konstantin Chernenko who was in office from 13 February 1984 - 10 March 1985. Mikhail Gorbachev led from 15 March, 1990 - 25 December, 1991 and introduced the policies of Glasnost and Perestroika which contributed to the fall of the Iron Curtain and the Soviet Union.

Key People - The Cold War Presidents

he Key people during the Cold War were the leaders of the USA and the USSR. There were nine Cold War Presidents between 1945 - 1991. The names of the Cold War Presidents were Harry Truman, Dwight D Eisenhower, John F Kennedy, Lyndon B Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and George H Bush.