Transcript THE COLD WAR

THE G.I. BILL
Provided college for returning
World War II veterans
(commonly referred to as GIs)
Provided one year of
unemployment compensation
Millions of GIs bought homes,
attended college, started
business venture, or found jobs
THE G.I. BILL
President Franklin Roosevelt signs the GI Bill in 1944
Between 1945 and 1954, the
U.S. added 13 million new
homes to its housing stock
VA Mortgages paid
for nearly 5 million
new homes, by
making homes
affordable with low
interest rates and
30 year loans.
Truman and civil rights
One of the major acts made
by Truman was when he
made an executive order
to end segregation in
the armed forces
Truman also asked
Congress to pass a civil
rights bill that would make
lynching a federal crime
ELECTION of 1948
Truman angered many
Southern Democrats by
supporting integration
Many people didn’t think
he would be re-elected
Harry S Truman
Thomas Dewey
Strom Thurmond
People were so sure that
Truman would lose that one
headline even incorrectly
said that Dewey had won
Historians view the Election
of 1948 as the greatest
election upset in U.S. history
Do Now: Copy down the following
essential questions…
 What
was the Cold War and
why did it occur?
 From the American
perspective, why did wartime
cooperation between the
United States and the Soviet
Union collapse in 1945-1946?
THE
COLD
WAR
BEGINS
The era of confrontation and competition between
the U.S. and the Soviet Union when the threat of
nuclear war created constant world tension
United States
Soviet Union
vs.
Democracy
Communism
Overview of the Cold War…

The Cold War is the term we use to define the relationship
between the United States and the Soviet Union that lasted
from 1945-1991.
 Called “cold” because the 2 never fought each other
directly
○ Fought through proxy wars, technological competitions,
sporting events etc.
 Brought world to the brink of nuclear war
 Events that occurred during the Cold War:
○ Berlin Blockade and Berlin Airlift
○ Korean War
○ Space Race
○ Cuban Missile Crisis
○ Vietnam War
○ Invasion of Afghanistan
○ Iranian Hostage Crisis
○ And many more events…
Differing Philosophies
• Believed
in democratic forms of
government
• Believed economic stability would
keep peace in the word
• Believed the free enterprise system
was necessary for economic growth
• Believed in a communistic forms
of government
• Believed in workers revolting
(striking) against business owners
and taking control of government
• Wanted to control countries
between Russia and Germany
Intro to the Cold War Video…

From World War II to Cold War
Do Now: Copy down the following
essential question…
Assess
the strategic
options available to the
U.S. in 1946 concerning
the Soviet Union.
Soviets
take over
Eastern
Europe
Soviet troops move into Germany near the end of World War II
As World War II ended,
the Soviet army occupied
the countries of Eastern
Europe that Germany had
conquered during the war
Do Now:

Get into your groups for the debate.
Kennan’s committee sits closest to the
counter, Wallace sits closest to the
windows. Take 3 minutes to draft an
opening statement of your suggestion
about the action that President Truman
should take.
Today’s Essential Question:

What was containment and how was it
applied in 1947-1948?

Containment Overview
The Iron Curtain
Poland, Romania,
Czechoslovakia,
Hungary Bulgaria
and East Germany
became satellite
nations of Soviet
Union
“An iron curtain has descended across the Continent”
– Prime Minister Winston Churchill
Peep under the
Iron curtain
March 6, 1946
• Who is “Joe”?
• What part of
Europe is sealed
off?
• What does the
wall symbolize?
Letter from U.S. diplomat
George Kennan that led to the
U.S. policy of containment of
communism.
Kennan said the Russians were concerned about
invasions from the west and wanted a buffer zone
Russians wanted to spread communism world-wide
U.S. should use diplomatic, economic and military
actions to keep communism contained
The Policy of Containment
The United States’ foreign policy in the
1940s and 1950s in order to stop the
spread of communism to more
countries.
 Containment Policy

 Watch the following 7 minute video a
teacher recorded on the early policy of
containment. Take notes from her slides in
your notebook, defining communism, the
Truman Doctrine, and the Marshall Plan.
Truman Doctrine
U.S. foreign policy established by President Truman saying
the U.S. would protect democracies throughout the world
“It must be the policy of
the United States to
support free peoples
who are resisting
attempted subjugation
by armed minorities or
outside pressures”
-- Harry Truman
Truman Doctrine
It pledged that the United States
would fight Communism worldwide
American tanks provided by the Truman Doctrine roll through Turkey
Truman Doctrine was
an extension to the
U.S. foreign policy set
forth in the Monroe
Doctrine (1823) and
the Roosevelt
Corollary (1904)
Aid for Europe
Secretary of State
George Marshall
toured Western
Europe; witnessed
widespread
homelessness and
famine.
Children in a London suburb, waiting outside the wreckage of what was their home
Fearing Europeans
would turn to
communism as an
answer to their
economic problems,
Marshall proposed
the U.S. help to
rebuild Europe,
leading to…
Marshall
Plan
U.S. plan for rebuilding
Western Europe, and repelling
communism after World War II
Plan made U.S. heroes to
people of Western Europe
Plan pumped
billions of dollars
into Western
Europe for food
and supplies
George C. Marshall
Marshall Plan aids Western Europe
The Marshall Plan proved to be a great success
Within 4 years, countries receiving aid saw a
41% higher industrial production than on the
eve of World War II
Countries were stabilized and exports were
rising rapidly
Countries receiving aid under Marshall Plan
Eastern European
countries were offered
to take part in the
Marshall Plan…
What is this cartoon
trying to say?
… but Stalin and other
East European leaders
refused financial help
from the United States
Essential Question:

Why did the United States formally
commit itself to the defense of Europe
by joining the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization?
Germany
Divided
British
Soviet
French
American
After World War II,
Germany was divided
into four zones,
occupied by French,
British, American,
and Soviet troops.
Occupation zones
after 1945. Berlin is
the multinational area
within the Soviet zone.
East and West
Germany
formed
East Berlin
West
Germany
East
Germany
West Berlin
In June of 1948, the
French, British and
American zones were
joined into the nation of
West Germany after the
Soviets refused to end
their occupation of
Germany.
In response, the Soviets
cut off West Berlin
from the rest of the
world with a blockade.
Eventual site of the Berlin Wall
Berlin Airlift, June 1948-May 1949
President Truman
decided to avoid the
blockade by flying in
food and other
supplies to the needy
people of West Berlin
At times, over 5,000
tons of supplies
arrived daily
Berlin Airlift
The airlift continued for
11 months before Stalin
finally lifted the blockade
The Berlin Airlift saved
the people of West Berlin
from falling under
Soviet Union control
Soviet blockade of West
Germany convinced many
Americans that the
Soviets were trying to
conquer other nations
Birth of NATO
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Formed in April, 1949 to protect Western
Europe from Soviet aggression
The Warsaw Pact
Poland, Romania,
Czechoslovakia,
Hungary Bulgaria
and East Germany
became satellite
nations of Soviet
Union
The Warsaw Pact was the Soviet Union’s response to
the creation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
August 1949: Soviet Union
explodes its first atomic bomb

Overview

Video
 Analyze
the developments
from 1941-1949 that
increased suspicion and
tension between the United
States and the Soviet Union.
Coming Up…
The Korean War
McCarthyism
Essential Question

Why did the Korean War occur and how
did it change the relationship between
the United States and the Soviet Union?
The Cold War Heats Up
Cold War spreads to Asia
Communists take
over in China
Mao Zedong takes
control of Chinese
government from
Chang Kai-shek’s
Nationalist Party
Half the world now appeared to
be under Communist control
The country of Korea became the
next battleground in the Cold War
China
Korea
The Korean War
The Cold War gets HOT
Following World
War II, the Allies
divided Korea at
the 38th parallel
Soviets controlled
North Korea; U.S.
sets up a democracy
in South Korea
Both governments
claimed to control
all of Korea
The Korean War
A “Police Action” (1950-1953)
Kim Il-Sung
Leader of
North Korea
“Domino Theory”
If one country falls to communism,
others around it will fall as well
Syngman Rhee
President of
South Korea
The Korean War
The Cold War gets HOT
On June 25, 1950,
North Korea invades
South Korea
UN forces under
MacArthur come to
the aid of South Korea
Communist forces
push UN forces to
brink of defeat
UN forces push North
Koreans back to
border of China
The Korean War
China enters the war
North Koreans pushed
back to border with China
Chinese enter war on the
side of North Koreans
Macarthur
calls for an
invasion of
China, wants
to use the
atomic bomb
Macarthur criticized Truman
for wanting a “limited war”
An artillery officer directs UN troops as they
drop white phosphorous on a Communist-held
post in February 1951.
The Korean War
War ends in a
stalemate
An armistice was
signed ending the
war in July 1953
Korea was divided
at the 38th parallel
Korean War marked an important
turning point in the Cold War
U.S. began a major military buildup; began using military force to
prevent spread of communism
Korean War Videos
Intro to the War
 Map Explanation
 Korean War in 30 Seconds

Do Now: Ponder this:
You’re an American living in the 1950s. You read the following
account published in the newspaper given by an attorney general:
“Communists are everywhere-in factories, offices, butcher shops,
on street corners, in private businesses. At this very moment they
are busy at work—undermining your government, plotting to
destroy the liberties of every citizen, and feverishly trying in
whatever way they can, to aid the Soviet Union.”
A couple days later, you read in the newspaper about a senator
from Wisconsin who said:
“I have here in my hand a list of 205 . . . a list of names that were
made known to the Secretary of State as being members of the
Communist Party and who nevertheless are still working and
shaping policy in the State Department.”
How does this make you feel? How would you react? Write your
response in your notebook.
Essential Question: What
happened during the
Second Red Scare and what
events caused it to occur?
A Second Red Scare: 1950U.S. citizens in 1950s feared 1956
Communists wanted to take
over the world. This fear
became known as the Second
Red Scare.
Spies like Julius and
Ethel Rosenberg and
Alger Hiss caused fear
that our government
was infiltrated by the
Communists
The National Security Act of 1947
Truman argued national security
demanded huge increase in size of federal
govt., including military forces and
surveillance agencies
 1947: Act established Department of
Defense and National Security Council to
administer and coordinate defense policies
and advise president

 Created Central Intelligence Agency (CIA):
operation devoted to collecting political, military,
and economic information for security purposes
throughout the world.
 Information about CIA was classified
The Loyalty-Security Program



National security required increased surveillance at
home
1947: Federal Loyalty Security Program tested and
investigated all federal employees
1950: Congress overrides President Truman’s veto
to pass “Internal Security Act”
 Authorized arrest of suspect persons during national
emergency
 Barred people deemed subversive or homosexual from
becoming citizens or visiting U.S.
 Immigrants who were members of communist
organizations could be deported, even if they had become
citizens
 Truman called it “the greatest danger of freedom of press,
speech, and assembly since the Sedition Act of 1798.”
House Un-American Activities
Committee
Committee set up to investigate
Communist activities in the U.S.
HUAC searched for Soviet spies
and Communist sympathizers.
“Are you now or
have you ever been
a Communist?”
Red Scare and HUAC
House Un-American Committee meeting in 1948
Alger Hiss
• American lawyer,
government official
• Involved in
establishment of U.N.
• 1948: Accused of
being a Soviet spy
• Convicted of perjury
in 1950 and sent to
jail
Julius and Ethel
Rosenberg





Married couple living
in U.S.
1950: Arrested for sharing atomic
secrets of the Manhattan Project with
the Soviets
Executed via electric chair in 1953
Only 2 Americans to be executed for
espionage-related activity during the
Cold War
Video
The Hollywood Ten
People who were accused of being
Communists were often “blacklisted”
A group of Hollywood actors who
were blacklisted for refusing to
answer HUAC questions became
known as the “Hollywood Ten”
Movie stars Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart lead a
protest during height of Hollywood Blacklist controversy
If someone was
blacklisted, it meant
they were denied
work or ostracized
from society
McCarthyism
• Joe McCarthy: Republican Senator
from Wisconsin
• 1950: gave speech claiming he had
a list of over 250 known
Communists that were currently
working in the State Department
• 1953: Began holding Senate
hearings
• Despite lack of any proof, over
2,000 government employees
lost their jobs b/c of these
investigations
• McCarthyism
• How to Spot a Communist
Eisenhower and the Cold War
• Eisenhower brought “New Look” to U.S. national security
policy in 1953
• Main elements =
• Maintaining the vitality of the U.S. economy while
still building sufficient strength to prosecute the
Cold War
• Relying on nuclear weapons to deter Communist
aggression or, if necessary, to fight a war
• Using the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to
carry out secret or covert actions against
governments or leaders "directly or indirectly
responsive to Soviet control”
• Strengthening allies and winning the friendship of
nonaligned governments
McCarthy’s Downfall
• 1954: turned attention to exposing
supposed communist infiltration of
the armed forces
• Army-McCarthy hearings were
televised
• Americans watched McCarthy
intimidate witnesses and offer
evasive responses when
questioned
• By time hearings were over, his
credibility was ruined and he lost
all his power.
• Have You No Sense of Decency
Sir?
U-2 Incident
Col. Francis Gary
Powers’ spy plane was
shot down over Soviet
airspace in 1960
Incident cools Soviet-U.S. relations
Russians launch Sputnik
The Russians have beaten America into
space—they have the technological edge!
Russians launch Sputnik
Impact of Sputnik
Congress establishes
the National
Aeronautics and
Space Agency
(NASA) to conduct
research in rocket
and space technology
Congress also passed the National
Defense Education Act, which
provided money for education and
training in science, math and
foreign languages
The Space Race Begins
In 1961, Russian cosmonaut
Yuri Gagarin blasted off into
space, making the Soviet
Union the first nation to
launch a human into orbit
Kennedy said he
wanted U.S. to land a
man on the moon by
the end of the 1960s
The Space Race Begins
Kennedy’s challenge was
met on July 20, 1969,
when Neil Armstrong
became the first human to
step foot on the moon
“That’s one small step for man,
one giant leap for mankind.” –
Neil Armstrong
Berlin Wall Built
Soviets wanted to keep
Germans from moving
out of East Germany
into West Berlin,
where they could
become free
Berlin Wall
became the
symbol of
Communist
oppression
around the world
Ich bin ein Berliner!
(1963)
President Kennedy
tells Berliners
that the West is
with them!
Castro embraces Communism
(1959)
Cuban dictator Fidel Castro embraces Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev
Bay of Pigs Debacle
(1961)
CIA-trained Cuban
exiles led an attack
at the Bay of Pigs in
Cuba in an attempt
to overthrow Castro
Invasion was a
disaster and failed;
was a huge foreign
policy blunder for
the United States
Cuban Missile Crisis
U.S. and Russia came
extremely close to
nuclear war when
Russians place nuclear
missiles in Cuba in
November of 1962
In response to U.S.
missiles in Turkey, the
Russians began building
missile bases in Cuba
Cuban Missile Crisis
United States places an
embargo on incoming
shipments to Cuba from
the Soviet Union, U.S.
goes to DEFCON-3
Soviet ships reach the
quarantine line, but
receive radio orders
from Moscow to hold
their positions
Cuban Missile Crisis
Kennedy threatens a
U.S. invasion of Cuba
unless Soviet missiles
are removed; U.S.
moves to DEFCON-2
President John F. Kennedy thinking in the Oval
Office during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962
The Russians
agreed to take their
missiles out of Cuba
if the U.S. removed
theirs from Turkey
Vietnam War: 1965-1973
THE
VIETNAM
WAR
Key figures in the Vietnam War
Ho Chi Minh
President of North
Vietnam who led the
efforts to defeat
South Vietnam and
support of the South
Vietnamese Vietcong
William Westmoreland
American commander
in South Vietnam who
told people in the
media that the United
States was close to
winning the war, even
though it wasn’t
Lyndon B. Johnson
President of the United
States who was president
during much of Vietnam
War; greatly escalated
the U.S. soldier
involvement in the
conflict
Key figures in the Vietnam War
Robert McNamara
U.S. Secretary of
Defense during the
Vietnam War who made
the American republic
feel like we were
winning the war
Richard Nixon
Ngo Dinh Diem
President of the United
States during the latter
part of the Vietnam
War
President of South
Vietnam who whose
corruption and harsh
standards led
numerous people to
turn to the Vietcong
Vietnam in the ’50s
Following World War II, the
French controlled southeast
Asia (known as Indochina)
Ho Chi Minh led a revolt
against the French to gain
independence for Vietnam
By 1954, the French fell to the
Vietminh and they withdrew
from Indochina, leaving
Vietnam a divided country
Southeast Asia (aka: French Indochina)
Domino Theory
The Domino Theory was the belief that if
one country fell to communism, the other
Southeast Asian nations would eventually
fall to communism as well
This map from an American
magazine published 14th
November 1950 shows how
much they feared the
spread of Communism in
the Far East.
South Vietnam problems
The people of South Vietnam hated
South Vietnamese president Ngo Dinh
Diem. He was corrupt and did not
govern in the best interest of the citizens.
A Buddhist monk commits suicide in protest to the
harsh policies of the S. Vietnamese government
Diem was disliked because
he discriminated against the
Buddhist population
Some Buddhist monks
protested Diem’s rule by
setting themselves on fire
Gulf of Tonkin Incident
In August of 1964, Pres. Johnson
announced that North Vietnam
ships had fired on two American
destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin
USS Maddox
Johnson insisted that the
North Vietnamese attack
was unprovoked and
responded by ordering
American airplanes to attack
North Vietnam
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
After accusing N.
Vietnam of attacking the
U.S., Johnson asked
Congress to give him the
authorization to use force
to defend American forces
When, in August of
1964, Congress passed
the Gulf of Tonkin
Resolution, Congress
handed over war
powers to the president
The President had the power to
send U.S. troops into battle
without a declaration of war
Operation Rolling Thunder
The U.S. bombing campaign
conducted against the North
Vietnam from 1965 until 1968
Operation
became most
intense
air/ground battle
waged during
the Cold War
The three-year assault was
intended to get North
Vietnam to stop supporting
South Vietnamese guerrillas
Vietcong
Guerrilla army based in
South Vietnam (also
known as the NLF) that
fought the U.S. and South
Vietnamese governments
during the Vietnam War
The Vietcong were South
Vietnamese communists
who fought for Vietnamese
unification on the side of the
North Vietnamese
Vietcong Advantages
 They were familiar with
the landscape (rivers,
lakes, etc.)
 They could find a safe
haven in Cambodia,
Laos or South Vietnam
 They could often count
on the support of the
local population
Ho Chi Minh Trail
Path that ran from North Vietnam to
South Vietnam through Laos and
Cambodia system providing manpower
and materiel to the Vietcong
Red line indicates Ho Chi Minh
Trail through Laos and Cambodia
A look at the Ho Chi Minh Trail from road level, with
camouflaged convoy truck approaching.
Tet Offensive
January 30 – June 8, 1968
In early 1968, the Vietcong and the North Vietnamese
launched a surprise attack throughout South Vietnam
during the Tet, which is the Vietnamese New Year
Tet Offensive
While the Vietcong
suffered heavy losses, it
was a major political
victory for the Vietcong
Tet was the turning point
in the war and showed that
the U.S. was nowhere
close to winning the war
The Tet Offensive in 1968 was a surprise attack
by the Vietcong throughout South Vietnam
Credibility Gap
Opposition to the
Vietnam War grew
in the United States
in the late 1960s
Robert McNamara
Many Americans
were suspicious of
the government’s
truthfulness about
the war
William Westmoreland
Many Americans believed a credibility gap had
developed (people lost trust in what the
government was telling them)
My Lai Massacre
March 16th, 1968
An American platoon had
massacred more than 200
South Vietnamese civilians
who they thought were
members of the Vietcong in
a village called My Lai
Most of the victims were old men, women and children
The My Lai massacre increased feelings among many
Americans that the war was brutal and senseless
Election of 1968
Johnson refuses to
run for re-election
After Johnson refused to run for
re-election and Bobby Kennedy
was assassinated, the Democrats
ended up choosing LBJ’s vicepresident, Hubert Humphrey, as
their presidential candidate
Republicans nominate former
vice-president Richard Nixon,
who lost to JFK in 1960
"I shall not seek, and I will not accept the nomination of my party for
another term as your President." March 31, 1968
Election of 1968
Nixon becomes president!
Draft Lottery Begins
Many Americans who were against the war believed
the United States had an unfair draft system
Minorities made up a large percentage of people
drafted and most soldiers were under 21 years old
Kent State Massacre
In April of 1970,
President Nixon
announced that
American troops had
invaded Cambodia
May 4, 1970
Anti-war protestors
saw this as an
escalation of the war,
sparking violent
protests on college
campuses
At Kent State University in Ohio, protestors became
violent. The Ohio National Guard was called in and fired
upon the student demonstrators, killing four students
th
26 Amendment ratified
Anger over the draft led to
debates about the voting age.
Demonstrators help public
rallies and marches.
The average age of a
American soldier in Vietnam
was 19. Because you had to
be 21 to vote, many people
called for changes in voting
laws, saying that if you’re old
enough to fight in war, you
should be old enough to vote.
President Nixon signs the 26th Amendment
guaranteeing the right to vote for people over 18.
In 1971, the 26th
Amendment was ratified,
lowered the legal voting
age from 21 to 18
Vietnamization
Vietnamization called for a
gradual withdrawal of
American troops as South
Vietnamese took more control
Even though the U.S. had begun cutting back its
involvement in the Vietnam War, the American home
front remained divided and volatile as Nixon’s war
policies stirred up new waves of protest
U.S. pulls out of Vietnam
In January of 1973, North and South Vietnamese
reach a cease-fire agreement;
By 1975, the United States withdraws all of its
people from Vietnam
In late1975, North Vietnam violated the ceasefire and
captured the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon. The
war was over and the communists had won
War Powers Act (1973)
Law was an attempt to set
limits on the power of the
president during wartime
Required the
president to inform
Congress of any
commitment of
troops with 48 hours
The Pentagon Papers
In 1971, a former Defense Department
worker leaked what were known as the
Pentagon Papers to the New York
Times
The documents
showed how various
administrations
deceived Congress,
The government the media, and the
public about how the
had not been
war was going
honest with the
American people