Truman and Truman and the Beginning the Beginning

of the Cold of the Cold WarWar

Causes of the Cold War

• Soviet domination of Eastern Europe– Stalin had promised FDR that he would allow

free elections in the parts of Eastern Europe occupied by the Soviet army once WWII ended

– Hoping to prevent a future invasion of the Soviet Union from the west and to balance US influence in Western Europe, the Soviets prevented free elections and banned democratic parties.

Causes of the Cold War

• Communist victory in China– Containment failed as Mao Zedong’s communists

defeated Chiang Kai-shek’s nationalists.

– Republicans and Democrats alike criticized President Truman for offering only limited aid to the nationalists. They said he was “soft on communism”.

– In the following decades, American politicians had to be very tough on the communists or suffer politically.

Causes of the Cold War

• Mutual suspicion between the US and Soviet Union– Each side feared a nuclear first-strike from the

other– In a war between superpowers, whichever side

had the most allies would have the upper hand, so the US and the Soviet Union competed for influence throughout the world.

Immediate Effects of the Cold War

• Truman Doctrine– Established the policy of containment– First used in Greece and Turkey, both in danger

of falling to a communist takeover– US spent $400 million in aid in Greece and

Turkey, greatly reducing the threat of a communist takeover

– Served as the basis for the Marshall Plan

Immediate Effects of the Cold War

• The Marshall Plan– Countries that are struggling economically are

more likely to support communist elements– 1947: Secretary of State George Marshall

proposed US send massive economic aid to help rebuild Europe

– US spent $13 billion over 4 years and the Communist party lost much of its appeal to voters

Immediate Effects of the Cold War

• East-West tensions over Berlin– After WWII, Germany divided into 4 occupation zones

among the Allies– Berlin, in the heart of Soviet-controlled East Germany, was

itself divided into East Berlin (Soviet) and West Berlin (US)– When France, UK, and US consolidated their zones into one

(West Germany), Stalin responded by cutting off all routes into West Berlin

– US and UK responded with the successful Berlin Airlift the sustain the people of West Berlin

– Berlin would remain a focal point of the Cold War for decades

Immediate Effects of the Cold War

• Establishment of NATO and Warsaw Pact– The Berlin crisis led to increasing fear in

Western Europe of Soviet aggression– This led to the formation of NATO in 1949– US entered a military alliance during peacetime

for the first time in history– Ended any hope for a return to US isolationism– Warsaw Pact organized in 1955 in response to

West Germany’s admission into NATO

Immediate Effects of the Cold War

• McCarthyism– Senator Joseph McCarthy (R-Wisconsin) sought to

capitalize on the anti-communist hysteria for political gain– In order to draw publicity to himself and get reelected, he

claimed that communists were taking over the government – McCarthy made one unfounded accusation after another

without providing any evidence– Few would stand up to him for fear of being labeled a

communist themselves– Americans finally saw McCarthy for who he was during

the Army-McCarthy hearings in 1954

Long-Term Effects of the Cold War

• Arms race between superpowers– Race for the H-bomb– Threat of massive retaliation (brinkmanship)– Air raid drills and fallout shelters– Space race

• Soviets launch first man-made satellite (Sputnik)• Soviets launch first intercontinental ballistic missile

(ICBM)• Soviets send first man into space (Yuri Gagarin)

Long-Term Effects of the Cold War

• Superpower rivalry for world power– Korean War– US uses CIA to weaken or overthrow

governments unfriendly to the US• Iran: CIA installs the Shah in 1953

– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfzrHY1Lywo

• Guatemala: CIA trained an army to overthrow communist-leaning government

– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1IO_Q6BC-M&feature=related

The Suez Canal The Suez Canal CrisisCrisis

• In 1956, an incident brought the Middle East to the attention of the world.

• Egypt, upset with Israel (established in 1948) and the West for their lack of support for a new dam on the Nile, seized the Suez Canal, which was located in Egypt, but owned by Britain and France.

• Israel fought back, joined by Great Britain and France.

• The U.S. condemned Egypt and stated that it would not tolerate such attacks. At the same time, however, the U.S. government was urging England and France to withdraw from Soviet-backed Egypt to avoid a larger conflict.

•Direct confrontation with the Soviet Union was avoided when the UN imposed a cease-fire. The canal reopened in April of 1957 under Egyptian management.

• In January 1957, Eisenhower issued the Eisenhower Doctrine, which said that the U.S. would defend the Middle East against attack by any Communist country.

• Congress gave the president authority to use American forces, at his discretion, against armed aggression in the Middle East by any nation “controlled by international communism.”

European European RevoltsRevolts

• Even though Secretary of State Dulles spoke of “liberating” the people of Eastern Europe, Eisenhower did nothing when there were efforts at revolts in East Germany, Poland, and Hungary during the 1950s.

•The Soviet Union was determined to hold onto their satellite nations.

•Soviet tanks rolled into each of these countries and crushed the rebellions with ease.

The U-2 The U-2 IncidentIncident

• In May 1960, the Soviets shot down an American U-2 “spy plane”, which was taking photographs over Soviet territory.

• President Eisenhower at first said that the plane was not on a spy mission but had been a weather plane that had been blown off course.

• When the Soviets showed the world the plane and its pilot, Gary Powers, Eisenhower was forced to admit the truth.

• Khrushchev tried to use the incident for Soviet propaganda purposes and paint the United States as evil.

http://www.history.com/topics/1950s/videos#1950s

http://www.history.com/topics/1950s/videos#cold-war

http://www.history.com/topics/1950s/videos#jackie-robinson-changes-the-face-of-america

http://www.history.com/topics/1950s/videos#castro-and-the-cuban-revolution

Berlin AirliftBerlin Airlift

NATONATO

The The Marshall Marshall

PlanPlan

Civil War in Civil War in ChinaChina

The Korean The Korean WarWar

The New The New RedRed ScareScare

McCarthyismMcCarthyism

Eisenhower Eisenhower and the Cold and the Cold

WarWar

Cold War Cold War Around the Around the

WorldWorld

YaltaYalta

• In Feb. 1945, FDR had met with Churchill and Stalin at the Soviet city of Yalta on the Black Sea.

• At this Yalta Conference, the 3 leaders made a number of important decisions about the future.

• They agreed to move ahead in creating a new international peacekeeping body, the United Nations (UN), based on the principles of the Atlantic Charter.

• In exchange for Japan’s Kuril and Sakhalin Islands, Stalin promised to enter the war against Japan after the surrender of Germany.

• He also promised “free” elections in Poland and in other Soviet-occupied Eastern European countries.

United United NationsNations

•In April 1945, delegates from 50 nations met in San Francisco to draw up the Charter of the United Nations.

• Additional members could be admitted by a two-thirds vote of the General Assembly, which included delegates from all member nations and was to meet annually in regular session to approve the budget, receive annual reports from U.N. agencies, and choose members of the Security Council and other bodies.

• The Security Council, the other major charter agency, would remain in permanent session and would have “primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.”

• Its eleven members included six elected for two-year terms and five permanent members: the United States, Russia, Britain, France, and China.

• The Security Council might investigate any dispute, recommend settlement or reference to the International Court, and take other measures including a resort to military force.

• The United States Senate ratified the U.N. charter by a vote of 89 to 2 after only six weeks of discussion.

• The permanent home of the United Nations is in New York City.

• The current U.N. Secretary General is Kofi Annan.

PotsdamPotsdam

• After FDR’s death, Harry Truman met with Churchill and Stalin at Potsdam, a suburb of Berlin, in June 1945.

• There the decision was made to divide Germany into four zones of occupation (U.S., Britain, France, and the Soviet Union).

•Berlin, in the Soviet zone, was also divided into four zones.

•They also agreed to disarm Germany and to destroy the Nazi Party.

Nuremberg Nuremberg TrialsTrials

• Six months after the Germans surrendered, an international military tribunal convened in Nuremberg, Germany, to bring civil and military leaders of the Nazi regime to trial as war criminals.

• Judges and attorneys from the four nations occupying Germany participated in the first of a series of trials.

• The crimes the defendants were charged with included planning a war of aggression, using slave labor, and exterminating the Jews.

• Twelve of the accused were sentenced to death, seven received prison terms, and three were acquitted.

• Trials of thousands of lesser figures were conducted in each of the four occupation zones.

• Many Nazi leaders managed to blend into the general population and escape at the end of the war. Many concealed their identities and fled to Latin America. Some were eventually discovered and brought to trial.

Occupation Occupation of Japanof Japan

• As supreme commander for the Allied powers, General Douglas MacArthur ruled Japan after its surrender.

• The primary goals of the occupation were to demilitarize and democratize Japan.

• During the occupation, Emperor Hirohito remained in the imperial palace, but only as a figurehead.

• A new constitution set up a democratic system of government, which extended voting rights to women and established separation of church and state.

• The constitution abolished the Japanese army and navy and prohibited Japan from ever again becoming a military power.

• The occupation ended in 1952.

Tokyo TrialsTokyo Trials

• Early in 1946, the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, consisting of representatives from eleven Allied nations, convened in Tokyo to try twenty-five Japanese civil and military leaders for planning an aggressive war and committing crimes against humanity.

• Seven of the defendants, including former prime minister Hideki Tojo, were hanged; the others received prison sentences.

• In addition, numerous Japanese army and navy officers were brought to trial for violating the rules of war. Of those accused, approximately 6,000 were found guilty.

• After the Potsdam meeting in the summer of 1945, Stalin continued to oppress most of Eastern Europe, forcing loyalty to the Soviet Union through phony trials and executions.

• The Soviet Union felt justified in staying in Eastern Europe because they had suffered more than 20 million deaths and extensive damage during WWII and felt vulnerable to attack.

• The Soviet Union needed friendly neighbors – Communist countries that they could control.

• Stalin installed or propped up Communist governments in Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Poland. These countries became known as satellite nations, countries dependent upon and dominated by the Soviet Union.

• On Feb. 9, 1946, Stalin added to growing tension with an important speech in which he declared that capitalism was a danger to world peace. Capitalism and communism, he said, would eventually clash.

• Because of that danger, Stalin would protect Soviet security by stopping trade with the West and develop modern weaponry no matter how high the cost.

• The United States interpreted this speech as virtually a declaration of war.

• Truman did not trust Stalin and was concerned about the danger of Soviet expansion and the spread of communism.

• The European economy had been destroyed by the war and Truman was worried that the Communists might take over the governments of western Europe.

• Communist countries of eastern Europe kept their citizens from free contact with western ideas. They established restrictions on visitors, newspapers, magazines, books, and movies.

• Speaking in Fulton, Missouri, at a time when this barrier was first appearing, Winston Churchill said that an “iron curtain” had fallen across Europe. He encouraged English-speaking people should join forces against the Soviet threat.

• In the future, the West, led by the US, would resist any Soviet attempts to expand its influence in the world.

• The cold war had begun.

• The cold war would involve the United States and the Soviet Union in a constant struggle to gain power in the world by persuading other countries to accept their ideologies, either by propaganda or by force.

• During the cold war, there was no direct war between the superpowers.

• President Truman officially adopted the concept of containment, the effort to restrict communism to its current borders.

• He told the American people that the U.S. would go to the aid of nations threatened by outside aggression.

• U.S. policy was that the U.S. would have to stand up to the Soviet challenge at that time or eventually be forced to surrender in World War III.

• Truman’s vision of how containment would work became known as the Truman Doctrine.

•The Truman Doctrine was first applied to Greece and Turkey. Beginning in 1947, the United States sent over $650 million worth of help over a three year period.

• Secretary of State George Marshall developed a plan to help the countries of Europe reestablish their economies which had been destroyed by the war.

• He proposed all European countries, including the Soviet Union and her satellites, make plans to rebuild their cities, factories, homes, etc.

• The United States offered to pay for this rebuilding, but the Communist countries of eastern Europe refused to participate in the Marshall Plan.

• Western Europe gladly said yes.• The US Congress was ready to reject

the plan when in February 1948, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, with the help of Soviet tanks, took over that country’s government.

• Congress quickly approved $5.3 billion as the first installment of the Marshall Plan.

• The economies of western European countries were able to recover and Communist parties began losing their appeal.

• The Soviets did not appreciate the Marshall Plan. They also did not like the fact that the other three zones of Germany had joined together in 1948 to form a West German Republic.

• As a result the Soviets closed off all highway, water, and rail traffic into the western zones of Berlin (which was in the Soviet zone of Germany) to the other countries in spite of agreements at Yalta.

• No supplies could get in, so the city faced starvation.

• Stalin believed this threat would force the Western nations either to give up the idea of a reunified Germany or to surrender control of Berlin.

• In an attempt to break the blockade, American and British officials started the Berlin Airlift to fly food and supplies into West Berlin.

• For 327 days, planes took off and landed every few minutes, around the clock. At its peak, more than 8,000 tons of supplies were flown into Berlin every day.

• Finally, after 11 months, the Soviets abandoned the blockade, and the airlift ended.

• By the fall of 1949, the Federal Republic of Germany, commonly called West Germany, had been established, with its capital in Bonn.

• The Soviet Union turned its zone into the German Democratic Republic, commonly called East Germany, with its capital in East Berlin.

• The Berlin blockade increased Western European fear of Soviet aggression.

• In response, ten Western European nations joined with the U.S. and Canada on April 4, 1949, to form a defensive military alliance called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

• All members countries promised that an attack on one would be regarded as an attack on all – which they would resist with armed force if necessary.

• Soon after the formation of NATO, the Soviet Union and its satellites signed the Warsaw Pact. It pledged mutual defense as NATO members had.

• WWII had interrupted a civil war in China, as the two groups of Chinese who had been fighting each other joined forces to fight the Japanese.

• Mao Zedong led the Communist forces in the northern part of China.

• The Chinese Nationalist forces of Chiang Kai-shek fought the Japanese in the south.

• After the Japanese were defeated in 1945, the Communists and Nationalists went back to fighting each other for control of China.

• The U.S. backed the Nationalists because they were anti-Communist.

• But Chiang often acted like a dictator. His government was wasteful, ineffective, and corrupt.

• Chiang overtaxed the Chinese people even during times of famine.

• He did not have the support of the people.

• Mao won the support of the Chinese peasants (over 90% of Chinese were farmers).

• He distributed land to them and reduced rents. He had an experienced army with high morale.

• President Truman refused to send American troops to help the Nationalists fight communism, but he did send aid.

• Even so, in 1949, Chiang and his forces had to flee to Formosa (Taiwan), an island off the coast of China.

• China was now communist. Containment in China had failed.

• American conservatives said that the U.S. had “lost” China because not enough had been done to help the Chinese Nationalists.

• Truman’s followers said that the Communist success was because Chiang could not win the support of the Chinese people.

•Conservatives claimed that the United States government was filled with Communist agents.

•American fear of communism began to reach new heights.

• Korea, a former Japanese colony, had been divided at the end of WWII into two parts at the 38th Parallel.

• The Soviets supported North Korea, while Americans supported South Korea.

• It was the hope of the UN that one day the two nations would be united after free elections were held.

• But Stalin would not allow elections in North Korea.

• In June 1950, the North Korean Army invaded South Korea.

• American leaders felt that Stalin had instructed the invasion. They must act instead of appease.

• The U.S. went to the UN, which condemned North Korea for aggression.

• The U.S. asked its member to “furnish such assistance to the Republic of South Korea as may be necessary to repel the armed attack.”

• The Soviet Union was absent from this meeting of the Security Council.

• Troops from 16 nations – most of them American – were sent to South Korea.

• They were under the command of General Douglas MacArthur.

• The following is a brief chronology of the Korean War:

1) The North Invades1) The North Invades• The North Koreans had driven deep

into South Korea, capturing Seoul, the capital of South Korea.

• After a month of bitter combat, the North Koreans had forced UN and South Korean troops into a small defensive zone around Pusan, in the southeastern corner of the peninsula.

2) MacArthur’s Counterattack2) MacArthur’s Counterattack• In September 1950, MacArthur

launched a counterattack behind enemy lines at the port of Inchon.

• Other troops moved north from the Pusan Perimeter.

• About half of the North Korean troops surrendered. The rest crossed the 38th Parallel into North Korea.

3) Invading the North3) Invading the North• In October 1950, MacArthur and the

UN forces go on the offensive and cross the 38th Parallel in and effort to unite Korea.

• China warned the UN forces against the invasion of the North and of coming too close to the Chinese border.

4) Chinese Intervention4) Chinese Intervention• A quarter of a million Chinese

soldiers entered the war on the side of the North Koreans.

• The UN forces were driven back into South Korea.

• Seoul was recaptured by the Communists.

5) Truman Fires MacArthur5) Truman Fires MacArthur

• Many Americans were calling for an attack on China.

• MacArthur wanted to bomb supply bases in China. He also suggested using troops from Taiwan.

• Truman did not want to widen the war. He wanted to hold the line at the 38th Parallel.

• MacArthur could not accept Truman’s reluctance to fight. He even publicly criticized Truman.

• Truman finally removed MacArthur as commander.

• MacArthur returned to the U.S. to a hero’s welcome and gave a speech before Congress in which he said, “Old soldiers never die, they just fade away.”

5) Stalemate5) Stalemate• Peace talks began in July 1951, but

dragged on for months without success.

• In 1952, the first Republican president in 20 years (Dwight D. Eisenhower) was elected.

• The troops in Korea were at the 38th Parallel.

• Eisenhower went to Korea for an inspection of the troops.

• An armistice was signed in July 1953 at Panmunjon, South Korea, fixing the dividing line once again at the 38th Parallel.

• Communism had been contained without a world war and without the use of atomic weapons.

• The United States, now fearful of Communist aggression in Asia, joined SEATO, the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization.

• This was a defensive alliance that promised help to any member that was under communist attack.

End of Material for End of Material for Quiz #1Quiz #1

• Many Americans felt threatened by the rise of Communist governments in Europe and Asia.

• Some even felt that Communists could threaten the U.S. government from within.

• Several factors contributed to this growing suspicion.

• At the height of WWII, about 80,000 Americans claimed membership in the Communist Party; some feared that these Communists’ first loyalty was to the Soviet Union.

• These fears increased when people found out about spies selling U.S. government secrets to the Soviets.

• Republicans accused the Truman administration of being “soft on communism.”

• In response to this pressure, Truman set up a Loyalty Review Board.

• The Board investigated over 3 million people who worked for the federal government.

• About 200 government employees were fired. Another 2,900 resigned because they did not want to be investigated or felt that the investigation violated their constitutional rights.

• The accused were not allowed to see the evidence against them or face their accusers.

• In 1947, Congress set up the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC). Its purpose was to look for Communists both inside and outside the government.

• HUAC concentrated on the movie industry because of suspected Communist influences in Hollywood.

• Many people were brought before HUAC. Some agreed that there had been Communist infiltration of the movie industry.

• They informed on others to save themselves.

• Ten people called before HUAC refused to testify. They said that the hearings were unconstitutional.

• The Hollywood Ten, as they were called, were sent to prison for their refusal.

• In response to the HUAC hearings, Hollywood executives created a list of some 500 people they thought were Communist-influenced.

• They refused to hire the people on this blacklist. Many people’s careers were ruined as a result.

• In 1950, Congress passed the McCarren Act. It outlawed the planning of any action that might lead to a totalitarian dictatorship in the U.S.

• Fear of communism reached new heights in America in 1948 following the conviction of former State Department official Alger Hiss.

• Hiss was convicted of lying about documents that indicated that Hiss had handed over secret documents to communist agents.

• A young conservative Republican congressman named Richard Nixon gained fame for pursuing charges against Hiss.

• In 1950 Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were convicted of providing secret information about the atomic bomb which had enabled the Soviets to explode the bomb in 1949.

• The Rosenbergs were executed in 1953.

• In 1950, Republican Senator Joseph R. McCarthy of Wisconsin decided to use the threat of Communism at home as the basic issue in his next reelection campaign.

• In a speech he said that he had a list of 205 people who were known “as being members of the Communist Party and who, nevertheless, are still working and shaping policy of the State Department.”

• No one ever saw the list and McCarthy refused to name anyone for quite awhile.

• In the next few months the number dropped from 205 to 57, and then up to 81.

• McCarthy charged that the Democratic Party was guilty of “20 years of treason” for allowing Communist infiltration of our government.

• McCarthy’s technique became known as McCarthyism. When challenged on his “facts,” he would respond by making another accusation.

• However, he was always careful to do his name-calling only in the Senate, where he had legal immunity that protected him from being sued for slander.

• The Republicans did little to stop McCarthy’s attacks because they believed they would win the 1952 presidential election if the public saw them as purging the nation of Communist influences.

• Those that did challenge McCarthy were accused of being Communists themselves, so few voiced their objections.

• Finally, in 1954, McCarthy made accusations against the U.S. Army, which resulted in a nationally televised Senate investigation (Army-McCarthy hearings).

• McCarthy was upset at the army for not giving a young friend of his special privileges.

• During the proceedings, McCarthy bullied war heroes and lost public support.

• Most senators agreed that McCarthy had gone too far. The Senate condemned him for improper conduct that tended “to bring the Senate into disrepute.”

• Three years later, McCarthy died a broken man, suffering from the effects of alcoholism.

• There was a lot of support for Communist witch hunts in the early 1950s.

• Many were forced to take loyalty oaths in order to get jobs. States passed laws making it a crime to speak of overthrowing the government. People became afraid to speak their views. Fear of communism made many Americans willing to give up their constitutional rights.

• Americans’ fear of nuclear war heightened as the Soviet Union and the U.S. raced to develop more powerful nuclear weapons.

• In 1950, American scientists began to work on a hydrogen bomb, or H-bomb, which they said would be 1,000 times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Japan.

• The first H-bomb test in 1952 completely vaporized a small island in the Pacific.

• Nine months later, the Soviet Union tested its own H-bomb.

• J. Robert Oppenheimer, one of the creators of the atomic bomb, was opposed to the development of the H-bomb.

• The Eisenhower administration viewed nuclear arms and technology as central to the government’s priority of ending Communist expansion.

• Secretary of State John Foster Dulles called for the liberation of all nations that had fallen under Soviet control since 1945.

• This policy was referred to as rollback.

• To fulfill this aim, the U.S. would have to confront Communist aggression and not back down – even if that meant going all the way to the brink (edge) of war.

• This policy was referred to as brinkmanship.

• “The ability to get to the verge of war without getting into war is the necessary art.” – John Foster Dulles

• This policy of brinksmanship (going to the edge of war) rested on the threat of massive retaliation, including the use of nuclear weapons.

• The arms race began in earnest when the Soviet Union answered this development by also producing huge quantities of nuclear bombs.

• As a result, many Americans became convinced that Soviet weapons were aimed directly at their cities.

• Students practiced air-raid procedures, and some families built underground fallout shelters in their back yards.

• Fear of nuclear war became a constant in American life for 30 years.

• The U.S. was in competition with the Soviet Union all over the world.

• President Eisenhower began to rely on the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). The CIA used spies to get information abroad. It also carried out covert actions, or secret operations, to weaken or overthrow governments unfriendly to the U.S.

• One CIA action involved Iran. In 1951, the CIA convinced the Shah, or monarch, of Iran to get rid of a prime minister who was not friendly to the West.

• In 1954, the CIA took action in Guatemala. Eisenhower believed Guatemala was friendly to the Communists. The CIA trained an army that overthrew Guatemala’s government.

• Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin died in 1953 and was eventually replaced by Nikita Khrushchev.

• In time, Khrushchev would denounce Stalin for the atrocities he committed against Soviet citizens and others.

• There was hope that the American relationship with the Soviet Union under Khrushchev would be better that it had been under Stalin.

• The United States and the Soviet Union also competed in the skies.

• At first, the U.S. was sure it was ahead of in military technology.

• But in 1957, the Soviets developed an ICBM, or intercontinental ballistic missile. This was a rocket that could travel much farther than American rockets and could carry nuclear weapons.

• On October 4, 1957, the Soviets shocked the world by launching Sputnik I, the first artificial satellite to orbit the earth.

• Americans knew it took a very powerful missile to launch this satellite – a missile that could reach the United States.

• It was obvious that the U.S. was behind in the arms race.

• This made Americans feel inferior to the Soviets in science and technology.

• Americans responded by making changes in education. New courses in science and mathematics were added to the high school and college curriculum.