The+Cold+War

1945-1970 Elsa, Dylan, and Katie



"A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities and an optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties." -President Harry S. Truman
 * President Harry S. Truman of the United States, alarmed by the British withdrawal and the ****possibility of Soviet expansion into the eastern Mediterranean, responded in early 1947 with the Truman doctrine. This stated that the United States would provide money to countries threatened by Communist expansion. In this case, the United States would give money to Greece. The Truman Doctrine was followed in June 1947 by the European Recovery Program. This was proposed by General George C. Marshall. He was the United States secretary of state. It became better known as the Marshall Plan. The idea behind the Marshall Plan was that communism was succussful in countries with economic problems. So, the Marshall Plan provided 13 billion dollars to rebuild war-torn Europe. **


 * The fate of Germany also became a source of heated contention between the Soviets and the West. The Allied Powers had divided Germany into four zones. Each of them occupied by one of the Allies which were the United States, the Soviet Union, Great Britain, and France. The city of Berlin was also divided into four zones. By February of 1948, the Allies were making plans to unify the three Western sections of Germany and Berlin and create a West German government. The Soviets opposed the creation of a separate West German state. To attempt to prevent this, they mounted a blockade of West Berlin. Food and supplies could no longer get through to the 2.5 million people living in these zones. In September of 1949, the Federal Republic of Germany was formally created. Its capital became known as Bonn. Soon after, the German Democratic Republic, was set up by the Soviets. Berlin was now divided into two parts, which was a reminder of the division of the West and East. **

media type="youtube" key="_8zVDrCqBDg" height="315" width="420" __**Ten Key Terms **__ __**1) Satellite states: **__** A country that is economically and politically dependent on another country. The Marshall Plan aws not meant to shut out the Soviet Union or its economically and politically dependent Eastern European Satellite States. ** __**2) Policy of containment: **__** A plan to keep something, such as communism, within its existing geographical boundaries and prevent further aggressive moves. ** __**3) Arms Race: **__** Building up armies and stores of weapons to keep up with an enemy. The US and Soviet Union were involved in a growing arms race. ** __**4) De-Stalinization: **__** The process of eliminating the more rughtless policies of Stalin became known as this. Khrushchev condemned Stalin for his 'adminstrative violence, mass repression, and terror.' ** __**5) Welfare State: **__** This is a state in which the government takes responsibility for providing citizens with services and a minimal standard of living. ** __**6) Real Wages: **__** The actual purchasing power of income. Between 1945 and 1973 this grew an average of 3 percent per year. ** __**7) Bloc: **__** A group of nations with a common purpose. The EEC had become an important trading Bloc. ** __**8) Domino Theory: **__** An idea that if one country falls to communism, neighboring countries will also fall to communism. ** __**9) Marshall Plan: **__** This plan was proposed by General George C. Marshall, the US secretary of state. The idea behind it was that communism was succussful in countries with economic problems. ** __**10) Truman Doctrine: **__** This stated that the United States would provide money, and in this case to Greece, if they were threatened by Communist expansion. **
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">A man named Nikita Khrushchev, who emerged as the new leader of the Soviet Union in 1955, tried to take advantage of the American concern over missles to solve the problem of West Berlin. Many East Germans, tired of Communist repression, managed to escape East Germany by fleeing through West Berlin. Khrushchev realized the need to stop the flow of these refugees. In August of 1961, the East German government began to build a wall seperating West Berlin from East Berlin. It soon became a massive barrier guarded by barbed wire, machiene guns, and other patrols. The Berlin wasll became a very well known symbol of the division between the two superpowers. **

media type="custom" key="17954484" media type="custom" key="17954508"

media type="custom" key="17954528"

media type="custom" key="17954596"


 * __ Top Ten People __**
 * __ 1) Boris Yelstn :__ He was the president of the Russian Republic. Him and thousands of Russians bravely resisted the rebl forces in Moscow.**
 * __ 2) Vladimir Putin :__ He was elected president in 2000. He vowed to adopt a mre assertive international role and to bring the breakaway state of Chechnya under control.**
 * __ 3) Mikhail Gorbachev: __ He was the president of the Soviet Union. His "New Thinking" or his willingness to rethink Soviet foreign policy led to stunning changes.**
 * __ 4) Dean Acheson: __ The U.S. secretary of state explained the effects the war would have on different places by comparing it to Apples in a barrel infected by disease.**
 * __ 5) Nikita Khrushchev: __ Emerged as new leader of the Soviet Union in 1955. He tried to take advantage of the American concern over missiles to solve the problem of West Berlin.**
 * __ 6) Alexander Solzhenitsyn: __ Wrote //One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich// a grim portrayal of life in a Siberian forced-labor camp.**
 * __ 7) Alexander Dubcek: __ In January 1968, he was elected first secretary of the Communist Party. He introduced a number of reforms including freedom of speech and press and freedom to travel abroad.**
 * __ 8) George Kennan: __ "Father of Containment" In July 1947, being a well known U.S. diplomat with much knowledge of Soviet affairs he argued for a policy f containment to keep communism within its exising boundaries.**
 * __ 9) Yuri Gagarin: __ On April 12, 1961, he was the firs man to traval in space. He was Russian.**
 * __ 10) Stalin: __ He promised free elections in Eastern Europe. He also wanted bugger of Communist states in Easter Europe**.

__Links__ 1)[|Dean Acheson]-This page talks about the American lawyer, Dean Acherson. Information on his early life, career, and influence during many of the wars all lie on the website 2)[|George Kennan]-This page talks about George Kennan. How he affected the cold war and worked with realism is all describe in the page. 3)[|Arms Race]-This page talks about the arms races, including things from the World War I naval arms race and Cold War Nuclear arms race. 4)[|Berlin Wall]-This page describes the Berlin Wall. Things such as it showing the powers separation and the wall's fall are all expanded on within the page. 5)[|Truman Doctrine]-This is a website that talks about the Truman Doctrine, the policy set up by president Harry Truman. 6)[|Cuban Missile Crisis]-This web page further describes the Cuban Missile Crisis and how America prepared for the worse when it came. 7)[|Joseph Stalin]-This website contains information on the soviet ruler, Joseph Stalin. Because of his harsh communist ways, many problems were caused with the capitalists 8)[|Berlin Blockade]-This page talks about how the soviets caused a blockade in Berlin. Information on the Berlin Air Lift is also listed on the page. 9)[|U-2 Incident]-This page talks about the U-2 incident and also expands on the aftermath and background of the event. 10)[|Perestroika]-This page talks about Perestroika, one of the ideas set fourth by Mikhail Gorbachev to change the old Soviet ways.