Essential Questions and Answers… The Origins of the Cold War, 1941-1958

QUESTION ANSWER
1. What was the Cold War? A period of enormous tension between the 2 superpowers (USA and USSR)
and their allies, 1945-1991. There was no direct fighting between the USA
and USSR (a hot war).
2. What were their different  The USA was capitalist and democratic. They believed in free
ideologies? (Ideas about elections with a choice of political parties and more freedom for
how to run a country.) their people (democratic). People could own their own companies
(capitalist).
 The USSR (or Soviet Union) was communist. There were no free
elections-only one political party was allowed. The people had few
freedoms. The country owned all industry (factories and
companies).
3. How did their different After World War Two, the USSR thought the USA wanted to destroy
ideologies help cause the communism. The USA thought the USSR wanted to destroy capitalism and
Cold War? democracy and spread communism. They were scared of each other and
didn’t trust each other.
4. What was the Grand The name given to the USA, USSR and Great Britain who were the allies
Alliance? fighting Nazi Germany in World War Two.
5. What happened at the The ‘Big Three’, Roosevelt (USA), Churchill (Britain) and Stalin (USSR), met
Tehran Conference in to plan how to win World War Two. They agreed that:
November 1943?  The USA and GB would launch an attack on Germany from Western
Europe to ease pressure on the USSR on the Eastern Front.
 The USSR would provide troops to help the USA defeat Japan (but
only after Germany had been defeated).
 A United Nations organisation would be set up after the war.
Stalin and Roosevelt got on well. Roosevelt sided with Stalin in the
decisions, not with Churchill.
6. When was the Yalta February 1945, before World War Two had ended.
Conference?
7. Who went to the Yalta The ‘Big Three’: Roosevelt (USA), Churchill (Britain) and Stalin (USSR).
Conference?
8. What did they agree at the  To divide Germany into 4 zones (once it had been defeated). Britain,
Yalta Conference? France, the USA and the USSR would get a zone each to ‘look after’
until Germany had recovered after WWII.
 Berlin (the capital of Germany) was also divided into 4 zones.
 The USSR agreed to allow free elections in Poland and other Eastern
European countries (the countries its army had freed from Germany in
the war).
 Germany would pay reparations once they were defeated.
9. When was the Potsdam July 1945. War in Europe was over but the war in the Pacific (against
Conference? Japan) was still going on.
10. Who went to the Potsdam Stalin (USSR), Truman (USA) and Attlee (Britain).
Conference?
11. What did they agree at the Many of the plans from Yalta were finalised e.g. the 4 zones and
Potsdam Conference? reparations.
12. What did they argue about  The amount of reparations Germany should pay. The USSR wanted
at the Potsdam more, the USA and Britain wanted less because they thought a stronger
Conference? Germany could be a buffer (a block) to the spread of communism.
 Poland: the USSR had not allowed free elections there and had arrested
non-communists.
 The atom bomb: Truman did not tell Stalin the USA had the A bomb
and planned to use it on Japan. This angered Stalin.
13. What effect did the USA’s  The USA dropped 2 bombs: 1 on Hiroshima (which killed 135 000
atom bombs have? people) and 1 on Nagasaki (which killed 70 000 people). This caused
Japan to surrender, ending WWII.
 It angered and scared the USSR. Stalin thought the USA might use the
atom bomb against the USSR.
  It started the arms race.
14. What were the Long and  The Long telegram was sent by George Kennan, an important American
Novikov telegrams? diplomat, to President Truman. It said the USSR was aggressive and
that the USA should take firm action against Soviet expansion in
Eastern Europe.
 The Novikov telegram was sent by the Soviet ambassador to the USA to
Stalin. It said America wanted world dominance and was increasing its
armed forces.
 Both telegrams helped create suspicion and fear between the USA and
the USSR.
15. Where did communism Communist governments were set up (between 1945-1948) in countries in
spread to in Eastern Eastern Europe that were occupied by the Soviet Union’s army e.g. Poland,
Europe? Hungary, Czechoslovakia, East Germany.
16. How did this help cause the The USA was angry because the USSR had not allowed free elections in
Cold War? these countries (as they had agreed at Yalta). The USA was scared because
communism was spreading quickly in Europe.
The USSR wanted friendly countries near them (as a buffer) as they were
scared the USA wanted to destroy communism.
17. What was the Iron Curtain? A nickname given by Winston Churchill to the divide between communist
and capitalist countries in Europe. It was a political and economic division,
not a physical divide.
18. What was the Truman An American plan to help any country threatened by communism. It was
Doctrine? shared in a speech in March 1947 by President Truman. It was designed to
stop communism spreading (called containment).
19. Which countries did the Greece and Turkey. The USA gave them $400 million of aid. This helped
USA help through the them defeat the communists. The USA was then allowed to put missile
Truman Doctrine? sites on Turkey on the border with the USSR. This scared the USSR as they
did not have nuclear weapons yet.
20. What was the Marshall An American plan to help countries recover in Europe after WWII.
Plan? Marshall Aid ($15 billion) was given to 16 countries e.g. Britain and West
Germany. It came in the form of products, like machinery and fertilisers.
21. Why did the USA give Because they wanted to stop communism spreading any further in Europe.
Marshall Aid to Europe? They thought poor countries were more likely to become communist so, by
making countries richer they were stopping communism spreading.
22. How did the Marshall Plan It scared and angered the USSR. Marshall Aid was offered to communist
help cause the Cold War? countries in Eastern Europe (Stalin’s area of influence). He didn’t let them
have it as he was scared they would not stay communist. He accused the
USA of trying to spread capitalism and trying to destroy communism.
23. What was Comecon? This was the Soviet version of Marshal Aid, set up in 1949. Economic aid
and support was given to Eastern European communist countries, such as
Hungary and East Germany.
24. What was Cominform? A Soviet political organisation designed to increase Soviet control over
other communist countries in Eastern Europe. For example, they were told
not to have contact with non-communist countries and to concentrate on
trading with communist countries.
25. What happened to Berlin It was divided into 4 zones. In 1948, the American, British and French
after WWII? zones joined together to form West Germany and West Berlin (called
‘Trizonia’). It recovered with the help of Marshall Aid and got a new
currency, the Deutschmark. East Germany and East Berlin (the communist
parts) were still poor. People left East Germany to go to West Germany.
26. What did Stalin do about He blockaded the road, rail and canal routes into West Berlin in June 1948.
this?
27. Why did he blockade West He wanted the West (USA, Britain, France) to give up on West Berlin by
Berlin? starving the 2 million people there and let it become communist.
28. What did the West do They flew in supplies to West Berlin (called the airlift or ‘Operation Vittles’).
about it? (By Spring 1949, the West were flying in 8000 tons of food and fuel a day.
29. When did Stalin call off the May 1949.
blockade?
30. How did the Berlin  It caused tension between the USA and the USSR and could have
Blockade and Airlift make caused war if Stalin had dared to shoot at the planes.
the Cold War worse?  Any hopes of joining Germany back together were gone. It remained
divided into the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and the
German Democratic Republic (East Germany) until the end of the Cold
War.
 It led to the setting up of NATO (which led to the setting up of the
Warsaw Pact).
31. What was NATO? The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. It was set up in 1949. It was a
military alliance of capitalist and democratic countries e.g. USA, Britain,
France, Canada. They all agreed to go to war if one of them was attacked.
32. How did it make the Cold It made the USSR feel scared as it surrounded them. It meant the USA had
War worse? military bases (and nuclear weapons) in Europe near the USSR and
communist countries.
33. What was the Warsaw A military alliance of communist countries (e.g. USSR, East Germany,
Pact? Hungary, Poland). It was set up in 1955 after West Germany was allowed to
join NATO. Each country promised to go to war together if any of them
was attacked.
34. What was peaceful co- Stalin died in 1953 and Nikita Khrushchev became the new leader of the
existence? USSR. He talked of communist and capitalist countries living together
peacefully. This talk of ‘getting on’ was known as a ‘thaw’ in the Cold War.
35. What was the Hungarian An uprising by the people of Hungary and new laws (reforms) by the leader,
Rising, 1956? Imre Nagy, which made Hungary less ‘communist’ e.g. non-communists
were allowed to be part of the government; free elections were promised;
Hungary wanted to leave the Warsaw Pact.
36. Why did the people of Stalin had died and Khrushchev’s talk of peaceful co-existence. When the
Hungary think they could people of Poland had rebelled they had been allowed to have some more
change the communist freedoms.
system?
37. What did the USSR do In November, they sent 6000 tanks into Hungary to crush the uprising.
about the uprising? Over 30 000 Hungarians were killed and 200 000 ran away to western
Europe. Imre Nagy was replaced by a communist loyal to the USSR (Kadar).
Nagy was arrested and executed. All new freedoms were removed.
38. Did the West do anything to No. The USA did not want to interfere in a communist country that was
help the Hungarian people? controlled by the USSR because they were scared of a nuclear war. (Both
the USSR and the USA had nuclear weapons by now.)
39. What were the results of It showed the USSR were not prepared to let communist countries have
the Hungarian Rising? more freedoms. It ended the thaw in the Cold War. The West was
criticised for not helping Hungary. It worsened relations between the USA
and the USSR and led to the Cold War getting ‘colder’ in the 1960s.
40. What was the arms race? A ‘race’ between the USA and the USSR to develop better weapons than
the enemy.
41. What was the space race? A ‘race’ between the USA and the USSR to get into space, land on the moon
etc. This would show that their country was better than the other because
they had the best technology.
42. What were the main 1945-USA developed the atom bomb (the A bomb) and dropped one on
developments in the arms Hiroshima and one on Nagasaki in WWII.
and space race, 1945-1958? 1949-USSR developed the A bomb.
1952-USA got the H bomb.
1953-USSR got the H bomb.
1957-USSR got the 1st satellite into space (Sputnik). For the 1st time, they
had ‘overtaken’ the USA. The rocket technology led to the development of
inter-continental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) by both sides. Sputnik 2 got the
1st animal in space (Laika).
1958 –USA got their 1st satellite into space.
43. What does nuclear Both the USA and USSR were scared to use nuclear weapons against the
deterrent mean? other because they knew the other country would fire them back and
destroy them. Both countries had enough nuclear weapons to destroy the
world.