Chapter
25 Section 3
Objectives
• Explain how the situation in Korea became the
Korean War, the first military conflict of the Cold
War.
• Describe how the Korean War ended.
• Explain how the Cold War led to a Red Scare in
the United States.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
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Terms and People
• stalemate – a situation in which neither side
wins
• demilitarized zone – an area which neither
side controls
• Joseph McCarthy – Wisconsin Senator who
built his career by threatening to expose
Communists
• censure – to condemn
The Korean War Period
Chapter
25 Section 3
How did the United States respond to
the invasion of Korea and its
aftermath?
In 1950, the Cold War suddenly turned hot in
the East Asian nation of Korea.
As American soldiers fought in the Korean War,
other Americans hunted for Communists in
America.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
25 Section 3
Before World War II, Japan had occupied Korea.
After the war, Korea was divided.
Communist, backed by
the Soviet Union
Non-Communist, backed
by the United States
On June 25, 1950,
North Korean troops
invaded South Korea.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
25 Section 3
President Truman responded quickly to the
attack on South Korea.
He urged the UN
Security Council
to send a military
force to Korea.
He appointed World
War II hero General
Douglas MacArthur
to lead the force.
Sixteen nations agreed to send troops, but 90
percent of the force would be American.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
25 Section 3
The first UN forces to arrive were badly
outnumbered and poorly supplied.
They were pushed
back to the southern
tip of South Korea.
As fresh troops and
supplies arrived,
they were able to
hold their ground.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
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In September, General MacArthur launched a bold
counterattack.
UN forces attacked at
Inchon and pushed the
North Koreans back
across the border.
They pursued the North
Koreans almost to the
Yalu River on the border
of China.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
25 Section 3
China’s government was threatened as UN forces
neared the Yalu River.
Masses of Chinese
soldiers crossed
the border and
attacked.
UN troops were
pushed back to
South Korea.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
25 Section 3
The war in South Korea quickly settled into a
stalemate. Neither side could win.
General MacArthur
argued that the UN
must attack China to
win the war.
Truman disagreed. This
conflict led him to fire
MacArthur.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
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Peace talks began in July 1951 and lasted for two
years. Meanwhile, the fighting continued.
A cease-fire finally
ended the fighting in
July 1953.
Both sides established
a demilitarized
zone, which still
exists today.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
25 Section 3
The Korean War had an enormous impact on
Korea, America, and other UN nations.
Tensions between North and South Korea continue today.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
25 Section 3
The failure to win a decisive victory in Korea
added to Americans’ fears about
Communism.
Will the United States
ever defeat
communism?
The Korean War Period
Are Communist spies
secretly working
to overthrow the
U.S. government?
Chapter
25 Section 3
In 1947, the House Un-American Activities Committee
led an investigation to find Communists.
Cartoons like this one
criticized the committee’s
methods.
The car is a symbol for
the committee.
The committee “ran
over” anyone in its way.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
25 Section 3
Two spying cases seized public attention.
Alger Hiss, a former
State Department
official, was accused
of passing secrets to
Soviet agents.
Julius and Ethel
Rosenberg were
accused of giving the
secret of the atomic
bomb to the Soviets.
Hiss never served jail
time for spying.
They were found guilty
and executed in 1953.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
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The climate of fear also led to the rise of Senator
Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin.
In 1950, McCarthy accused
many members of the U.S.
State Department of being
Communists.
Over the next four years,
he held a series of Senate
hearings.
The Korean War Period
Senator Joseph
McCarthy
Chapter
25 Section 3
In 1954, a series of events brought about
McCarthy’s downfall and the end of the
Communist scare.
McCarthy publicly made
false accusations against
the U.S. Army.
He lost most of his following.
The Senate voted to censure him.
The Communist scare
was mostly finished.
The Korean War Period
Chapter
25 Section 3
Section Review
QuickTake Quiz
The Korean War Period
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