Hutchison
Name ______________________________________ Date _______________________________ Pd _______
Cold War – Part 2
Directions - Read each section, and answer the questions that follow. CT questions are critical thinking
questions that you will not be able to find the answer within the section. However, you must read the section
to answer the critical thinking question correctly.
The Cold War
At the end of WWII, the United States and the Soviet Union were left as the world’s two major powers – the
United States had vast economic power and the atomic bomb; the Soviet Union had the massive Red Army.
They became known as Superpowers. During WWII, these two had been allies, despite the fact that their
political, economic, and social systems were quite different.
At the end of WWII, who was left as the world’s two major powers?
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What two advantages did the United State have?
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What advantage did the Soviet Union have?
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What did the two major powers become known as?
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What was the relationship of these two countries during WWII?
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What differences did these two countries have during WWII?
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After the war, each Superpower attempted to extend its influence, quickly leading to a “Cold War” – emerging
first in Europe and then in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. The Cold War was “cold” only in the sense that the
two Superpowers never confronted one another directly in open warfare. But their global competition led to
crises and conflicts on every continent, dominating world events for the next 45 years.
Why was the Cold War “cold?”
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What did the global competition of the United States and the Soviet Union led to?
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How long did the war last?
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1
Roots of the Cold War
The roots of the Cold War lay in the competing ideological systems of the Western democracies and Soviet
Communism. While Western nations hoped to spread democracy and free enterprise, Soviet leaders
promoted the spread of Communism. It is therefore essential to understand the basic differences between
the two systems.
What did Western European nations hope to spread throughout Europe after World War II?
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What did the Soviet Union leaders hope to spread after World War II?
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Political
System
Western Democracies
Citizens elected representatives and national
leaders. People had the right to form their
own political parties.
Individual
Rights
Citizens had basic rights, such as freedom of
speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of
religion.
Economic
System
Economical freedom allowed people and
corporations to own land and businesses.
Businesses provided goods and services in
order to make a profit.
Soviet Communism
The Soviet Union was a dictatorship controlled
by Communist Party leaders. The Communist
Part was the only political party permitted to
operate.
Ordinary citizens had few rights. The
government controlled radio, television, and
newspapers. Secret police arrested all critics of
the government. The practice of religion was
discouraged.
Many forms of private property were abolished.
With state ownership and central planning, the
government controlled all production. Private
farms became state-owned collective farms.
Describe the differences in political parties in Western Democracies and Soviet Communism (Political System)
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Describe the differences in individual rights in Western Democracies and Soviet Communism (Individual Rights)
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What happened to critics of the Soviet government? (Individual Rights)
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Describe the differences in religion in Western Democracies and Soviet Communism (Individual Rights)
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What could people own in Western Democracies (Economic System)?
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In Western Democracies, why did businesses provide goods and services (Economic Systems)?
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Who controlled all production in Soviet Communism (Economic Systems)?
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2
The Cold War Begins in Europe
Even before the war ended, Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin had met in the Soviet Union at the Yalta
Conference in 1945 to make plans for the post-war world. They agreed to divide Germany into four separate
zones of occupation, controlled by the three allies and France. Stalin also pledged to allow free elections in
Eastern Europe when the war was over.
What was the purpose of the Yalta Conference?
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What did they agree to do with Germany?
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What will Stalin agree to allow in Eastern Europe when the war was over?
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…Stalin will not keep this promise to allow free elections in Eastern Europe.
An Iron Curtain Falls on Eastern Europe
Stalin never kept his promise to hold free elections in Eastern Europe. Instead, the Soviet army, which
occupied Eastern Europe at the end of the war, placed local Communists in power. Stalin felt the Soviets had
the right to control Eastern Europe to act as a buffer to protect Soviet security. In 1946, Winston Churchill
announced that an “Iron Curtain” had descended on Eastern Europe. The nations of Albania, Bulgaria,
Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, Rumania, and, later, Eastern Germany became Soviet satellites.
Who did the Soviet army put in power of Eastern Europe?
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CT – What was the “Iron Curtain?”
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What countries became Soviet satellites?
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CT – What is a Soviet satellite (it has nothing to do with space)?
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Trade and communications between Eastern and Western Europe were cut off. Eastern European
governments were forced to create Communist economies and to follow policies dictated by the Soviet Union.
Growing American Involvement
Western leaders began to fear that Stalin was another Hitler, bent on world conquest. In the post-war period,
the United States was the only country powerful enough to resist the Soviet Union and the spread of
Communism.
What did Western leaders fear about Stalin?
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After World War II, what was the only country powerful enough to resist the Soviet Union and spread of
communism?
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3
Containment – In 1947, Britain withdrew its troops from Greece, where Communist rebels were threatening
the government. President Truman announced the United States would give aid to Greece and Turkey to
prevent Communist penetration. He offered to support all free peoples resisting Communism. This policy,
known as the “Truman Doctrine,” marked the beginning of America’s containment policy: the United States
would not overturn Communism where it already existed, but it would take steps to prevent Communism
from spreading any further. Later that same year, the United States announced the Marshall Plan: this plan
gave billions of dollars in financial aid to Western European nations in an effort to help them rebuild their wartorn economies. The aim of the Marshall Plan was to build future trading partners for the United States and to
help Europeans resist Communism.
Why did the United States offer aid (help) to Greece and Turkey?
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What was the purpose of the “Truman Doctrine?”
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Did the United States want to overturn Communism where it already existed?
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What did the United States want to keep Communism from doing?
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What was the purpose of the Marshall Plan?
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The Berlin Airlift and the Division of Germany – In 1948, the Western allies took the first steps to merge their
zones of occupation in Germany. Stalin reacted by closing all Western highway and railroad links to Berlin.
The Western allies began a massive airlift to feed and supply the city. Within a year, Stalin, admitted defeat
and lifted the blockade.
In 1948, what did the Western allies look to do with their zones?
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How did Stalin react to this merge?
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How did Western allies get food and supplies to the blockaded city?
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Did Stalin ever lift the blockade?
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In 1949, the three Western zones of occupation were officially merged into a new independent state, known
as the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany). Stalin responded by turning the Soviet zone into the
German Democratic Republic (East Germany).
Western zones become the Federal Republic of Germany = _________________________________________
Soviet zone becomes the German Democratic Republic = ___________________________________________
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Formation of NATO and the Warsaw Pact
In, 1949, the United States, Canada, and ten Western European countries formed the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO) to protect Western Europe from Communist aggression. With NATO, the United States
pledged to defend Western Europe with its nuclear weapons. Soviet leaders responded in 1955 by creating
the Warsaw Pact with their Eastern European allies. When Hungary tried to drop out from the pact, Soviet
forces moved in to crush the uprisings.
What countries formed NATO?
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What was the purpose of NATO?
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How was the United States going to defend Western Europe?
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How did Soviet leaders react to the formation of NATO?
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What happened to Hungary when they tried to drop out of the Warsaw Pact?
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Across Clues
Down Clues
1. ________, country that wanted to control Eastern Europe
3. _________Plan, economic rebuilding of Europe
5. The US used island hopping in this region
7. US policy to stop the spread of communism
11. This country was divided into four parts
1. Soviet leader in WWII
2. ________Doctrine, US will help those countries resisting
communism
4. To cut back on use of essential goods for war
6. The project to create the atomic bomb
7. US wanted to stop this from spreading during the Cold War
8. The allies invaded here to liberate France
9. Normandy is in this country
10. Pearl ________ December 7, 1941
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