Unit 4 Turbulent Decades

1. Unit 4 Turbulent Decades 1945-1975

2. Chapter 27 The Cold War Era

3. The “Big Three” • Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met at Yalta, a Soviet port along the black sea. Roosevelt allowed Stalin to take land in Asia in exchange for entering the war against Japan • After the war, Stalin wanted to acquire as much land as possible to separate him from his European enemies to the West

4. Dividing Germany • Germany was a special problem • After the war, an agreement was reached to divide Germany into 4 zones, held by The U.S., Britain, France, and the Soviet Union. • Stalin promised to hold Free Elections, in countries controlled by the Soviet Union.

5. The United Nations • After the war, Truman carried out Roosevelt’s wishes, and led the establishment of the United Nations • 50 Nations, including the Soviet Union, signed the treaty. The United Nations were hopeful that the countries involved could work out problems democratically and avoid future wars.

6. The Peace Falters • Stalin broke his promise to hold free elections in Eastern Europe. • Instead, the Soviets set up Communist government in Eastern Europe. • Winston Churchill had proclaimed, “An Iron Curtain had descended upon Europe”

7. The Iron Curtain • While Soviets stayed in control of Eastern Europe, they “encouraged” Revolutions in countries like Greece, and Turkey to establish communist governments • America had a long history of being threatened by communism, and was completely against it

8. War with Russia, but not really • The Truman Doctrine was passed in March 1947, which stated the United States would aid nations threatened by communism and Soviet Expansion • Although the U.S. did not want war with Russia, they had a policy of containment, or stopping the Soviet Union from expanding. • The Marshall Plan sent 13$ billion to rebuild Western Europe, to help fight communism.

9. The Berlin Crisis • Soviets maintained control of East Germany • France, Britain, and the U.S. wanted to reunite Germany, which threatened Stalin's control • In response, Stalin Blockaded West Germany from the rest of the country using his military. No goods, food, or people,were allowed to cross the new border.

10. Truman Reacts • Truman refused to start another war. • For ten months, the Berlin Airlift provided food and supplies to the desperate German people. • Stalin lifted the blockade after 10 months, but now Germany had been officially divided into two countries, West Germany and East Germany.

11. The Birth of the Cold War • A cold war is a war in which the two sides do not actually fight each other. • Instead each side built up its military and arms to intimidate one another. • European Nations began taking sides. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed by the U.S., Canada, and 10 European Nations.

12. Warsaw Pact • In response to NATO, the Soviets formed the Warsaw Pact • The Alliance included the Eastern European counties that the Soviets had controlled.

13. Independence Movements • After WWII, several countries that were colonized demanded independence • India, Pakistan, and Burma broke away from the British Empire • More than 25 nations in Africa broke away from European Control • A Jewish state of Israel was created in the Middle East, and Arab countries in the area resented the treaty and continue to attack Israel to this day.

14. Communism In China • The most threatening change after the war was in China • Mao Zedong and his communist forces overthrew the government, and established the People’s republic of China. • The United States would not recognize Mao and the communists as the formal government, and the Soviets now had a powerful ally in Asia

15. Section 2 Postwar Politics

16. Truman Faces Problems at Home • After the war there was inflation, as the economic shifted back from a military economy to a consumer economy • During the war, workers agreed not to strike, but after the war, many labor unions set up strikes demanding higher wages and better conditions.

17. Strike Outs • Truman forced striking workers back to work by threatening to draft them into the army, and sending the army into the mines to work. • The Taft-Hartley bill, was passed by congress in 1947, and limited the actions workers could take against their employers. To try and keep support, Truman vetoed the bill, but it was overruled by the republican congress.

18. New Military Operations • Congress passed the National Securities Act, in 1947. • This set up the Department of Defense, and created the position of Secretary of Defense • It also set up the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)

19. Birth of the CIA • The CIA collects information from other countries and evaluates it, then passes it on to the president. • The CIA uses secret agents, paid informers, and friendly governments to collect information • It was so successful, Congress gave the CIA the right to receive, exchange, and send money without giving account to congress.

20. Truman stages an upset • Truman campaigned hard to keep his job as president in the election of 1948 • His opponent John Dewey (R), was expected to win. So much so that the day after the elections the newspapers read “Dewey defeats Truman” • However, after months of campaigning, Truman(D) ended up wining the election by the slimmest of margins

21. Section 3 The Korean War

22. Background on Korea • Korea was taken over by Japan during WWII, and became their colony by 1945 • At the end of WWII, rights to Korea went to The Soviet Union and the U.S. • They divided it along the 38th parallel • Soviets controlled North Korea and Americans controlled South Korea

23. Korea is Divided • When the two countries removed their armies in 1949, Korea remained divided • On June 24th 1950, armies from North Korea attacked South Korea • Without declaring war, Truman ordered limited air and sea forces into Korea. He called this police action • The United Nations sent troops in, led by American General Douglas MacArthur, hero of WWII.

24. Americans Advance • Americans made up the majority of the troops, despite it being a combined force • Americans joined the South Koreans and pushed North Korea back across the 38th parallel, the South Korean capital of Seoul. • MacArthur then begged Truman for troops to Invade North Korea and unify Korea. • MacArthur promised troops would be “home by Christmas

25. An Almost Victory • MacArthur pushed north and took the capitol of Pyongyang. Victory was within reach • Back home the United States received a warning from the Chinese. China threatened to send in its army if Americans advanced any further. • Truman believed they were bluffing

26. One Bad Read • The Chinese were not bluffing • By late October, thousands of Chinese troops mobilized by the border, and launched an attack • Badly outnumbered, UN forces retreated back to the 38th parallel across the border • Communists had recaptured Seoul within weeks

27. Truman and MacArthur Clash • The war became a stalemate, A situation in which neither side was able to gain much ground or achieve a decisive victory. • Truman began negotiating a treaty, but MacArthur argued that UN forces should now attack China. • Truman was against this plan, feeling that the attack would lead to a larger war, or even another World War

28. MacArthur Gets the Axe • In 1951, Truman relieved MacArthur of his command in Korea. Previously, MacArthur had written a letter to congress complaining he was being kept from doing his job. • MacArthur's firing created a storm of protest in the United States. The General was extremely popular from WWII.

29. Ending the War • The two sides began talking peace, and it was achieved two years later during the presidency of Dwight Eisenhower. • The agreement set up a demilitarized zone at the 38th parallel. This meant neither army was allowed to enter the area roughly a mile and a half on either side of the parallel

30. Effect of the War • More than 54,000Americans died in the war, and another 103,000 were wounded • Nearly 2 million Korean and Chinese lost their lives, and large portions of North and South Korea were devastated • America’s involvement in the war showed the world that they were dedicated to fighting communism with money, arms, and even their own lives.

31. Section 4 The Red Scare

32. Fear Back Home • Americans grew cared of communist subversion, or sabotage back home • Americans worried that communist spies had got into the government • Truman responded by ordering an investigation into all federal employees. Although the FBI found little evidence of espionage, many lost their jobs.

33. Loss of Free Speech • In 1950 congress passed the McCarran Act, which required all communist organizations to register with the government. • President Truman vetoed the bill, saying, “In a free country, we punish men for crimes they commit, but never the opinion they hold”. • Congress overrode his veto

34. HUAC • The House Un-American Activities Committee began investigating communist subversion in the nation. • The committee began holding public hearings or trials, which publicly attacked people for their beliefs. You might have been called to trial if you even knew a communist • HUAC launched an investigation into the film industry as well.

35. American Spies Revealed • In 1948, Whittaker Chambers, a magazine editor, volunteered to testify and accused Alger Hiss, a former state department official, of giving information to the Soviets • Hiss was not prosecuted for spying because too much time had passed, but was found guilty for perjury, or lying, and sent to prison.

36. The Rosenburgs • Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were members of the communist party in the U.S. They were accused of plotting to pass information about the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union • Brought to trial in 1951, they were found guilty and sentenced to death • They maintained their innocence until the day they were executed in 1953

37. McCarthyism • From 1950-1954, the hunt for communists was dominated by Senator Joseph McCarthy. • He publicly attacked people, without proof of being communist • He made wild accusations that destroyed the careers of innocent Americans, and heightened anti-communist hysteria

38. Mad McCarthy • In a speech in West Virginia in 1950, McCarthy announced he had a list of 205 state department members who were members of the communist party • Millions of Americans believed McCarthy’s charges. Many government employees accused were forced to resign • Many Republicans, even Richard Nixon used this to accuse democrats of being soft on communism.

39. McCarthy’s Downfall • In 1954, McCarthy launched a public accusation of The U.S Army • In a series of television hearings, Americans finally saw what McCarthy looked and acted like, as he made one wild accusation after another

40. McCarthy’s Downfall ctd… • In December 1954, the senate voted to censure, or formally criticize him for “conduct unbecoming a senator.” • The public saw him more as a bully than as a political figure. • However the damage was done, and McCarthy had destroyed the lives of many innocent Americans

41. Chapter 28 America in the 1950’s

42. Republican Revival • Republicans reclaimed the White house in 1952 when Dwight D. Eisenhower and his vice president Richard Nixon won the election. • Republicans won in a landslide, and they also had control of congress, marking a new era in politics.

43. We like “Ike” • Eisenhower had a middle of the road approach, or was not too conservative or too liberal • He managed to cut govt. spending and had a surplus or an extra $300 million. • Congress passed the Federal Highway Act, and funded the construction of 40,000 miles of highway • In 1959, Alaska and Hawaii officially entered the union, bringing the number of states to 50

44. We really like “Ike” • He Increased the minimum wage from 75 cents an hour to $1.00 • He made social security available to 10 million more people. • His domestic policies pleased many Americans, and he won reelection in 1956 by a bigger landslide than before.

45. Eisenhower and the Cold War • Eisenhower and secretary of state John Foster Dulles proclaimed instead of small wars with the soviets (Korea), if war broke out they would use nuclear weapons • Proclaimed the govt would spend less on military and would get “More bang for the buck”

46. The policy of massive retaliation, and the soviet efforts to counter it, resulted in a nuclear Arms Race. Both nations produced more powerful weapons at a faster pace. Hydrogen Bomb Intermediate-Range Ballistic missile (1,500 mile range) Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (Range of Several Thousand Miles The Arms Race

47. The Space Race • On October 4th 1957, the Soviets successfully launched Sputnik, the world’s first satellite • Americans grew scared that Soviets could now launch Nuclear Weapons from space • In December, The U.S tried to launch the Vanguard, but the satellite exploded after launch, creating embarrassment • The Govt. Set up NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration).

48. World Problems • Britain, France, and Israel invade Egypt • Hungary revolts against USSR, (The Soviets send in tanks and crush the revolts) • The new country of Vietnam, overrun by Nationalist, communist troops led by Ho Chi Minh. Overthrew the French troops. Although the U.S aided with money, Eisenhower, with Korea still on his mind, did not send in troops

49. The Domino Theory • Eisenhower believed that if one nation in Asia fell to the communists, the others would also fall • In response, French and Vietminh representatives negotiated a temporary cease fire, dividing Vietnam by the north and the south.

50. A Lasting Cold War • After Soviet Dictator Joseph Stalin dies in 1953, Nikita Khrushchev emerges as the new leader • The Eisenhower and Khrushchev worked at establishing peace, including a nuclear arms ban • Hopes for peace ended when the Soviets shot down an American U-2 (Spy Plane) over Soviet Territory. • Eisenhower leaves office in 1961, warning that industry was helping government produce powerful weapons that endangered our liberties