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History The Cold War > The Origins Of The Cold War In The 1940s > Flashcards

The Origins Of The Cold War In The 1940s Flashcards

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1
Q

Presidents of America

A

Franklin D. Roosevelt (March 1933 - April 1945)
Harry S. Truman (April 1945 - January 1953)

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2
Q

Britains Prime Ministers

A

Winston Churchill, conservative. May 1940 - July 1945
Clement Attlee, labour. July 1945 - October 1951

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3
Q

Soviet Union/USSR President

A

Joseph Stalin January 1924 - March 1953

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4
Q

When was the Yalta Conference?

A

February 1945

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5
Q

What were Winston Churchills approaches to the Yalta Conference?

A

Saw Britains interests as being best served by a close relationship with the USA
An avowed anti-communist, determined not to compromise too much with the Soviets

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6
Q

What were Franklin D. Roosevelt’s approaches at the Yalta Conference?

A

Committed to working with the USSR to rebuild Europe
His view: only a Europe built on American capitalist principles could prevent a future war

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7
Q

What were Joseph Stalins approaches to the Yalta Conference?

A

To ensure that towns, industry, agriculture weren’t destroyed
Stalin recognised the need for cooperation with USA and Britain

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8
Q

What were the agreements at the Yalta Conference?

A
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9
Q

What were the disagreements at the Yalta Conference?

A

Poland
Stalin wanted to move the border of the USSR further into Poland
USA and Britain did not like this but felt they had agreed

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10
Q

Yalta impact on relations at the time

A

Underlying tension
Increased distrust
USA wanted democracy and capitalism
Soviets wanted to spread communism

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11
Q

Yalta impact on relations in the longer term

A

Created clear divide between the two countries
Soviets took control of Eastern Europe
—> USA saw this as a threat
Mistrust grew overtime

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12
Q

When was the Potsdam Conference?

A

July 1945

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13
Q

Who was the British leader at the Potsdam Conference?

A

Clement Attlee

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14
Q

Who was the American leader at the Potsdam Conference?

A

Harry S. Truman

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15
Q

Who was the USSR’s leader at the Potsdam Conference?

A

Joseph Stalin

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16
Q

What was Clement Attlee’s approach at the Potsdam Conference?

A

Concerned by the USSR’s expansion into Eastern Europe
Make sure Germany was safe from attack
Britain was no longer the dominant force
Stay close to the USA to grow the Soviet Power

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17
Q

What was Harry S. Truman’s approach to the Potsdam Conference?

A

More anti-communist than Roosevelt
—> shared many of the same goals
Argued for self-determination for the countries of Europe

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18
Q

What was Joseph Stalin’s approach to the Potsdam Conference?

A

Determined to ensure Soviet security in the long term
Convinced that USA was a rival for power and influence in Europe

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19
Q

Stalin’s armies controlled much of Eastern Europe, what else did he want to do?

A

He had set up a communist government in Poland and wanted to set up Pro-Soviet governments throughout Eastern Europe
—> Truman saw this as evidence that Stalin wanted to build of a Soviet Empire
Stalin wanted to cripple Germany, but Truman disagreed - didn’t want to repeat the mistakes from the Treaty of Versailles
—> Stalin demanded $10 billion compensation from Germany

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20
Q

Potsdam Conference impact on relations (at the time)

A

Underlying problems
Tension increased
But they were alright

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21
Q

Potsdam Conference impact on relations (in the longer term)

A

Led to mistrust on both sides
Helped start the Cold War

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22
Q

Atomic bomb impact on relations (at the time)

A

WW2 ended but created a growing sense of mistrust and competition
Intensified rivalry

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23
Q

Atomic bomb impact on relations (in the longer term)

A

Shaped post-war politics
Germany - divided line between East and West
Truman determined to stop Soviet expansion and the spread of communism into the rest of Europe

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24
Q

What is a coalition?

A

Shared control of a country with another party

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25
What is cominform?
A group started in 1947 To connect and support communist parties in Europe Helped spread communist ideas Increased tension with the West
26
Who ran East Germany?
The USSR effectively under Red Army control —> allies gave them control
27
Soviet Expansion impact on relations (at the time)
Increased tension Mistrust grew between communist and capitalist countries Fear of communism spreading in Western Europe Led to Iron Curtain dividing Europe
28
Soviet Expansion impact on relations (in the longer term)
Established a long-lasting divide between East and West Created pattern of conflict and rivalry Increased tensions
29
When was the Iron Curtain?
March 1946
30
Who was George Kennan?
An American diplomat and expert on the Soviet Union
31
What did George Kennan do on 22nd February 1946?
Sent a report to the government in Washington —> known as the Long Telegram (8000 words)
32
What did the USSR successfully do in 1946? (Communism)
Spread communism through Eastern Europe Poland, Albania, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria all had communist governments Loyal to Stalin
33
What did Churchill call the divide between the East and West of Europe?
The Iron Curtain
34
What did Western powers accept?
That Eastern Europe was a Soviet sphere of influence
35
How did Truman respond to the spread of communism?
The Truman Doctrine
36
What did Churchill do on the 5th March 1946 - Missouri, USA?
Made a speech (the Iron Curtain speech) —> directly criticising the actions of the USSR Accusing them of attempting to spread its influence and gain more power at all costs
37
Iron Curtain impact on relations (at the time - Stalins response)
Unfair speech Increased tensions Symbol: Iron Curtain
38
Iron Curtain impact on relations (in the longer term - Truman’s approach)
Believed any type of cooperation is doomed to fail because of the Telegram Led to the Truman Doctrine
39
What happened to Greece and Turkey?
Greece supported communist rebels in the civil war Stalin tried taking control of Turkey (neighbouring country)
40
What did Truman persuade the US congress to do on 12th March 1947?
Grant him $400 million of aid to help the situation in Greece and Turkey —> made Turkey a strong ally of the USA and helped the monarchists of Greece Aka, each country should be allowed to choose how it’s run by containing communism —> support countries threatened by communism
41
Truman Doctrine impact on relations (at the time, summary)
March 1947 Truman gave money to Greece and Turkey to resist communism + make Turkey an ally Increased tensions Stalin = unhappy —> viewed as a direct threat Led to Cominform Confirms idea of Iron Curtain
42
Truman Doctrine impact on relations (in the longer term)
Truman Doctrine demonstrated through Marshall Plan Leading to Comecon Rivalry + competition between the superpowers
43
What was the Marshall Plan?
General Marshall found countries economies to be ruined —> extreme shortages of supplies Proposed plan, $17 billion to aid and rebuild Europe —> believed doing this would make spreading communism more difficult
44
How much Marshall Aid money were the UK given?
$3.2 billion
45
How much Marshall Aid money were France given?
$2.7 billion
46
How much Marshall Aid money were Italy given?
$1.5 billion
47
How much Marshall Aid money were Greece given?
$694 million
48
Why was the Marshall Plan quite successful?
Allowed countries to rebuild much more quickly Important equipment and supplies were provided
49
What was Comecon’s aims?
Countries in EE should not accept Marshall Aid Aims: Provide support and bring economic stability Countries worked together to share knowledge and resources in a way that would benefit them all
50
Why was Yugoslavia banned from Cominform?
Tito decided to seek Marshall Aid It became a totally independent country The only communist state outside the iron Curtain
51
Marshall Plan impact on relations (at the time)
Increased tension Sense of rivalry Confirms Iron Curtain Stalin = felt threatened —> led to creation of Comecon
52
Marshall Plan impact on relations (in the longer term - acting on containment)
Reduces chances of countries turning to communism —> part of USA’s strategy to contain communism Increased tensions with the Soviet Union Divide between East and West
53
How did Stalin respond to the zones of Berlin being combined into one?
With the Berlin Blockade out of fear Germany was being built up deliberately
54
What couldn’t West Berlin do during the Berlin Blockade?
Use tanks and military machinery to force their way through —> would be seen as an act of war
55
What was the Berlin Airlift?
Allies used planes to fly over supplies to West Berlin First planes flew on 26th June 1948 Planes landed every 3 minutes, around 4000 tonnes of supplies were delivered a day
56
In total how many flights were there in the Berlin Airlift?
275,000 flights Delivered 1.5 million tonnes of supplies
57
What was feared during the Berlin Airlift?
Soviets may shoot down planes —> igniting a war
58
What happened on 15th April 1949?
West launched the ‘Easter Parade’ Nearly 12,000 tonnes of coal was delivered in 1383 flights
59
What happened on 12th May 1949?
Stalin ordered the lifting of the blockade (The West Won)
60
What happened on 23rd May 1949?
Germany was formally divided into two different countries
61
WEST (Germany dividing)
Federal Republic of Germany (FDR) Independent democratic country Own government, based in Bonn
62
EAST (Germany dividing)
German Democratic Republic (under Soviet control) Stalins response (October 1949) Run in same way as USSR —> under a communist party Own secret police, the Stasi
63
Berlin Blockade and Airlift impact on relations (at the time)
Tension at its highest so far —> sparked a sudden, dramatic spike in tension Truman is committed Demonstrated how far America was willing to go to protect their ideology
64
Berlin Blockade and Airlift impact on relations (in the longer term)
Willing to go to the brink of war, but not beyond it —> not willing to risk engaging in a hot war Led to creation of NATO
65
What happened in April 1949? (NATO)
12 countries including USA, Britain and France signed the North Atlantic Treaty
66
What did NATO represent for the USSR?
An aggressive alliance A threat to Soviet security
67
What was the Warsaw Pact?
USSR’s own alliance All the communist countries of Eastern Europe were in it (except Yugoslavia) Defend each other —> continue Soviet control over the Eastern bloc
68
What happened in May 1955?
Western bloc invited West Germany into NATO and allowed it to have its own army again
69
Alliances impact on relations (at the time)
Two clear political sides
70
Alliances impact on relations (in the longer term)
Two clear political sides lasting throughout the Cold War
71
Which 3 presidents attended the Yalta Conference?
Winston Churchill Franklin D. Roosevelt Joseph Stalin
72
Which 3 presidents attended the Potsdam Conference?
Clement Attlee Harry S. Truman Joseph Stalin
73
Who was the British leader at the Yalta Conference?
Winston Churchill
74
Who was the American leader at the Yalta Conference?
Franklin D. Roosevelt
75
Who was the USSR’s leader at the Potsdam Conference?
Joseph Stalin
76
Who developed the atomic bomb?
USA
77
How did Stalin know about the atomic bomb?
His spies kept him informed since 1942
78
Where did Truman officially tell Stalin about the atomic bomb?
At the Potsdam Conference
79
When was the first atomic bomb dropped?
6th August 1945 - Hiroshima, Japan
80
When was the second atomic bomb dropped?
9th August 1945 - Nagasaki, Japan
81
When was cominform started?
1947
82
Who started cominform?
Joseph Stalin
83
Who was the President of Yugoslavia?
Marshal Tito
84
What was Marshal Tito determined to do?
Apply communism in his own way —> was expelled from Cominform in 1948
85
What years did the Soviet Expansion occur in?
1945-1949
86
What did George Kennan write in the Long Telegram?
His fears about Soviet ambitions Believed any attempt of cooperation between East and West was doomed to fail Confirmed Truman’s own fears
87
What was the Truman Doctrine?
A policy designed for containment
88
Why were the USA concerned about Stalin trying to take control of Turkey?
Worried it would allow Soviets to spread communism through Middle East —> and Turkey was very important for its reserves of oil
89
When did the US Congress grant the Marshall Aid?
1948 —> the USSR had invaded Czechoslovakia (so they granted it) After Truman’s attempt of approval failed in 1947
90
What did Stalin ban communist states from doing?
Applying for the Marshall Plan —> he was suspicious of it —> he set up his own version called Comecon
91
When was Comecon?
1949
92
What did Britain, France and USA do?
Combine their designated zones of Berlin into one —> to allow the German economy to recover faster
93
Where was the Berlin Blockade around?
West Berlin
94
What happened during the Berlin Blockade?
Stalin closed links between East and West Berlin, which left West Berlin without supplies Electricity from power stations in the Soviet sector to factories and offices in WB were cut Western allies were unable to supply them
95
2.5 million people in West Berlin were forced to …?
Rely on reserves of food and fuel that would soon run out
96
What was the key agreement in NATO?
An attack on one member would be considered an attack on all
97
What did NATO guarantee?
That the USA would support Western Europe countries if their security was ever threatened
98
When was the Warsaw Pact created?
1955 (Stalin was not alive, Khrushchev was the new leader)

History The Cold War (5 decks)

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