Was the Cold War inevitable once the war against Germany ended?
Was the Cold War inevitable once the war against Germany ended? There are many views as to the origins of the Cold war and whether or not it was inevitable as soon as the Second World War ended in 1945. To discover if it was inevitable, events even as far back as First World War have to be analysed showing the beginning of tensions between the two superpowers, the US and USSR. These tensions were then evident throughout the inter war era and also during the second world war, despite alliance between them and the common goal of defeating Nazism. When the war concluded then it was imminent that the tensions would increase due to differences between the two nations. However I would not go as far as to say it was inevitable as that would mean that no matter what happened previously, the Cold War was "unavoidable". The Cold War however could have been avoided, because it was due to a series of mistakes and misunderstandings between the two powers, spiralling off a course of action which neither was able to prevent. There are several views as to whose fault the Cold War was and these views can be traced back to the inter war era. However the topic for debate mainly seems to be who was to blame. The traditionalists1 and post- neo revisionists2 blamed the USSR and Stalin, the revisionists3 blamed the US and the neo-revisionists4 took a balance of the two positions. My view would be
When did the Cold War Begin?
When did the Cold War Begin? The Term 'Cold War' gained popularity shortly after the Second World War. It describes a state of extreme hostility between the Great Powers (in this case the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (SU)), it is usually associated with arms races, diplomatic conflict, and hostile measures of every kind, short of out right military action between the two Great Powers themselves. They did wage war but usually through proxies, where the conflict was localised and only involved one of the Great Powers. This question has been debated on many occasions, as there is no straightforward answer. Some claim that this all began (Cold War) way back to the Russian revolution of 1917. When the Communists gained power in Russia and made drastic changes to the way in which the country was previously run. This very much angered the West as Capitalism and Communism have much conflicting beliefs, they are incompatible and seek the destruction of each other. So much so that in 1918, when the Russians made a peace with Germany, the West sent armies to destroy the Communist. They failed and the Communist stayed in power. This is the very first time that there is an 'East verses West' scenario. 938 has also been argued as a possible date for the beginning of the Cold War. This is due to the Munich Conference. The US was not directly involved in this, but it did
Who started the cold war and why?
Essay Course: MO3503 22/03/04 Tutor: Dr Paul Vysny Who started the cold war and why? By: Hubertus Nesselrode The Cold War was started by the principal victors of World War II: the United States of America, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and to a lesser extent Britain. The Cold War was essentially an ideological struggle which but soon adopted all facets of full international conflict with its geopolitical, economic and also scientific-technological aspects. The earliest stages of the Cold War coincided with the final defeats of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan in the first half of 1945. Both Communists and Capitalists were anxious to fill the power vacuums that the defeated Axis powers were leaving behind in Central Europe and the Pacific. From the setting of the scene at Yalta in February 1945, to the embittered conclusion of the Warsaw Pact on 14th May 1955, the worst obstacle to achieving a peace settlement was a mutual and deep-seated sense of suspicion, which the powers on either side of the 'Iron Curtain' must be held responsible for. "Twenty years ago I strove with all the energy in my power against Communism, because at that time I considered Communism, with its idea of world revolution, the greatest danger to the British Empire ... Nowadays German Nazism, with its idea
A Hollywood Perspective of the Cold War.
Jackie Porter February 17, 2003 Words: 3 867 Title: A Hollywood Perspective of the Cold War Ayn Rand claimed in her 1950's Screen Guide for Americans that "the purpose of the Communists in Hollywood is not the production of political movies openly advocating Communism...[but] ...making people absorb the basic principles of Collectivism by indirection and implication.' This statement illustrates the fact that during this period, fear combined with politics limited the scope of films made by Hollywood. The movie industry became a part of the Cold War in 1947 when the House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA) descended upon Hollywood. HCUA's hearings resulted in ten filmmakers going to jail for contempt of Congress. In addition, hundreds of actors, writers, and directors were put on an unofficial industry blacklist. The result was an environment where many film producers felt it was safer to produce films without any political or economic themes or implications at all. However, while some producers focused much less on producing films about social problems, others embraced the new regime. For example, between 1947 and 1954 almost forty explicitly propagandistic anti-Communist films were made in Hollywood. It was not until the 1960's after the Cuban Missile Crisis, the destruction of the Berlin Wall, and the end of blacklisting, that Hollywood created a more
The Cold War-Who was to blame?
* The USA was to blame. The USA could have been to blame, because of the way they handled western Europe. By organising the US, British, and French into one zone, called Tri-Zonia. It could have appeared that, the western countries were ganging up on Stalin. If this were the case then, Stalin would feel the need for protecting the USSR, by closing the possible entries to its territory. So that the USA could not enter Soviet land. This was what caused him to blockade Berlin. When the blockade was in place, the USA defied Stalin's wishes and flew supplies over Eastern Germany, all the way to Berlin. This behaviour was very antagonistic of the USA, and many people would have seen it as an invasion of the USSR's air space and an act of war. Therefore the USA committed the first act of war. The USA was also at fault, for the reason that they discovered that atom bomb first. This escalated the cold war, and made the USSR feel very insecure. The development of such weapons, could be seen as the USA was trying to antagonise the USSR, or put them down. * The USSR was to blame. The USSR could have been at fault, because of the way that they reacted to the USA's boosting of western Germany's economy. The USA did act in an inappropriate way, or in a way which could have been considered a threat, to Stalin, and the USSR. Stalin decided that capitalism was, "showing off", too much in
What were the causes of the Cold War?
What were the causes of the Cold War? The Cold War began soon after the Second World War ended and it lasted for 45 years. The war was called a Cold War because it was war carried out by every means possible short of The US and USSR physically fighting each other. Up to the Second World War the most dominant countries in world politics were Britain, France and Germany but by the end of the Second World War they were either in ruins or economically crippled. Two new countries, the USSR and the USA, now dominated the World. These new countries were allies, but yet they still hated each other. This was due to the difference in their ideologies; Russia believed in that Communism was the best way in which to run a country whereas America believed that Capitalism was the best way in which a country should be run. Capitalists were afraid of Communism spreading because it would mean that that there would be no industry or commerce, there would also be no divide between rich and poor as everyone would have the same amount of money, and the quality of goods would be lower as there would be no competition. Communist feared Capitalism as it meant that there would be an unfair division between rich and poor, and therefore millions would live in poverty, there would also not necessarily be any security of employment as well as this there would not necessarily be free healthcare and
The aftermath of world war 2 and the cold war
Victor Fung Class 11(1) IB Sept. 2, 2008 In the aftermath of World War 2, the European countries such as Great Britain, France and Germany emerged weakened both militarily and economically. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as unrivaled superpowers, both keen to make most of their advantage. Although the Soviets and the Americans fought together in the war, the defeat of Germany had made them set their sights on each other. Lack of a common enemy, increasing public pressure, and drastically different ideologies eventually led to arms race that was later known as the Cold War. During the war, the two superpowers contented themselves with fighting Germany and maintained an allied stance. However, immediately after the fall of Germany, both sides scrambled to gain the most out of their victory, especially the Soviets, who had taken more losses than all the other countries combined. As there was no country left that was powerful enough to either stop them or distract them, they began viewing each other with hostility. With Great Britain too weak to deter the Soviets, the only obstacle that remained was America. Although Germany was partitioned between them, Japan was wholly occupied by the Americans, but that was only the beginning of the problems between the two. Having bested their enemies in the war, both the American and Soviet people found new
The Yalta Conference and Cold War ideologies
Cold War Ideologies The Cold War was the result of clashing ideologies between the two post-war super powers, the USSR and the United States of America. The Cold War began as the allies connived what to do with the broken Germany. The two super powers America and the USSR, both had their ideologies which they wanted to implement upon the newly formed world. It is debatable however to what extent this difference in ideology caused the Cold War. In February 1945, three months before the end of the war in Europe, Germany was facing defeat and the big three (Rooselvelt, Churchill and Stalin) met at the Yalta Conference. They elucidated the state of the war, that as Stalin had requested a second front had been openned with the landing of the allied troops in Normandy in 1944. It was also agreed upon that Germany would have to pay reparations for the damage caused and that 50% of the 20 billion that should be payed will go to the USSR. Post-war Germany was elabortated and it was connived that Germany shall be de-Nazified, demilitarised and disarmed. The greatest problem however was post-war Poland. The Allies and Stalin agreed that the polish boarder should move back to where it had been before the Russo-Polish war of 1921. This served to the USSR as a bufffer zone so it would have enough time to react should a country try and attack. In return Poland would be compensated with a
When and Why Did the Cold War Start? Was any Individual or Power the Primary Cause of the Cold War?
When and Why Did the Cold War Start? Was any Individual or Power the Primary Cause of the Cold War? The cold war in its original form was a presumably mortal antagonism, arising in the wake of the Second World War, between two 'rigidly hostile blocs'. One led by the Communist Soviets and the other by Capitalist United States. It has been described as an 'inevitable clash of ideologies'. However the question arises as to how the Cold War began, after all during the Second World War, The USSR and the US were war allies. How could former members of the 'Grand Alliance' establish such a distrust and suspicion of the one another? Many historians and political analysts have tried to prove theories of the start of the Cold War. For example Gaddis argued that the Cold war was: 'Stalin's project, resulting from his paranoid personality, his revolutionary zeal and his ideological fervor' [John L, Gaddis 'We Now Know: Rethinking Cold War History 1997] Differing theories make it hard to come to any sort of conclusions on the question of who or what was the primary cause of the war, there do seem to be however a number of initial causes, the removal of a common enemy being a major factor. As we see the differences laid bare between capitalist USA and communist Russia for all to see once their attentions were no longer diverted to Germany. A realization by Stalin himself: ' The alliance
Proxy Wars during the Cold War
Victor Fung IB History November 17, 2008 Proxy Wars during the Cold War In the past, proxy wars have been fought through the use of third parties in order to prevent a full-scale war. During the Cold War, the need to prevent such a full-scale war became extremely important due to the fear of mutually assured destruction. Instances such as the Greek civil war, Korean War, Cuban Revolution, Vietnam War, Bay of Pigs, Afghan Soviet war, Angolan Civil War, were all examples of such proxy wars between the Soviet and the American sides. In a proxy war, either side would strive to implement their own form of government, which would then serve as a beacon for similar revolutions in the region. In addition, such proxy wars were also a test of economic capacity for either the Americans or the Soviets. Thus, these wars were fought to great effect during the Cold War and had long lasting consequences for either side. For wars such as the Greek civil war, the Cuban revolution, and other similar revolutions, the Americans and the Soviets did not advocate direct intervention. For example, the Truman Doctrine allowed American aid and materiel to be sent to pro-Capitalist Greek and Turkish supporters, rather than direct military involvement. This is similarly done by the Soviets, who sent aid to countries such as Cuba in the form of oil and other resources to support the economy, as well
