Origins of the Cold War, 1945-1955
H2 History - syllabus 9174, 2027
Why the wartime alliance broke down: ideology, security and economics, Yalta and Potsdam, containment, Berlin, NATO, and how historians interpret the origins.
- Why the wartime allies became rivals
Ideology, security fears, economic aims and mistrust turned the wartime alliance into rivalry by 1947.
- Yalta and Potsdam: agreements that exposed divisions
At Yalta and Potsdam the Big Three agreed on general principles but split over Poland, Germany and reparations.
- Sovietisation and the war of words, 1946
As communists took control in Eastern Europe, leaders on both sides described the other as expansionist.
- Containment: the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan
In 1947 the USA committed itself to containing communism with military and economic aid, and the USSR answered with Cominform.
- Berlin and the military division of Europe
The Berlin Blockade turned division into confrontation and led to NATO, two German states and later the Warsaw Pact.
- Historians' interpretations of the origins
Traditional, revisionist, post-revisionist and post-Cold War historians disagree about who was mainly responsible.
- Put it together: Weigh the causes of the Cold War
Choose a cause and see the evidence for it and its limits. Strong answers weigh causes against each other rather than listing them.
Sources and context
Background reading for this chapter.
- An American diplomat explains Soviet conduct
Paraphrase of George Kennan's "Long Telegram" from the US embassy in Moscow to the State Department, 22 February 1946.
- A Soviet ambassador describes American policy
Paraphrase of a telegram from Nikolai Novikov, Soviet ambassador in Washington, to Foreign Minister Molotov, 27 September 1946.
- Truman asks Congress for aid
Paraphrase of President Truman's address to a joint session of Congress, 12 March 1947.
- Marshall proposes European recovery
Paraphrase of Secretary of State George Marshall's speech at Harvard University, 5 June 1947.
- The North Atlantic Treaty
Paraphrase of Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, signed in Washington, 4 April 1949.