The Early Cold War

1945-1953

Communism vs. Capitalism

Karl Marx

Marxism

• History is a progression.– Feudalism --> Capitalism --> Communism

• History is a conflict between the classes.• The proletariat will rise up and overthrow

the bourgeoisie.• Afterwards, there will be a communist

utopia.• The Communist Manifesto – 1848; Capital

– 1867.

Communism

• The proletariat (workers) will overthrow the bourgeoisie (rich and propertied).

• The workers will own the means of production – factories, tools, etc.

• There will be no social classes.

V. I. Lenin

Marxism-Leninism

• Similar to Marxism, except Lenin said the workers needed to be led in their revolution, and that capitalism was not a necessary precondition for communism.

• Marxism-Leninism also justified a dictatorship.

Joseph Stalin

Stalinism

• Marxism-Leninism practiced by Stalin.

• Called for rapid industrialization by means of “Five-Year Plans.”

Potsdam Conference, 1945

The Cold War Defined

• An ideological, political, social, economic, and military struggle for supremacy and influence between communism, represented by the Soviet Union, and capitalism, represented by the United States, lasting from approximately 1945-1989.

Early Conflicts

• The early Cold War was played out in a number of “small” conflicts and policy decisions.– The Berlin Airlift– Greek Civil War– The Korean War

Berlin Airlift

Presidential Policies

Harry S. Truman

Truman’s Presidency

• President from 1945-1953.– Truman Doctrine– Marshall Plan– NATO– National Security Act– Containment policy – George Kennan

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Eisenhower’s Presidency

• President from 1953-1961.– Domino theory– Mutual Assured

Destruction– Expanding nuclear

arsenal

Nuclear Build-Up

The Tide of Communism

Mao Zedong

China

• China “falls” to communism in 1949.– Mao becomes dictator.

Russian Nukes

• In 1949, the U.S.S.R. develops its own nuclear bomb.

Fidel Castro

Cuba

• Fidel Castro led a long guerilla war against the Cuban dictatorship.– In 1959, Cuba becomes communist and

Castro makes himself dictator.– Eisenhower almost immediately begins

plotting Castro’s overthrow.

Fears

• The spread of communism to Cuba and China, as well as the trials of spies in the United States, led to fears of a worldwide communist conspiracy.

The Korean War

Korean War, 1950-1953

• U.S. troops fight against North Koreans and Chinese.

• War ends in a stalemate and a ceasefire that continues today.