Part 1 The Cold war

Part 1: The Cold war

The Soviet Union and the United States emerged as the clear leading powers on the global platform after WorldWar II. Despite the end of the world war, geopolitical tensions arose between these two superpowers resulting in the infamous cold war. The cold war was marked by rivalry over the creation and buildup of atomic and nuclear weapons, the spread of political ideologies, and espionage. The cold war that lasted between 1945 to 1990 was a period in which countries allied to the United States, also referred to as the western powers, and countries allied to the Soviet Union also referred to as the Soviet bloc, experienced a continuous state of political hostility that did not result in open warfare.

During the beginning of the cold war, influential leaders from the Western-allied block made utterances that further fueled the cold war. For instance, Winston Churchill, the prime Minister of the United Kingdom, made his now-infamous “iron curtain” speech that implied a permanent divide between the east and the west. This speech gave the impression that those in the west were subject to western ideologies while those in the east were subject to Moscow’s ideologies. States supporting the Soviet Union viewed his speech as an incitement against the Soviet Union and a call to other nations to join the Western Alliance in subduing the Soviets. President Truman’s speech, which is now known as Truman’s doctrine, gave the impression that the United States would Support “free people” in resisting outside pressure and influence from the Soviet Union. This speech resulted in the creation of NATO, a military alliance between the United States and Western European Countries, further threatening the Soviet Union and its allies. George Marshall, the Secretary of State, gave a speech describing the plight Western-allied European nations faced after World War II. It convinced the American people and Congress to take an interest in reliving their plight and create economic agreements to help alleviate their suffering. The Organization for European Economic Co-operation, an American foundation that gave financial aid and implemented economic programs to Western European countries, directly relates to George Marshall’s speech. This speech was a threat to the Soviet Union and its allies as they saw it as America’s attempt at spreading its influence and ideologies in Europe. Apart from military coalitions, economic aid, and political maneuvering, other ways countries involved fought in the cold war include arms buildup and proxy wars. The nuclear arms race is an example of an arms buildup, while the Vietnam war and the Korean war are proxy wars.

The cold war ended in 1991, and it was because of factors such as the increase in nationalist sentiments, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and changes in leadership and policies. Between the 1980s and 1991, most countries in Eastern Europe experienced increased nationalist sentiments due to dissatisfaction with the Soviet system. These sentiments resulted in countries such as Hungary and Poland leaving the Soviet Union and weakening its influence in the region. The decrease of its influence and the radical political and economic reforms introduced by its new leader Mikhail Gorbachev significantly weakened the Soviet Union’s power and led to its eventual disintegration. President Reagan’s foreign policy that attacked critical resources necessary for the economic survival of the Soviet Union further weakened this former superpower while questioning its legitimacy and superiority in the world.

Part 2: World War II

World War II began in 1939 and ended in 1945 and it involved many countries. This war resulted from factors such as the failure of peace efforts made after the first world war, the formation of the Axis coalition, the spread of military totalitarianism, economic depression experienced across the world, and increased German aggression in Europe. Military totalitarianism led to the rise of dictators and doctorship governments in the east. For instance, in Germany, Adolf Hitler came into power. In Japan, its armed forces gained more power that enabled them to impose tyranny across East Asia, thereby infringing on the disarmament clauses of the Versailles Treaty. In Italy, Benito Mussolini, a fascist dictator, became the Premier of Italy and created a totalitarian state that imposed its rule across that region. As these countries grew into tyrannical powers, they formed agreements such as the Rome -Berlin declaration and the German- Japanese Anti-Comintern Pact. These agreements helped form connections that gave way to creating the alliance known as the Axis powers. Later, Eastern European countries such as Romania, among others, joined the German, Italy, and Japan alliance.

The alliance that stood against the Axis powers in World War II was the Allied powers. The three leading powers that formed this alliance were the United States, the Soviet Union, and Great Britain. After world war I, the United States was hesitant to join another war; however, it was not until the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941 that the US declared war on Japan and joined the Allied powers. World War II ended in 1945 after Japan formally surrendered to the US. The United States bombed the Japanese cities of Nagasaki and Hiroshima using atomic bombs, an act that killed hundreds of thousands of civilians and military personnel. In Europe, the war ended after Germany surrendered unconditionally due to the collapse of cities such as Dresden, the capital city, and the suicide of Adolf Hitler. After the Allied forced worn the war, conquered nations and their collaborators were heavily punished. For instance. The Soviet Union exacted reparations from Germany and Japan. War criminals from this war were also prosecuted and heavily punished. The Allied powers established the United Nations to prevent another world war. The United Nations is an international peacekeeping organization that resolves conflicts through peaceful negotiations. The Atlantic Charter was also drafted, and it prevented territorial aggrandizement. The Atlantic charter is the basis of the UN charter.

Part 3:

Importance of the Sadler Report

Michael Thomas Sadler wrote the Sadler report, which addressed the problem of child labor in Britain’s mills and factories after the industrial revolution. This report revealed the bad industrial working conditions children working in factories were subjected to, resulting in the creation of laws that restricted the hours young children could work. This report was instrumental in promoting better treatment of all factory workers.

Importance of Appeasement

The Appeasement was a British policy that was enacted in the 1930s. This policy was created to help Britain avoid war by allowing Adolf Hitler to expand German territory unchecked. Other than avoiding another war after world war I, the Appeasement was popular with the British people because Britain could not afford another war. Also, most of the population sympathized with Germany for the unfair treatment they received after their defeat in 1918.

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