World+History+II+35

 media type="custom" key="29541931" align="right" =**Describe the global surge in economic productivity during the Cold War and describe its consequences**=

B. The economic recovery and development of Germany and Japan

 * ** The Marshall Plan **

1959 Cold War map of the Globe

NATO member states/ Other allies of the USA/ Colonized countries/ Warsaw Pact member states/ Other allies of the USSR/ Non-aligned nations
**The Cold War in relation to the Civil Rights Movement in the US**.

// Focus Question: What factors contributed to a rise in living standards during the Cold War? //

 * 1. The surge of world economic growth seen during the Cold War is largely considered to be the period of most vigorous economic growth in history. As highlighted in the next section on Germany and Japan after WWII, the institution of The Marshall Plan had a substantial impact on global economic performance.**

See: The Cold War Economy


 * 2. The nations involved in the Cold War tried to be one step ahead of the others.**
 * ** For example, the US had atomic and nuclear weapons, so the USSR developed their own weapons as well. Due to large nations importing a significant amount of goods sold in their stores, the cost of these items rose. **
 * ** The importation of goods gave people more options of what they could purchase in stores. This is especially apparent in car manufacturing. **
 * ** Before the 1970's, most American's owned American-made cars, aside from the few elite who could afford to purchase and ship a European car to the states. **
 * ** After the 1970's, cars imported from countries, such as Japan, became more common, and because imported cars were selling for the same prices as American cars, it became more common to see them on the roads along with Fords and GM brands. **
 * ** Before the 1970's, most American's owned American-made cars, aside from the few elite who could afford to purchase and ship a European car to the states. **
 * ** After the 1970's, cars imported from countries, such as Japan, became more common, and because imported cars were selling for the same prices as American cars, it became more common to see them on the roads along with Fords and GM brands. **
 * ** After the 1970's, cars imported from countries, such as Japan, became more common, and because imported cars were selling for the same prices as American cars, it became more common to see them on the roads along with Fords and GM brands. **



For more photos from the Cold War and excellent timelines, trivia, and first hand accounts, visit the Cold War Museum's website here.

====**3. A large part of the Cold War involved the United States and the Soviet Union competing for supremacy in several areas. Both countries were trying to amass as many nuclear bombs as possible, and there was also what is known as the Space Race, where each country tried to be the first to send astronauts into outer space. There were other issues as well:**====

**Ideological:**

 * ==== Simply put, Capitalist (US) vs. Communist (USSR) ====

**Military:**

 * ==== The US and the USSR participated in proxy wars. The US participated in the Vietnam War from 1955 to 1975, and the USSR was in Afghanistan from 1979 to 1989. Both countries also participated in an arms race, both trying to gain more nuclear weapons. ====
 * ==== A comparison of the US and USSR military from 1960 to present. ====

**Economic:**
====Here is a lesson plan about the differences between the USSR and US economies during the Cold War.====
 * ==== Like ideological differences, the US believed in a capitalist system with a market economy, whilst the USSR believed in a communist system with a command economy. ====

[[image:resourcesforhistoryteachers/womens history.jpg]]A description of women's role during the Cold War era from the Cold War website.
====Gender and Sexuality within American Cold War Domestic Policy: 1945-1965: An essay by Keith Moore.====

[[image:resourcesforhistoryteachers/lesson_plan_icon.jpg width="79" height="63"]]

 * ==== This lesson plan involves learning about the Cold War family structure and its relation to American television. ====
 * ==== 30 question [|trivia game] ====

**Education:**

 * ====[|How education reform changed after Sputnik] ====

**Cuban Missile Crisis (see also World History II.32 and Dramatic Event Page on The Cuban Missile Crisis**

 * 13 day crisis when President John F. Kennedy revealed to the American public that there were nuclear weapons 90 miles off the United States shores.
 * This led into an intense military standoff between the Soviets and Americans over the installation of nuclear weapons in Cuba.
 * President Kennedy then enacted an embargo on Cuba until the weapons were uninstalled.
 * The Soviets agreed to uninstall their weapons on the condition the Americans do not invade Cuba and remove their missiles from Turkey.
 * [|Informative Article]

**Athletics, particularly at the Olympics:**

 * Well known clash of athletics between the US and the USSR was the Miracle on Ice, when the US hockey team defeated the USSR hockey team in the semi-finals at the 1980 Winter Olympics held at Lake Placid.
 * The US team later went defeat the Finnish team and win the gold.
 * Click here to watch the trailer for the movie Miracle on Ice and here for the final minutes of the real game.
 * Click here to view the comparison of the medals that the US and the USSR earned at the Olympic games from 1924-96.
 * ==== The US refused to participate in the 1980 Winter Olympics held in the USSR because of the Soviet war in Afghanistan. Click here to read more about it. ====

**Technology (Including outer space):**

 * ====The Space Race characterizes the technological race during the Cold War between the US and the USSR. The USSR launched Sputnik I in 1957 into orbit. They then launched Sputnik II, followed by the first human into orbit, Yuri Gagarin. The US fell behind. Read more about it, here.====

Click for the [|Soviet view] on the US.

A great lesson plan from San Diego State University that aims to give students an understanding of the broader implications of the Cold War and the notion of globalization as a whole.

// Focus Question: How did Germany and Japan recover, and develop after World War II? //
PBS site: Dividing the World: The Cold War

====**2. The United States, with help from the Allies, came up with the Marshall Plan to try and repair Europe.**====


 * See United States History II.18 for more on the Marshal Plan**
 * ====** The Marshall Plan was established on June 5, 1947, and offered to aid all of Europe, including the USSR and its allies, although they did not accept this aid. **====
 * ====** The program ran from 1948-1952, and during those years 13 billion US dollars in economic and technical assistance were given to help those European countries that had joined the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. **====
 * ====** Efforts were made to modernize European industrial and business practices, helping to ensure self-reliance. **====
 * ====** By the time the plan ended, the economy of each country had gone beyond pre-war levels. **====

**3. General MacArthur was the first Supreme Commander in the American occupation of Japan, which lasted from 1945-1952.**

 * ====** Japan lost all territory it had gained after 1894, and many islands were given to either the USSR or United States permanently (this is when the USA gained Okinawa, for example). **====
 * ====** In 1947, a constitution was ratified that took away the powers of the emperor and made the title nothing more than a symbol of the state. **====
 * ====** Universal suffrage was introduced, and human rights were guaranteed. Japan was forbidden to lead a war or maintain an army. **====
 * ====** Japanese media was heavily censored, especially from anything anti-American. **====
 * ====** The occupation ended with a peace treaty in 1952, and Japans relations to the USSR were stabilized in 1956. **====
 * ====** The Japanese economy began to progress and eventually flourished, especially after the end of the Korean War. **====

This site from Indiana University offers explanations of Post War Japan, focusing primarily on their impressive economic gains.



Visit this Mt. Holyoke College website for an extensive list of Cold War Primary Documents.

====**4. Each nation now stands on its own. They are now some of the most developed nations in the world. The US and many other “civilized” nations consider these once hostile nations to be their friends and allies.**====

Sources:
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cold_War_Map_1959.svg http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Marshall_plan_page_1.jpg http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-29645-0001,_Potsdamer_Konferenz,_Stalin,_Truman,_Churchill.jpg The Essential World History Duiker & Spielvogel 2002 Ch. 27 pp.636-37