Adaptation of Winston Churchill's “Iron Curtain Speech” of 1946

Document 1: Harry S. Truman at the Potsdam Conference (Memoirs)
On July 24 I casually mentioned to Stalin that we had a new weapon of unusual destructive force. The Russian Premier showed no special interest. All he said was he was glad to hear it and hoped we would make "good use of it against the Japanese."
Harry S. Truman, Year of Decisions (Garden City, NY: Doubleday and Company, 1955) p. 416.
1. According to Truman, how did Stalin react to Truman's confession about this new weapon?
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Document 2: Marshal Georgii Konstantinovich Zhukov at the Potsdam Conference (Memoirs)
I do not recall the exact date, but after the close of one of the formal meetings Truman informed Stalin that the United States now possessed a bomb of exceptional power, without, however, naming it the atomic bomb.
As was later written abroad, at that moment Churchill fixed his gaze on Stalin's face, closely observing his reaction. However, Stalin did not betray his feelings and pretended that he saw nothing special in what Truman had imparted to him. Both Churchill and many other Anglo-American authors subsequently assumed that Stalin had really failed to fathom the significance of what he had heard.
In actual fact, on returning to his quarters after this meeting Stalin, in my presence, told Molotov about his conversation with Truman. The latter reacted amost immediately. "We'll have to talk it over with Kurchatov and get him to speed things up."
I realized that they were talking about research on the atomic bomb.
Georgii Konstantinovich Zhukov, The Memoirs of Marshal Zhukov (New York: Delacorte Press, 1971) pp. 674-675.
1. According to Zhukov, what did many Anglo-American writers incorrectly assume about Stalin?
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2. What did Stalin want Kurchatov ‘to speed up”?
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Adaptation of Winston Churchill's
“Iron Curtain Speech” of 1946
(Winston Churchill was British Prime Minister 1940-1955)
A shadow has fallen upon the lands just lit by the Allied victory. Nobody knows what Soviet Russia and its Communist international organization intends to do in the immediate future, or what are the limits, if any, to their desire to expand.
We do understand the Russian need to be secure on her western frontiers by the removal of all possibility of German aggression. But…An iron curtain has descended across Europe. Behind the line of that iron curtain lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe. All these famous cities and the populations around them lie in what I must call the Soviet sphere, and all are subject in some form to Soviet influence and a very high degree of Soviet control…
Except in Britain and the United States, Communist parties are a growing challenge and danger to Christian civilization.
I do not believe that Soviet Russia desires war. What they desire are the fruits of war and the expansion of their power and ideas. But what we have to consider is the permanent prevention of war and the establishment of conditions of freedom and democracy as quickly as possible in all countries.
1. What does Churchill say has descended across Europe?
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2. What two things does Churchill argue must be established in all
countries?
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Document 4:
Adaptation of Joseph Stalin’s “Reply to Churchill” 1946
Mr. Churchill is basically trying to start a war. Like Hitler, Mr. Churchill begins to set war loose with a racial theory. Churchill’s theory is that only nations speaking the English language are fully valuable nations, and that they should decide the destinies of the entire world.
As a result of the German invasion, the Soviet Union lost about 7,000,000 people, several times more men than Britain and the United States together. It may be that some people are trying to forget the sacrifices of the Soviet people, which insured the liberation of Europe from Hitler. But the Soviet Union cannot forget.
So can it really be a surprise the Soviet Union, in a desire to ensure its security for the future, wants to make sure that its neighboring countries are loyal? How can you call these peaceful wishes of the Soviet Union "desires to expand"?
Mr. Churchill claims to be a friend of the common people. But common people are not as simple as many think, and they know how to stand up for themselves. They are the ones who support Communist parties in Europe.
1. What does Stalin accuse Churchill of doing?
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2. Who does Stalin claim support the Communist parties in Europe?
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Document 5: The Truman Doctrine
PRESIDENT TRUMAN’S ADDRESS BEFORE CONGRESS, MARCH 12, 1947
One of the primary objectives of the foreign policy of the United States is the creation of conditions in which we and other nations will be able to work out a way of life free from aggression. Our victory was won over countries which sought to impose their will,
and their way of life, upon other nations.
We shall not realize our objectives, however, unless we are willing to help free peoples to maintain their free institutions and their national integrity against aggressive movements that seek to impose upon them
totalitarian regimes.
The peoples of a number of countries of the world have recently had
totalitarian regimes forced upon them against their will. The Government of the United States has made frequent protests against coercion and intimidation, in violation of the
Yalta agreement.
I believe that it must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted conquest by armed minorities or by outside pressures.
I believe that we must assist free peoples to work out their own destinies in their own way.
I believe that our help should be primarily through economic and financial aid which is essential to economic stability and orderly political processes.
The free peoples of the world look to us for support in maintaining their freedoms. If we falter in our leadership, we may endanger the peace of the world -- and we shall surely endanger the welfare of our own nation.
Great responsibilities have been placed upon us. I am confident that the Congress will face these responsibilities squarely.
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According to Truman, what should America’s foreign policy goals be?
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How does President Truman plan to achieve his goals?
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Document 6: The Marshall Plan
After World War Two, much of Europe was in ruins. On top of the destruction of the war, Europe experienced
a series of unusually cold, harsh winters, high unemployment, a lack of food, and economic upheaval.
In 1947 U.S. secretary of state George Marshall proposed a plan to rebuild European economies by providing $13 billion in food, machines, and money to any European country that needed it. For those countries
that accepted the aid, the plan was very successful. Below is a chart of the aid received by European countries through the Marshall Plan
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Which countries received the most aid from the U.S.? Which countries received the least? How much did they receive?
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Were any communist countries aided by the Marshall Plan? If so, which one(s) and how much aid did they receive?
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Does the Marshall Plan support the Truman Doctrine? If so, how?
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Document 7: The Division of Berlin
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Which countries controlled zones in Germany after WWII?
| Berlin - Olmoniya poytaxti. Federal maʼmuriy birlik - Yerga tenglashtirilgan. Shpre daryosi Xafeldaryosiga quyiladigan yerda. Shim. va Boltik dengizlariga chiqiladigan kanal lar boʻyida. Maydoni qariyb 890 km. |
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Which country’s zone was Berlin located in? How was Berlin divided?
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Writing: DBQ on The Cold War—Who Caused the Cold War?
Historical Background:
Between 1945 and 1950, the wartime alliance between the United States and the Soviet Union broke down and the Cold War began. For the next 40 years, relations between the two superpowers swung between confrontation and détente. Each tried to increase its worldwide influence and spread its competing economic and political systems. At times during this period the competitors were at the brink of war. How was the Cold War fought?
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Task: Who caused the Cold War? Did the Harry Truman cause the Cold War by threatening the Josef Stalin with nuclear weapons? Did Winston Churchill cause the Cold War with his intolerance for Communism? Did Stalin cause the Cold War by dominating Eastern Europe after World War II? Did the postwar resolutions, plans and policies of the United States and Soviet Union cause the Cold War? You decide—and write a DBQ paragraph that supports your position.