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Arguably, it began in 1917 when the Bolsheviks took over. The West was hostile (the Bolsheviks would have been manifestly so, at they not been completely preoccupied with clinging to, and then consolidating, their newfound power).
Then, of course, there was the Allied Intervention - the young Cold War arguably went semewhat hot, briefly, between 1918 and 1920. A long simmering hostility of on-again, off-again relations amidst various degrees of mistrust and enmity followed, until June 1941. At that point, there was genuine cooperation in a common cause, though there were always strains, which grew stronger the more obvious ultimate victory became and the closer it came.
So, one might say that the post-World War II Cold War was simply an extension of two-plus decades of pre-World War II hostility, with both the U.S. and the USSR being orders of magnitude more strategically powerful and possessing far more impressive military hardware with which to assert themselves.
The Cold War was a sustained state of political and military tension between powers in the Western Bloc (the United States with NATO and others), and powers in the Eastern Bloc, (the Soviet Union (USSR) and its allies in Warsaw Pact). Historians have not fully agreed on the dates, but 1947 - 1989 is common.
You know you have a computer. You can look things up! No need to wonder.
Perhaps the reason for the thread has something to do with the underlined parts. Not every question has a balck and white answer. Discussion can help expand an understanding of events.
As for my opinion, I would say it began with the attempted creation of the cordon sanitaire in 1919 and ended with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Communism and its spread was always seen as a major threat to the west and there was some decidedly "Cold War" style machinations even in the early days. WW2 was really nothing more than "an enemy of my enemy is my friend".
The historians who pin it only to 1945-1989/91 are the ones who define the "Cold War" as the struggle for global domination between the United States and the Soviet Union. Those who define the "Cold War" as the struggle between "western" democracy and capitalism versus communism in a broad sense will date the beginning much earlier.
It's not over. China is still a communist state. They may not be the treat that the USSR was, not yet anyway. But they are most definitely a one party dictatorship that keeps their citizens out of the political process. They control the press and every aspect of Chinese life they see fit.
Just try going over there and holding a little Occupy demonstration and see how far you get. I'd watch that on PPV.
Yeah I agree it started post WWII. I don't think the West saw Communism as a global threat - but a threat to be sure - until after the Soviets rose to prominence, and shortly after Communists claimed China, leading to a string of communists victories in Korea, Cuba, Vietnam, the Congo.etc.
I have no doubt they do not teach this here. Or anywhere else. You know a fella by the name Zhukov? When they hit Berlin and developed "friendly" demarkation line with allied troops, he picked THAT phone handle and asked The Master. Joseph Vissarionovich, do you want us to proceed? Troops are in great shape and spirits, we have no to be accounted for resistance in front of us, we are waiting for you command to move ahead across the rest of the Europe.
Not sure why, by Joseph chose not to. History of the world would have looked or so much different, should he had his drunk on victories troops off the leash.
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