Containment Mini-Q

The Geography of
the Cold War: EV

What Was Containment?

Overview: From the end of World War II in 1945 until 1991, the United States and the Soviet
Union were locked in a battle of nerves called the Cold War. Throughout almost all of this period
the United States was guided by a foreign policy called 'containment.' This Mini-Q asks you to

express your understanding of containment using mostly maps as your sources.

The Documents:
Document A: The Long Telegram
Document B: The Berlin Blockade and Airlift (map)

Document C: The Korean War (map)

Document D: The Cuban Missile Crisis (map)

A Mini Document Based Question (Mini-Q)

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 Containment Mini-Q

Hook Exercise: Containment

Directions: After World War II, most of the countries in the northern part of the world divided
themselves into two large groups or blocs. One bloc was communist and was dominated by
Russia, the largest republic in the huge country called the Soviet Union. The other bloc was
largely democratic and was led by the United States. Examine the map below and answer the EV
questions that follow.

Map: Two Worlds

Circa 1960

OCEAN

• Greenland*34'

United

West Geona.ny..
Frap# "

14 Japan

Dominican s. rea
-PACIFIC
cub
.PACI.FIC d Taiwan OCIEA.{V
'public NT.IC „
OCEAN OCEAN South Vietnalii
Guatemalg g *phtlipptnea
iailan 4.

( SOUTH
Communist Bloc
Aiistiaiia
Non-Communist Bloc
Non-Aligned Countries .tNVIÅ.N OCEA.N

Questions
1. Including the Soviet Union, list two European countries in the communist bloc.

Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria

2. Excluding the Soviet Union, list the Asian countries in the communist bloc.
china and mongolia
3. List five North American and European countries in the non-communist bloc.
united states Canada France united kingdom greenland
4. List three Asian countries in the non-communist bloc.
India Thailand and Indonesia
5. With a partner, discuss why looking at this map would would make both a Russian and American
of 1960 very nervous. Write down your ideas.
Russian fears American fears
mom communist people around them communist surrounding them

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 Background Essay Containment Mini-Q

The Geography of the Cold War: What Was Containment?

was a glorious meeting. On April 25,

It trolled countries in Eastern Europe and the
1945, at the Elbe River in Germany, two power- Western democracies.
ful armies met. Coming from opposite ends of The Soviets had suffered terribly in World
Europe, the Americans and Russians had cut
War II, more than 27,000,000 soldiers
losing
Hitler's Germany in two. Now at the Elbe, sol- and was determined that
civilians. Stalin EV
diers from the Red Army of the Soviet Union Germany would never be able to strike Russia
reached out their hands to their American coun-
again. To protect Russia, Stalin wanted a buffer
terparts. was a time for great happiness.
It
zone in Eastern Europe, but he wanted more. It
World War II, the deadliest war in all of human was no secret that Stalin and his successors
history, was nearly over.
wanted to expand the Soviet Empire.
Unfortunately, the warmth of the handshakes If the Soviet policy was expansion, then the
did not last. The Soviet Union and the United
American policy was containment.
States had serious differences. Their greatest Containment was the idea that the Soviet Union
difference was over a political and economic and Soviet communism should not be allowed
system called communism. to spread. One example of containment was the
In its pure form, communism is a belief that fruman Doctrine. In 1947, President Harry
private property should be replaced by communi- Truman declared that the United States would
ty ownership. In the Soviet Union this idea was support "free peoples," like those in Greece and
not easily accepted by the people. Russian lead- Turkey, who were being threatened by commu-
ers Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin were ruth- nists. The Truman Doctrine was followed by the
less in their elimination of those who had differ- Marshall Plan, which gave over 12 billion dol-

ent ideas about Russia's future. It is estimated lars in aid to help rebuild European democracies
that in the 1930s, Stalin was responsible for like France and West Germany. The idea was to
killing more than 10,000,000 Soviet people who give these countries resources so that commu-
he believed were in his way. nist ideas would not be so attractive.

caPifå1iSiii7They mon were c ear y on a colfiÄon course.SfaT1i1¯-

economies of the United States and its allies. and his successors were always looking for
Russian leaders believed that capitalism was weak spots to push and probe, to test American
doomed and that communism would spread committment to containment. This Mini-Q fea-

throughout the world. This caused great tension tures three occasions where the Soviets tested

and the emergence of a new kind of American containment policy. Your task is to

Cold War. Mistrust ran deep. In the words of examine the maps, then answer the question,
Winston Churchill, was as if an "iron cur-
it The geography of the Cold War: what was con-
tain" had been drawn between the Soviet-con- tainment?

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 Containment Mini-Q

Background Essay Questions

1. What happened at the Elbe River in April 1945?

is the day Soviet and American troops met at the river eble
2. The Soviet Union and the United States believed in two very different economic systems.
What were the names of each?
EV

3. The Soviet Union had a total of two leaders between the early 1920s and the early 1950s.
What were their names?
Vladimir linen and Joseph Stalin

4. Why did Stalin want control of Eastern Europe after WW II?

to expand the soviet union

5. Define each of the following:

communism private ownership replaced by community ownership

capitalism private ownership economics

Cold War a state of political hostility between countries characterized by threats and propaganda

Iron Curtain a notional barrier separating the former Soviet bloc and the West prior to the decline of communism that
followed the political events in eastern Europe
containment that the soviet union should not spread

Truman Doctrine American foreign policy whose stated purpose was to counter Soviet geopolitical
expansion during the Cold War
Marshall Plan
The Marshall plan, also known as the European Recovery Program, was a U.S. program
providing aid to Western Europe following the devastation of World War II. It was
enacted in 1948 and provided more than $15 billion to help finance rebuilding efforts on
the continent.

1945 - World war 11 ends

1946 Winston Churchill delivers "Iron Curtain" speech in Fulton, Missouri

1947 — Jackie Robinson signs with the Brooklyn Dodgers
1948 Congress approves the Marshall Plan
1948-49 - Berlin Airlift

1950-53 Korean war

1955 — US stockpile of atomic bombs estimated at 4000; Soviets have 1000

1962 Cuban Missile Crisis

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 Containment Mini-Q

Understanding the Question and Pre-Bucketing

l. What is the analytical question asked by this Mini-Q?

what was containment

2. What terms in the question need to be defined? EV

none

3. Rewrite the question in your own words.

what is the policy of containment

Pre-Bucketing
Directions: Using any clues from the Mini-Q question and the document titles on the cover page,
guess the analytical categories and label the buckets. We suggest a three-bucket format but there
may be other possibilities.

ÜÜÜ
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 Containment Mini-Q

Document A

Source: "The Sources of Soviet Conduct" by X, Foreign Affairs, April 1947.

Note: This is a short passage from an 8,000-word telegram that was secretly sent to US State Department
officials on February 22, 1946. X turned out to be George Kennan, an American Foreign Service
officer stationed in Moscow. Earlier in the "long telegram," Kennan makes two main points:
EV
1. Stalin and the Soviets believe that communism is better than capitalism.
2. Stalin and the Soviets believe they will win,

In these circumstances it is clear that the main element of any

United States policy toward the Soviet Union must be that of a long-
term, patient but vigilant containment of Russian expansive tendencies.

Document Analysis

1. When was this document first telegraphed to American officials in Washington? Was this before,

during, or after World War II?

after

2. Who was X?
gorge Kennan
3. Looking at the Note, what were the two points X Wants AmericagæoLcyæBers to remember
about the Soviet Union? Stalin and the Soviets believe communism is better than capitalism
Stalin and the Soviets believe they will win

4. What would historians probably agree is the most important single word in the document passage?

but vigilant containment of Russian expansive tendencies.

5. What do you think X would say to an American president who wanted to invade the Soviet Union?
What is your evidence?
No, because the letter says you have to have patience

6. What is the meaning of containment?

No, because the letter says you have to have patience

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 Containment Mini-Q

Document B

Source: Map created from various sources,

1. At the end of WW II,

Germany was occupied by West Germany

four major powers. The west-
ern three zones unified and East Germany
EV
became West Germany. East Airlift Routes
Germany was communist,
but the old capital of Berlin Soviet Blockade
b
was divided up between the Airfields
four powers.

2. On June 27, 19481 Joseph

NETH. Stalinand the Soviet Union
now
decided to blockade any
shipments (including food)
coming into West Berlin.

3. West Berlin was completely

BELG. surrounded by communism
and may have had to surren-
der if it had not been for the
US and its allies.

LUX. ECHOSLOVAK
Argeritatigotie
EAST
4. America and its allies

decide to support the West

ir'fl&l 5. On May 12,
Berliners by air, flying in
1949, Stalin
supplies for the over two
removed the
million people for nearly a
blockade. Harry
year. Everything from food to
AUSTRIA e eicgn Truman and the
coal was provided. It was a
nation were
stunning turn of events given
that Americans had just three
WEST thrilled.
fi-ÉRLIN
years-earlier-been-fighting—
-Hitler-and-the-Germans

Document Analysis
1. "In 1948, western Berlin was a pro-American island in a Soviet sea." Explaill.

It was a big target for communist.

2. What did the Soviets do between June 27, 1948, and May 12, 1949?
They decided to blockade any shipments including food

3. Why do you suppose the Soviets did what they did?

So they didn't get anything

4. How did Britain, the United States, and France respond to the June 27th action?

They flew in supplies for nearly a year

5. How does this document demonstrate the American policy of containment?

They surrounded the Soviets and blocked it off from the rest of the world.

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 Containment Mini-Q

Document C

Source: Map created from various sources.

2
Communist North CHINK
American forces
Korea (supported by occupying Japan EV
the Soviet Union) after WWII are sent
invades US-supported to defend South
OR South Korea. The RTÄ" Korea. The US and
Sea of attack comes without g$OREß
United Nations forces
Sea Of
Japon warning and President Japan are nearly pushed off
Harry Truman, with the
the Korean peninsula.
help of the United The American com-
Nations, vows to mander is General
'Seoul
defend democratic
Douglass MacArthur,
Yellow
Sea „SOVTH South Korea.
Sea XOREA!_
KOREA

JAPAN
JAPAN
June 25, 1950

4
In November off
•.CHIÅÄ.•
3 1950, communist
MacArthur stages a China enters the war
yet successful
risky, and pushes the UN
counterattack at the and US forces back
port of Inchon. North into South Korea
Korean forces are Sea Of
routed and pushed ( NORTH Japan Japan
KOREA
back all the way to the 5
Yalu River, the border The war drags on for-
k-.Seoul
of North Korea and '

several years, finally

Yellow •

communist China. Sen ending in 1953 very Yellow

SOUTH g SOUTH
closeogheorjginal
i 950 borders. The
ar-caused-more-tham
two million deaths,
including over 50,000
JAPAN JAPKN
Americans.
November 25, 1950 July27, 1953

Document Analysis
1. On what date did North Korea first invade South Korea?
June 25, 1950
2. Who supported North Korea? Who supported South Korea?
The Soviet Union supported North Korea because they are communist and The United States support South Korea.
3, North Korea only invaded when the Russian leader Stalin gave his approval. From what you
know about Stalin, what was his motive?
Stalin wanted to continue the spread of communism in more/ other countries.
4. Why might Communist China have decided to help North Korea?
They are north of North Korea and share a boarder with them, so felt aligned with them
5. How does this document demonstrate the American policy of containment?

The United states was fighting the spread of communism South of North Korea and trying to keep it contained to the
USSR.
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 Containment Mini-Q

Document D

Source: Map created from various sources.

250 500 Cuban Missile Crisis Timeline

Miles
January 1959: Cuba becomes
communist under Fidel Castro. EV
April 1961: Bay of Pigs invasion
NéwYÖiN'*
With US support fails. Castro
remains in power.
Wåihin on, p,C.t)-

May1962: Soviets secretly begin

"STA3TÆ.S shipping 40,000 troops, 60 missiles
ATLANTIC and 158 nuclear warheads to com-
OCEAN munist Cuba.

.DaliÄ-
October 15, 1962: US spy planes
find evidence of medium range
:HOUston ewOrlenns
nuclear missile sites being rapidly
installed in Cuba.

Havana
miles October 23: US announces a
quarantine against ships carrying
$4 offensive weapons to Cuba.
CUBA
:.DOMiMCAN
Mexi o Bay of REPU?UC. Oct. 24: Numerous Soviet transport
Pigs ships stop dead in water just out-
MÉXICO BÉLIZE side the quarantine line.
GU TEMAL
Oct 25: Soviet SS-4 nuclear
SALVADOR* Caracas; missiles become operational.

VENEZUELA Oct. 28: Soviets begin to remove

missiles, crisis is avoided.

PACIFIC COLOMBIA April 1963: In a quiet agreement

OCEAN with Soviets, US removes missiles
from -Turkey.

U.S. quarazgine gene

Range of Såviet missi!es

Soviet nuissilé iiPd jet.bombe! ba-seg.

Document Analysis
l. What was the date of Fidel Castro's communist takeover in Cuba?
On January 1959 Fidel Castro became the communist leader of Cuba
2. What is a quarantine? (Note: The Soviets had to look the word up,)
A period during which a person or animal with a contagious disease is isolated.

3. Using only information from the map, tell the Cuban Missile Crisis story.

The Soviet Union gives Cuba Missiles within range on firing U.S. soil which cause widespread panic

4. How does United States action in Cuba demonstrate the policy of containment?

In April of 1963, in a quiet agreement with Soviets, The U.S. removed missiles from Turkey. This shows us that the
U.S. was against communism and was attempting to cooperate with the Soviet Union and Cuba.

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 Containment Mini-Q

Bucketing — Getting Ready to Write

Bucketing

Look over all the documents and organize them into your final buckets. Write final bucket labels

under each bucket and place the letters of the documents in the buckets where they belong. It is

okay to put a document in more than one bucket. Remember, your buckets are going to become EV
your body paragraphs.

Thesis Development and Roadmap

On the chickenfoot below, write your thesis and your roadmap. Your thesis is always
an opinion and answers the Mini-Q question. The roadmap is created from your
bucket-labels-and-lists-the-topic areas-you—will examine-in-order-to-pro-ve-Y0111: thesi&—
 Containment Mini-Q

From Thesis to Essay Writing

Mini-Q Essay Outline Guide

Working Title
COMMUNIST CONTAINMENT
EV
Paragraph #1
Grabber

Background

Stating the question with key terms defined

Thesis and roadmap

Paragraph #2
Baby Thesis for bucket one

Evidence: supporting detail from documents with document citation

Argument: connecting evidence to the thesis

Paragraph #3
BabyThesis for bucket two

Evidence

Argument

Paragraph #4
Baby Thesis for bucket three

Evidence

Argument

Paragraph #5
Conclusion: Restatement of main idea along with possible insight or wrinkle

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 Guided Essay: Geography of the Cold War: What Was Containment?

1. INTRODUCTION

A. Grabber

B. Background information on Cold War (date, place, brief description of who and why)

C. Restatement of the question

E. Thesis and Roadmap: There are three good examples of containment which help explain
what it was. These were

and

11. BODY PARAGRAPH #1 (Example One:

A. Baby Thesis: One good example of containment was

B. Evidence: Provide several details from the documents to tell the story of this example.

C. Argument: (Example One) is a

good example of containment because

0 2009 The DBQ Project 383

 111. BODY PARAGRAPH #2 (Example Two:
A. Baby Thesis: A second example of containment was

B. Evidence: Provide several details from the documents to tell the story of this example.

C. Argument: (Example Two) is a

good example of containment because

lv. BODY PARAGRAPH (Example Three:

A. Baby Thesis: A third example of containment was

B. Evidence: Provide several details from the documents to tell the story of this example.

C. Argument: (Example Three) is a

good example of containment because

V. CONCLUSION

A. Although statement: Although there were many other times during the Cold War that the
United States attempted to contain communism like
, three examples are very clear.

B. Restate the three examples discussed in your essay.

C. Explain why this question is significant. Why is it important today to understand the policy
of containment?

384 G 2009 The DBQ Project