In the latest episode of Cold War People we look
at an important and controversial figure, and the leader of East Germany for
decades after World War 2. Walter Ulbricht.
He was closely involved in the events that led to the building of the Berlin Wall, and was the dominant figure in East German life throughout the 1950s and 1960s. He became an important and influential Communist not just in East Germany, but also the wider Communist world.
The man who authorized the use of the atomic
bomb against Japan in World War 2, and the man in charge when the Cold War
began, is the focus of this episode of Cold War People - former US President
Harry S Truman.
Truman was President of the USA over the years 1945-1953, the years when the Cold War really got going. In Cold War History, we saw how instrumental Truman was as Europe became divided in the post-war years and during the Korean War, but in this episode we shall look at Truman’s wider life.
He presided over one of the most brutal regimes in history and many millions of people died as a result of his policies and actions. But, the changes he made to the Soviet economy ultimately allowed the Soviets to overcome Nazi Germany in World War 2. In this episode, we look at Stalin the man, and ask how he came to be such a bloody tyrant.
Hot on the heels of our book release, we’re back with our brand new series, Cold War People.
This series will look at the lives of some of the most important
people involved in the Cold War. We will provide interesting, introductory
overviews of them rather than necessarily looking in detail at their
involvement in the Cold War.
And the first episode looks at one of the most important men of his age, Winston Churchill. The British war-time leader played a key role for the allies throughout World War 2, and in the war-time conferences when the Allied Powers were deciding how the post-war world would look. But, there was so much more to Winston Churchill than that. He had a long and distinguished career before then.
The End of the Cold War, the final episode in itshistorypodcasts.com’s Cold War series,
is out now..
The episode looks at what happened as a result of the changes that Gorbachev unleashed in the USSR.
Last time we saw how Cold War tensions rose before the world changed once more - the policies of Reagan and Gorbachev led to a breakthrough on nuclear weapons. However, it would be the reforms that came from the Eastern bloc that led to a world transformed and the end of the Cold War.
The Renewed Cold War,
episode 9 in itshistorypodcasts.com’s Cold War series is here..
The episode looks at how relations between the super-powers fell to levels not seen since the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Following growing tensions in the late 1970s, the Soviets invaded Afghanistan. This led to a large increase in US defense spending from US President Carter. But this wasn’t enough for many in the US, and a much more aggressive US-government led by Ronald Reagan came in to power. The consequences were a world where fear once again dominated people’s thinking.
Capitalist
and Communist economies – episode 8 in itshistorypodcasts.com’s
Cold War series is out now..
We look at the key trends in the capitalist and Communist economies up to the 1980s and set the scene for what was to happen in the final years of the Cold War.
Economic growth was key to the battle between the super-powers – more growth meant that they could spend more on the military in a sustainable way. But, military spending had to be traded-off against allowing people in these countries to have improved living standards. It would be the country that could keep their public happy and spend significant amounts on defence that would be in a much stronger position to win the Cold War...
We're very excited to bring you 'Are we Friends or Enemies?', episode 7 of itshistorypodcasts.com's series on the Cold War.
We look at the ever-evolving Cold War relationships between the Great Powers during the 1960s and 1970s, the detente period. We shall see how relations changed between the USSR and the USA after the Cuban missile crisis. Then we’ll discuss the events that led to the USSR and China fighting each other. And we’ll also look at change in the Eastern bloc and a historic meeting between the US and China.
European revolutions, episode 6 of itshistorypodcasts.com's series on the Cold War.
We’re going to pick up on the story of many countries in a Continent that had become divided by an Iron Curtain. The Continent had the USA’s most important and strongest allies, and was the area of many of the USSR’s key allies. It was of course Europe. We left the story of Europe with one of the most dramatic events of the Cold War - the Berlin blockade. This time, we will be back in Berlin for another shocking event.
And previously we also saw another very topical event for this episode – how the Soviets were invited to East Germany to end an internal uprising against the government. Something more brutal was to happen very soon..
Happy listening from the team at itshistorypodcasts.com!
The Vietnam War, episode 5 of itshistorypodcasts.com's series on the Cold War is out now.
It’s on that generation-defining war, a war that spanned the central years of the Cold War. We are going to be looking at a war in which US involvement lasted more than double the whole length of World War II, and one that spans over a quarter of a century. It also involves many key trends in the Cold War – decolonization, the ever-changing role of China, and the US policy of containment. The podcast is on the Vietnam War.
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