The Cold War at home and abroad, 1945–1960

Grade 11 Social Studies Worksheet

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Cards A to C on aid for Europe (the excerpts are exact; the note is in our words). Card A, "Marshall's remarks at Harvard". Who made it: George C. Marshall, Secretary of State. When: June 5, 1947. For whom: Harvard's graduating class and its guests. Why: To call for a European recovery program. Excerpt (Secretary of State Marshall, remarks at Harvard University, June 5, 1947): "It is logical that the United States should do whatever it is able to do to assist in the return of normal economic health in the world, without which there can be no political stability and no assured peace. Our policy is directed not against any country or doctrine but against hunger, poverty, desperation, and chaos. Its purpose should be the revival of a working economy in the world so as to permit the emergence of political and social conditions in which free institutions can exist." Card B, "The Economic Cooperation Act". Who made it: The 80th Congress. When: April 3, 1948. For whom: The President, the agencies that would run the aid, and the public. Why: To state why Congress was acting and what it intended. Excerpt (Economic Cooperation Act of 1948, section 102(a), approved April 3, 1948): "… the Congress finds that the existing situation in Europe endangers the establishment of a lasting peace, the general welfare and national interest of the United States, and the attainment of the objectives of the United Nations. … The accomplishment of these objectives calls for a plan of European recovery, open to all such nations which cooperate in such plan, … it is declared to be the policy of the people of the United States to encourage these countries through a joint organization to exert sustained common efforts …" Card C, "How large was the aid?". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Two sources give different figures for the Marshall Plan. The Office of the Historian says the United States gave over $12 billion in aid. The National Archives says Congress appropriated $13.3 billion.

2. 1.

   Ari weighs why the United States offered aid to Europe after the war. Which judgment do Cards A and B support?

   • The cards show aid was meant to make Europe depend on the United States, since the Act speaks of national interest
   • Fear of one country was the sole reason, since the aim of the plan was to weaken a single rival in Europe
   • Both tie aid to political aims: a working economy so free institutions can exist, and a plan open to cooperating nations
   • Aid was meant to follow political stability, so the plan waited until free institutions were already in place in Europe
3. 2.

   Compare Marshall's remarks (June 1947) with the Act (April 1948). What carried over, as Bo sees it?

   • Marshall spoke in June 1947 and the Act was approved on April 3, 1948, which is about ten months later
   • The Act replaced Marshall's economic aim with a military one, so the policy changed from aid to an alliance
   • Marshall's call to revive Europe's economy became a law and a plan open to all nations that cooperate
   • The Act limited aid to Europe's allies, so it narrowed Marshall's offer to nations that already agreed with the United States
4. 3.

   Marshall says the policy is aimed "against hunger, poverty, desperation, and chaos." Does the Act in card B support that? What would Jun say?

   • Partly: the plan is open to all nations that cooperate, but cooperation was a condition and the Act also names U.S. interest
   • The Act is dated April 3, 1948, and Marshall's remarks June 5, 1947, so the two documents are ten months apart
   • Not at all: the Act speaks of a joint organization, which shows the plan was made for military defense
   • Fully: the Act says the plan is open to any nation, whether or not it cooperates, so the aim is purely humane and has no other aim

5. Use this

   Cards A to D on the loyalty program (all are in our words; the numbers are one historian's estimates). Card A, "How the order describes itself". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Executive Order 9835 was signed on March 21, 1947 (the Truman Library lists March 22). The order's opening gives two aims side by side: protection for the government against disloyal persons in its ranks, and equal protection for loyal employees from unfounded accusations of disloyalty. Card B, "Two views of the committee's work". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Some Americans felt that the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and measures like it were needed for national security. Others felt that personal freedoms were being taken away. Card C, table: Truman's loyalty program, 1947 to 1956 (one historian's estimates, quoted by the Truman Library). Federal employees screened: over 5 million. Dismissed: about 2,700. Resigned: about 12,000. Note: the numbers count the people removed; they do not count other employees who feared being accused. Card D, "Why the order was signed". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: According to the Truman Library, advisers urged the order, fear of communism was growing, and the 1946 elections increased the pressure on Truman. Truman also worried about civil liberties.

6. 4.

   Kira weighs why Truman signed Executive Order 9835. Which judgment do Cards A to D support?

   • Several pressures appear together: advisers, growing fear of communism and the 1946 elections, plus Truman's worry about liberties
   • He signed it because the committee's hearings of 1947 and McCarthy's speech of 1950 had shown the danger of Communists to the country
   • He signed it because he believed Communists had taken over the government, as the order's first lines state
   • The sole cause was the 1946 elections, since they appear on the card and no other pressure is named there
7. 5.

   Card B gives two views of HUAC's work, security and personal freedom. How should Luz read them?

   • They are one view in two phrasings, since national security and personal freedom mean the same thing here
   • As two groups weighing different values, security and freedom; both were stated at the time, and neither answers the other's facts
   • The first view is the historian's own, and the second is the opinion of people who disliked the committee
   • The first view was correct, since the committee's work did protect national security, as the card goes on to say
8. 6.

   A writer says the loyalty program was mild because about 2,700 of over 5 million were dismissed. What does Milo point out from card C?

   • The claim is correct, since 2,700 out of 5 million is a tiny share and so no one else was affected
   • About 12,000 more resigned, and the numbers count only those removed, not others who feared being accused
   • The table is one historian's estimate, so it shows the scale of the program but not whether the screening was fair
   • The claim is wrong, since the table says 2,700 were dismissed and 12,000 more were later dismissed as well
9. 7.

   A writer says the program "touched fewer than 1 in 300 employees," since 14,700 of over 5 million were removed. How should Noah judge it?

   • True as a count of those removed, about 1 in 340, but it leaves out employees who feared being accused
   • True and complete, since the removals show the people the program affected, whether they left or stayed
   • False, since 14,700 of over 5 million is about 1 in 34, so far more employees were removed than the writer says
   • False, since the 2,700 dismissed are about 1 in 1,850, so the writer's claim of 1 in 300 overstates the program

10. Use this

    Cards A to C on two alliances (all three are in our words, not quotations). Card A, "The North Atlantic Treaty, April 4, 1949". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: The members agreed to treat an armed attack on one of them in Europe or North America as an attack on all of them, and to consult on threats and defense. Card B, "The Warsaw Pact, May 14, 1955". Who made it: historians and government agencies writing today. When: today. For whom: readers today. Why: to sum up what is known. Summary in our words, not a quotation: On May 14, 1955, the Soviet Union and several Eastern European countries signed a treaty of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance, known as the Warsaw Pact. The members promised to come to one another's defense. Card C, dates: Truman's address on aid, March 12, 1947. Marshall's remarks at Harvard, June 5, 1947. Economic Cooperation Act signed, April 3, 1948. Berlin blockade begins, June 24, 1948. North Atlantic Treaty signed, April 4, 1949. Blockade lifted, May 12, 1949. Warsaw Pact signed, May 14, 1955.

11. 8.

    NATO was signed in 1949 and the Warsaw Pact in 1955. What do the dates and the two summaries show Ren?

    • Both alliances were formed to prepare for the end of the Soviet Union in 1991, as later events plainly show
    • By 1955 both sides had formal alliances with a promise of mutual defense, so the blocs had become formal on each side
    • The Warsaw Pact came first, and NATO followed it as a response six years later, so the order was the other way around in those years
    • NATO's promise was about an armed attack in Europe or North America, which is the area the treaty covers
12. 9.

    Both summaries describe a promise of mutual defense. How should Tala compare the two alliances?

    • They are identical, since both promise to treat an attack on one member as an attack on the other members
    • The Soviet summary is propaganda while NATO's is fact, so just NATO's promise can be treated as a real commitment
    • Compare the treaty texts with what the members did, since a promise of defense does not show how each alliance acted
    • A shared promise of defense shows both alliances were purely defensive, since neither summary mentions attacking anyone
13. 10.

    A classmate says NATO was formed because the Berlin blockade ended. Using card C, how should Zee reply?

    • The classmate is right, since a treaty signed ten months after the blockade began answered the Soviet decision to lift it
    • The classmate is right, since the blockade was lifted on April 4, 1949, and the treaty was signed afterward, on May 12
    • The treaty (April 4, 1949) came 38 days before the blockade ended (May 12), so the end could not have caused it
    • The classmate is wrong, since the treaty was signed to end the blockade, and the lifting on May 12 shows it worked