THE COLD WAR
GRADE 12 HISTORY • REVISION NOTES
, The Cold War: the big picture
What was the Cold War?
The Cold War was a prolonged political, ideological, economic and military rivalry between
the United States of America (USA) and the Soviet Union (USSR), conventionally dated
from 1945 to 1991.
The two superpowers competed for global influence without fighting a full-scale war directly
against each other. They supported opposing sides in regional conflicts, developed nuclear
weapons, formed military alliances and used propaganda to promote their political systems.
The two opposing systems
USA and the Western bloc USSR and the Eastern bloc
Communist ideology and a centrally planned
Capitalist economic system
economy
Private ownership and market
State ownership of major industries
competition
Multi-party democracy was promoted One-party communist rule
Feared Western encirclement and capitalist
Feared the expansion of communism
opposition
These are broad distinctions. The actual political and economic systems were more complex
than the table suggests.
Why was it called a cold war?
The conflict was described as “cold” because the two superpowers generally avoided direct,
full-scale war against each other. Nuclear weapons made direct confrontation extremely
dangerous.
However, the conflict was not peaceful: proxy wars, political repression, military
interventions and regional conflicts caused enormous suffering.
Key concepts
Superpower: A state with exceptional global political, economic and military
influence.
Ideology: A system of political and economic beliefs.
Containment: The American policy of preventing further communist expansion.
Proxy war: A conflict in which powerful states support opposing sides instead of
fighting each other directly.
Sphere of influence: An area where a powerful state exercises significant political or
strategic influence.
GRADE 12 HISTORY • REVISION NOTES
, The Cold War: the big picture
What was the Cold War?
The Cold War was a prolonged political, ideological, economic and military rivalry between
the United States of America (USA) and the Soviet Union (USSR), conventionally dated
from 1945 to 1991.
The two superpowers competed for global influence without fighting a full-scale war directly
against each other. They supported opposing sides in regional conflicts, developed nuclear
weapons, formed military alliances and used propaganda to promote their political systems.
The two opposing systems
USA and the Western bloc USSR and the Eastern bloc
Communist ideology and a centrally planned
Capitalist economic system
economy
Private ownership and market
State ownership of major industries
competition
Multi-party democracy was promoted One-party communist rule
Feared Western encirclement and capitalist
Feared the expansion of communism
opposition
These are broad distinctions. The actual political and economic systems were more complex
than the table suggests.
Why was it called a cold war?
The conflict was described as “cold” because the two superpowers generally avoided direct,
full-scale war against each other. Nuclear weapons made direct confrontation extremely
dangerous.
However, the conflict was not peaceful: proxy wars, political repression, military
interventions and regional conflicts caused enormous suffering.
Key concepts
Superpower: A state with exceptional global political, economic and military
influence.
Ideology: A system of political and economic beliefs.
Containment: The American policy of preventing further communist expansion.
Proxy war: A conflict in which powerful states support opposing sides instead of
fighting each other directly.
Sphere of influence: An area where a powerful state exercises significant political or
strategic influence.
