The Cold War

When/why was the word “teenager” invented?

a) Have teenagers changed all that much since the word was made? Why or why not?

Louis St. Laurent “Uncle Louis”-Trans Canada Highway and Great Lakes, St. Lawrence Seaway were projects brought in by his government- Korean War- Extended old-age pensions, enacted hospital insurance-Newfoundland joins Confederation (1949)Term as Prime Minister

•1948.11.15 - 1957.06.20Political PartyLiberal

John Diefenbaker “Dief the Chief” -First Canadian PM with active service in World War 1

•The first Saskatchewan resident to become prime minister of Canada •Great Orator.•Cancelled the Avro Arrow Jet project

● Implemented a Bill of Rights and Allowed Aboriginal people to vote in federal elections in 1960

Came to power after almost 40 years of uninterrupted Liberal rule.

John Diefenbaker “Dief the Chief” - “Northern Vision” and supporting

Canada- Opposed new Canadian flag- Clashed with US politicians

Term as Prime Minister•1957.06.20 - 1963.04.22

Political PartyProgressive Conservative

The Arms Race• Defending North America from

a Soviet attack became top military importance

• During 1950s, the US and Canada built 3 lines of radar to provide an early warning of an attack

• 1957: Distant Early Warning Line created (DEW)

Climate of Fear• 1949 the USSR acquired the

atomic bomb• Nuclear annihilation was a big

fear for Canadians in the 50’s • Fallout shelters became a fad• Diefenbunker created in 1961

as a “safe-house” for political leaders to govern the country

Nuclear Weapons: Balance of Terror• Great suspicion and fear between east and west- caused

the arms race• Scientists tried to develop even more effective

warheads • By 1957 both nations had developed the hydrogen

bomb• The 1957 Soviet launch of Sputnik demonstrated to the

rest of the world that the Soviets no longer needed aircraft to drop bombs

• Both Countries develop Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles –capable of traveling across the Atlantic in half an hour

• Both countries having the same technology resulted in a “Super Power Stale-Mate.”

Cold War - Igor Gouzenko• The Gouzenko Affair• (Sept 5, 1945) a Russian

cipher clerk (a person who coded and decoded messages)

• Told RCMP that the Russians were spying on Canada and the US

NATO• With the spread of Communism, Canada and

the US, along with several western European countries became concerned about national security.

• Formed NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) a defense pact intended to protect members against Soviet aggression 1949

• 12 founding members• Fearful of NATO attack, Soviet organized a

rival military pact called Warsaw pact• Attention became on building military

superiority…arms race.

Warsaw Pact• The Soviet response to NATO• An alliance of countries

joining the “Iron Curtain” • Purpose of Warsaw was for

mutual defense against Western countries (US, Canada)

NORAD• Safeguarding Canada against Soviet

attack meant joining with the Americans

• Headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colorado

• One of Diefenbaker’s first acts as PM in 1957 was accepting NORAD

• This put Canada under the American defense umbrella and meant we were committed to joining wars and had given up sovereignty in parts of the north for defense purposes

The Korean War: 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953- After WWII, Korea was split into two

nations; the North launched an attack on the South (democratic nations supported the south, and Soviets supporting the North)

- 25,000 Canadians served in Korea, 516 lost their lives but at the end of the war North/South Korea remained the same as they had been before the war.

The Korean War- Canada became closer allies

with the United States military wise

- Canada was among 16 UN member countries that agreed to take part in the Korean War.

- Refusal to use nuclear weapons from President Truman

The Suez Crisis - 1956• Egypt’s President, Nasser,

nationalizes the Suez Canal.• Busiest waterway in the world.• Britain, France, and Israel Invade to

take control of the canal, and Soviets threatened a nuclear attack on capital cities

• Nassar sinks 40 ships to block Canal.

The Suez Crisis - 1956• Foreign Affairs Minister, Lester

B. Pearson proposes a UN peacekeeping force be used to separate the parties.– Awarded Nobel Peace Prize

• Idea for soldiers as peacekeepers is created.

Cuban Missile Crisis: Oct 1962• In 1959, Cuba had become

Communist under Fidel Castro; became closer with Soviet Union

• Canada did not cut ties with Cuba, which frustrated the US

- In October 1962, the USA learned that the Soviets were stockpiling nuclear missiles in Cuba; these missiles could reach the USA

Cuban Missile Crisis: Oct 1962- United States blockade Cuba with its

navy, threatening to invade, with Soviet Union threatening nuclear war

- Final deal: if Soviets remove nuclear weapons from Cuba, United States won’t invade

- Important because Canada could have also been hit by nuclear attack, and Canadians were put at risk

Cuban Missile Crisis: Oct 1962• Was the most dangerous incident

of the Cold War.

• No battles were actually fought. But the Cuban missile crisis for the first time raised the possibility of nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union.

Avro Arrow- In July 1953, we began investing money

in the the A.V. Project

- A supersonic military aircraft designed

to protect against bombers

- Read Mach 2 (2, 450 km/h)

- Diefenbaker cancelled the project in

February 20th, 1959 in favour of buying

Bomarc missiles

- Prototypes were destroyed and 14000

jobs lost (United States picked up our

brain power)

Vietnam- Although Canada was not

involved in the war, many draft

dodgers fled to Canada

- Some chemical weapons, like

Agent Orange, were test in

Canada

- Some Canadians went to enlist in

United States Army

- Tried to broker peace in the area