Timothy Ratliff

05/23/2006

SLM-521

Web Link Bibliography

 

Bibliography of Web Links for Students of the Cold War

 

Summary and Purpose:

 

The following Bibliography contains links that are useful for students studying the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union.  I have provided a basic description of each link to give the student an idea of what the site contains and why it is a useful resource.  The links contain information ranging from the seeds of conflict to the fall of the Soviet Union.  There are many sites on the web that contain excellent information on the Cold War and students should feel free to explore other sites.  I have tried to include some of the best sites in this Bibliography broken out into five categories.

 

 

 

Seeds of Conflict:

 

Capitalism – The Cold War was not only a war between two nations, but a war between two fundamentally different ideologies.  Capitalism squared off against Communism all across the world.  For any student of the Cold War, a basic understanding of these two ideologies is a must.  This site is powered by Wikipedia and contains the basics of Capitalism.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitalism

Date Visited: 05/23/2006

 

Communism – This site is powered by MSN’s Encarta Encyclopedia and provides the basics on Communism from the early beginnings to how it affected different parts of the world.  This site contains many hot links that allow a person to view more info on Vietnam, Industrial Revolution, Karl Marx and many others.  This site is an excellent source for a basic understanding of Communism.

http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761572241/Communism.html

Date Visited:  05/23/2006

 

General Background

 

Revelations from the Russian Archives – When the democratically elected Boris Yeltsin took control in Russia, he came with the idea of open access to information.  This link will take the viewer to an exhibit put together by the US Library of Congress.  It contains many links to a wide range of information on the Soviet Union.  This link is based on Primary Sources published by the Russian government and is a great source for any student.

http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/archives/intro.html

Date Visited: 05/23/2006

 

CNN Cold War Special – This site is a companion to the CNN Documentary Series on the Cold War.  It contains a host of information in a variety of formats including interactive maps, declassified documents, pictures and an Educators guide.  This site is great for a basic overview of the events of the Cold War and its impact on world history.

http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war

Date Visited: 05/24/2006

 

The Cold War Museum – The Cold War Museum is another great resource for anyone interested in the basics of the Cold War.  This site contains a great time line that outlines the basic events, with hot links, for that particular decade.  The site also contains Cold War stories and a vast collection of resources used to help create the site.  The Resource list is made up of over a 100 hot links for Museums, Government links, Espionage information and organizations, commercial links and various print sources.

http://www.coldwar.org/

Date Visited: 05/24/2006

 

Cold War International History Project – This site is another great resource for anybody interested in studying the Cold War.  This site was actually recommended by one of my Salisbury University History Professors.  The site is powered by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and contains a virtual archive of important declassified documents.  Classified documents from the Cold War are continually becoming unclassified, either by the US or Russian governments or by one of the many old Soviet Republics.  As these documents become available, they are collected and posted on this site.

http://www.wilsoncenter.org/index.cfm?topic_id=1409&fuseaction=topics.home

Date Visited:  05/27/2006

 

Learning Curve National Archives – The United Kingdom was one of America’s staunchest allies in the Cold War.  Learning Curve is a free education website for teachers and students.  Learning Curve, based on the United Kingdom’s National Archives, covers mainly British history.  This particular link takes the viewer to the topic of the Cold War within the main site of www.learningcurve.gov.uk.  The site contains a list of questions with a group of case studies that provide information, from a British perspective. 

http://www.learningcurve.gov.uk/coldwar/default.htm

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

The Cold War Begins

 

The Iron Curtain – Winston S. Churchill coined the term “Iron Curtain” to describe the divide between the two opposing camps of the Western Europe and Eastern Europe, Capitalism and Communism, etc.  This link will take the viewer directly to the most important excerpts from Churchill’s famous Iron Curtain speech of 1946.  The site is powered by the Modern History Sourcebook located at http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/modsbook.html.  The Modern History Sourcebook contains many sources on modern history.  Although this link does not contain the entire speech, it will give the viewer an idea of its importance as a defining moment in the beginning of the Cold War.

http://www.fordham.edu/HALSALL/mod/churchill-iron.html

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

Truman Doctrine  Any student of the Cold War has to understand the Truman Doctrine and its impact on the world.  This link is powered by the Harry S. Truman Presidential Museum and Library.  The link takes the viewer to a large list of primary source documents associated with the Truman Doctrine and are sorted on a time line to show how they build off of one another.  In addition to the hot links for the documents, there are various oral histories and lesson plans included on the site.

http://www.trumanlibrary.org/whistlestop/study_collections/doctrine/large/index.php

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

Marshall Plan – Standing tall next to the Truman Doctrine is the Marshall Plan.  This link is powered by the US Library of Congress and contains a list of hot links associated with the Marshall Plan.  The hot links include Marshall announcing his plan, a communist critique, and even a Dutch celebration of the plan.  All of the links provide a quick summary of the event and then provide some primary sources associated with the event.

http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/marshall

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

Berlin Airlift – This site is powered by the Wright-Patterson US Air Force Base and contains an excellent summary of the Berlin Airlift.  Although the site does not provide tons of details, it drives home the point as to how important the Airlift was.  In addition to the basic history, there are many photos and hot links to the various types of planes used in the Airlift which may boost student interest.

http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/history/postwwii/ba.htm

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

Global Confrontation

 

Suez Crisis – The Suez Crisis was one of the first important global confrontations of the Cold War.  This site contains a basic explanation of the events that unfolded in 1956.  The site contains hot links that allow students to further investigate other aspects of the Suez Crisis like what was going on in Hungary at the time of the crisis.  In addition, there is a link at the bottom of the page that takes the viewer to a Cold War Index that includes additional information on the Cold War.

http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/suez.htm

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

Korean War – The Cold War suddenly turned hot in the Korean War.  This site is powered by the United States Department of the Navy and contains useful and accurate information about the war.  The site contains many photos and hot links to further enhance student understanding.  Since there are so many hot links to choose from, a student can view links of particular interest to them while at the same time providing all students with a basic understanding of the importance of the Korean War.

http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/kowar/kowar.htm

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

Space Race – This site is an exhibit created by the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, an excellent and reliable source of information on the Space Race.  The site contains hot links that lead the viewer to various aspects of the Space Race from military origins to a permanent place in space.  Younger students should find this site useful because the information provided is not too complex or technical and comes with pictures of the various spaceships, rockets, etc.

http://www.nasm.si.edu/exhibitions/gal114/gal114.htm

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

Cuban Missile Crisis – The Cuban Missile Crisis was the closest time during the Cold War that the two sides came to Nuclear Annihilation.  This site is powered by the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum and is an excellent source for students and teachers.  The site is focused around an exhibit, The Thirteen Days, and provides specific information on each of the days during the Crisis.  There are hot links that allow the viewer access to some primary sources such as phone conversations and National Security Council meeting minutes. 

http://www.jfklibrary.org/jfkl/cmc/cmc_intro.html

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

Vietnam War – The Vietnam War was, and remains, one of the most controversial wars America has ever fought.  The war, like the Korean War before it, was a time when the Cold War turned hot.  Any student of the Cold War must study and have an understanding of the causes, events, and consequences of the Vietnam War.  This site is powered by PBS and contains a brief history, timeline, and a list of web resources.  The hot links provided on this site allow students to navigate the site easily.  This site also contains pictures that some students may find useful, or interesting.

http://www.pbs.org/battlefieldvietnam

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

A Hard and Bitter Peace

 

Détente and Cooling Off – This site is a great resource because of its many hot links for characters involved in the Cold War.  Students can understand the period of Détente by going to this site and they will have the option to click on a hot link for Ronal Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Henry Kissinger, etc.  The information provided is a good starting point for students interested in learning about this period of the Cold War.

http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1946.html

Date visited: 05/27/2006

 

Mikhail Gorbachev – Mikhail Gorbachev is arguably the most influential figure in the breakup of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War.  This link is powered by TIME and contains an article written by Tatyana Tolstaya.  The reputation of TIME makes this site an excellent resource for students and teachers.  In addition to the main article, there are a few hot links to other articles written about Gorbachev.

http://www.time.com/time/time100/leaders/profile/gorbachev.html

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

At Cold War’s End – The end of the Soviet Union was nearing closer and closer every day that passed after Gorbachev took power.  Revolutions, coup attempts, etc all signaled the end.  This site is powered by the United States Central Intelligence Agency and contains US intelligence on the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe between 1989 and 1991.  This site contains a lot of information to sift through and is a source for teachers more than students. 

http://www.cia.gov/csi/books/19335/art-1.html

Date Visited: 05/27/2006

 

Collapse of the Soviet Union – The last site on this list takes the viewer to an article written by the BBC.  One could write an entire series of books on the collapse of the Soviet Union and there would still be new information available.  This last site is intended to provide a basic overview of the final days of the Soviet Union for students. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/war/coldwar/soviet_end_01.shtml

Date Visited: 05/27/2006