1. The Red Scare Revision

2. After World War Two
USA and USSR emerge as the two leading economic powers.
They were strongly opposed in their political perspectives.
Immediately there was no hiding the threat they posed to each other.
The Soviet Union was determined to block out Western influence.
They wanted to be self-sustaining, both economically and culturally.
America was the stronger of the two nations in terms of resource reserves and population.
The wartime alliance that had existed in order to fight Hitler quickly disappeared and was replaced with a ‘cold war.’
This involved huge amounts of suspicion and an arms race.

3. Beliefs
America was especially afraid of the spread of communism from the Soviet Union to Eastern Europe, growing tensions as part of the Cold War and communist revolutions in Asia.
Americans believed that it was their duty, and necessary to American security, to resist the expansion of communism wherever it occurred.
They both feared and distrusted the USSR and all it stood for; its ideological base was so different it could only be seen as a threat to Western values.
This mistrust was not one way: the communists believed the capitalist system was evil since the rich prospered at the expense of the poor.

4. Jan 2013

5. Why did the Red Scare develop? International Relations
Soviet expansion into Eastern Europe, 1945–48
With Europe weak and unstable, Stalin wasted no time in taking control of the countries closest to the Soviet Union.
First they occupied these countries militarily and then set up communist governments in the Baltic States.
This included Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland and Romania
As well as this, Yugoslavia had set up their own independent communist government in 1945, and communists in Greece had failed in their bid for power in 1949.
America grew more and more worried as Western Europe was now vulnerable to the spread of communism from the East.

6. Why did the Red Scare develop? International Relations
Troubles over Germany
At the end of WW2, Germany had been divided into zones, occupied by the Soviet Union, America, France and Britain.
In 1947 the British and American zones of Germany had been combined to form ‘Bizonia’.
Britain and the USA introduced a new currency, the Deutschmark, and from 1948, the war-torn economies of Western Europe had started to benefit from billions of dollars in American loans, because of the Marshall Plan.
Countries in Eastern Europe could apply for money under this scheme, but Stalin forbade this.
Instead, in 1949, Stalin set up the Council for Mutual Economic Aid (Comecon) in competition to the Marshall Plan, although in reality there were no funds available to support communist countries.

7. Why did the Red Scare develop? International Relations
The Berlin Blockade
On 24 June 1948, Stalin attempted to win control of West Berlin.
Soviet troops blocked road and rail links to West Berlin and stopped water and power supplies.
The Allies launched a huge air operation to make sure supplies reached West Berlin.
Almost non-stop flights were required to move the enormous quantities of necessities into the German capital.
To stop the supplies, Stalin would need to shoot down the planes – a clear act of war.
The Berlin airlift continued for 11 months before Stalin ended the blockade, on 12 May 1949.
The Allies had shown that they were prepared to stand firm to oppose the Soviet Union, and had realised there was strength in numbers when standing up to the Soviet threat.
In April 1949, they joined to form the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) for mutual defence against armed attack. America had abandoned its policy of isolationism and shown its commitment to supporting Europe against communism.

8. Why did the Red Scare develop? International Relations
The Berlin Blockade

9. Why did the Red Scare develop? International Relations
The Soviet Union develops the atomic bomb, 1949
In 1945 only the USA had had nuclear technology, most notably the atomic bomb.
The Soviet Union invested huge amounts of time to try to develop the technology for itself. By 1949 it had succeeded.
This was followed quickly by both countries developing the far more terrifying hydrogen bomb in 1951 and 1953.
With the development of Soviet technology, America’s fear of the USSR grew. Although America had more advanced technology, its military was smaller and the USSR’s geographical position meant that the USA was directly within range of Soviet missiles.
An arms race developed between the two superpowers, each competing to ‘outgun’ the other.

10. Why did the Red Scare develop? International Relations
Communist revolution in China
In October 1949 there was a communist revolution in China under Mao Zedong. Russia made a formal alliance with the new China in February 1950.
America was worried and upset - their foreign policy had been aiming for an economic alliance with China as a priority, however, now communism instead of capitalism had blossomed there.
Communist China was already a member of the United Nations, but Mao Zedong wanted China’s importance recognised with a seat on the UN Security Council.
The Soviet Union was the only communist nation on the council and was keen to have another communist member.
The council voted and the response was no. Stalin was furious and decided to leave the UN in protest.

11. Why did the Red Scare develop? International Relations
War in Korea
After the defeat of Japan in WW2 in 1945, Korea had been divided between Russian and American occupation.
Russia took over the north above the 38th parallel and America occupied everything below it.
The détente (peaceful co-existence) didn’t last for long, and in June 1950, North Korean troops invaded the south.
The United Nations was alarmed and met to discuss the crisis.
Since Stalin had left the UN in protest over China, the Soviet Union did not participate in UN discussions over Korea.
This allowed President Truman to make an anti-communist stand without fear of political retaliation.
The UN agreed that urgent military measures were necessary.

12. Why did the Red Scare develop? International Relations
War in Korea
They recommended member states to give whatever assistance to South Korea was needed in order to repel the armed attack and restore peace.
The Korean War lasted from 25 June 1950 until 27 July 1953.
America’s involvement in the war eventually stopped the spread of communism into South Korea.
However, the American policy of containment came at a cost – relations between the USA and both China and the Soviet Union deteriorated, and some 30,000 American soldiers died in the war.

13. Why did the Red Scare develop? International Relations
War in Korea

14. 6 marks
Explain why fear of communism spread throughout America in the post-war period.
Explain why the international situation created a ‘Red Scare’ in America. (Jun 2011)

15. Why did the Red Scare develop? HUAC
The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) was set up in the 1930s. It was a committee of the US House of Representatives designed to investigate and legislate against what were deemed ‘foreign threats’.
HUAC quickly came to focus its attentions on communists and any other so-called ‘unpatriotic citizens’.

16. Why did the Red Scare develop? The Alien Registration Act, 1940
The Alien Registration Act was passed by Congress on 29 June 1940.
It made it illegal for anyone in the USA to advocate, help with or teach the desire to overthrow the government.
The main objective of the Alien Registration Act was to undermine the American Communist Party and other left-wing political groups within the USA.
The law required all alien residents in the United States over 14 years of age to file a comprehensive statement of their personal and occupational status and a record of their political beliefs.
Within four months a total of 4.7 million aliens had been registered.

17. Why did the Red Scare develop?
The 1947 Federal Employee Loyalty Program
McCarthy and others claimed that there were people in the civil service who secretly supported the Soviet Union.
President Truman came under pressure to do something – his enemies said he was ‘soft on communism’ – and responded by issuing Executive Order 9835, sometimes known as the Loyalty Order, on 21 March 1947.
This started a review of loyalty in the civil service. It resulted in 212 people being sacked from their jobs, though none of them were ever charged with any crime.

18. Why did the Red Scare develop? McCarthyism
In February 1950, the Senator for Wisconsin, Joseph McCarthy made a speech that was to have a huge impact on the American consciousness and turn him into something of a hero:
“In my opinion the State Department is thoroughly infested with Communists. I have in my hand 57 cases of individuals who would appear to be either card-carrying members or certainly loyal to the Communist Party, but who nevertheless are still helping to shape our foreign policy.”
McCarthy would dominate the American political agenda throughout the 1950s, although anti-communist legislation in America had been developing throughout the 1930s and 1940s.

19. Why did the Red Scare develop? McCarthyism
Following McCarthy’s speech in 1950 the Senate set up another committee to investigate the people who McCarthy had accused.
The number of people sacked for suspected communist sympathies grew rapidly.
Many people from the creative industries were investigated by the House Un-American Activities Committee. These included; Arthur Miller, Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein and Charlie Chaplin.
All in all, 320 artists were blacklisted and boycotted by Hollywood, with some people, such as Charlie Chaplin, leaving the USA to find work.
Some were jailed for refusing to give the names of other ‘communists’.
The accusation invariably ended their careers.

20. Jan 2011

21. Why did McCarthyism get so much support?
In June 1950, former FBI agents and right-wing television producer Vincent Harnett worked together to produce a pamphlet that listed 151 writers, directors and performers who had so far escaped the blacklisting procedure.
They claimed to have got their names from FBI files and analysis of the Daily Worker, a known communist publication.
A free copy of the pamphlet called the ‘Red Channels’ was sent to everyone involved in employing people in the entertainment industry.
For each named individual the only way out was to appear in front of the HUAC and convince them in person of their innocence.
HUAC had the right to summon anyone.
It even threatened many people in the federal government, as in the days of the New Deal President Roosevelt had given jobs to many people who where radicals, liberals, socialists and communists.

22. Why did McCarthyism get so much support? Fear of Soviet Spies
The Alien Registration Act was used to get rid of the leadership of the Communist Party.
Between 1949 and 1951, 46 members were convicted of breaking the Act and threatening American stability.
While many cases moved slowly behind closed doors, others were much more high profile and helped to convince the majority of the American public that there was a Communist conspiracy.
Press coverage of cases involving Alger Hiss and Julius and Ethel Rosenberg ensured that fear of communism spread throughout America.

23. Why did McCarthyism get so much support? Fear of Soviet Spies
Alger Hiss
Alger Hiss was arrested and put on trial in 1948 for suspected un-patriotic activities while he was a State Department official.
He was accused of gathering important information and high-level state secrets and then handing them over to the Soviet Union.
It was a period full of spy scares, because all the major powers were still operating the spy networks which they had set up during the war.
Hiss’s trial was a very public affair, but he was not convicted of the full charge against him. He was convicted of perjury but not spying.

24. Why did McCarthyism get so much support? Fear of Soviet Spies
The Rosenbergs
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were not so fortunate: they were found guilty in 1953 of passing information about the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union.
They were executed in June 1953, the first time civilians in America had been executed for espionage.

25. Why did McCarthyism get so much support?
The FBI and Hoover
McCarthy worked closely with the head of the FBI, his close friend J. Edgar Hoover. In fact one of Hoover’s agents later said ‘we fed McCarthy all the material he was using.’
In 1953, as the Korean War was going badly and people’s fears of communism was growing, McCarthy was made the chairman of the Senate Committee on Government Operations.
McCarthy exploited people’s distrust of the Democratic Party which was a result of the ‘socialist’ New Deal policies of President Roosevelt.
His influence was so large that he was successful in discrediting President Truman and portraying him as a dangerous liberal despite Truman’s commitment to fight communism.

26. Why did McCarthyism get so much support?
The FBI and Hoover
The Boston Post noted that ‘attacking [McCarthy] is regarded as a certain method of committing suicide’.
The FBI and McCarthy even turned their attention to anti-communist publications. They investigated American libraries and discovered around 30,000 books that could be said to have communist links; these books were almost immediately removed from the shelves.
McCarthy had strong support in some communities, particularly the strongly anti-communist Catholic community, and in particular he had support from the powerful Kennedy family, and his enquiries continued.
However, not one of the hundreds of people accused by McCarthy was ever actually convicted of spying.

27. 4 marks
Describe the activities of Senator McCarthy. (Jan 2010)
Describe the work of the FBI and Hoover in the early 1950s. (Jan 2012)
Describe the investigations into Hollywood actors, writers and producers. (Jun 2010)
Describe the work of the House Un-American Activities Committee. (Jun 2011)
Describe what happened during the investigation into Alger Hiss. (June 2013)
6 marks
Explain why the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) was set up. (Jan 2012)
Explain why McCarthy was popular with many Americans. (Jan 2010)
Explain why the Rosenberg Case caused so much fear in the USA. (June 2013)

28. 10 markers
“The following were equally important in causing the Red Scare in the 1950s: (i) Joseph McCarthy; (ii) international events.” How far do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer referring to only (i) and (ii). (June 2013)
‘Events outside America were more important than developments in America in creating a fear of Communism’ How far do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer. (Jun 2010)

29. Jan 2011

30. Jan 2013

31. Why did McCarthyism decline? Opponents plot the downfall of McCarthy
Secretly, McCarthy’s opponents were gathering both pace and evidence against him.
Ironically, if McCarthy had applied his methods of social profiling to himself, he would have been on the list of subversives or ‘undesirables’ himself.
He was accused (though probably incorrectly) of being a homosexual, and had a substantial drink problem. He had assaulted a journalist in a Washington club.
Although he was definitely not a communist, his secrets would have been enough to discredit him in the same way that he had discredited thousands of Americans.

32. Why did McCarthyism decline? Eisenhower becomes president
When General Dwight D. Eisenhower became president in 1953, he pledged to continue the work of Truman and ordered a second investigation into the civil service.
Anyone deemed to be a security risk would be dismissed.
Between May 1935 and October 1954, some 7000 government workers lost their jobs, although as before not one was put on trial.
Though Eisenhower did not approve of McCarthy, he never criticised him publicly, saying that he did not want to ‘get down in the gutter with that guy’.

33. Why did McCarthyism decline? McCarthy attacks the army
In late October 1953, McCarthy took a step too far; he began investigations into the military.
He accused a senior general, General Zwicker, who was a retired war hero, of being ‘not fit to wear that uniform’.
It was an attack which caused widespread outrage to many people, including President Eisenhower.
This was a dangerous move, and not long afterwards the army itself accused McCarthy of misconduct.
The trial – known as the Army–McCarthy Hearings – was televised, and McCarthy was widely seen as bullying, reckless and dishonest.
Millions of Americans tuned in their sets to watch McCarthy abusing and bullying officers and civil servants.

34. Why did McCarthyism decline? McCarthy attacks the army
The public turned against him, and the Senate passed a motion censuring McCarthy for ‘improper conduct’.
Eisenhower also instructed his vice-president, Richard Nixon, to attack McCarthy.
After the hearings McCarthy was stripped of his chairmanship in the Senate, and without his power base his control began to ebb away.
The media lost interest and the public began to focus elsewhere.
Although McCarthy continued his campaign until his death in 1957, he sank back towards the fringes of politics, discredited.

35. Why did McCarthyism decline? The 1954 Communist Control Act
Although McCarthy’s influence had decreased, many Americans still believed that communists were trying to overthrow the government.
In response to this, in August 1954 Congress passed the Communist Control Act.
This banned the Communist Party of the USA; those who were found to be members would be arrested and charged.
The Act was used by the government to investigate any groups they suspected of having communist tendencies.
The Communist Party of the USA at its height had a membership of 60,000, but by the 1950s membership had declined greatly, partly because of the Red Scare and McCarthyism and partly because of the Cold War.