Unit 8: Cold War and Decolonization

1945 – 1990 CE

As the Second World War ended, new global conflicts emerged. The Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union and decolonization movements reshaped the world order.

Lesson 8.1

Cold War and Decolonization

After the devastation of the World Wars, the old order was replaced by new powers: the United States and the Soviet Union. Meanwhile, the colonized peoples of the global south began to demand liberation.

The Cold War

Lesson 8.2

Origins of the Cold War

The Cold War conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union was a confrontation between two different ideologies, but it was also a global struggle for control over the future of the world.

Lesson 8.3

The Global Cold War

Virtually none of the battles of the Cold War took place on Russian or American soil. Yet, the Cold War often got hot as the superpowers supported opposing sides in conflicts around the world.

Decolonization

Lesson 8.4

The End of Empire

As colonial troops returned from World War II, many started to ask why they had fought to protect freedom in Europe but were returning to colonial repression at home. The result was a wave of independence movements that dismantled European empires.

Lesson 8.5

Decolonization Around the World

Anticolonial movements swept the colonized world after 1945. From the Caribbean, to Ghana, to Southeast Asia, nationalist leaders rose in opposition to empire and demanded independence.

Lesson 8.6

Communism in China

The triumph of Maoist communism in China marked a new era of industrialization for the world’s most populous nation.

Lesson 8.7

Connecting Struggles for Liberation

As decolonization rocked old colonial strongholds, civil rights activists clashed with government forces in the US. This is the story of how local struggles connected with global movements.

Teaching This Unit

Unit 8 Guide

Everything you need to know about Unit 8.

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