The Arms Race (Edexcel GCSE History)

Why did an Arms Race Occur After 1945? - Timeline & Summary

The USA dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. This marked the start of what historians call 'The Arms Race'. This was a period of time when the USA and the Soviet Union competed against each other to create and stockpile the most advanced weapons. World leaders believed that nuclear technology would prevent either country from becoming too powerful. From 1950-58, nuclear technology vastly developed with the creation of hydrogen bombs and Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs). The Arms Race later developed into an ambition for space supremacy in the Space Race of the 1960s. 

The Arms Race intensified Cold War tensions between the USA and the Soviet Union. By 1958, both sides possessed and perfected weaponry that could destroy the world. This increased the mutual distrust between the two countries. The Cuban Missile Crisis showed how distrust over nuclear weapons can cause conflict. New weaponry was considered a way to ensure peace between the USA and the Soviet Union. Many countries still possess nuclear weapons today as they believe they are a deterrent to large-scale war. 

The Arms Race in the Cold War

• Truman authorised the use of atomic bombs to end the war with Japan in August 1945

  • At the time, the USA and the Soviet Union were allies under the Grand Alliance

  • Their relationship had worsened after the defeat of Nazi Germany in May 1945 and the subsequent peace conferences

• Historians believe that the USA's intentions behind the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were as a warning to Stalin

  • At the Potsdam Conference, Truman informed Stalin that the USA had developed:

• The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki showed that the USA was the strongest superpower. This aimed to stop the Soviet Union's growing international dominance

• After the bombings, Stalin instructed Soviet scientists to begin developing their own atomic bomb

  • He did not want the USA to retain a nuclear monopoly for too much longer

  • Stalin understood that, to defend against US aggression, the Soviet Union needed the same weaponry that the USA had

• By 1949, the Soviet Union successfully developed their first atomic bomb

  • The USA felt the need to develop more powerful technology to defend against the growing threat of the Soviet Union

    • This marked the beginning of the Arms Race between the USA and the Soviet Union

The USA and the Hydrogen Bomb

• Some of the US scientists behind the Manhattan Project created the hydrogen bomb

  • Edward Teller developed the idea of the hydrogen bomb during the Manhattan Project

  • After the Second World War, Teller petitioned the US government on multiple occasions to give him funding to research and create the hydrogen bomb. The government denied each of his requests

• The uncovering of a spy within the USA's nuclear team triggered the development of the hydrogen bomb

  • Klaus Fuchs was a scientist who had worked on the Manhattan Project

  • In 1950, the US government had evidence of Fuchs' espionage. From 1942 onwards, he passed on information about American nuclear technology to the Soviet Union

    • The US government argued that Fuchs' information sped up the Soviet Union's creation of the atomic bomb by one year 

  • Truman gave permission to Teller to begin the creation of the hydrogen bomb

• Teller and his colleague Stanislaw Ulam created the first hydrogen bomb in 1952

  • 'Ivy Mike' was the first hydrogen bomb tested

• In 1953, Russia developed the technology to create a hydrogen bomb

How was the Hydrogen Bomb Different to the Atomic Bomb?

• A hydrogen bomb is much more powerful than an atomic bomb

• The table below explains the key differences between the two types of weapon:

Comparison between Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs

• A hydrogen bomb is 1,000 times more powerful than an atomic bomb 

  • This shows how quickly nuclear technology developed in the 1950s

• By the 1960s, the hydrogen bomb had become an incredibly dangerous weapon

  • The Soviet Union tested 'Tsar Bomba' in 1961. It was the largest man-made explosion recorded in history, at 50,000 kilotons (or 50 megatons)

    • The original version of Tsar Bomba was twice as powerful as the one tested in 1961. Soviet scientists believed that it was too dangerous to test

Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles, 1957

• While hydrogen bombs became the most powerful weapon, they had limitations if used in warfare

  • An aeroplane needed to drop the bomb over its intended target

    • Aeroplanes in the 1950s had a limited flying capacity before they needed refuelling. This restricted how far away a target was from the USA or its allies

    • As bombs became more powerful, the danger involved in dropping bombs in this way increased. Pilots may be unable to fly away to safety in time. Mushroom clouds contained a high level of radiation that could cause death by radiation poisoning

• The USA wanted to develop nuclear technology that could hit targets from a further distance away

  • In 1957, the USA created the Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM)

    • The technology behind Nazi Germany's V-2 rockets inspired the creation of ICBMs

    • ICBMs carried nuclear warheads - missiles that exploded using nuclear fission or nuclear fusion

    • ICBMs could hit targets over 2,700 miles away

• Just a few months after the USA created ICBMs, the Soviet Union had developed the same technology

The Impact of the Arms Race on US-Soviet Relations

• The Arms Race impacted US-Soviet relations

  • It caused more fear and tension between the USA and the Soviet Union

    • Both countries had the capability to destroy the other

    • They felt the need to develop new technology that increased their military threat

  • It increased both countries' spending on their military departments

    • During the 1950s, the USA invested more than 13% of its GDP on military spending

    • By the 1960s, the Soviet Union spent more than 20% of its GDP on its defence budget

  • The major leaders of both countries felt the Arms Race was necessary

    • By staying ahead of their rivals, it made each country 'feel' safer

    • Both countries recognised that nuclear technology could destroy the world. They believed that the existence of nuclear weapons would deter warfare

      • In the 1960s, this developed into the policy of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD)

• The diagram below shows the causes and consequences of the Arms Race:

Causes and consequences of the Arms Race

A flow diagram showing the causes and consequences of the nuclear arms race on the USA and the Soviet Union