The decades after 1945 made America the dominant power in the world — and shaped a global order that still defines politics today. The Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, the nuclear arms race, the Berlin Wall, the CIA’s covert wars: Explaining History has covered the full arc of American power from the ruins of World War Two to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989 and beyond.

This collection focuses on American foreign policy, the Cold War, and the political crises of the post-war decades. Episodes on the Civil Rights Movement and the Vietnam War will be added as dedicated collections shortly.

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Building the Post-War World Order: 1945–1947

The two years after the end of World War Two were decisive. Roosevelt was dead, Truman was inexperienced, and Stalin was determined to secure Soviet control over eastern Europe. These five episodes trace how the confrontation that would define the next half-century was constructed — from the first meetings of the Grand Alliance to the announcement of the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan.

Truman’s Foreign Policy Problems 1945–46

The Long Telegram and the Iron Curtain Speech: February–March 1946

America’s Cold War Crossroads: 1946–1947

The Truman Doctrine 1947

Truman, Anti-Communism and the Marshall Plan

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The Eisenhower Era: Atoms, Anticommunism, and the CIA (1950s)

Eisenhower presided over a decade of nuclear anxiety, covert operations, and the consolidation of the American national security state. These three episodes examine the weapons tests that irradiated civilians, the intelligence war that followed Stalin’s death, and the construction of the Berlin Wall that crystallised Europe’s division.

Eisenhower, Atomic Testing and the Early Cold War

Eisenhower, the CIA and the Death of Stalin

The Berlin Wall 1961

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The End of the Cold War and America’s New World Order

The Cold War ended not with a bang but with a cascade of revolutions across eastern Europe. These episodes examine how the world was remade between 1989 and the early 1990s, and what the new American-dominated order looked like as it took shape.

1989: The Year of Global Transformation

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From Cold War to Culture War: America’s Long Crisis

The historical roots of America’s current political crisis run deep. This episode examines the authoritarian tendencies of the Trump era through the lens of 20th century fascist movements — placing today’s politics in longer historical perspective.

Trump’s ICE Brownshirts: A Historical Analysis

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Related Collections

• The Cold War
• The Vietnam War
• The Civil Rights Movement
• Neoliberalism & Thatcherism
• Browse all topic collections →

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