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The Grand Alliance Breaks Down

How the wartime Grand Alliance of the USA, the USSR and Britain broke down after 1945 into the Cold War, through the conferences at Tehran, Yalta and Potsdam and the clash of capitalism and communism.

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What you'll cover

The Grand Alliance breaks down 🤝

During the Second World War the USA, the USSR and Britain joined together in the Grand Alliance to defeat Nazi Germany. They met at Tehran, Yalta and Potsdam to plan the peace, but once Germany was beaten their deep differences pulled them apart into the Cold War.

Words for the Cold War 🔑

Learn these four terms before you judge the breakdown.

The USA and the USSR 🆚

The two great powers held opposite beliefs.

Grade 9 thinking 💡

To reach the top grades, explain why the Grand Alliance broke down so quickly once Germany was defeated, and weigh ideology against mistrust and the future of Eastern Europe.

Match the conference to what it was 🔗

  • Tehran
  • Yalta
  • Potsdam
  • the Grand Alliance
  • the 1943 conference that planned the war effort
  • the February 1945 conference on the post-war world
  • the July 1945 conference where tensions grew
  • the wartime partnership against Germany

Match the term to its meaning 🧩

  • capitalism
  • communism
  • Cold War
  • ideology
  • an economy of private business and free trade
  • a system of state control and shared ownership
  • a rivalry of tension without direct war
  • a set of political beliefs

Why did it break down? ❓

Why did the Grand Alliance break down?

  • The USA and the USSR held opposite beliefs and no longer had a common enemy.
  • They ran out of money for the war.
  • The conferences were cancelled by bad weather.

Members of the alliance ✅

Select the TWO members of the Grand Alliance.

  • The USA.
  • The USSR.
  • Nazi Germany.
  • Japan.

Order the conferences 🪜

An interactive activity.

Summarise the breakdown 📝

In the Grand Alliance the _____ and the USSR fought Nazi _____. They met at Tehran, Yalta and _____ to plan the peace. But the USA followed _____ while the USSR followed _____, and the alliance broke into the Cold War.

USA Germany Potsdam capitalism communism USSR Yalta Japan Tehran Britain

Count the conferences 🔢

An interactive activity.

Spot the two rival ideologies 🖍️

An interactive activity.

The USA or the USSR? 🧭

An interactive activity.

Explain the breakdown ✍️

An interactive activity.