5. Nuclear deterrence and arms control

Did the nuclear revolution contribute to an era of peace? ‘Nuclear deterrence and arms control’ looks at the post-World War II stalemate and Cold War détente. The concept of deterrence did not come up until the second decade of the nuclear age. The introduction of thermonuclear weapons and nuclear-tipped, long-range intercontinental ballistic missiles turned foreign policy on its head. Mutual deterrence was less of a policy than a reality. With the Cuban Missile Crisis, Moscow mounted a show of defiance at a moment when it was relatively weak. The Carter and Reagan administrations were beset by external and internal disagreements, but prudence and luck prevailed.

4. Race for the H-bomb

America’s monopoly on atomic weapons was shorter than expected. ‘Race for the H-bomb’ details the development of the hydrogen bomb and the political developments surrounding it. The Soviet Union developed an atomic weapon faster than worst-case scenarios had predicted. Stalin appeared at first to dismiss the bomb, but it is likely that his understanding was more nuanced. What else could America have done with their short window of opportunity? Some argued for preventive war, but this went against the national character. The development of the hydrogen bomb took war out of the realms of logic and human control altogether, and anti-nuclear movements began to gather force in the 1950s.

7. Post-Cold War era

What significant lessons can be learned from the history of nuclear weapons? ‘Post-Cold War era’ considers post-Cold War attempts to curb nuclear proliferation. The clarity of the Cold War world has given way to the ambiguities and uncertainties of a world where global security is threatened by regime collapse, nuclear terrorism, new nuclear weapons states, regional conflict, and pre-existing nuclear arsenals. The nuclear rivalry with Russia, North Korea, and Iran gives the feeling of returning to the Cold War period, with the ever present threat of a deliberate or unintended confrontation. So far, we have avoided mutual destruction, but is this down to policy or luck?

3. A choice between the quick and the dead

‘A choice between the quick and the dead’ looks at the immediate aftermath of World War II. Truman recognized that maintaining a US monopoly on nuclear technology would be impossible and focused on international agreements to control its uses. The scientific processes governing nuclear technology and energy were the same for benign as for malign uses; the two could not be separated. Presidential adviser Bernard Baruch’s proposal for an international agreement was the first of what would become hundreds, if not thousands, of multilateral and bilateral discussions on arms-control measures. Baruch’s plan was rejected by the Soviet Union, while the US refused disarmament without controls.

2. Building the bomb

‘Building the bomb’ looks at the origins of the Manhattan Project following the Einstein–Szilárd letter to President Roosevelt, and the journey to Hiroshima and Nagasaki. At the time of President Truman’s briefing on nuclear weapons, it was unclear how the war would end. The Americans may have overestimated the Nazis’ progress on their own nuclear project and underestimated that of Japan. Many of the experts who developed the bomb did not imagine it would be used on Japanese cities. Truman’s conclusion was that the bombs had averted other deaths, but in the aftermath of Japan’s surrender, how would America explain these new weapons to a triumphant but mystified populace?

6. Star Wars and beyond

‘Star Wars and beyond’ focuses on the various anti-missile shields proposed after the Cuban Missile Crisis. By the 1960s, both the United States and the Soviet Union, looking for alternatives to the doctrine of mutual assured destruction, found themselves caught up in an offensive and defensive arms race. Would an anti-missile shield respond effectively to the complex demands on it? Was the American arsenal enough of a deterrent to discourage rivals from striking first? Would the ‘shield’ approach reignite the arms race? Reagan’s Strategic Defence Initiative (christened ‘Star Wars’ by critics) did not at first capture the public imagination, but its legacy continued in later administrations and is still felt today.

1. What are nuclear weapons?

How did nuclear weapons differ from what came before? ‘What are nuclear weapons?’ explains the science behind their creation by looking at the characteristics of the atom and the harnessing of its power for destructive purposes. The peaceful end of the Cold War was not the end of the nuclear threat. The detonation of a relatively small nuclear weapon in New York would be catastrophic, with the medical system unable to respond to the task of caring for the injured. After 9/11 and with an increased threat from rogue states, are we on the brink of a second nuclear age?