How did the Cold War actually start?
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A fear of communism.
The October Revolution in October 1917 was when the Russian Empire fell and the first communist nation rose.
The world was in the middle of WWI at the time, so Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire were bigger concerns.
At first, we were really sure how it was gonna play out, and communism stayed pretty self contained to Russia.
Then, WWII happened and the Soviets really proved they were a powerhouse, and all of Eastern Europe fell to communism. Suddenly, communism was spreading. WWII happened, and all of these newly independent nations were forming from the former colonies of the European powers. This led to a scramble to extend the influence of the regining superpowers, being the US and USSR.
The invention of nuclear weapons and the concept of mutually assured destruction are what kept the war cold, rather than heating up into an actual war.
The closest we got to actual war would be the proxy wars in Vietnam, Korea, and Afghanistan, as well as a few near launches of nuclear warheads.
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