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McCarthyism Begins
In February 1950, Senator McCarthy charged that there were over 200 "known communists" in the Department of State. Thus began his dizzying rise to fame as the most famous and feared communist hunter in the United States. McCarthy adeptly manipulated the media, told ever more outrageous stories concerning the communist conspiracy in the United States, and smeared any opponents as "communist sympathizers" to keep his own name in the headlines for years. -
Korean War
A war between the Republic of Korea supported by the United Nations, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea at one time supported by the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union. It was primarily the result of the political division of Korea by an agreement of the victorious Allies at the conclusion of the Pacific War at the end of World War II. -
Fidel Castro comes to power in Cuba
Dissatisfied with Ortodoxo's non-violent opposition, Castro formed "The Movement", a group consisting of both a civil and a military committee. The former agitated through underground newspaper El Acusador while the latter armed and trained anti-Batista recruits. With Castro as the Movement's head, the organization was based upon a clandestine cell system, with each cell containing 10 members. -
John Foster Dulles is Secretart of State
As Secretary of State, Dulles spent considerable time building up NATO and forming other alliances as part of his strategy of controlling Soviet expansion by threatening massive retaliation in event of a war, as well as building up friendships, including that of Louis Jefferson. -
Rosenberg Spy Case
Were United States citizens convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage during a time of war, and executed. Their charges were related to the passing of information about the atomic bomb to the Soviet Union. -
Guatemala elects Jacobo Arbenz
On July 2, 1954, the U.S.-backed coup, commanded by Guatemalan exile Colonel Carlos Castillo Armas, overthrew the democratically elected President Jacobo Arbenz. Castillo installed himself as president, and the U.S. administration cast him as a hero for his victory over communism. In September of the same year, Castillo was formally declared president. -
Hungarians overthrow Communist government
a spontaneous nationwide revolt against the government of the People's Republic of Hungary and its Soviet-imposed policies, lasting from 23 October until 10 November 1956. It was the first major threat to Soviet control since the USSR forces drove out the Nazis at the end of World War II and occupied Eastern Europe. Despite the failure of the uprising, it was highly influential, and came to play a role in the downfall of the Soviet Union decades later. -
Sptnik Launched
On October 4, 1957 Sputnik I, the first earth-orbiting artificial satellite, was launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome in the Karaganda region of Kazakhstan. The Soviet space program, under the direction of its Chief Designer, Sergei Kurchatov, thereby achieved a major victory in its competition the "space race" with the United States.
