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Cold War Starts
Economic struggle between the 2 superpowers; the U.S.A and the U.S.S.R. -
Churchill's Iron Curtain Speech
In one of the most famous orations of the Cold War period, former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill condemns the Soviet Union's policies in Europe and declares, "An 'Iron curtain' has descended...all are subject in one form or another, not only to Soviet influence but to a...measure of control from Moscow." -
Truman Doctrine
The principle that the US should give support to countries or peoples threatened by Soviet forces or communist insurrection.To support free people throughout the world who were resisting takeovers by "armed minorities" or "outside pressures", this statement caused great controversy. First expressed in 1947 by US President Truman in a speech to Congress seeking aid for Greece and Turkey, the doctrine was seen by the communists as an open declaration of the Cold War. -
Berlin Blockade
One of the first major international crises of the Cold War. -
Berlin Airlift Stops
A 327-day operation in which the U.S. and British planes flew food and supplies to West Berlin's two million citizens to brake the Soviet Unions blockade, after the government of East Germany, which at that time surrounded West Berlin ( see Berlin wall ), had cut off its supply routes. -
McCarthyism starts
McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of subversion or treason without proper regard for evidence. -
Truman Fires McArthur
Truman wanted to use nuclear weapons in China, president Truman states, "I believe that we must limit the war to Korea...to make sure that the precious lives of our fighting men are not wasted and to see that the security of our country and the free world is not needlessly jeopardized, and to prevent a third world war." -
Eisenhower elected President
The 42nd president Eisenhower, Republican, won by a landslide and ending a string of Democratic wins. -
Stalin Dies
He died of a massive stroke and he is remembered today as the man who helped save his nation from Nazi domination- and the mass murder of the century, having overseen the deaths of between 8 million and 1 million of his own people. -
Khrushchev becomes Soviet Premier
Stalin died, and Khrushchev talked with Stalin's chosen successor, Georgy Malenkov, for the position of first secretary of the Communist Party. -
Suez Canal Crisis
Israel armed forces pushed into Egypt toward the Suez Canal after the Egyptian president nationalized the canal in July. Israel was soon joined by French and British forces, and damaged their relationships with the United States. This is important because the canal is important for capitalistic trading for the U.S. -
Eisenhower re-elected
The popular Dwight D. Eisenhower successfully ran for re-election. -
McCarthy Dies
Former American Senator turned increasingly to alcohol to relieve his frustrations and in 1957 he was hospitalized, suffering from numerous ailments all exacerbated by cirrhosis of the liver. -
Sputnik launched
Soviet Union successfully launched the worlds first artificial satellite. -
U-2 Incident
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Kennedy Elected
Kennedy asked Lyndon B. Johnson, a senator from Texas, to run with him as vice president. In the general election Kennedy defeated the Republican Vice President Richard M. Nixon in a very close race. At the age of 43, Kennedy was the youngest man elected president and the first Catholic. -
Bay of Pigs
1400 Cuban exiles launched what became a botched invasion at the Bay of Pigs on the south coast of Cuba. Bay of Pigs Invasion was an unsuccessful invasion of Cuba by Cuban exiles, supported by the U.S. government. On Apr. 17, 1961, an armed force of about 1,500 Cuban exiles landed in the Bahía de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs) on the south coast of Cuba. -
Berlin Wall
A wall that separated West Berlin Germany form East Germany. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
A confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union in 1962 over the presence of missile sites in Cuba; the moment when the two superpowers came closest to nuclear conflict one of the "hottest" periods of the cold war. -
Kennedy Assasinated
Kennedy was killed as he rode in a motorcade through Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas, Texas.
