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Potsdam Conference
The 3 major allied powers during WWII meet at the conclusion of the war and gather to decide how they are going to deal with Germany. Discussing Berlin and the future of Europe. Stalin agrees to allow fair elections but he doesn't follow through -
Potsdam Conference
Three allied powers meet to discuss what to do with Germany after they war -
The Atomic Bomb
Truman drops the bomb on Japan then drops a second when Japan doesn't surrender. First use of nuclear weapons and it marked the atomic age. Russia rushes to make their own. -
The Long Telegram
8,000 word dispatch to the Department discussing Russia's history, culture and why they are doing what they're doing. It discusses how to keep Russia contained. -
Iron Curtain Speech
A speech by former Britain prime minister, Winston Churchill stressing necessity of Britain and America acting as the guardians of peace and stability against soviet communism. -
The Truman Doctrine
A speech by the president that announces that America will stop its isolationism policy and rather help any countries resisting Communism -
The Marshall Plan
A plan that ends up giving destroyed countries in Europe billions in dollars in order to stop the spread of desperation and communism -
The Molotov Plan
The main purpose of the Molotov Plan was to aid the rebuilding of countries in Eastern Europe. The plan was created by the Soviet Union and specifically helped the countries that were politically aligned with the Soviet Union. It made sure that none of the countries were involved in the United State's Marshall Plan because they believed it was a way for the United States to expand their influence. -
Hollywood 10
The Hollywood 10 were people in movie business who faced the House Un-American Activities Committee and refused to answer questions as to if they were affiliated with communists saying it was their right under the 1st amendment. They were all convicted of contempt and sent to prison or blacklisted by the movie making business. This trial led to Hollywood making anti-communism films only adding to the hysteria -
Berlin Blockade
Stalin blockades Berlin, blocking off all supplies from them trying to starve and kill their people in order to force them into submission of communism. This is significant as one of the first conflicts of the war. In May 1949 the blockade was lifted -
The Berlin Airlift
The Berlin Airlift was created by America and Great Britain as a counter to the Soviet Unions Berlin Blockade. The Blockade was to stop the Berlin people from getting supplies so they would die and submit to communism. However the Berlin Airlift was us trying to fly in and give them supplies so they could resist communism. This is significant to the Cold War because it was one of the first major conflicts. -
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization
NATO was a united offense against Soviet A\aggression. NATO included the United States and Canada as well as ten European nations. This is significant because the Soviets would later create their own alliance. -
First Soviet Bomb Test
On August 29, 1949 the Soviet Union tested and detonated their first atomic bomb. It was detonated at Semipalatinsk test site in Kazakhstan. This is a significant event in the context of the Cold War because it marked the beginning of the nuclear arms race where the United States and the Soviet Union competed for supremacy in nuclear warfare. The Soviets also succeeded in making this bomb way earlier than experts predicted. -
Chinese Communist Revolution
Mao Zedong who was a communist revolutionary prevailed in a decades long civil war against the Chinese government. This is a huge event because five hundred million Chinese men fell under communist control. -
Alger Hiss Case
Alger Hiss was a former government State Department official who was accused of spying for the Soviet Union. His accusor was ex-communist Whittaker Chambers. The case was prepared to be dropped but Richard Nixon pressed for it to continue. Alger Hiss was convicted of perjury and sentenced to five years in prison. This was a significant event because it pressed the search for more communist traitors in the public. -
The Korean War
The Korean War was fought between North Korea and South Korea with a death toll of 2.5 million people. The causes of the war were the spread of communism during the Cold War, American containment, and Japanese occupation in Korea during WWII. The war started when North Korea surprise attacked the South and it was communists versus capitalist for control of the Korean Peninsula -
Rosenberg Trial
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were arrested in connection to a plot of giving United States bomb secrets to the Soviets months after the Alger Hiss case. They claimed they were innocent but they were to die on the electric chair sparking protests claiming it was antisemitism. Despite the outcry they were executed. -
The Korean Armistice
The Korean Armistice was the agreement signed by both North Korea and South Korea that officially ended the war between them. North Korea and South Korea would now remain separate and occupy about the same land they did before the war which is still true today. -
Battle of Dien Bien Phu
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu was a victory Vietnamese military victory that brought an end to French colonial rule in Vietnam. This is an important event because it brought the separation of Vietnam into North and South Vietnam which is still true today. It also leads to the Vietnam war where the two sides conflicted -
Army-McCarthy hearings
McCarthyism was a movement against communists created in the namesake of Joseph McCarthy, a senator from Wisconsin. He presented a list of 205 communists. He used very little evidence getting many innocent people blacklisted from their jobs and arrested. He would eventually pit himself up against the US government saying they were behind communist "cover-ups" leading to the Army-McCarthy hearings. Although the hearings were inconclusive they ruined McCarthy's reputation. -
The Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact was the Soviet Union's response to NATO. It was a collective defense treaty made by the Soviet Union, Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland and Romania. It is a significant event because it put them at odds with NATO even more and both were racing to expand their military forces and enhance their weapons. -
Hungarian Revolution
Nikita Khrushchev gave a speech criticizing Joseph Stalin's rule which encouraged new freedom of debate and criticism in Hungary. Eventually Hungary erupted into large fights actively going on. Eventually the Soviet Union invaded to stop the fighting. This is an important event because it exposed major weaknesses in Eastern Europe communism which is where Hungary lies. -
The U2 Incident
The U2 Incident is a confrontation between the United States after the Soviet Union a US U2 reconnaissance plane flying over the Soviet Union. The shooting is significant because it's a major confrontation between the two sides and it derailed an important summit meeting between President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
Military dictator Fidel Castro takes power in Cuba. The United States believe Castro to be a liability so they planned an armed invasion of Cuba. The CIA trained a bunch of Cuban exiles for the operation. Kennedy approved the plan but denied air and naval support. The invasion force was crushed humiliating the Kennedy Administration. -
The Berlin Wall
The Berlin wall was created to separate East Berlin and West Berlin. It was created by the German Democratic Republic to stop people from running and escaping from East Berlin and 141 people died trying. The Berlin Wall became a symbol of the "Iron Curtain" which meant it separated the democratic western and the communist eastern countries. The wall stood strong until 1989 -
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was where the United States and the Soviet Union fought over the presence of missile sites in Cuba. This is a very important event because it was the closest we have come to a full out nuclear war between between the United States and Soviet Union that could have led to World War III or the near destruction of the world -
Assassination of JFK
John F. Kennedy was in a car with his wife in Texas along with the Texas governor when he was shot by Lee Harvey Oswald who was a former US marine. Oswald was arrested an hour later but Kennedy died from the shooting. -
Tonkin Gulf Resolution
President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Joint Resolution for the Maintenance of Peace and Security also known as Tonkin Gulf Resolution. The resolution allowed Johnson to take all necessary measures to repel all armed attacks on the US and prevent further aggression by North Vietnam. The Resolution later became controversial because Johnson used it to increase US commitment to the Vietnam War. -
Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was a series of coordinated attacks by North Vietnam towards South Vietnam. The attack included 100 cities and outposts in South Vietnam. This is a significant event because the attack's purpose was to encourage and make the United States pull their involvement of the Vietnam War. It caused the slow withdrawl of American troops from the war. -
1968 Riots at Democratic Convention
at the Democratic Convention of 1968, tens of thousands of protesters arrived to protest the involvement in the Vietnam War. the streets of Chicago had seen riots and bloodshed involving protesters, police and bystanders. This event is important because it was one of the many factors of troops slowly being withdrawn and it contributed to changing America's political and social landscape -
Kent State
The Ohio National Guard shoots at a crowd gathered to protest the Vietnam War. Four from Kent University dead and seven injured. This was a significant event because it heavily swayed public opinion on the Vietnam War conflict. Immediately after strikes started by students closed down schools all over. -
Ceasefire in Vietnam
Finally after all the debate The United States decides to withdrawal all remaining military personnel. Along with this North Vietnam agrees to ceasefire and return all American prisoners of war. This event is significant because North Vietnam was able to leave troops and to retain the territory it controlled in South Vietnam and obviously marked ceasefire in Vietnam -
Fall of Saigon
Possibly the biggest event of the Vietnam War because it marks the end. North Vietnam run by communists captures Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam and forcing them to surrender. Nixon had promised action if this scenario were to arise but by this time he had resigned so nothing was done. -
Reagan elected
Actor Ronald Reagan became the president of the United States after serving as governor of California. He became a popular candidate who served two terms. During his time as president e cut taxes, increased defense spending, and manages to agree with the Soviets to reduce nuclear arms. Because of this many people say he is responsible for bringing a quicker end to the Cold War conflict -
SDI announced
Reagan announces the Strategic Defense Initiative also known as the Star Wars program. His idea was to use space based X-ray lasers to detect and deflect any nukes headed for the United States. His goal was to make make nuclear weapons impotent and obsolete. Many considered it too ambitious and it was given the Star Wars name because it seemed like science fiction. The government spent 30 billion dollars trying to make it happen but it was scrapped in 1993. -
‘Tear Down This Wall’ Speech
The Berlin Wall had become a symbol for Soviet oppression. Ronald Reagan conducted a speech in West Berlin trying to get Soviet Leader Mikhail Gorbachev to tear down the wall. Reagan would also go on to ask Gorbachev to undertake serious arms reduction talks with the United States. In his speech Reagan tells the Soviet leader if he seeks peace, liberalization and prosperity for the Soviet Union he must tear down the wall. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
The Cold War conflict was dying down and East Berlin Communist leaders announced a change in the city’s relations with the West. Citizens of the GDR were now free to cross the country’s borders. People from both sides came to celebrate and chanted for them to open the gate. More than 2 million people from East Berlin visited West Berlin that weekend. This was a result of the war dying down and it would a year later.