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Yalta Conference
The Yalta conference was a meeting between the winners of the Second World War (United States, United Kingdom, the Soviet Union) in order to discuss Germany and Europe's postwar reorganization. The Yalta Conference intended to create a postwar collective security initiative, and was also meant to provide self-determination to the liberated peoples of post-Nazi Europe. It was meant to discuss the re-establishment of war-torn Europe, but with the Cold War brewing, it soon came under controversy. -
Potsdam Conference
A conference between the USA, USSR, and UK, the Potsdam Conference was a gathering to discuss how Germany would be administered due to their agreement of unconditional surrender on May 8th. The conference was also meant to discuss post-war order, settle peace treaty disputes, and overall to counteract the effects of the war. Around this time, the USSR illegally occupied many countries and claimed it to be a defensive measure. This increased global tension with the Soviet Union. -
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The Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
As retaliation for the attack on Pearl Harbour by the Japanese, the USA released its first and last two nuclear attacks in recorded history. The combined attacks killed at least 129 000 people. The USA used an imminent Japanese invasion as reasoning for the attacks. -
Molotov Plan
The Molotov Plan was a system created by the Soviet Union which intended to provide aid to Eastern European countries which were aligned with the Soviet Union and in need of rebuilding. It was seen as the USSR's version of the Marshall Plan. The Molotov Plan was formed because of a USSR refusal to join the Marshall Plan due to the belief that the Marshall Plan would damage Soviet integrity due to the conditions applied. This allowed socialist countries to create an economic agreement despite USA -
Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was an American foreign policy meant to counter Soviet expansion during the Cold War. The Truman Doctrine was a promise by the American government promising political, military, and economic aid to any democratic country under the threat of external or internal authoritarian forces. -
Soviet Creation of Nuclear Weapons
The development of the first Soviet hydrogen bomb occurred in July of 1948, and started the arms race between America and the the USSR. -
Brussels Treaty
A treaty signed by Britain, France, Belgium, The Netherlands, and Luxembourg. It created a collective defense alliance and led to the formation of NATO and the Western European Union. A goal of the treaty was to show America that Western Europe could cooperate, in order to convince America to play a role in European security -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan (officially the European Recovery Program) was an American initiative to aid Western Europe after the events of the Second World War. America gave what was at the time $13 billion in economic support to rebuild Western Europe. -
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Berlin Blockade
One of the first major international crises of the Cold War. During the occupation of post-war Germany, the Soviet Union blocked access to sectors of Berlin under western control. They offered to drop the blockade if Western Allies removed the newly introduced Deutsche Mark from Western Berlin. In response, the Western Allies began airlifting supplies to the people of West Berlin. -
NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
The primary purpose of NATO was to unify and strengthen the Western Allies response to a potential invasion of Western Europe by Soviet forces. It stated that an attack against one member nation was to be considered an attack against them all, and would bring retaliation. -
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Korean War
The Korean War was caused when North Korea invaded South Korea in an attempt to take over the "fatherland." Due to its communist nature, both China and Russia came to the aid of North Korea, while the United States came to the aid of South Korea in an effort to push back the invading communist forces and prevent the further spread of communism on a global scale. The Korean War represented a shift in the US Cold War stance, as they now believed one loss to communism was a loss everywhere. -
Stalin's Death
On March 5th, 1953, Joseph Stalin, the Russian dictator died due to causes which are still debated to this day. Upon his death, the Cold War had a momentary thaw; Austria regained its independence, and this soon led to more Eastern European countries fighting for their freedom. However, it was still a long time before any meaningful change occurred. -
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact was a similar alliance to NATO, however it was meant as a form of retaliation by the Soviet Union. The Warsaw Pact was a communist alliance in Eastern Europe which included Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and the Soviet Union. This put the Soviet Union in command of the combined military forces of all member states. It stated that if one member country was to be attacked, it was considered an attack on them all. The USSR saw NATO as an attack. -
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Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was between North and South Vietnam, as they had differing ideologies. America got involved illegally due to their belief that if North Vietnam took the south, communism would have a domino effect and quickly take the rest of the world. This domino theory led US foreign relations for most of the Cold War -
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Hungarian Revolution
A nation-wide revolt by the Hungarian people's against the Hungarian government and their soviet imposed policies. Hungary was under Soviet control after the war, and people wanted to change it. The Hungarian revolution started as a student protest, but eventually became a violent nation-wide affair. This affected the Cold War in that it showed that people themselves could fight against communism. -
NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command)
A combined organization between Canada and the United States that provides air warning and protection for North America. -
Fidel Castro Taking Over
Fidel Castro was heavily involved in the Cuban Communist Revolution and became prime minister in 1959 before becoming president in 1979. With communism spreading more to the west, America became more tense and worried of an invasion from communist countries. Fidel Castro taking over led to the Cuban Missile Crisis. -
Bay of Pigs
The Bay of Pigs was a failed invasion of Cuba by the Central Intelligence Agency. The plan was to overthrow Fidel Castro, and in turn, end Cuban communism. This greatly embarrasses President Kennedy and he vows to take down Castro. -
Creation of the Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was created because the GDR was afraid of the spread of fascism; or that's what they told the public. The GDR was actually afraid of the mass emigration and defection of people from the communist regime. -
End of the Cuban Missile Crisis
Often considered the closest the Cold War came to fruition, the Cuban Missile Crisis was caused due to American missiles set up near Russia and ready to fire; Fidel Castro's Cuban government set up missiles in Cuba and threatened to fire on America if they attempted to attack. The Missile Crisis lasted thirteen days. The Russian government agreed to the placing of nuclear missiles on Cuba due to the failed Bay of Pigs invasion. The Americans threatened to nuke if Russia or Cuba attacked. -
Nuclear Arms Treaty
The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty was signed on July 1st, 1968, by a number of nuclear superpowers and came into effect March 5th, 1970. This was an internationally signed treaty meant to slow the spread of nuclear weapons, in favour of peaceful uses of nuclear power. This was meant to pave the way to complete nuclear disarmament. -
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Afghan-Soviet War
Insurgent groups fought a guerilla war against the Soviet Army and the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. Due to the insurgent groups being backed by the United States, this was considered a Cold War proxy-war. Up to two million civilians died, and millions fled the country to Pakistan. The USSR invaded due to wanting to maintain the communist government they had enacted in 1970, and also they wished to expand their Asian sphere of influence. -
Solidarity in Poland
Full name Independent Self-governing Trade Union
It's a Polish workers union that was founded at the Lenin Shipyard. At first the communist government attempted to disband the union by instituting martial law but eventually they were forced to begin negotiating with the union as one third of the population in Poland was a member. They mostly just negotiated for more workers rights. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
November 9, 1989. At midnight this day, as the Cold War began to thaw, people were given free reign to cross the wall. Easterners and Westerners all gathered near the walls and celebrated in anticipation of their returned freedoms. More than two million people traversed the border, and on October 3rd, 1990, the reunification of East and West Germany came to fruition. -
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Czechoslovakia Revolution(Velvet Revolution)
It was a nonviolent revolution that happened in the then Czechoslovakia that removed the 41 year reign of the Communist Party and allowed for the return of parliament, private business and resulted in the breakup of Czechoslovakia. The government released its plan of relinquishing power on November 28 after numerous other member states of the Warsaw Pact also left. -
End of the Cold War
December 3rd, 1989 was the ‘official’ end of the Cold War. A meeting between Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev met with American President George Bush aboard a Soviet ship. The meeting did not actually result in the end of the war because it would continue for another 2 years. Although this was not the real end, it did signify the biggest step in creating peace between the countries.
