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Yalta Conference
The Yalta Conference was the World War II meeting of the heads of government of the United States, Great Britain and the Soviet Union. They gathered respectively, to discuss Europe's post-war reorganization in an orderly manner. -
United Nations
The United Nations is an intergovernmental organization to promote international co-operation. This is replacement for the ineffective League of Nations. -
Atomic Bomb Testing
The United States tested their first successful atomic bomb in Alamogordo, New Mexico. This was in preparation for the next two about to be dropped in the two Japanese cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki. -
Potsdam Conference
The Potsdam Conference was a meeting with the three government heads from the United States, Soviet Union, and Great Britain. Here, they negotiated terms for the end of World War II in a peaceful manner. -
Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The United States dropped two atomic bombs on two Japanese cities, named Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This was in response to Japan attacking the United States Naval Base, Pearl Harbor. This is what is said to end World War II for the United States. -
"Iron Curtain" Speech
Winston Churchill recited his famous "Iron Curtain" Speech which condemns the Soviet Union's policies in Europe during the Cold War. He says, “From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the continent.” -
Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was an American foreign policy created to counteract Soviet communist spread during the Cold War. It was first announced to Congress, when he pledged to contain Soviet threats to Greece and Turkey. -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was an American initiative to aid Western Europe. The United States gave over $12 billion in economic support to help rebuild Western European economies after the end of World War II. -
Berlin Blockade
The Berlin Blockade was one of the first crises of the Cold War. The Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies' railway, road, and canal access to the sectors of Berlin under Western control. -
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty. This is also called the North Atlantic Alliance. -
Chinese Communist Revolution
Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong declared the creation of the People's Republic of China. There were mixed opinions. -
Korean War
The Korean War began when North Korea invaded South Korea, crossing the 38th Parallel. The United Nations, with the United States as the principal force, allied South Korea whereas China, with assistance from the Soviet Union, aided North Korea. -
Hydrogen Bomb
The famous hydrogen bomb employs fusion of isotopes of hydrogen. The United States performed the first test in 1952. The United States has used this concept in their weapons ever since. -
SEATO
SEATO was an international organization for collective defense in Southeast Asia created by the Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty, or Manila Pact. This is also known as the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization. -
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact is the treaty between Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and the Soviet Union, which was signed in Poland. This was officially called "The Treaty of Friendship, Co-operation and Mutual Assistance". -
Sputnik
Sputnik 1 was the first artificial Earth satellite. The Soviet Union launched it. -
Bay of Pigs
The Bay of Pigs Invasion was a military invasion of Cuba undertaken by the CIA-sponsored paramilitary group Brigade 2506. However, they failed. -
Berlin Wall Built
The Berlin Wall was a barrier that divided Berlin from 1961 to 1989. It was constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting in 1961, the Wall completely cut off (by land) West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin until government officials opened it in November 1989. Its demolition officially began in 1990 and was completed in 1992. It has guard towers, concrete walls, and other strong defenses. -
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a long, costly armed conflict that was based off the communist North Vietnam and its southern allies, known as the Viet Cong, against South Vietnam and its ally, the United States. More than 3 million people, including 58,000 Americans, were killed in the conflict. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
During the Cuban Missile Crisis, leaders of the U.S. and the Soviet Union engaged in a tense, 13-day political and military standoff over the installation of Soviet missiles on Cuba. However, the disaster was avoided when the U.S. agreed to Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev’s offer to remove the Cuban missiles in exchange for the U.S. promising not to invade Cuba. Kennedy also secretly agreed to remove U.S. missiles from Turkey. This almost lead to a nuclear war.
