Cold War Timeline: The Cold War was called such due to there being no direct fighting; but rather proxy wars, or wars instigated by the two countries.
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Formation of Eatern Bloc
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Formation of Eastern Bloc
The Eastern Bloc was territory that the Soviet Union began taking over as it advanced towards Germany. Much of this territory the Soviet Union kept during the division of Germany. It included countries like Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia. -
Chinese Communist Revolution
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Chinese Communist Revoultion
This was a proxy war in which the Soviet Union provided support for the communist faction and the United States supported the nationals. The communists ended up coming out on top, and the nationals were forced to flee. -
Postwar Occupation and Division of Germany
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Postwar occupation and division of Germany
The division of Germany took place at the Potsdam Conference. This meeting was between the Allied Powers regarding what was to be done with Germany in terms of territory. In order to appease the Soviet Union, their territory was allowed to be communist, effectively splitting the country in half. It also split Berlin so half was communist and the other was democratic. -
Greek Civil War
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Greek Civil War
This proxy war was between the Hellenic (United States and United Kingdom supported) army and the Democratic Army of Greece (supported by the Soviet Union). This conflict was influenced by the Yugoslav-Soviet Split, which led to demoralization of the communist forces. This ultimately led to the victory of the Hellenic forces and a democratic government. -
Enactment of Marshall Plan
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Enactment of Marshall Plan
This was an economic plan in which the United States gave money to countries in Western Europe to help in recovery from World War Two. The United States gave a total $13 billion to these countries. This contrasted the Soviet Union's recovery plan for its countries, or rather lack there of. -
Berlin Blockade and Airlift
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Berlin Blockade and Airlift
In an attempt to seize West Berlin, the Soviet Union cut off supplies coming in from West Germany. In order to get around the blockade, the Western Allies used airplanes to either directly drop off supplies or perform an air drop. The Soviets eventually gave up and stopped the blockade. -
Korean War
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Korean War
This was another proxy war. This war began when the communist North Korea invaded the democratic South Korea. China and the Soviet Union provided aid to North Korea, while the United States supported South Korea. The war technically is not over, but an armistice was signed on July 2, 1953. -
Cuban Revolution
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Cuban Revolution
This was an overthrow of Fulgencio Bastista by Fidel Castro, turning Cuba into a communist state. The United States and Soviet Union were not involved, but the Soviets supported Castro and the United States' relationship with Cuba was strained. -
Vietnam War
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Vietnam War
This was a conflict between the communist supported North Vietnam and the democratically supported South Vietnam. Despite having a technological advantage, the United States suffered heavy losses due to the North Vietnamese's use of guerilla warfare. The United States had to pull out of the war due to heavy losses and the public opposing the war. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
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Bay of Pigs Invasion
This conflict involved the United States supporting a group of counter-revolutionaries from Cuba in an attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro. This conflict lasted only a few days, and was deemed a failure. This ended up leading to the Cuban Missile Crisis. -
Building Berlin Wall
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Building Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was erected starting on August 13, 1661. It was built by the East Berlin government to separate East and West Berlin as people in the Soviet Union were using it as a means to escape the Soviet Union. The wall came to represent the literal division between East and West. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
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Cuban Missile Crisis
This event followed the Bay of Pigs Invasion. The Soviet Union began preparing to install nuclear installations in Cuba to deter a U.S. invasion of Cuba. Due to the United States not wanting nuclear weapons so close to its borders, this almost brought the world into a nuclear war. The Soviet Union agreed to withdraw the missiles after the United States said that they would not invade Cuba and that they would pull the Jupiter missiles out of Turkey. -
Soviet War in Afghanistan
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Soviet War in Afghanistan
This war was very much the Soviet Union's Vietnam. The Soviets and the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan fought against the United States supported Mujahideen. This war was a disaster for the Soviets and is believed to have led to the economic problems that caused the collapse of the Soviet Union. -
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Tiananmen Square Massacre
This event started with student protesters in Beijing. The government proclaimed marshal law and several hundred protesters were killed. This led to sanctions on China from Western countries. -
Tiananmen Square Massacre
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Fall of Berlin Wall
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Fall of Berlin Wall
The boarder between East and West Berlin somewhat by mistake on account of miscommunication of when the boarder would be opened. However, the boarder was left open, and eventually it was decided to tear down the wall completely. This symbolized the end of the Cold War due to the separation disappearing between East and West. -
Fall of the Soviet Union
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Fall of Soviet Union
The Soviet Union fell largely due to economic problems, such as from the arms race and the war in Afghanistan. It also ended up dissolving due to many of the countries controlled by the Soviet Union trying to gain independence.
