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Yalta Conference
Meeting between Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin to discuss what would happen to Germany and its territories after the war ended. They discussed the splitting of Germany and their other reparations, the fate of Poland, and the UN. Their was tension over who got what territories, especially Berlin which led to more problems later in the cold war. -
Potsdam Conference
Formal division of Germany and Austria into 4 zones, as well as split Berlin into 4 parts. Korea was also divided into Soviet and American zones. Very similar to the Yalta Conference as it caused tensions to rise over territory and how that territory was treated. Directly influenced the creation of the Berlin Wall. -
Winston Churchill's Iron Curtain Speech
Winston Churchill came to Westminister College in Missouri to deliver his "Iron Curtain" speech. His goal was to let the world know about the fight between Capitalism and Communism, and the "Iron Curtain" that has descended in Europe. This helped bring attention to the situation and arouse the fight against Communism. -
Truman Doctrine
This was President Truman's promise to support any countries fighting communism. Many people accused Truman of not doing enough to combat the spread of communism so he passed the Truman Doctrine and gained everyone's support. This was important because from that point on the Soviet's had to worry about US military involvement. -
Marshall Plan
Program that gave $13 Billion to support Europeans economies. It ended up only being applied to Eastern European countries, but saved them from a depression and eventual takeover by the Soviets. This was important because it applied to the policy of containment and prevented the spread of communism. -
Berlin Airlift
Russia cut off all supplies into Western Germany, and the citizens quickly started to run out of food and supplies. In response, every day for almost a year, US and British planes flew over Western Germany, dropping supplies for the citizens. The Soviets could do nothing, and eventually lifted the blockade. This ended on May 12, 1949. -
NATO Formed
Alliance formed by the Allied forces to aid eachother against communist attacks. Played important role because all Soviet attacks warrented retaliation from many different countries causing them to have to rethink their plans. This led to the creation of the Soviets own alliance called the Warsaw Pact. -
Korean War
Began when communist North Korea invaded capitalist South Korea. North Korea took nearly all of South Korea's territory, but President Truman ordered US troops to assist South Korea. They pushed back, and after the firing of General MacArthur, the division was against drawn at the 38th parallel. This was important because it showcased conflict between communist and capitalist ideals. -
Vietnam War
The communist party of North and South Vietnam joined to fight the South Vietnam government and the US. Was another conflict between ideals during the cold war and was one of the few hot battles of the cold war. Lasted until April 30th, 1975 when President Nixon signed the Paris peace accords to take the US out of Vietnam. -
Suez Crisis
British and French troops attacked Egypt to regain control of the Suez Canal. This attack was criticized by many world powers including the US, and the UN had to step in and stop the fight. Egypt was allowed to keep the Suez Canal. This kept the US idea of containment because Russia had offered to help Egypt which would've ended in the spread of communism. -
Soviets launch Sputnik
First part of the Space Race between the US and USSR. The Soviets launched Sputnik into orbit and it invoked fear in US society. They worried what data the satellite could collect or what advantages it would give the USSR. The creation of NASA resulted and the space race went in, leading to new innovations in technology. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
Cuban exiles that were trained by the US to assist in overthrowing the Cuban government. Fidel Castro unfortunately was prepared for it, and his army was there to meet the exiles whent they landed on the beach. Resulted in catastrophic failure. Failed attempt to contain communism and increased tensions. -
Berlin Wall is put up
Soviets way to seal off East and West Germany. It was an open symbol of the lack of freedom under a communist government. The separation of Germany lasted until 1989 when the wall was taken down, symbolizing the end of communist power. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
A US spy plane took pictures of missile lauch pads being built in Cuba, which would put all of the US in range of a nuclear attack. There was great debate as to handle the situation, and eventually the decision was made to blockade Cuba. It worked, the bombs were disassembled and the nuclear threat was gone. Showed the world that WW3 could easily happen if something went wrong, and the entire world may suffer because of it. -
First man on moon
This was a US success in the space race when Louis Armstrong was the first man to walk on the moon. He is famous for his line "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind". This was important in the cold war because it showed the innovation of the US and how they were making extreme progress on becoming the most powerful nation.
