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Cold War Begins
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Civil war in Greece
Communinist People's Liberation Army and anti-Communist forces supported by Great Britain fought for control of Greece -
President Truman establishes Truman Doctrine
President Harry S. Truman was alarmed by the British withdrawal and the possibility of Soviet expansion into the eastern Mediterranean. Addressing a joint session of Congress on March 12, 1947, Truman asked for $400 million in aid for Greece and Turkey. -
General George C. Marshall proposes Marshall Plan
Marshal believed that communism was successful in countries with economic problems. Thus, to prevent the spread of communism, the Marshall Plan provided $13 billion to rebuild war-torn Europe. -
George Kennan, argues for policy of containment
George Kennan, a well-known U.S. diplomat with much knowledge of Soviet affairs, argued for a policy of containment to keep communism within its existing boundaries and prevent further Soviet aggressive moves. -
Plans to unify the three Western sections of Germany to create West German government
The soviets opposed the creation of a separate West German state. They attempted to prevent it by mounting a blockade of West Berlin. Soviet forces allowed neither trucks, trains, nor barges to enter the city's three Western zones. Food and supplies could no longer get through to the 2.5 million people in these zones. -
Berlin Airlift
supplies were flown in by American and British airplanes. FOr more than 10 months, more than 200,000 flights carried 2.3 million tons of supplies. -
Soviet Union founds COMECON
Soviets responded to the Marshall Plan by founding the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (COMECON), However, it failed because the Soviet Union was unable to provide much financial aid. -
NATO formed
THe search for security during the Cold War led to the formation of new military alliances. THe NOrth Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed. -
Soviet Union lifts blockade
Soviets wanted to avoid a war just as much as the Western powers, so they finally gave in from the Berlin airlifts and lifted the blockade -
Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) Created
Bonn Became its capital -
German Democratic Republic (East Germany) created
East Berlin became its capital -
McCarthyism begins
Senator Joseph R. McCarthy of Wisconsin's charges that hundreds of supposed Communists were in high government positions helped create the "Red Scare" -
Korean War Begins
War began as an attempt by the communist government of North Korea, which was allied with the Soviet Union, to take over South Korea. -
Korean War Ends
America managed to create a treaty ending the bloodshed. -
Overthrow of Guatemalan government
U.S. sponsored coup overthrows Guatemalan government. -
SEATO created
To stem Soviet aggression in the East, the United States, Great Britain, France, Pakistan, Thailand, the Pilippines, Australia, and New Zealand formed the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization. -
McCarthy is condemned by th Senate
When McCarthy attacked "communist conspirators" in the U.S. Army, he was condemned by the Senate. Very quickly, his anti-Communist crusade came to an end. -
CENTO created
The Central Treaty Ogranization (CENTO), which included Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Great Britai, and the United States was meant to prevent the Soviet Union from expanding to the south. -
Warsaw Pact
The Soviet Union joined with Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hunary, Poland, and Romania in a formal military alliance known as the Warsaw Pact. -
Nikita Khrushchev New Soviet Leader
tried to take advantage of the American concern over missiles to solve the problem of West Berlin. -
Vietnam War Begins
Also known as the second Indo-China war -
European Economic Community (EEC) Created
France, West Germany, the Benelux countries, and Italy signed the Rome Treaty which created the EEC, also known as the common market. The EEC was a free-trade area made up of the six member nations. These six nations would impose no tariffs, or import charges on each other's goods. However , as a group, they would be protected by a tariff omposed on goods from non-EEC nations. -
Soviets launch Sputnik 1
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Overthrow of Cuban dictator
Fidel Castro overthrew Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista and set up Soviet-supported totalitarian regime in Cuba. -
France Explodes first nuclear bomb
France's new president, de Gaulle wanted France to be a great power once again. To achieve the status of a world power, de Gaulle invested heavily in nuclear arms. -
U-2 Incident
The 1960 U-2 incident occurred during the Cold War on 1 May 1960, during the presidency of Dwight Eisenhower and during the leadership of Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev, when a United States U-2 spy plane was shot down over the airspace of the Soviet Union. The United States government at first denied the plane's purpose and mission, but then was forced to admit its role as a covert surveillance aircraft when the Soviet government produced its intact remains and surviving pilot. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The incasion began on Sunday, April 16, 1961. By Wednesday, the exiled fighters began surrendering. One hundred and fourteen died; the rest were captured by Castro's troops -
Berlin Wall is constructed
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Cuban Missile Crisis
Khrushvhev began to place nuclear missiles in Cuba. THe missiles were meant to counteract U.S. nuclear weapons placed in Turkey, a country within easy range of the Soviet Union. -
Martin Luther King, Jr. leads march on Washington
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President John F. Kennedy assassinated
At age 43, John F. Kennedy became the youngest elected president in the history of the United States. His administration was cut short when he was assassinated. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson then became president. -
Social Democratic Party becomes leading party in West Germany
An economic downturn in the mid-1960's opened the door to the Social Democratic Pary. The Social Democrats, a moderate socialist party, were led by Willy Brandt, mayor of West Berlin. -
Martin Luther King Jr. killed
Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated by James Earl Ray. After his dead, Riots hit over 100 cities, including Washington, D.C. The riots led to a "white backlash", which is whites becoming less symapthetic to the cause of racial equality. -
de Galle resigns from office
Large government deficits and a rise in the cost of living led to unrest in France, and there was a general labor strike. Tired and discouraged, de Gaulle resigned from office in April 1960 and died within a year. -
Students at Kent State killed
Four students at Kent State University were killed and nine others were wounded by the Ohio National Guard during a student demonstration. The tragedy startled the nation. -
Genral Ford becomes U.S. President
Vice President Gerald Ford became president when Nixon resigned, onlhy to lose in the 1976 election the former govenor of Georgia, Jimmy Carter. -
End of Vietnam War
Considered to be the first war America had ever lost.
