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Russian Revolution
The Russian Revolution took place from March 8, 1917, to June 16, 1923. During this time, a series of protests took place which led to major political changes in Russia's government. As a result, the Soviet Union was created, which was one of the main powers of the Cold War. -
Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain was created by the Soviet Union and it lasted from 1945 to 1991. It was an imaginary boundary that divided the western, free countries from the eastern, communist countries that were controlled by the Soviet Union. This boundary is important to the Cold War because it effectively determined which countries would side with the Soviet Union, and which would side with America. -
Potsdam Conference
The Potsdam Conference took place in Potsdam, Germany from July 17, 1945 to August 2, 1945. Harry S. Truman, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin were the most important attendees of this contentious conference. This event was important to the Cold War because it determined the fate of Germany and set the lines for the Cold War. -
Atomic Bombs
On August 6, 1945, the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on the city Hiroshima in Japan in an effort to end the war between them. On August 9, 1945, another atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki after Japan didn't surrender in response to the first. Both of these bombs completely obliterated their targets, killing a combined total of over 100,000. This event was significant because it illustrated to the Soviet Union that America had massive, destructive power at their disposal. -
Long Telegram
The Long Telegram arrived at Washington D.C. on February 21, 1946 and was written by George F. Kennan. In this telegram, Kennan laid out the guidelines of a policy he believed America should use against the Soviet Union, containment. The policy of containment stated that the U.S. would stop the spread of communism throughout Europe. This event is important to the Cold War because this policy was used by America for the next 40 years and led to an increase in tension between the two countries. -
Molotov Plan
The Molotov Plan was created by the Soviet Union in 1947. It was a system with the purpose of providing aid to rebuilding Eastern European countries who were aligned with the Soviet Union. This is significant to the Cold War because it made these countries more likely to both turn to communism and side with the Soviet Union during the war. -
Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was created by Harry S. Truman on March 12, 1947. The doctrine stated that America would aid and protect free countries that were resisting Communist control, specifically Greece and Turkey. This was a significant event because it made the Soviet Union angry, since they wanted to add Greece and Turkey to the Union and now America was in the way. -
Hollywood 10
The Hollywood 10 was a group of Hollywood actors and directors who refused to testify during the House of Un-American Activities Committee hearings. These people were on trial for being suspected anti-Americans, but they had no evidence against them. Not only were they charged in contempt of Congress, but these people were also blacklisted from Hollywood and could find almost nowhere is work in America. The first of these systematic blacklists in Hollywood took place on November 25, 1947 -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was created by George C. Marshall and put into action on April 3, 1948. This plan involved giving European countries massive economic assistance so that they wouldn't succumb to communism. It also loaned around $12 billion to these countries. This event was important because it posed yet another threat to the Soviet Union's desire to seize control of more European countries. -
Berlin Airlift
The Berlin Airlifts took place from June 24, 1948 to May 12, 1949 and was organized the the U.S. and England. This event was put together by these two nations in response to the Berlin Blockade. Using airplanes, the U.S. and England bypassed the blockade and brought food to Berlin. This is important to the Cold War because it displayed that these two countries were ready and willing to defy the Soviet Union. -
Berlin Blockade
The Berlin Blockade was created by the Soviet Union and it lasted from June 24, 1948 to May 12, 1949. It was a blockade created in Berlin, Germany with the intention of blocking American and British trading routes through the country. This event is important because it was effectively a declaration of war against the west. -
Chinese Communist Revolution
The Chinese Communist Revolution began in 1949 was led by Mao Zedong. In an effort to take down China's nationalist government, Zedong entered a war with them that lasted decades. During this revolution, around 500 million Chinese died under Communist rule. This is significant to the Cold War because it gave the Soviet Union another potential ally. -
NATO
NATO, which stands for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, was created by 12 countries (US, UK, France, Italy, Canada, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Portugal, Iceland, and Luxembourg) on April 4, 1949. This alliance stated that if any of its members required military aid, the other members would send aid. This is significant because it further disrupted the Soviet Union's plans to take over Europe. -
Alger Hiss Case
Alger Hiss, a former state department employee, was accused of being a spy for the Soviet Union. The case was first brought in front of a court on May 31, 1949, and the last time it was seen in court was on January 21, 1950. Hiss was ultimately convicted of perjury and was given a sentence of five years in prison. This is significant to the Cold War because it made many Americans weary of there being more Soviet Union spies in the U.S., leading to widespread distrust and hysteria. -
First Soviet Bomb Test
The first Soviet bomb test took place on August 29, 1949. It was the first atomic bomb that had been successfully built and tested outside of America. This is important to the Cold War because it meant that America and the Soviet Union were now capable of using weapons of mass destruction on each other, meaning that they both had an equal standing in terms of weapons. -
Korean War
The Korean War lasted from June 25, 1950 to July 27, 1953 and was fought between northern and southern Korea. After years of fighting took place at the border of the two regions, the U.S. and Soviet Union stepped in and divided the Korea into two different countries: North Korea, which got a communist government, and South Korea, which got a capitalist government. This is important because it gave both the U.S. and the Soviet Union a new ally in their war against each other. -
Rosenberg Trial
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were arrested in 1950 due to claims that they were trying to send the U.S.'s military secrets to the Soviet Union. They were convicted of participating in a Soviet spy network during their trial that lasted from March 6, 1951 to March 29, 1951, and were sentenced to death. This event is important to the Cold War because it made many Americans angry over the extreme nature of their punishment, creating a disconnect between the public and the government. -
Army-McCarthy Hearings
The Army-McCarthy hearings lasted from April 22, 1954 to June 17, 1954. They were centered around a US Senator named Joseph McCarthy and the US army. These hearings started when McCarthy decided that the government should investigate charges and counter-charges concerning the US army and communist coverups. During them, McCarthy's true colors were revealed to the American public and he lost most of his support. -
Warsaw Pact
On May 14, 1955, the Warsaw Pact was created by the members of the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern European countries in Warsaw, Poland. This was a collective defense treaty that was created in response to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. This is important to the Cold War because it established more allies for the Soviet Union. -
Hungarian Revolution
The Hungarian Revolution took place from October 23, 1956 to November 10, 1956. This main goal of the revolution was for Hungary to break free of the policies the Soviet Union forced them to follow. This event was important because it was the first event after World War 2 where the Soviet Union's control over a country was directly threatened. -
U2 Incident
The U2 Incident took place on May 1, 1960 in Kosulino, Russia. On this day, a US airplane that was taking pictures over the Soviet Union's land was shot down by the USSR. At first the US tried to pretend it was just a civilian plane, but they were later forced to admit that they were trying to gain intel on the Soviet Union when its pilot and the plane were captured. This event is important the the Cold War overall because it further raised tensions between the two powers. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The Bay of Pigs Invasion took place from April 17-20 1961 in northern Cuba. It took place because the US attempted to stop the Cuban Revolution led by Fidel Castro using Cuban soldiers. In the end, it failed, and the revolution succeeded. -
Berlin Wall
The construction of the Berlin Wall began on August 13th, 1961 in Berlin, Germany. The wall was manned by guards who made sure that no one illegally crossed it. The wall not only physically divided western and eastern Germany, but also served as a metaphorical barrier between the two nations' ideologies. It was built with the intention of not letting fascist ideals spread into eastern Germany. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis took place from October 16-28, 1962. It began when the US discovered that the Soviet Union was building and storing missiles in Cuba. This discovery led to a standoff between the two powers, and almost led to full warfare. The US set up a blockade for all Soviet Union ships sailing to Cuba. In the end, the Soviet Union backed down and agreed to remove their missiles from Cuba. -
Assassination of JFK
On November 22, 1963, president John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. He was killed by a former US marine, Lee Harvey Oswald. Two days later, Oswald was killed by a nightclub owner named Jack Ruby while he was being transferred the the county jail. -
Invasion of Czechoslovakia
On August 20, 1968, Czechoslovakia was invaded by the members of the Warsaw Pact. The invasion took place because reform movements were taking place in Czechoslovakia, and the Pact feared that the country would begin to enact less communist policies. The invasion ended on September 20, 1968, with the reformist movements in Czechoslovakia being silenced. This is significant because if they had strayed away from communist rules, it would have begun the decline in use of communism in the east. -
Nixon Visits China
On February 21, 1972, President Nixon visited China. This was the first time that a U.S. president had visited China, and it ended the lack of communication that had been plaguing the two countries for the past 25 years. As a result of this visit, the diplomatic ties between the two countries grew, and the U.S. had more power over the Soviet Union. -
Reagan Elected
Ronald Reagan was elected president and officially entered office on January 20, 1981. His term lasted until January 20, 1989. During his presidency, he took many anti-communist actions. One of the things he did during his time in office was creating the Reagan Doctrine, its purpose being to suppress the control of the Soviet Union and end the Cold War. -
SDI Announced
On March 23, 1983, President Reagan announced the creation of the Strategic Defense Initiative. He created it to pursue the development of anti-missile systems to protect the US if they were ever attacked. Specifically in his announcement, he mentioned mutual assured destruction and that he wanted to make nuclear weapons useless. This was significant to the Cold War because it scared to Soviet Union and made them want to invest in such technology as well. -
Geneva Conference with Gorbachev
The Geneva Conference took place from November 19th-20th in 1985. The US president at the time, Ronald Reagan, and the Soviet Union's general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev were the main attendants of this conference. During it, these two discussed the relations between the two powers and the ongoing arms race. It was the first time these two had met, and ultimately didn't ease the tension between the two nations. -
'Tear down this wall’ Speech
The 'Tear down this wall' speech took place on June 12, 1987 and was delivered by Ronald Reagan in West Berlin, Germany. Although many of his advisors told him not to since they didn't want to further worsen relations between the US and Soviet Union, he still said the words "tear down this will". During his stay in Berlin, there were thousands of people protesting against him being there. The speech got little news coverage, and is believed to by many have had no effect on the fall of the way. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
On November 9th, 1989, the Iron Curtain fell in Berlin, Germany. After it was declared that East Germany citizens could cross the barrier freely, thousands went and did so. Three weeks after, the end of the Cold War was declared at the Malta Summit, and in 1990, the reunification of Germany began.
