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The Cold War Begins
The Cold War began in mid 1945 after the Soviet, British, and U.S. had met at Potsdam and Stalin refused to hold up the agreements that were made at Yalta. President Truman responds saying that he believes that "the Soviet Union were planning on world conquest." -
Churchill Gave the "Iron Curtain" Speech
On March 5th, 1946, Churchill spoke out against the Soviet Union at Fulton Collage in Missouri. He said that there was an "iron curtain" that stretched across Europe and that east of the of that curtain, the Soviet Union was expanding its control by installing communist governments and police states. -
HUAC Investigates Movie Industry
Over the next few years, the House Un-American Activities Committee, also known as HUAC investigated the possibility of subversive activities by fascist, Nazis, or communists. A group known as the Hollywood Ten, was questioned by HUAC. They refused to answer the questions because of their 5th amendment rights. The hearings turned into a series of attacks and counter-attacks. It ended with them being charged with contempt of court and being put in prison. -
"X" Publishes article called "The Sources of Soviet Conduct"
George F. Kennan, also know as "X", had written an article that was called "The Sources of Soviet Conduct" and published it in the July 1947 issue in a magazine called "Foreign Affairs. In the article, he had outlined a blueprint for American policy regarding communism which came to be know as containment. The goal of containment was to "contain" communism and keep it inside its current borders. -
Congress Approves Marshell Plan
In the month of April 1948, the Secretary of State George C. Marshall got congress to pass what was known as the Marshall Plan. Over a period of four years, the Marshall Plan gave $13 billion dollars in grants and loans to nations in western Europe. The program provided food to reduce famine, fuel to heat houses, factories, etc. and money to jump-start economic growth. -
Berlin Airlift Began
In June 1948, Stalin blockaded all of the roads, waterways, and railroads from western Germany to West Berlin. The United States and Britain, in response, flew supplies and toys into West Berlin for almost a year. In May, Stalin was forced to admit that the blockade had failed. -
NATO was Formed
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, also known as NATO was formed in 1949 and provided collective security. This organization proved that the combined power of its thirteen members was enough to halt Stalin in his quest to spread communism. -
Soviets Tested Their First A-Bomb
On September 2, 1949 an American B-29 had flown over Alaska and detected unusual radiation in the atmosphere. American nuclear scientists concluded that the Soviet Union had finally acquired nuclear technology which struck fear into the hearts of many Americans. The thought that everything could be wiped out in a second brought lots of terror to many Americans. -
USA Tested our First H-Bomb
The test of the "Ivy Mike" H-bomb took place on November 1, 1952. It was the first H-bomb that had ever been tested. Its destructive force was over 1000 times stronger than the A-bomb. The Soviet Union copied the American design of the H-bomb only eight months subsequent to our testing. -
Joseph Stalin's Death
After Stalin's death, a short power struggle took place which essentially ended up with Nikita Khrushev in power. Because Khrushev was still a determined opponent of the United States, he became even more suspicious and cruel then Stalin. He had condemned the excesses of the Stalin regime and moved toward a more peaceful relation with the democratic West. -
Warsaw Pact was Formed
Because West Germany joined NATO, the Soviet Union as well as its satellite states formed a rival military alliance called the Warsaw Pact. All the communist states of Eastern Europe except Yugoslavia were members of Warsaw. Just like NATO, they had to pledge that if one of the members were attacked, the rest would help defend. -
Khrushchev and Eisenhower Meet at Geneva
In July 1955, Khrushchev and Eisenhower met at summit in Geneva, Switzerland. Although not much happened during this meeting, it was a step in the direction of peace between the two super powers. -
The "Eisenhower Doctrine"
In response to the Soviet's influence in the Middle East and other places, the President made a statement in January of 1957 that became know as the Eisenhower Doctrine. The Eisenhower Doctrine said that the United States would use force to protect any Middle Eastern nation that was being threatened by communism. -
Sputnik 1 Launched
The first manmade object that was launched into space was from the Soviet Union. It was a 184-pound steel ball called "Sputnik" that contained a small transmitter. About a month later, they launched a larger satellite that carried the famous dog, Laika. Because the satellite had nowhere to land, the dog died in orbit. The launches shocked U.S citizens because they had believed that their technology was superior. -
NASA
Because of the launch of Sputnik, the U.S went into crisis mode, which responded with congress authorizing $1 million dollars for the National Defense Education Act. This act provided money that could be used towards loans for high school students and college graduates to become scientists and teachers of science. Congress also approved the launch of the National Aeronautics and allowed that Space Administration to coordinate the space-related efforts of American scientists and our military. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The Bay of Pigs showed how much the Americans did not trust Castro and if they wait to overthrow him, dangers would be lurking in the near future. This failed invasion strengthened ties between the USSR and Cuba, which led to the Cuban missile crisis. -
Berlin War Taken Down
The taking down of the Berlin Wall represented the beginning of the end of the Cold War. After the wall had been broken down, the people from East Germany were celebrating because they were finally free. -
The Cold War Ends
Once the Soviet Union had officially crumbled, it marked the end of the Cold War because there was no one left to fight. It was a great relief for the countries in NATO because there was no longer a nuclear threat looming.
