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Churchill's "Iron Curtain" Speech
On March 5th, 1946, former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill went to the U.S. to make a speech in the small town of Fulton, Missouri. "From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent." said Churchill. By saying this, he meant that an "iron curtain" had come down across the boundary that divided Europe into two separate areas at the end of World War II. -
Truman Doctrine
Before a joint session of Congress, President Harry S. Truman gave a speech on this date. He set forth a policy known as the The Truman Doctrine which was an international relations policy. It stated that the U.S. would support Greece and Turkey with economic and military aid to prevent them from being captured by the Soviet Union. Historians often consider this speech to be the start of the Cold War. -
Marshall Plan is Established
Named after Truman's Secretary of State, George C. Marshall. It offered $13 billion in aid to western and southern Europe to help the nations of Europe rebuild. The goals of the United States with this plan were to rebuild a war-devastated region, remove trade barriers, modernize industry, and make Europe prosperous again. -
Creation of NATO
NATO, or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty. The NATO alliance included the United States, Canada, and ten Western Europeans nations. In response to this, the Soviet Union and Eastern European nations formed the Warsaw Pact.The outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950 was crucial for NATO as it raised the threat of all Communist countries working together and forced the alliance to develop military plans. -
People's Republic of China Created
Major combat in the Chinese Civil War ended in 1949 with the Communist Party in control of mainland China. On October 1, 1949, Chairman Mao Zedong, declared the Republic of China was now know as the People's Republic of China. The United States withheld recognition from the new communist government in China. In the next fe years, the U.S. continued to support the Republic of China. The United States extended formal diplomatic recognition to the People's Republic of China in 1979. -
Start of Korean War
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Korean War
The Korean War was betweeen North and South Korea. South Korea was supported by the United Nations, while North Korea was supported by the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China. The war lasted for 3 years, 1 month and 2 days, resulting in about 2.5 million civilian casualties. Eventually, the United States, the People's Republic of China, North Korea, and South Korea agree to an armistice, bringing the Korean War to an end. -
End of Korean War
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KGB Established
The KGB, or the Committee for State Security, was the main security agency for the Soviet Union from 1954 until its collapse in 1991. The KGB also has been considered a military service and was governed by army laws and regulations. It was Cold War policy for the KGB to extensively monitor public and private opinions. The KGB was desolved on November 6th, 1991. -
Start of Vietnam War
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Vietnam War
This was a war that lasted for 19 years, 5 months, 4 weeks and 1 day and killed from 1,102,000–3,886,026 people. There were communist forces on one side, which included North Vietnam and was supported by the Soviet Union. On the other were the anti-communist forces, which were the US and South Vietnam. The US left the war two years before it ended. AS a result, Congress enacted the War Powers Act in 1973. This requires the President to go to Conress in order to send American forces overseas. -
Launch of Sputnik
Sputnik 1 was the first man-made object to surround the Earth. It was made and launched by the Soviet Union during the space race, where the two superpowers were trying to get "supremacy in space exploration". It weighed 184 pounds and was technically the world's first satellite. Sputnik 1 remained in orbit until early 1958. -
Building of Berlin Wall Starts
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by East Germany. The point of building the wall was to completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany. The barrier included guard towers placed along large concrete walls as well as other defenses. Between 1961 and 1989, around 5,000 people attempted to escape over the wall, with an estimated death toll of over 600. -
Start of Cuban Missile Crisis
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Cuban Missle Crisis
This was a 13-day confrontation between the Soviet Union and Cuba on one side, and the United States on the other. It was one of the major confrontations of the Cold War, and was the moment in which the Cold War came closest to turning into a nuclear conflict. There were missiles in Cuba that could easily reach the United States. Kennedy had options, but decided to blockade Cuba. In the end, Kennedy secretly agreed to remove all missiles in Europe, for the removal of the ones in Cuba. -
End of Cuban Missile Crisis
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John F. Kennedy is Assassinated
In Dallas, Texas, John F, Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States was shot be Lee Harvey Oswald. He was rushed to the hospital, but there was no chance to save him. He was the fourth president assassinated, with the other three being Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield, and William McKinley. After the assassination, Kennedy was succeeded by Lyndon B. Johnson. -
Apollo 11 Lands on Moon
Apollo 11 was the spaceflight that landed the first humans on the Moon. Americans Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first people to walk on the surface of the moon. This was the fifth manned mission of NASA's Apollo program. The Soviet Union was secretly attempting to compete with the US in landing a man on the Moon, but had been prevented by the repeated failures of their launch. -
President Nixon Resigns
Richard Nixon was the 37th President of the United States. The Watergate scandal was a political scandal that occurred in the United States in the 1970s. The scandal cost Nixon much of his political support, and on August 9, 1974, he resigned in the face of almost certain impeachment and removal from office. He remains the only President ever to resign. -
End of Vietnam War
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Ronald Reagan's "Evil Empire" Speech
The phrase "evil empire" was applied to the Soviet Union by U.S. President Ronald Reagan. Reagan's March 8, 1983, speech to the National Association of Evangelicals in Orlando, Florida, is his first recorded use of the phrase "evil empire." According to historians, Reagan believed he had no choice but to condemn the Soviet system because it was evil. -
Fall of Berlin Wall
On November 9, 1989, after standing for over 25 years, the Berlin Wall was demolished. After hearing a broadcast that said "This is a historic day. East Germany has announced that, starting immediately, its borders are open to everyone. The GDR is opening its borders...", people started gathering at the wall.They demanded that border guards immediately open the gates.The wall was not demolished all at once, people came and did it slowly. -
Collapse of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the USSR was finalized on December 26, 1991 by declaration № 142-H of the Soviet of the Republics of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. The day before, leader Mikhail Gorbachev had resigned. The declaration acknowledged the independence of the twelve republics of the Soviet Union that created the Commonwealth of Independent States. This date marked the end of the Cold War as one of the two superpowers was no longer a superpower.
