Cold War

By AntiRobs
  • Period: to

    Cold War

  • Russian Revolution

    Centered around the February Revolution which developed out of a series of violent riots on the street of Petrograd which is now St. Petersburg when the tsar was visiting troops of the WWI front AND the October Revolution which overturned the interim provisional government and established the Soviet Union; Russian Civil War broke out in the summer of 1918 and lasted until 1920.

  • Manhattan Project

    Project to develop the first nuclear weapon during WWII by the U.S., the UK, and Canada; refers to the time period where the project was under the control of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and under the administration of General Leslie R. Groves. Ended in 1946.

  • Yalta Conference

    WWII meeting between the heads of state of the U.S. (Roosevelt), Great Britain (Churchill), and the Soviet Union (Stalin) in the Crimea At Yalta to plan the occupation of postwar Germany. Ended February 11, 1945.

  • Potsdam Conference

    Held at Cecilienhof in Potsdam by the heads of state of the USSR (Stalin), the U.S. (Truman), and Great Britain (Churchill but later Attlee); objective was to determine how to administer postwar Germany after unconditionally surrendering on May 9,1945; goals of the conference were countering the effects of the war, establishment of a country post-war, and peace treaties issues with neighboring countries. Ended on August 2, 1945.

  • NATO Established

    The North Atlantic Treaty Organization formed as a result of the North Atlantic Treaty and was intended to protect North American and European from attack by the USSR; stated that any attacks made against any member of NATO was considered an attack against them all.

  • Communist Revoltion in China

    During WWII, popular support for the Communists increased; U.S. officials in China reported a dictatorial suppression of dissent in Nationalist-controlled areas.

  • Korean War

    Conflict between North and South Korea; began after North Korea invaded South Korea by crossing the boundaries of the two regions known as the 38th parallel; President Truman ordered American naval and sea forces under the command of General Douglas MacArthur into the fray to counteract North Korea’s advances. Ended on July 27, 1953.

  • Cuban Revolution

    Caused by the oppression of Cubans, abused human rights, and a corrupt government with ties to organized crime; goal was to get rid of Batista and his corrupt government, and establish a government for the people; Castro took over Cuba in 1959 and became its new communist leader, Batista fled to Spain and died in 1973. Ended on January 1, 1959.

  • Warsaw Pact Formed

    A military alliance of communist nations that included Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and the Soviet Union.

  • Vietnam War

    The U.S. wanted to prevent the spread of communism; U.S. won the war. Ended on April 30, 1975.

  • Sputnik Launched

    U.S. and Soviet Union were in a “space race” and the Soviet Union launched it to show that they were scientifically superior to the U.S.; this pushed the U.S. to commit more of its resources to the space race resulting in beating the USSR by putting the first man on the moon.

  • U-2 Incident

    A U-2 piloted by Francis Gary Powers was shot down over Sverdlovsk, USSR by a SAM-2; on August 17, 1960 Powers was convicted of espionage by a USSR court and sentenced to 10 years in prison; he was exchanged for a Soviet spy on February 10, 1962.

  • Bay of Pigs Invasion

    Was an attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro’s government in Cuba by the U.S. government; relations between the U.S. and Cuba had been strained and Castro had seized many U.S. assets and had strong links with the Soviet Union; attack failed because of a poor landing site, inability to disable the Cuban Air Force, and the overestimation of the Cuban people’s willingness to support a strike against Castro. Ended April 19. 1961.

  • Berlin Wall Erected

    wall was put up to separate East and West Berlin and plugged the last gap in the Iron Curtain which divided Europe into two blocs; at first the wall was just a large barbed wire fence but later became a concrete wall.

  • Cuban Missile Crisis

    Khrushchev knew that Kennedy had weapons of mass destruction in Turkey and he asked if Kennedy was willing to remove them then he would remove his weapons out of Cuba, Kennedy said he would do everything Khrushchev asked but remove his weapons from Turkey; Khrushchev later removed his installations and returned them back to the Soviet Union, trusting that the U.S. wouldn’t invade Cuba. Ended November 1962.

  • Nixon Visits China

    This meeting with Mao Zedong marked the re-opening of U.S. relations with China.

  • Soviets Invade Afghanistan

    Soviets invaded Afghanistan to preserve their stake in it from the west and Iran; also saw Afghanistan as a way to advance their importance and dominance in Asia. Ended on February 15, 1989.

  • USA Creates the Strategic Defense Initiative

    Proposed U.S. strategic defensive system against potential nuclear attacks; proposed by Reagan and dubbed “Star Wars” because the advocacy was based in space.

  • "Tear Down This Wall" Speech

    The Soviet Union and East Germany were imploding on themselves so Reagan thought that the wall should be torn down because it was causing more and more of a division between the two.

  • Tiananmen Square Protests in China

    Mass student protests led to the massacre which was sparked by the death of former secretary General Hu Yaobang.

  • Fall of Berlin Wall

    “Fell” in the conclusion of an international press conference in East Berlin; official demolition of the wall began on June 13, 1990.

  • USSR is Abolished

    All Soviet institutions ceased to function.