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U.S drops atomic bomb on Nagasaki.
70 thousand people were killed in the Nagasaki bomb attack. Nagasaki was the second city in Japan to be bombed by the US in the same week (Hiroshima 6th of August). This marked the start of the Cold War as it started the Soviet Union thinking about improving their Nucleur defences which led to them also dropping bombs a few years later. -
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The Cold War
The Cold War was a battle between the Soivt Union and the United States. Or can be looked at as a war between a communist and capitalist countries. It was called a Cold War because there was never any physical fights during the 50 years the the war raged. -
Stalin hostile speech
At the end of World War 2 during the Yalta conference in February, 1945, Stalin was repersenting the Soviet Union. During the meeting he promised "free and unfettered" elections in Poland and in other East European countries that the Soviet's occupied. He and many others feared that having free elections in Poland would bring to power many Poles who were critical of him, the Soviet Union and the decisions that had been made for them. -
Communist Mao Zedong takes over China
Mao Zedong came to power over Chiang Kai-shek during the 1941 Chinese election. He brought communisim into China leaving The Soviet Union free to turn their focus to the East.. After rising to power Mao became one of the deadliest leaders ever, resulting in over 45,000,000 deaths. That was more deaths than Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin combined. The deaths came from the failed government policies he put into place and because he had no regard or care for his people. -
Koren War Starts
Communist armed forces from North Korea smash into South Korea, starting the Korean War. The United States, acting for the United Nations, quickly jumped into the defense of South Korea and fought a long three years against South Korea. Korea, like Germany had been divided into zones of Communisim verses Capitalism following World War II. The 'temporary' division soon after became permanent, ending in a long, bloody war. -
Koren War ends
The Korean War involved the United Nations led by the United States of America fighting for the South, while the Soviet Union and China fought for North Korea. Chinese intervention forced the United Nations Command back into South Korea, and three years of the war saw a stalemate. The fighting ended on 27 July 1953, when the Armistice agreement was signed. -
Petrov Affair
Vladimir Petrov, a Soviet diplomat and spy, sought and was granted asylum in Australia. Petrov provided documents and oral information about Soviet espionage activities in Australia to the Australian security service and a Royal Commission was established to inquire into the affair. -
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact came about when West Germany joined NATO. The Pact officially called the 'treaty of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance' came into place in May 1955. Part of joining the pact was pledging to 'defend all other members if they were attacked'. Everyone relied on others to assist them if needed. At the conclusion of the Cold War, the Warsaw Pact ended as it was unneeded and unwanted. -
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was built to separate Communism and Captialism in Berlin. There were only a few points where people could pass across the wall. The building of the wall resulted in some families being separated and rarely being able to make contact. The security on the wall was very high. -
Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan
Russia intervened in Afghanistan in 1979 to support a pro-Soviet government. Ultimately the Soviets were unsuccessful in restoring the government's authority and in 1989 withdrew their armed forces leaving behind a civil war which persists to the present day. The war resulted in 15,000 Russian and over a million Afghan deaths. -
Berlin Wall is opened
The change began when Mikhail Gorbachev came to power in the Soviet Union in 1985. He tried to make changes in the states Communist party by restructuring the economy’s production and distribution system, a plan known as Perestroika. Due to this, the politics in Germany began to lean toward the destruction of the wall. In 1989, there was an anti-government demonstration in East Germany.
