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Russian Revolution
Russian Empire > Soviet Union
US entered WW1 in order to spread democracy through the world, but in 1917 Russia becomes a communist country.
February Revolution:
8–16 March 1917
October Revolution:
7–8 November 1917 -
Potsdam Conference
Issues:
The control of defeated Germany
Post-war boundaries
Ending the war with Japan
Dates:
Jul 17, 1945 – Aug 2, 1945 -
Iron Curtain
non-physical barrier separating the former Soviet bloc and the West
1945-1989 -
Atomic bombs
New weapon ended the war and provided a leverage in dealing with Stalin. -
Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine of 1947, with its guarantee of immediate economic and military aid to Greece and Turkey, was an initial application of the policy of containment. -
Containment(Long Telegram)
A long-term, patient but firm and vigilant containment of Russian expansive tendencies, policy suggested by George F. Kennan, diplomat and U.S. State Department adviser on Soviet affairs in his 'long telegram' -
Molotov Plan
The system created by the Soviet Union in order to provide aid to rebuild the countries in Eastern Europe that were politically and economically aligned to the Soviet Union. -
Hollywood 10
Hollywood Ten, in U.S. history, 10 motion-picture producers, directors, and screenwriters who appeared before the House Un-American Activities Committee and refused to answer questions regarding their possible communist affiliations, and, after spending time in prison for contempt of Congress, were mostly blacklisted by the Hollywood studios. -
The Berlin Blockade
An attempt by the Soviet Union to limit the ability of France, Great Britain and the United States to travel to their sectors of Berlin, which lay within Russian-occupied East Germany. -
Marshall Plan
An American initiative passed in 1948 to aid Western Europe, in which the United States gave over $12 billion in economic assistance, to make sure that people are not starving / suffering so badly that they would support Communism. -
Alger Hiss
An American government official who was accused of spying for the Soviet Union in 1948. Hiss was charged with perjury; he could not be indicted for espionage because the statute of limitations had run out. He was sentenced to five years in prison, ending an important case that helped further confirm the increasing penetration of the U.S. government by the Soviets during the Cold War. -
NATO
North Atlantic Treaty Organization - an international alliance that consists of 29 member states from North America and Europe. It was established at the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty (a mutual defense pact aimed at containing possible Soviet aggression against Western Europe) in response to Berlin Blockade. -
Berlin Airlift
When Soviets limited transportation routes to Berlin, US sent supplies by air -
First Soviet Bomb Test
Russian spies integrated into the American nuclear research team, and reported materials about the construction of the atomic bomb within 12 days after its creation. Thus, -
Chinese Communist Revolution
Resulted in the proclamation of the People's Republic of China, on 1 October 1949. This victory greatly strengthened the position of world Communism, which now spread from the China Sea to the Elbe. -
The Korean War (1950-1953)
It began when the North Korean Communist army crossed the 38th Parallel and invaded non-Communist South Korea. The United Nations, with the United States as the principal participant, joined the war on the side of the South Koreans, and the People's Republic of China came to North Korea's aid. End: the agreement created the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) to separate North and South Korea, and allowed the return of prisoners. -
The Rosenberg Trial
Julius Rosenberg was a key Soviet spy who passed along information to the Soviet Union and recruited Manhattan Project spies. He was U.S. citizen and electrical engineer. In 1951, Julius and his wife Ethel were tried and convicted of espionage for providing the Soviet Union with classified information. They were killed in 1953. -
Army-McCarthy hearings
Already infamous for his aggressive interrogations of suspected Communists, he earned more notoriety via these televised 1954 Congressional hearings. McCarthy had turned his investigations to army security, but the army in turn charged him with using improper influence to win preferential treatment for a former staff member, Pvt. G. David Schine. Although McCarthy was acquitted, his popular support waned and his political career was soon over. -
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact, formally known as the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defence treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republics of Central and Eastern Europe in May 1955, during the Cold War. -
Hungarian Revolution
Popular uprising in Hungary in 1956, following a speech by Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in which he attacked the period of Joseph Stalin’s rule, it broke out into active fighting. Rebels won the first phase of the revolution, but Soviet Union invaded Hungary to stop the revolution. Nevertheless, Stalinist-type domination and exploitation did not return, and Hungary thereafter experienced a slow evolution toward some internal autonomy. -
U2 Incident
An American U-2 spy plane is shot down while conducting espionage over the Soviet Union. The incident derailed an important summit meeting between President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev that was scheduled for later that month. -
Invasion of Czechoslovakia
Soviet troops and their Warsaw Pact allies invaded Czechoslovakia to bring an end to that country's brief period of political liberalization, called the Prague Spring. About 500,000 troops were involved in the invasion and occupation, during which 108 Czechoslovaks died and some 500 were wounded. The invasion ended the political and economic reforms led by Alexander Dubcek. It also helped establish the Brezhnev Doctrine. -
Nixon visits China
President Richard Nixon takes a dramatic first step toward normalizing relations with the communist People’s Republic of China (PRC) by traveling to Beijing for a week of talks. Nixon’s historic visit began the slow process of the re-establishing diplomatic relations between the United States and communist China. -
Reagan elected
Ronald Reagan, 40th president of the United States (1981–89), noted for his conservative Republicanism, his fervent anticommunism, and his appealing personal style, characterized by a jaunty affability and folksy charm. The only movie actor ever to become president, he had a remarkable skill as an orator that earned him the title “the Great Communicator.” His policies have been credited with contributing to the demise of Soviet communism. -
SDI
Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), byname Star Wars, proposed U.S. strategic defensive system against potential nuclear attacks—as originally conceived, from the Soviet Union. The SDI was first proposed by President Ronald Reagan in a nationwide television address on March 23, 1983. The SDI was intended to defend the United States from attack from Soviet intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) by intercepting the missiles at various phases of their flight. -
Geneva Conference with Gorbachev
The Geneva Summit, the first meeting between U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev, was held on November 19 and 20, 1985. The two leaders met to discuss the Cold War-era arms race, primarily the possibility of reducing the number of nuclear weapons. Hosted in Geneva, Switzerland, the meeting was the first American-Soviet summit in more than six years. -
Reagan's "tear down this wall" speech
"General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization, come here to this gate.
Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate!
Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
It was on the evening of Nov. 9, 1989, that an East German government official announced — somewhat prematurely, it would turn out — that the state’s citizens would be free to travel to the West. East Germans swarmed to the Berlin Wall, where they were welcomed by citizens from West Germany. There were euphoric scenes of celebration as the most potent symbol of the Iron Curtain that divided Europe was overrun.
