Cold War and Beyond. Neither the Soviet Union or the U.S. declared war on each other.
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Greek Civil War
A two stage conflict during which the Greek communist tried to take control of Greece. The Greek communist where unsuccessful in the end. -
Postwar Occupation and Division of Germany
After WWII the Allies split Germany into four occupation zones. Each zone was controlled by a different Allied army. -
Berlin Blockade and Airlift
Soviet Union tried to limit travel for the United States, Great Britain, and France to Berlin. 2.5 million citizens were without food, fuel, and other basic goods. The western powers instituted an airlift that lasted almost a year to deliver essential supplies to Berlin. -
Enactment of Marshall Plan
President Truman signed the Economic Recovery Act of 1948 which became known as the Marshall Plan. George Marshall proposed that the United States provide economic assistance to restore the economic infrastructure of postwar Europe. -
Chinese Communist Revolution
Mao Zedong declared the creation of the People's Republic of China. The announcement ended the civil war between the CCP and the KMT. -
Korean War
North Korea sent 75,000 soldiers across the 38th parallel. It was the first military action of the Cold War. -
Cuban Revolution
Rebel forces in Cuba carried out attacks on government facilities, sugar plantations, and other sites that dealt with Castro's Revolution. Castro entered into Cuban power. The US broke off ties with Cuba and the following years were followed with rising tensions. -
Overthrow of the Mossadegh Government in Iran
The military overthrew Mossadeq in August 19, 1953. Shah returned to power and signed over 40 percent of Iran's oil fields to U.S. companies. Mossadeq was arrested, served 7 years in prison, and died under house arrest in 1967. -
Vietnam War
May 1954 the French lose almost a century of rule over Indochina. New leaders are chosen in the north and south. The US supported South Vietnam. Diem's forces cracked down on Vietnam Communist who were tortured and executed. -
Overthrow of the Guatemalan Government
Guatemalan president Jacobo Arbenz Guzman was forcefully removed from power to protect the profits or the United Fruit Company, -
Formation of the Eastern Bloc
At the begging of WWII the Soviet Union created the Eastern Bloc consisting of a group of communist states. -
Hungarian Uprising
It was a countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic and the domestic policies imposed by the USSR. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The invasion was a failed attack to put the leader of Cuba Fidel Castro out of power. Fighting lasted less than 24 hours. -
Building the Berlin Wall
The Communist government of the German Democratic Republic built a barber wire and concrete antifascistischer bulwark between East and West Berlin. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
The U.S. and Soviet Union had a 13 day political and military standoff over the installation of Soviet Missiles on Cuba 90 miles form U.S. shores. -
Prague Spring
The Czechoslovakia government wanted to democratize the nation and lessen the stranglehold Moscow had on the nation's affairs. -
Tiananmen Square Massacre
Chinese troops stormed through Tiananmen Square killing and arresting thousands of pro-democracy protesters. At least 300 were killed and possibly even thousands. 10,000 were arrested. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
500,000 people gathered in East Berlin in a mass protest. Leaders tried to calm protesters by loosening the borders, making travel for East Germans easier. The wall crumbled after 5 days. -
Fall of the Soviet Union
Mikhail Gorbachev resigned as president of the Soviet Union leaving Boris Yeltsin as president of the independent Russian state. -
9/11 attacks
Four airplanes were hijacked. Two were flown into the twin towers, a third hit the pentagon, and the fourth landed in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Almost 3,000 people were killed.