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It was an attempt to end the war in the Pacific without a costly invasion of Japan. The U.S. dropped two atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. -
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The control of Germany was divided between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union. It was divided into four parts controlled by Britain, France, United States, and the Soviet Union. -
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The Marshall plan was to help rebuild the European economy, and prevent the spread of communism. Land routes were blocked, so the United States responded with an airlift of food and supplies. -
The Soviet Union began research on its own atomic bomb work in 1943. The information was stolen from the Manhattan Project by Soviet spies. The USSR was able to develop its own nuclear weapon within only a few years after World War II. In August of 1949, it conducted a successful test of a 20-kiloton bomb years ahead of American predictions. -
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In June of 1950, North Koreans invaded South Korea. UN forces attack behind North Korean Lines, September of 1950. UN forces push north from Pusan and Inchon, September-October of 1950. -
The U.S. tested its first hydrogen bomb on the island of Elugelab in the Eniwetok Atoll in the Marshall Islands. Code named Ivy Mike, the device was detonated remotely from a distance of about 30 miles. The fireball was 3 miles wide and reached a height of 120,000 feet. -
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From November 1950 to January 1951, China enters on North Korea's side.After three years of fighting, the war ended. North as a communist country, and South as an ally of the West. -
The Soviets launched Sputnik, the world’s first artificial satellite, in October of 1957. To the US military, this was proof that the USSR had the missile technology to attack the United States with nuclear weapons. Both countries started a race to the moon. -
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North Vietnam was against South Vietnam and the United States. It ended because the United States forces withdrew in 1973 and Vietnam unified under Communist control two years later. The Unites States did not want Communism to spread to the rest of Asia and South Vietnam. -
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Massive numbers of East Berliners were escaping through the open border to West Berlin. On August 12, the Soviet Premier Khrushchev gave the East German government permission to stop the flow of emigrants by closing its border for good. -
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Millions of Germans celebrated as thousands of their compatriots tore down the Berlin Wall. This marked one of the most amazing symbols and enduring images of the Cold War. -
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The Soviet Union comes to an end. Leaders of every Eastern European nation, except for Bulgaria, were overthrown by popular uprisings by the end of 1989. Boris Yeltsin, formed the Commonwealth of Independent states. The Cold War was brought to an end after 45 years, which was the longest war in US history. -