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The Yalta Conference
The Yalta Conference was a meeting that involved the U.S. President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, and Soviet Union leader, Joseph Stalin, discussing the future of Europe as well as Germany. They talked about how Germany will be required to pay the reparations because of the damage the Axis powers did. Also, it was planned that the Soviet Union would go to war with Japan 2-3 months after Germany surrendered, Europe was split into a Democracy and Communism. -
Berlin Declaration
The Berlin Declaration talked about Germany's defeat after World War II. The U.S., Soviet Union, United Kingdom, and French Republic had taken over some areas in Germany. The Reich continued to stay and areas occupid by the Allies would be split into four zones. -
The Potsdam Conference
The Potsdam Conference was a meeting between Joseph Stalin, Winsotn Churchill, and U.S. President Harry Truman, in Potsdam, Germany. They discussed what will happen to Germany after their surrender months before. While Stalin wanted Germany to pay their reparations heavily, Truman wanted to make it less severe, to prevent Germany from rising again. It was then discussed that Germany would be completely disarmed. A nuclear weapon was discussed during the meeting, and was used against Japan. -
North Vietnam
Just after Japan had surrendered from WWII, a man anmed Ho Chi Minh proclaimed the independence of Vietnam from France. The French took hold of southern Vietnam and talked with Vietnam communists. Eventually, these talks led to no where, and a war between Vietnam and France started years later. -
Iron Curtain Speech
After Winsotn Churchill was defeated in the election of Prime Minister in 1945, he was invited to Westminister College in Fulton, Missouri where he gave his famous speech there. He publicly disapproved of the Soviet Union's policies in Europe and also praised the United States as a great power. This speech was one of the first causes that led to the Cold War. -
Containment Policy
A man named George F. Kennan established the Containment Policy, which was how the U.S. will deal with the Soviet Union in the Cold War. This policy was to limit and control the amount of violence and conflict between the two superpowers, At first, many people disapproved, and some others wanted the complete opposite of containment and wanted to liberate Eastern Europe. Despite all the criticism. containment became the main strategy that U.S. used in the Cold War, -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was a plan in which the U.S. would help other European countries in their economic problems by donating billions of dollars. The Soviet Union did not want to include themselves in this plan due to not trusting America. -
Berlin Blockade and Berlin Airlift
The goal of the Berlin Blockade was to prevent other countries from easily accessing Berlin. This plan was started by the Soviet Union. However, the Blockade became one of the first major conflicts in the Cold War. The Marshall plan was one of a few reasons for the Berlin Blockade to even start. Because of Berlin Blockade, new currencies were made between Western nations and the Soviet Union. America's solution was to send various aircraft that delivered many necessities for nearyl a year. -
NATO
On this day, NATO was formed. NATO stands for North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It is made up of the U.S., France, Belgium, Britain, and couple more western countries. Because of NATO, the Easter countries of Europe responded by making the Warsaw Pact. -
Soviet Union tests Atomic Bomb
On this day, the Soviet Union was able to make a succesful atomic bomb, which was code named "First Lightning". During this test, several constructions and mammals were placed near the vicinity to experiment the ffects of the explosion. A month later, a U.S. spy plane was able to detect radioactivity from the bomb, and President Truman announced that Soviet Union also made an Atomic Bomb. However, the U.S. made the first hydrogen bomb, even more deadlier than the atomic bomb. -
Korean War - American Involvement
The Korean War was a conflict between North Korea and South Korea. Days after the war, Harry Truman sent U.S. troops to assist South Korea, and also requested the U.N. to send other troops. The U.S. and South Korea had been pushed far back in the war, due to a surprise attack by North Korea. However, General Douglas MacArthur was able to push back North Korea as far as to China. 33,000 U.S. soldiers died, and the war cost the U.S. $50 billion. -
Julius and Ethel Rosenburg
Julius and Ethel Rosenburg were two people guilty of spying on U.S. information for the Soviet Union. They were accused of gathering intelligence of the atomic bomb and spreading it to the Soviet Union. They were executed two years later through electric chair. -
Eisenhower Presidency
On this day, Dwight Eisenhower became President. Eisenhower would serve 8 years as a President. He took care of the conflict involving the Soviet Union and the nuclear weapons. He also established the Interstate Highway System. -
Nikita Khrushchev
A couple of months after the death of Joseph Stalin, a man named Nikita Khrushchev was elected as first secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. To the shock of everyone in the Soviet Union, Khrushchev publicly announced the evil of Stalin's actions. Throughout the next couple of years, many people opposed Khrushchev, but eventually he became the new leader of the Soviet Union. -
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact was a treaty involving the Soviet Union and various Eastern European countries. The Warsaw Pact was opposite to the NATO, which involved Western European countries. The Treaty stated that the countries were to protect each other if they came under attack. Although it involved many Western European countries, it seemed that the Soviet Union was the one making all the rules. Later in the 1980's, political changes made the Warsaw Pact ineffective. -
Sputnik
On this day, the first artifical sattelite was released from Earth by the Soviet Union, the Sputnik-1. Citizens of the United States were shocked, because they thought the U.S. would be the first one to accomplish this. Because of the launch of the Sputnik, it had been thought that the U.S. military were behind in terms of advanced technology to the Soviet Union. Eisenhower stated that the Sputnik was not that much of an accomplishment, but he would give funds to the U.S. to catch up. -
Cuban Revolution
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U2 Incident
On this day, the Soviet Union spotted a U2 Spy Plane and shot it down. They were able to capture the pilot, Francis Powers. Because of this incident, the President admitted that the CIA had been spying on the Soviet Union for years now. Powers was sentenced for espionage and was sent to jail for 10 years. After this event, tension further increased between the United States and the Soviet Union. -
Kennedy Presidency
On November 8, 1960, John F. Kennedy was elected as president, beating Richard Nixon. Throughout the campaign, Nixon tried his best to say that Kennedy was too young and inexperienced to handle the United State's problem with the Cold War. As President, Kennedy wanted to bring back American foreign policy. As Kennedy's Presidency continued, Nixon's statements came true as Kennedy couldn't handle various problems such as the Berlin Wall and Bay of Pigs Invasion. -
First Man in Space
A Soviet astronaut became the first man to be in space. His name was Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin, and the time for him to go from Earth to space was 89 minutes on his launch. His rocket, Vostok 1, stayed in space for an bour and 48 minutes. Ever since this, he became famous worldwide and was given various rewards and tributes towards him. This event made Soviet Union look superior, since the U.S. planned this in a later time. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The invasion was an attempt to overthrow the Cuban government and Fidel Castro. The CIA had been training for a year to be prepared to attack Cuba and take it down. Although many people advised that there was a small chance of success, Kennedy still sent people to Cuba. This plan failed, when Castro's forces had counter attacked. Around 100 people had died, and over 1,000 had been captured. Because of the failed invasion, Cuba had guarenteed its power and Kennedy was to blame for it. -
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was built to seperate West Berlin from East Berlin. This kept from anyone leaving their zone, and from anyone coming in. This id due to many people ffrom East Berlin to always flee to the West, and as much as a million had left for 10 years. People including laborers and intellectuals left, which hurt the economy fo East Berlin. It was originally surrounded by barbed wire, but was later replaced by concrete, and more would be added. West Berlin was a symbol of opression. -
JFK Assassination
As Kennedy was traveling through Dallas, Texas inside a vehicle, he was assassinated. AS Kennedy and his wife were waving at the group of people there watching him, he was shot by a man named Lee Harvey Oswald, who was in a building when he did so. Soon after, Lydon Johnson, who was previously Vice-President, became the 36th President of the U.S. Later, Oswald was killed by a man named Jack Ruby due to his rage of the president being murdered. -
Gulf of Tonkin Resoulution
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Prague Spring
In Czechoslovakia, a man named Alexander Dubcek became the first secretary of the country. During his time of rule, he increased the freedom of speech in the country as well as brining political dissidents back to its original state. His many reforms had a positive criticism and this time of freedom was called the "Prague Spring". -
Tet Offensive
An attack strategy ccalled the Tet Offensive was used by North Vietnam against South Vietnam. Its strategy involved attacking over 100 cities in South Vietnam. THe reason behind this attack was to stir up a rebellion in the South Vietnam population. Although very slowly, North Vietnam was succesful with this strategy, and was a reason for America to slowly back out of the war. -
Nixon Presidency
On this day, Richard Nixon became the 37th President of the United States. He was determined to manage foreign relations and foreign policy with the White House. He believed that he must have great power in the international system. His main concern was ending the Vietnam War, because if he was unsuccesful, the Soviet Union would be seen as a greater power and would probably risk a war between the countries. Although he hoped to end the war in a year, the war countinued to last even longer, -
Apollo 11
On this day, humans have stepped foot on the moon for the first time. They were Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin. On the moon, Armstrong made his famous statement of "That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind". This accomplishment was made eight years after President Kennedy announced it would happen. They would place the U.S. flag on the moon, and would later return back succesfully, -
Nixon visits China
President of the United States visited China. As the Prime Minister of China met up with Nixon, he advised to have peace with Vietnam. People of Vietnam were worried about this meeting, because they thought the two countries would make an alliance concerning Vietnam. Despite the meeting, China continued to aid North Vietnam in the war. -
Tiananmen Square Massacre
On this day, severeal Chinese troops went to the Tiananmen Swuare and arrested many protesters that were for democracy. This event surprised many in the West, and many in the U.S. disapproved of this. During the violence, some protesters tried fighting back, but in the end, around 300 died and around 10,000 were arrested. The actions of China even shocked its allies, and this event got bad criticism from various countries, -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
As the Cold War was beginning to decline in Eastern Europe, East Berlin had made an announcement regarding its relationship with West Berlin. It was said that at midnight, the citizens were allowed to cross the border and leave. Citizens from both sides rushed to the wall, as much as 2 million. During the event, the Berlin Wall was destroyed little by little, with various tools such as pickaxes and bulldozers being used. -
Dissoultion of the Soviet Union
On this day, the Soviet Union finally met its end. At first, the three Baltic states, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, declared its independence from the Soviet Union. Later, 11 more states would announce that they would no longer be part of the Soviet Union, leaving only Georgia to be there. This was because of Mikhail Gorbachev's failure as a President in the Soviet Union. Before Gorbachev resigned, he would make the decisions of announcing that the arms race was over,