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Marshall Plan
Marshall Plan is announced setting a precedent for helping countries combat poverty, disease, and malnutrition. -
Truman Doctrine
Truman declares an active role in the Greek Civil War. -
Rio Pact
US meet 19 Latin American countries and created a security zone around the hemisphere. -
Communist Takeover in Czechoslovakia
Communism took over Czechoslovakia and assumed undisputed control over the government. -
Loyalty Program
Truman created a loyalty program in order to catch Cold War spies. -
Berlin Blockade begins lasting 11 months
Soviets forced blockaded rail, road, and water access to Allied-controlled areas of Berlin. -
Berlin Blockade Ends
The Soviets decided to lift the Berlin Blockade, which the Western powers had succeeded in circumnavigating with their Berlin Airlift. -
Russia Tests its First Atomic Bomb
The Soviet Union exploded its first atomic bomb near Asia. -
Mao Zedong Takes Control of China
Communist Mao Zedong takes control of China and establishes the people's Republic of China. -
Joe McCarthy Begins Communist Witch Hunt and Loyalty Tests
McCarthy asserted in a speech that he had a list of "members of the Communist Party and members of a spy ring" who were employed in the State Department. -
Truman Approved H-Bomb Development
President Harry S Truman publicly announced his decision to support the development of the hydrogen bomb. -
Korean War Begins
Stalin supports North Korea who invade South Korea equipped with Soviet weapons. -
East Germany Imposes Blockade of West Berlin
The blockade had been broken by a massive U.S.-British airlift of vital supplies to West Berlin's two million citizens -
Federal Civil Defense Administration Established
The Federal Civil Defense Administration was established as an independent agency. -
Congress Passes 22nd Amendment
The 22nd Amendment was passed, limiting to two terms in office. -
Truman Fires MacArthur
President Truman fired MacArthur and replaced him with Matthew Ridgeway. Truman addressed the nation and explained his actions. -
NATO Conference Approves European Army
This 1952 treaty created a European Army within NATO. -
A-Bombs Developed by Britain
Britains first atomic bomb was detonated. Britain developed its own atom bomb to remain a great power and avoid complete dependence on the United States, which was refusing to share atomic information. -
Dwight Eisenhower Elected President over Adlai Stevenson by Wide Margin
Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower won a landslide victory over Democrat Adlai Stevenson II, which ended a string of Democratic Party wins that stretched back to 1932. -
RAND report on the "Vulnerability of U. S. Strategic Air Power"
The RAND report on the "Vulnerability of U. S. Strategic Air Power" is a progress report of a continuing study of the vulnerability. -
Korean War Ends
The United States, the People's Republic of China, North Korea, and South Korea agree to an armistice, bringing the fighting of the Korean War to an end. -
Ike's Atoms For Peace Speech
President Eisenhower sought to resolve this terrible problem by suggesting a means to transform the atom of a scourge into a benefit for mankind. -
Vietnam Split at 17th Parallel
In July 1954, the Geneva Agreements were signed. As part of the agreement, the French agreed to withdraw their troops from northern Vietnam. Vietnam would be temporarily divided at the 17th parallel, pending elections within two years to choose a president and reunite the country. -
The U.S. Launches The World's First Nuclear Submarine
The United States tested our their first ever nuclear submarine, the USS Nautilus. The nuclear submarine would become the ultimate nuclear deterrent -
United States Capitol shooting
The 1954 United States Capitol shooting was an attack on March 1, 1954, by four Puerto Rican nationalists who sought to promote the cause of Puerto Rico's independence from US rule. -
The Baghdad Pact is founded by Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.
It is committed to resisting Communist expansion in the Middle East. March: Soviet aid to Syria begins. -
Warshaw Pact Formed
The Warsaw Pact was created in reaction to the integration of West Germany into NATO in 1955 as per the London and Paris Conferences of 1954. -
Ngo Dinh Diem replaces Bo Dai as leader of South Vietnam.
Known popularly as "Big Minh," Duong led the South Vietnamese army under prime minister Ngo Dinh Diem. -
USRR Sent Tanks
USRR sent tanks into Poznan, Poland, to suppress demonstrations by workers. -
USRR Sent Millitary Aid to Afghanistan
USRR provided military aid to those in Afghanistan. -
Suez Crisis Began
Suez Crisis began with an Israeli attack led by Moshe Dayan against Egyptian forces in the Sinai. -
Vostok Rocket Launched 1st ICBM
the R-7 missile was powerful enough to launch a nuclear warhead against the United States or to hurl a spacecraft into orbit. -
Sputnik Launched Into Orbit
The USSR launched Sputnik, the first artificial satellite to orbit Earth. -
Sputnik II launched - Laika died in space
Unlike its predecessor, Sputnik 2 carried various scientific instruments to learn about the universe beyond Earth. -
NASA began Mercury project using Atlas rocket
In October 1958, just six days after NASA formally organized, America's first human spaceflight program was born -
Explorer I launched
Famed rocket scientist Wernher von Braun oversaw the development of the Jupiter 1-C rocket that launched Explorer 1. America's first satellite weighed just 30.66 pounds. -
Khrushchev demands withdrawal of troops from Berlin
On November 10, 1958, Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev delivered a speech in which he demanded that the Western powers of the United States, Great Britain and France pull their forces out of West Berlin within six months. -
Cuba taken over by Fidel Castro
After Batista's overthrow in 1959, Castro assumed military and political power as Cuba's prime minister -
The Kitchen Debate
A series of impromptu exchanges through interpreters between U.S. Vice President Richard Nixon, then 46, and Chairman of the Council of Ministers Nikita Khrushchev, 65, at the opening of the American National Exhibition at Sokolniki Park -
NATO rejects Khrushchev’s ultimatum
NATO rejects Khrushchev’s ultimatum of November 1958, declaring its intention to protect all occupying powers in West Berlin. -
United States Ends All Aid to Cuba
Following the revolution of 1959 and the rise of Fidel Castro to power, relations steadily deteriorated. As a result of Castro's reforms and the Cuban government's increased cooperation with the Soviet Union, the United States severed diplomatic relations with Cuba in January 1960. -
NATO introduces a unified air defence command.
NATO countries agreed to place all their air defence forces under the command of SACEUR in the event of war. -
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was constructed in August 1961. -
The Berlin Crisis
the last major European politico-military incident of the Cold War about the occupational status of the German capital city, Berlin, and of post–World War II Germany. -
East German Soldiers
East German soldiers laid down more than 30 miles of barbed wire barrier through the heart of Berlin. -
The Cuban Missile Crisis
direct and dangerous confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War and was the moment when the two superpowers came closest to nuclear conflict. -
The Sino-Indian War
The Sino-Indian War between China and India occurred. A disputed Himalayan border was the main cause of the war. -
Cuban Missle Crisis Prep
The Soviet Union began to secretly install missiles in Cuba to launch attacks on U.S. cities. The confrontation that followed, known as the Cuban missile crisis, brought the two superpowers to the brink of war before an agreement was reached to withdraw the missiles. -
John F Kennedy Assasination
President John F Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. Texas state campaigning for re-election.