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The Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was a policy set by President Truman saying that the US would aid Greece and Turkey with economic and military assistance to prevent the spread of communism. Truman told Congress that the doctrine was "the policy of the United States to support free people who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures." -
The Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was the American program to aid Europe where the US gave monetary support to help rebuild European economies after the end of WWII in order to prevent the spreat of Soviet Communism. The goals were to rebuild a war devastated region, remove trade barriers, modernize industry, and make Europe prosperous once again. -
Creation of NATO
NATO is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty. The organization establishes a system of collective defence where the members agree to mutual defense in response to attack by a party not involved in the organization. The outbreak of the Korean War was crucial for NATO as a result of the threat of all Communist countries working together. -
Soviets create and test nuclear bomb
The Soviet nuclear program was directed by Soviet nuclear physicist Igor Kurchatov and started by Joseph Stalin in 1943. Soviets gathered intelligence on the German nuclear program and the American nuclear efforts. The program expanded after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Soviet Alsos and atomic spy ring aided the research to conduct the first test which was codenamed First Lightnight at Semipalatinsk, Kazakh USSR. -
The Korean War
(June 25, 1950 - July 27, 1953)
The Korean War was a war between South Korea (supported by the United Nations) and North Korea (supported by the People's Republic of China). This war was the main result of the political division of Korea by an agreement of the Allies at the end of WWII. -
Creation of the Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact was a mutual defense treaty between eight communist states established under the power of the Soviet Union. This was a Soviet military reaction to the integration of West Germany into NATO in 1955. -
Vietnam War
(November 1, 1955 - April 30, 1975)
The vietnam war was a military conflict that was fought between North Vietnam (supported by communest allies) and the government of South Vietnam (supported by the United States and other anti-communist countries). The US viewed their involvement as a way to prevent communist takeover of South Vietnam.The war resulted in a North Vietnam victory -
Soviets launch Sputnik
Sputnik was the first artificial Earth satellite launched by the Soviet Union into a low Earth orbit. This began the Space Age and triggered the Space Race. The launch was the start of a new political, military, technological, and scientific development era. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The Bay of Pigs Invasion was an unsuccessful military invasion on Cuba designed to overthrow communist Cuba. The Brigade 2506, which was funded and trained by the CIA, was dfeated by Cuban armed forces under the command of Prime Minister Fidel Castro. -
The Berlin Wall goes up
The berlin wall was a barrier constructed by East Germany that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and East Berlin. The structure held guard towers placed along the walls and anti vehicle trenches. If a person was to try passing over or under the wall, they were immediately killed by the guards. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
(October 16-28,1962)
The Cuban missile crisis was a 13 day confrontation between the USSR and Cuba on one side and the United SWtates on the other. This event was one of the major confrontations of the cold war and came closest to turning the war into a nuclear conflict. Cuba had missiles pointed at the US incase of any future invasions but was eventually forced to remove the weapons. -
US sends a man to the moon
July 16, 1969, Apollo 11 was launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. July 19, Apollo 11 entered the moon's orbit. Once landed on the moon, Neil Armstrong turned on cameras that transmitted images to Earth. As billions of people watched from their living room telivisions, Armstrong was the first to step out of the lunar module and became the first person to set foot on the moon. This was a great achievement for the United States and put them far ahead of the Soviets in the Space Race. -
1980 Olympic hockey game
The 1980 Olympic hockey game at Lake Placid, New York was nicknamed the "Miracle on Ice." The US team was made up of amateur and collegiate players and led by coach Herb Brooks. The US defeated the Soviet team who were world champions in hockey since 1954. This was a close game full of tension because of the ongoing Cold War. "...In 2008, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) chose the "Miracle on Ice" as the century's number-one international ice hockey story." (Wikipedia, 2013) -
German reunification/ Fall of the Berlin Wall
The German reunification (1990) and the fall of the Berlin Wall was the process in which East Germany joined West Germany and when Berlin reunited into a single city. The two countries and four occupying powers produced the "Two Plus Four Treaty" unifying the German state. -
Collapse of the Soviet Union
In December of 1991, the Soviet Union seperated into fifteen different countries. The fall of the USSR was a victory for freedom and a win for the anti communist countries. This event ended the Cold War and lead to a complete change in the political standpoints all around the world. Economic and military alliances were also affected by this huge event.
