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Communism vs. Capitalism
Stalin says war with the West would happen because of the "captialist development of the world economy." This is an important event because it gives a start to the Cold War. We had been allies with the Soviet Union during World War II, but this changes when Stalin declares war against capitalism.
Picture source: The Fifth Column. (n.d.). Retrieved November 23, 2015, from http://www.targetofopportunity.com/fifth_column.htm -
Churchill's "Sinews of Peace" Address
In this speech, Winston Churchill says that an Iron Curtain has descended across Europe. This is important because it metaphorically separates the Soviet Union from the rest of Europe. Churchill implies that the Soviet Union is not as advanced as the Western World. In addition, it separates America from the Soviet Union after they were such close allies during World War II.
Picture source: Winston Churchill. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from http://whowaswinstonchurchill.com/churchill-sp -
Treaty of Brussels
This treaty united Western Europe agaist Communism. They wanted to protect the world from the spread of Communism. This is important because it alienates the Soviet Union from the Western World. It sends a message to the Soviet Union that most of the strong powers in the world are against Communism and that they will be fought if they try to spread Communism.
Picture Source: Treaty of Brussels, Brussels Treaty. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from http://www.caef.org.uk/d117route2 -
Berlin Blockade Begins
After World War II, the major powers in the world were occupying Germany and the USSR blocked the Allies' access to West Berlin through the railways, roads, and canals. This is important because the Allies overcame the blockade by using the Berlin airlift to get supplies to West Berlin, showing the USSR that the Allies could overcome the USSR's actions. This symbolizes that the Western powers could eventually defeat the USSR.
Picture Source: Berlin Blockade. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015. -
USSR Tests Their First Atomic Bomb
The USSR successfully testing their first atomic bomb is important because it made the USSR more of a real threat to the Western powers. Before that, America had successfully bombed Japan twice with atomic bombs, and America felt superior about its scientific prowess. However, once the USSR successfully tested their atomic bomb, they were catching up to America's level and becoming more of a dangerous power.
Picture source: Cold War: Arms Race & Space Race. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24. -
McCarthyism in America
Joseph McCarthy gave a speech saying that he had a list of known Communists in the State Department. This is important because it began the era of McCarthyism, and Americans got extremely paranoid about Communism in the United States.
Picture source: Joe McCarthy: Irish Catholic Wisconsin Senator. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from http://jettandjahn.com/2013/02/joe-mccarthy-irish-catholic-wisconsin-senator/ -
Korean War Begins
This war was important because Communist North Korea was assisted by the Soviet Union and South Korea was assisted by the United States. This conflict was a smaller version of the conflict in the world between Communism and Captitalism and between the United States and the USSR.
Picture source: Korean War | 1950-1953. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from http://www.britannica.com/event/Korean-War -
Warsaw Pact
This pact was between the Communist states in Europe and it was to maintain peace in Europe and allow the USSR to have military control over Communism in Central and Eastern Europe. The USSR wanted to protect Communism within the USSR and within the Communist countries of Europe. This was important because it was essentialy the Communist version of the Treaty of Brussels.
Picture from: Warsaw Pact. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warsaw_Pact -
Sputnik Launched
The USSR launched Sputnik to orbit around the Earth, and it provided them with useful scientific information about the Earth. This was important because it was the beginning of the Space Race between the USSR and the United States. During the Space Race, both countries competed to make strides in scientific space discoveries.
Picture from: Sputnik. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from http://www.coalwoodwestvirginia.com/sputnik.htm -
Berlin Wall Constructed
This wall was constructed by East Germany to separate West Berlin from East Berlin. This is important because it was a physical representation of the conflict and separation between Capitalism and Communism. The wall came down in 1990 and began German reunification.
Picture from: The Berlin Wall: Poetry of the Wall. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from http://voiceseducation.org/content/berlin-wall-poetry-wall -
Cuban Missile Crisis
This was a conflict between the USSR and the United States after the Bay of Pigs Invasion about the USSR's missiles in Cuba. This is important because it was the closest the Cold War actually came to becoming a nuclear war.
Picture from: 2. Cuban Missile Crisis | Stanford History Education Group. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from https://sheg.stanford.edu/cuban-missile-crisis -
End of Vietnam War
The end of the Vietnam War was important because the USSR supported Communism in Vietnam and the United States fought against Communism, but in the end Communism won out in Vietnam. This was a representation of the larger conflict between the United States (Capitalism) and the USSR (Communism).
Picture from: One Of The Biggest Days In My Life: The Vietnam War Is Over. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from http://normgregory.com/one-of-the-biggest-days-in-my-life-the-vietnam-war-is-over/ -
Removal of Nuclear Missiles
President Reagan and the USSR leader Gorbachev met in Iceland to resolve to remove intermediate missile arsenals in Europe. This is important because it shows an effort to keep everyone safe and to end the tensions between the United States and the USSR. This is on the path toward ending the Cold War.
Picture from: The Reykjavik Summit. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from http://www.thereaganvision.org/the-reykjavik-summit-the-story/ -
Berlin Wall Torn Down
On this day, demolition of the Berlin Wall began. This is an extremely important event in the Cold War because it began the process of German reuinification and also showed that tensions between the Western World and Eastern Europe. This showed that the Cold War was close to ending.
Picture from: Demolition of the Berlin Wall. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from http://histored.net/demolition-of-the-berlin-wall -
USSR Disbands, Cold War Ends
The dissolution of the USSR was an extremely important event because it was an extreme weakening of Communism. After this, the Cold War ended and America's fight against Communism was less of a leading issue.
Picture from: Spring Semester. (n.d.). Retrieved November 24, 2015, from http://stratton-ibhistory2.weebly.com/spring-semester.html
