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The Cold War Begins
Start of the Cold War The Cold War began in 1945, as the United States and Soviet Union turned to face one another after defeating Hitler's Germany and Japan. -
The YALTA Conference
Yalta Conference The Yalta Conference was a meeting of British prime minister Winston Churchill, Soviet premier Joseph Stalin, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt early in February 1945. During the meeting, the 3 leaders agreed to demand Germany’s unconditional surrender and began plans for a post-war world. -
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The Cold War
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VE Day
Victory In Europe Day Victory in Europe Day, also known as VE Day was the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Nazi Germany's surrender of its armed forces. -
Potsdam Conference
Potsdam Conference The Big Three, which consisted of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and U.S. President Harry Truman met in Potsdam, Germany. They met from July 17 to August 2, 1945 to negotiate terms for the end of World War II. -
United States drops bomb on Hiroshima
Hiroshima Bomb On August 6, 1945, an American B-29 bomber dropped the world’s first deployed atomic bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The explosion wiped out 90 percent of the city and immediately killed 80,000 people. -
Iron Curtain Speech by Winston Churchill
Iron Curtain Speech Former British Prime Minister-Winston Churchill condemns the Soviet Union’s policies in Europe and declares, “From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the continent.” His speech is considered as one of the opening announcements, thus beginning of the Cold War. -
Truman's Loyalty Program
Catching Spies Truman on March 21 issued an executive order calling for federal investigations into the loyalty of all government employees, as the goal was to catch any spies. -
Berlin Blockade
Berlin Blockade The Berlin Blockade was the first major clash of the Cold War and was an attempt by the Soviet Union to limit the ability of travel to their sectors of Berlin for the nations of France, Great Britain and the United States. -
Truman fires Macarthur
Truman fires Macarthur President Harry S. Truman relieves General Douglas MacArthur of command of the U.S. forces in Korea and replaces him with General Matthew Ridgeway. The purpose of firing Macarthur according to President Truman was to keep the conflict in Korea to a "limited war". -
H-bomb Castle-Bravo test
Castle Bravo Test The United States conducted its largest ever nuclear weapon test, which was code-named Castle Bravo, at the Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands. However, due to a design flaw the Castle Bravo reached 15 megatons and was stronger than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. In addition radioactive fallout from the bomb was found in Japan, India, and Austrialia. -
Warsaw Pact Formed
Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact included the Soviet Union, Albania, Poland, Romania, Hungary, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Bulgaria as members. Basically the treaty called on the member states to come to the defense of any member attacked by an outside force, such as another nation. It also set up a unified military command under Marshal Ivan S. Konev of the Soviet Union. -
Sputnik Launched into Space
Space History Changed Space history forever changed when the Soviet Union launched Sputnik into space. This was the worlds first artificial satellite and was about the size of a beach ball. Thus began the great space race among nations, -
Explorer 1 Launched
Explorer 1 Launched into Space Explorer 1 was the first satellite launched by the United States when it was sent into space. It followed the launch by the Soviet Union, who launched Sputnik 1 on October 4th, 1957. -
Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty After more than 8 years of negotiations, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union signed the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. This treaty prohibited the testing of nuclear weapons in outer space, underwater or in the atmosphere. -
President Kennedy Assassinated
Death of JFK President Kennedy was on a tour across cities in Texas when he was shot while in the car in Dallas. Although he was rushed to the hospital, he was later pronounced dead as his gun shot wounds were fatal. He was shot by Lee Harvey Oswald. -
Publication of the Pentagon Papers
Pentagon Papers The Pentagon Papers was the name given to a secret Department of Defense study of U.S. political as well as military involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967. It was prepared at the request of Secretary of Defense Robert. In March 1971 a copy was leaked and given to The New York Times by Daniel Ellsberg. -
North Vietnam defeats South Vietnam
South Vietnam Falls When communist forces moved into Saigon, they were met with only little resistance. Thus South Vietnamese forces collapsed under the rapid advancement of the North Vietnamese forces. -
United States invades Grenda
USA invades Grenada Due to the danger to the U.S. citizens in Grenada, Reagan ordered nearly 2,000 U.S. troops into the island. Due to outdated maps Reagan had to order in more troops to help and by the end 6,000 U.S. troops were in Grenada. With the help of additonal troops in little more than a week, Grenada’s government was overthrown. -
Berlin Wall is Demolished
End of Berlin Wall The spokesman for East Berlin’s Communist Party announced a change in his city’s relations with the West, which would allow people to cross checkpoints. Thus at midnight on November 9th, 1989 people met at the wall drinking and celebrating as they were allowed to cross to the other side. -
Cold War Ends/Dissolution of the Soviet Union
Cold War Ends Due to the Berlin Wall coming down, borders opened, and free elections ousted Communist regimes everywhere in eastern Europe. In late December 1991 the Soviet Union itself dissolved.
