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Postwar Occupation and Division of Germany
After WWII had ended, Germany was divided amongst Great Britain, the US, France, and the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union controlled the East while the remaining countries controlled sectors of the West. The city of Berlin was also divided into these occupations, with the Soviet Union controlling the East and the remaining countries controlling the West of Berlin. -
Greek Civil War
When the Germans had left Greece, communist and anti-communist tensions had risen into a civil war. The fighting ended with the defeat of the DSE by the Hellenic Army. This conflict resulted in 50,000 Greek combatants died nd 500,000 were displaced from their homes -
Enactment of the Marshall Plan
After WWII, the economy in European Countries had completely been destroyed. Because of this, President Truman signed the Economic Recovery Act of 1948. This is named the Marshall Plan because in 1947 the Secretary of State George Marshall had proposed the US should help to restore the economic infrastructure in Europe after WWII. -
Berlin Blockade and Airlift
When the city of Berlin was divided amongst the victors of WWII, tensions rise almost immediately between the communist and capitalist countries. The Soviet Union forces had blockaded railroads, roads, and water access for the East of Berlin. Because of this, the US and Great Britain began flying food and fuel into East Berlin. -
Chinese Communist Revolution
The Chinese communist revolution began when the the civil war was won by the Chinese Communist Party over the Kuomintang. This lead to several communist leaders rising to power in China. Because China is now communist, they were allied with the Soviet Union. -
Korean War
A conflict in which North Korea and South Korea were at war due to The Communist countries such as China and Russia intended to have all of Korea become a completely communist country. The war ended ultimately at a draw, an armistice was signed however there never was a peace treaty signed. -
Cuban Revolution
Fidel Castro led an armed revolt against the military dictatorship of the Cuban President, Fulgencio Batista. The revolutionist ultimately won this conflict, which removed Fulgencio Batista from office on January 1, 1959. This revolution led the Cuba becoming an atheist country while also becoming progressively more socialist. -
Overthrow of the Guatemalan Government
Operation PBSuccess was yet another operation carried out by the US CIA that removed the elected Guatemalan President, Jacobo Arbenz. This was a success because this interference ended the Guatemalan revolution. This was to protect the profits of the United Fruit Company. -
Formation of the Eastern Bloc
The Soviet Union created the Warsaw Pact, which created the Soviet Union in response to NATO. This created the Eastern Bloc referring to the communist bloc of Eastern Europe that were allied together. -
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was conflict between North and South Vietnam. The US and France supported South Vietnam due to the desire to reclaim the French colony, "Indo-China". The French had lost this battle which split Vietnam into North and South Vietnam where communism was attempted to be spread into all of Vietnam. The Vietnamese ultimately won the war. -
Hungarian Uprising
The people of Hungary began to revolt against their government due to the lack of their freedoms, like voting and speech. This lasted 12 days, however the Hungarians were defeated by Soviet troops. Because of this, thousands were killed and injured and without change, a quarter million Hungarians left the country. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The CIA had funded and trained Cuban refugees to invade Cuba to overthrow the Communist government that was lead by Fidel Castro. This invasion was a complete failure. The Cuban shot down more than 100 of these refugees and over 1,200 had surrendered. -
Building of the Berlin Wall
After WWII, the US, Britain, France, and Soviet Union divided Germany amongst each country, while also doing dividing the city of Berlin. In Berlin, many that lived in the Soviet Union occupied territory crossed into West Berlin to live in free Berlin. Because of the numerous people moving into West Berlin, the Soviet Union built a wall in order to keep East Berliners from escaping to west Berlin. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a political and military standoff that lasted 13 days. This was due to the Russian installation of nuclear weapons in communist Cuba, which was very close to the US. Eventually, the Russian leader Nikita Kruschev removed the missiles. -
Soviet War in Afganistan
The Soviet Union had invaded Afghanistan in order to uphold the Soviet-Afghan Friendship Treaty of 1978. Because of this invasion, it lead to a nine year long Afghan civil war. Eventually, the Soviets removed their troops in 1988 after signing an accord with the US, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. -
Solidarity Movement in Poland
This movement in Poland was that of an anti-authoritarian social movement. This was to gain more rights for workers and to bring about social change. In the early 80's, the government attempted to shut down this movement with the martial law and political repression but ultimately failed. -
Tiananmen Square Massacre
In this conflict in Beijing, many Chinese students and workers grouped together out side of Tiananmen Square protesting for more political openness. The Chinese troops armed with assault rifles and tanks fired at the protestors/demonstrators killing an estimated hundreds to thousands of people. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
The Berlin wall fell five days after half a million people gathered in East Berlin to protest. The East Berlin Leaders attempted to prevent such large protests by allowing more travel. However this did not work in East Berlins favor because it allowed for the wall to be taken down. -
Fall of the Soviet Union
The Soviet Union leader, Gorbachev, allowed for the countries that make up the Soviet Union to become independent states. The countries were to be allied with one another but due to pressure and protests from the people of the Soviet Union Gorbachev gave in. This ultimately led to the fall of the Berlin Wall. -
9/11 Attacks
A terrorist group called al-Qaeda led a suicide terrorist attacks against the united states. The terrorists hijacked four planes, two crashing into the twin towers, one crashing into the pentagon, and the other was safely landed by passengers into a field. The attacks are assumed to have happened due to the US support of Israel and sanctions against Iraq.