-
The Russian Revolution
Mar 8, 1917 – Nov 7, 1917 When the poor of Russia revolted against their Tsar, Nicholas II, it started the event known as the Russian Revolution. Peasants and working-class citizens fought, led by Lenin and the Bolsheviks. In the end, this became the creation of the Soviet Union. During the Revolution, America sent funds to help the democrats fight Communism; however, in the end, Communism prevailed, causing tension between the two superpowers. -
Potsdam Conference
Jul 17, 1945 – Aug 2, 1945 This conference was when the Soviets, Britain, and the United States met up in Potsdam, Germany to negotiate the terms for the end of World War II. While Truman and Churchill wanted democracy and freedom for Europe, the Soviet Union believed communism (AKA killing off the Germans) was a better route to take. -
Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Aug 6, 1945 – Aug 9, 1945 During the latter part of World War II - and, probably, what ended it - the United States dropped atomic bombs the two Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, causing irriversable damage. This caused the Soviets to think that the United States would do anything to push Capitalism onto others, causing tension between the two. -
The Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain was a metaphorical wall in Europe that separated the Soviet Union and Free Europe made by the Soviets trying to block itself off from Capitalist countries. This divided Europe severely, as well as represented the clashing forces of Capitalism and Communism. -
The Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was an appeal that allowed the United States to support and aide any country that was forced into Communism. Because the Soviets' goal was to spread Communism, this was a direct attack against their mission. -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was America's way to help stop the spread of communism to Western Europe; the US spent over $13 billion to aide the wartorn countries rebuild their economy. The Soviets saw this move as a way for America to spread communism, and to counter it, they created the Molotov Plan. -
Molotov Plan
The Molotov Plan was a plan created by the Soviet Union that allowed them to help rebuild and aide any Soviet-aligned countries in Eastern Europe. When offered the Marshall Plan, the Soviets rejected; instead, they came up with their own version, the Molotov Plan. -
The Hollywood 10
The Holywood 10 were ten men, mainly screenwriters and directors, who refused to answer HUAC's questions of whether or not they were Communists, thereby blacklisted from Hollywood and jailed. Because they didn't answer, the Red Scare became an even bigger issue in America. -
The Berlin Airlift
Jun 24, 1948 – May 12, 1949 When the USSR decides to try and kill off their population of Berlin, United States and British pilots begin flying over the city and delivering food, supplies, and even presents for almost a year. This completely made any effort that the Soviets had to kill off Berlin useless, angering them and opposing their wishes. -
Berlin Blockade
Jun 24, 1948 – May 12, 1949 The Soviets, in order to keep West Berlin from freedom, blockaded that side of the city. They were left without food, medicine, or clothes. They were left to die off. This led to the United States to begin the Berlin Airlift. Stalin was killing off innocent people in order to preserve Communism, which acted as a threat to democracy and freedom to the United States. -
Alger Hiss Case
Alger Hiss, once a US State Department Official, was accused of being a Soviet spy. Although he denied that he was, Hiss was tried and convicted of espionage. This added to the United States' Red Scare and McCarthyism, leading to mass paranoia and fear of communist takeover. -
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, composed of 29 different countries of both Europe and North America, was created in order to protect partnered countries from the threatening spread of communism. Because this directly went against the Soviet's wishes, it was yet another "attack" on them. -
Soviet Atomic Bomb Test
The USSR successfully tested and detonated an atomic bomb, much faster than the United States was prepared for, alerting them to the fact that there were spies within their own atomic bomb research. Not only did this add to America's Red Scare, but the Soviets had caught up to America in weaponry. This means that the Cold War could potentially in world destruction. -
Korean War
Jun 25, 1950 – Jul 27, 1953 Korea was split into two regions: while North Korea fell to communism, South Korea did no, and thus war waged on between the two starting when the North invaded the South. North Korea was supported by China and Soviet Russia, while the South was supported by the US. This led to Korea almost acting as pawns of the USSR and the US. The side effects of the war are still seen today. -
Rosenberg Trial
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, on March 6th, were tried for espionage and for sending atomic secrets to the USSR. They were tried and sentenced to death for their crimes. Because of the Rosenbergs, the Soviets were able to create the atomic bomb faster than expected. -
Battle of Dien Bien Phu
Mar 13, 1954 – May 7, 1954 This battle marks when the French and the Vietminh fight for a small mountain outpost. After the French forces took over Dien Bien Phu, the outpost was located on the vietnamese border close to where Laos was proclaimed to be. -
Army-McCarthy Hearings
Apr. 22, 1954 – June 17, 1954 A series of hearings that were held by the US later became known as the Army-McCarthy hearings. The conflicting accusations of the Army and Joseph McCarthy were the cause; these trials, ending poorly for McCarthy, ended the McCarthy era and calmed the Red Scare. -
Geneva Conference
Apr 26, 1954 – Jul 21, 1954 The 1954 Geneva Conference was intended to resolve issues stemmed from the Korean War and the French. After France's presence in Southeast Asia crumbled, four new states were made: North Vietnam, South Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. -
Warsaw Pact
Created to oppose NATO, the Warsaw Pact was a treaty signed in Warsaw by the Soviet Union and other Soviet-aligned countries. It was also viewed as a way for the USSR to maintain military control in Eastern Europe. -
Hungarian Revolution
Oct 23, 1956 – Nov 10, 1956 This marks when the nation of Hungary revolted against the Communist regime. It was the first actual threat of Soviet control in a long time. Many Hungarians were killed or fled the country as refugees. Because of this event, the USSR implemented harsher laws against opposition and stating their role once again as being in power over Eastern Europe. -
U2 Incident
An American U2 plane was shot down while flying over Soviet territory. While the States originally stated that the plane was flying over the USSR for different reasons, it was admitted later to be for spying. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
Apr 17, 1961 – Apr 19, 1961 Trained by the United States in secret, hundreds of exiled Cubans launched an invasion on Cuba's Bay of Pigs in order to try and overthrow Fidel Castro, a communist leader. It failed. -
Berlin Wall
When it was found that West Berlin acted as a way for many Eastern Germans to flee to democracy, the Berlin Wall was built to keep West Berlin contained; it was built overnight. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
Oct 16, 1962 – Oct 28, 1962 This is the 13-day period of a tense standoff between the Soviets and the United States; the Soviets had deployed a missile in Cuba, while America deployed missiles to Italy and Turkey. The USSR deployed missiles in Cuba in order to protect them from any future invasion that may happen. This instance, some note, was the closest the Cold War came to becoming nuclear. -
Assassination of Diem
Diem, a Catholic leader of South Vietnam and highly discriminatory of Buddhists in Vietnam despite the country being mainly Buddhist (and thus was wildly unpopular), became targeted by the CIA for assassination. Originally, it was said that he committed suicide, but when imaged of Diem's body began to show up in the media, their cover was blown. -
Assassination of JFK
The President of the United States, JFK, was assassinated. An ex-marine and Marxist was arrested for killing JFK; soon after though, he was killed by someone else. JFK played a huge role during his presidency in the Cold War. President Lyndon B. Johnson came after him. -
Tonkin Gulf Resolution
After "several" incidents involving Vietnam and the United States in the Gulf of Tonkin (In which one was false), the States enacted the Resolution. It allowed for the US to become more active in the Vietnam War rather than just supporting the South. -
Operation Rolling Thunder
Mar 2, 1965 – Nov 1, 1968 Rolling Thunder was the code name for an American Bombing plan on North Vietnam. While it was only supposed to last for a short time, it lasted for over three years. -
TET Offensive
Jan 30, 1968 – Sep 23, 1968 The TET Offensive was a surprise attack from the North Vietnamese onto control and command centers of the South. This attack played an important role in the US losing support for the war. -
Assassination of MLK
Priest and a face of the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee. He believed that violence was not the answer, but knew he would constantly rick his life for the movement. The USSR used this as propaganda against the United States. -
Assassination of RFK
Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy was shot at while shaking a busboy's hand after primary elections. He ended up passing away from his wounds. Due to his death, the Vice President at the time, Hubert Humphrey, went on to take his place as the democratic candadite; he lost to Nixon, however. -
Invasion of Czechoslovakia
The Invasion of Czechoslovakia was the invasion of five Soviet-aligned nations - Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, and The Soviet Union itself. 137 Czechoslovakian citizens were killed, and around 500 were injured. -
Riots of Democratic Convention
Thousands of Vietnam War protesters, at a Democratic Conference in Chicago, fought police. This event followed a violent year. One event during this protest and fight against police occurred when a young man in the midst of the crowd lowered an American flag, and police barged through the crowd to beat him. -
Election of Nixon
Republican nominee Richard Nixon won the presidency in 1968. He ended up being an extremely secretive and somewhat controversial president during his time, though he did perform some fairly well-received actions, such as visiting China (and being the first president to do so since it declared itself the People's Republic of China in 1949). -
Kent State Shooting
In reaction to the Cambodia bombings, students from Kent State protested Nixon during his speech. Guardsmen were called to stop the protests, opening fire on the unarmed students and killing four of them. While some were protesters, others were just passing by or observing the protest from afar. Due to this, many Americans become even more opposed to the Vietnam War. -
Nixon Visits China
Feb 21, 1971 – Feb 28, 1971 After over 2 decades of no communication, political ties, or even visitation, US President Nixon decided to take a flight to China. It allows US citizens to see China for the first time in 22 years, as well as getting an upper hand on the Soviet Union. -
Ceasefire in Vietnam
Jan 15, 1973 – Jan 27, 973 Nixon ordered a ceasefire of aerial bombings. While combat missions continued in South Vietnam, North Vietnam warfare was being held back. Finally, almost 2 weeks later, an entire ceasefire was called. -
Fall of Saigon
This was the capture of South Vietnam's capital, Saigon, by the Northern Vietnamese. They then changed its name to Ho Chi Minh city and proclaimed it as a communist state. The United States flew in and help many of the South Vietnamese escape the city. -
Reagan Elected
In 1980, Reagan beat Jimmy Carter to become president of the United States. Ronald Reagan's election was extremely important regarding the Cold War, as he was the one who basically ended it. -
SDI Announced
The SDI, or Strategic Defense Initiative, was the idea that Soviet missiles could be stopped using space technology. While it seemed preposterous to America, even going as far as to be mocked as sci-fi by journalists calling it "Star Wars", the Soviets believed it was actually in the process of being made and perfected. This led them to grow nervous. -
Geneva Conference with Gorbachev
While Reagan's goal was to destroy communism, he really hit it off with Soviet's General Secretary Gorbachev at the Geneva Conference. They quickly became friends, and due to this, Reagan had some influence over him. Gorbachev himself was different, as he wanted a more democratic case of Communism in the USSR. -
Reagan's "Tear Down This Wall" Speech
Right before the Brandenburg Gate in Germany, Reagan proclaimed that Gorbachev was to take down the Berlin Wall. He wanted to end the arms race, and to free the nations that were slaves to communism. -
Fall of Berlin Wall
It was the first time that those of East Berlin, East Germany, could come up to the wall without being warned or threatened by soldiers. Both sides began tearing it down, and when they finally opened a hole in it, they finally reunited. This signified not only the break of the iron curtain, but the end of the Cold War drawing near.
