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The Russian Revolution 1917
The Russian Revolution was the first successful communist revolution in the world. It laid the ideological groundwork for the differences that would become the Cold War in the 20th century, -
Potsdam Conference
The Potsdam Conference was the meeting of Harry S. Truman (U.S.), Winston Churchill (Great Britain), and Joseph Stalin (Soviet Union). During this conference, these three leaders tried to come in agreement about the future of Germany, the postwar boundaries, how to win the war over Japan, and securing a lasting peace for Europe. -
Atomic Bomb (Hiroshima/Nagasaki)
The atomic bomb from the United States of America was dropped on Japan on August 6th 1945. This action upset the Soviet Union since we beat them to the creation of a successful atomic bomb, and we used it against them later. The atomic bomb changed the future of warfare forever since a single bomb could defeat an entire nation compared to sending in an army to fight. -
Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain was a speech given by Winston Churchill that stated the Soviet Union splits their territory in two, based on their differentiating beliefs. -
Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was an American Foreign Policy that was to counteract the Soviet Union from further geopolitical expansion. This American Foreign Policy was created under U.S. President Harry S. Truman. -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was an initiative that funded European countries that struggled in order to end the spread of communism -
Molotov Plan
The Molotov Plan was a system created by the Soviet Union in order to reconstruct the Eastern European countries. The Eastern European countries that were aided by the S.U. had to believe in the Communist politics. -
Berlin Blockade
The Berlin Blockade was the Soviet Union's attempt in blocking the railroads, streets, and canals in order to prevent France, Great Britain, and the U.S. . The blockade lasted from June 24th, 1948 until May 12th 1949 -
Berlin Airlift
The Berlin Airlift was a U.S. project, that sent multiple B-29 bomber planes over the struggling countries under the Marshall plan, to drop off care packages. These packages were often filled with food and supplies, as well as some candy so that kids would have some hope. -
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization commonly known as NATO, was formed so that every nation in NATO would defend any nation within NATO if ever attacked. -
Soviet Bomb Test
As the Soviet Union was still thriving as a dictatorship, they finally tested their first successful atomic bomb. They were able to achieve this in 1949 because, they had Russian spies in the U.S., when the Manhattan Project was in effect. -
The Alger Hiss Case
The Alger Hiss Case was a spy case against the Soviet Spy, Alger Hiss as he was accused by the U.S.. Hiss was proven guilty of perjury towards the State Agency of the U.S. -
The Rosenberg Trial
The Rosenberg Trial was when the court accused the couple of giving the Soviet Union bomb secrets from the U.S.. They were guilty, and many suspected that is was a hate crime due to their Jewish ethnicity. The Rosenbergs were executed in the electric chair. -
The Hollywood 10
The Hollywood 10 was the group of 10 people that worked within Hollywood, that defended themselves against McCarthyism and against Communist allegations. -
Korean War
The Korean War was a war between the U.S. and the new communist China, as the U.S. defended Korea from the fall into communism. Obviously, the U.S. was only successful in defense of South Korea, as North Korea is still a communist nation today. (1950-1953) -
The Army-McCarthy Hearings
The Army-McCarthy Hearings were court hearings that were held to investigate the accusations against the U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy and the U.S. Army. -
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu was almost a 2 month battle between France and the Viet Minh Communist Army. This lasted from March 13, 1954-May 7, 1954 -
The Geneva Conference
The Geneva Conference was a meeting with Cambodia, China, France, Laos, the U.K., the U.S., the Soviet Union, the Viet MInh, and the state of Vietnam. This meeting took place in hopes of resolving problems relating to the Korean War as well as the First Indochina War (Vietnam). -
The Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact was a defense treaty that was signed with the Soviet Union and several of the Eastern Bloc states of Europe. -
The Hungarian Revolution
The Hungarian Revolution was a revolution by the entire nation of Hungary against both the Hungarian Government and its Communist policies. -
The U-2 Incident
The U-2 Incident was when the Soviet Union shot down a U.S. U-2 plane that was flying over the Soviet Union. This incident shut down the Paris Summit Conference that was held between the U.S., the U.K., France; and the Soviet Union. -
The Bay of Pigs Invasion
The Bay of Pigs Invasion was a failed military invasion of Cuba by the CIA. -
The Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was an almost 12' tall guarded concrete barrier that divided Berlin, Germany for 27 years. In 1989, the wall was demolished and Germany was unified. -
The Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was when in 1962 the U.S. looked into Soviet missile deployment through Cuba and lasted 13 days. -
The Assassination of Ngo Dinh Diem
On November 2, 1963; President of South Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Diem was Assassinated by the coup d'etat which was led by General Duong Van Minh. This group was backed by the CIA (U.S.). -
The Assasination of JFK
On November 22, 1963; U.S. President John F. Kennedy (JFK) was assassinated in Dallas, Texas while on a campaign visit. He was riding in a car through the streets of Dallas, when Lee Harvey Oswald assassinated the president. -
The Tonkin Gulf Resolution
The Tonkin Gulf Resolution was a U.S. Congress Resolution that was passed and responded to the Tonkin Gulf Incident. -
Operation Rolling Thunder
Operation Rolling Thunder was a planned bombing by the U.S. Air Force and the Navy on the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. This 'carpet' bombing was done in hopes of driving out the Communist Vietnamese. -
The Tet Offensive
The Tet Offensive was when the Vietcong and some Northern Vietnam soldiers set surprise attacks throughout South Vietnam. This was the major turning point in the Vietnam War. -
The Assassination of MLK
On April 4th, 1968; African-American civil rights activist Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. He was assassinated by James Earl Ray at the Lorraine Motel located in Memphis, Tennessee, and relocated to the St. Joseph's Hospital also in Memphis. -
The Assassination of RFK
On June 5, 1968; the upcoming U.S. Presidential Candidate Robert F. Kennedy was shot at the Ambassador Hotel located in Los Angeles, California. Sirhan Sirhan carried out this criminal act on this specific date since it was the anniversary of the war between Israel and the Arab States. -
The Invasion of Czechoslovakia
On August 8th, 1968; several countries allied through the Warsaw Pact invaded the nation of Czechoslovakia. -
The Democratic Convention Riots
During the 1968 presidential election, Vietnam War protesters rallied at the Democratic Convention and this led to violence and danger rather than the typical convention that was planned for Hubert Humphrey. -
The Election of Nixon
In the Presidential Election of 1968, the Republican Party candidate (Richard Nixon) won over the Democratic party candidate (Hubert Humphrey). -
The Kent State Shootings
The Kent State Shootings was when the Ohio National Guard shot and killed 4 innocent and unarmed university students on May 4, 1970. This event sparked outrage throughout the country. -
Nixon Visits China
In 1972, President Richard Nixon visited the isolationist nation of China in order to strengthen relations and discuss strategies for diplomacy. -
The Ceasefire in Vietnam
U.S. President Richard Nixon, set a ceasefire from the over-head bombings sent to the North Vietnamese territory. This occurred since a peace proposal had been acquired. -
The Fall of Saigon
On April 30th, 1975; the Vietnam War had officially been lost. This is because the North Vietnamese conquered the South, thus capturing the capital Saigon to ensure their victory. This required the U.S. embassy to be evacuated immediately by helicopter, then by Naval fleet. -
The Reagan Election
In the 1980 U.S. Presidential Election, the Ronald Reagan (R) beat out Jimmy Carter (D) for the seat in the Oval Office on 1600 Pensylvania Avenue. -
The SDI Announcement
The Strategic Defense Initiative was Reagan's plan for defending the U.S. from potential Soviet Missile attacks. This was highly unlikely since it was too technologically advanced and impossible since it used "Star Wars"-like ideas. -
The Geneva Conference with Gorbachev
On November 20th, 1985; U.S. President Ronald Reagan met with the Soviet Union's Mikhail Gorbachev to discuss the Cold War and strengthen relations for the Nuclear Arms race. This was held in Geneva, Switzerland. -
The "Tear down this wall" Speech
On June 12th, 1987; Ronald Reagan spoke at the Berlin Wall and stated "Tear down this wall", which was directed at Gorbachev. This was highly controversial since the U.S. was intervening on foreign ground on what their governments should do which was to re-unify Germany. -
The Fall of the Berlin Wall
In November of 1991, Mikhail Gorbachev agreed with Reagan's vision for world peace and it started with the destruction of the Berlin Wall. This re-unified East and West Germany and the Soviet Union stepped back.
