-
1945- The End of World War II and the Divide of Europe
February of 1945, The Yalta Conference was established for the head leaders of the U.S., the U.K., and the U.S.S.R. to discuss plans after World War II ended, mainly a post-war peace between nations to help the soon to be liberated people of a post-Nazi Europe. Shortly after in May, World War II had ended in Europe, then in August, the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb onto Hiroshima, Japan, completely ending the war. With the war over and the Allies victorious, they divided up Europe among themselves -
1947- The Spread of Communism and The Truman Doctrine
Gradually over the years since World War II ended, the Russians had begun to influence the countries around them to conform to a Communist regime, quickly using the increasingly colder winters to their advantage by offering supplies only if the countries agreed to follow the U.S.S.R. Due to this troubling rise in Communism in Europe, a severely tense air began to grow between the U.S. and Russia. In order to combat the growth of Communism, Pres. Truman created a doctrine in March to retaliate. -
1948- Berlin Divided and U.S. Supply Drops
With the Allies dividing Germany among themselves, Berlin happened to be in the middle of the territories so in turn each part of Berlin was claimed by each power. With the rise of Communism, most of East Germany and in turn East Berlin was cut off from the rest of Germany, making it difficult for the East German's to receive help. The U.S. retaliated by flying in supply crates over the barricade and gave supplies to those in need. This lasted till Mat of 1949. -
1949- NATO Is Born and Communism Spreads Farther
In April of 1949, NATO [National Atlantic Treaty Organization] was established to organize countries that had not fallen into Communist rule and collaborate to end the take over of Communism. August brought the fear of nuclear war into play when Russia successfully explode an atomic bomb at Semipalatinsk, Kazakh in Russia. Shortly after, the Communist Regime in China had won the Civil War that had erupted between two rivaling parties. With Communism having spread to China, the U.S. fear grows. -
1950- Korean War Begins
The the spread of Communism now reaching through parts of Asia via China, North Korea falls under the Communism Regime and begins to invade South Korea. In retaliation, the U.S. and U.N. begin sending troops out to South Korea to fend of the invading North Korean communist troops, driving them back towards the border line. The Korean war lasted for over three years, and it would have become more severe if the U.S. had decided to invade China, possibly start another World War which Truman feared. -
1955- The Warsaw Pact
In order to become as organized as NATO, Communist allied countries organized in Warsaw, Poland to sign as pact that would combine their resources and prevent conflict from brewing within the states. The countries who had signed themselves to the pact where the Soviet Union, Poland, Romania, Soviet East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Ablania, and and Bulgeria. Due to the pact, it had become increasingly more difficult for NATO to contain the spread of communism. -
1957- Soviets Launch First Satellite Into Space
The satellite, named Sputnik, was the birth of a new form of race; a race to the stars. The U.S. launched their own satellite's following the launch of Sputnik, creating another rivalry between the U.S. and U.S.S.R., sprouting new program funding and strengthening N.A.S.A.and the S.S.P., saying that either one would be the first nation to launch a man into space. This event changed the path of history in favor of finding ways to make space travel possible, yet strike fear further into the U.S. -
1961- Bay of Pigs Invasion and the Berlin Wall
Following the inauguration of Fidel Castro in Cuba and turning Cuba into a communist country, the U.S. had taken in over a thousand Cuban refugees and trained them to try and take over the Cuban Communist Regime which had failed miserably, the exiles wiped out. In August of the same year, the Berlin Wall had begun being constructed to stop East Germans from escaping to the west. Those that would attempt to escape would be caught and/or executed. The wall stood high for the whole of the cold war. -
1962- The Cuban Missile Crisis
For a span of 13 days, a stand off was held between the U.S. and U.S.S.R. over Cuba, threatening to drop Nuclear warheads on either nations capitols, the conflict mainly directed at Cuba's missile sites. It is known as one of the most tense moments in the Cold War, either country very close to launching atomic weaponry upon each other and starting World War III. How the U.S. had found out had been through images taken by U.2. spy planes over Cuba that had been placed by the Soviets. -
1964- China becomes the 5th Nuclear Power
As of October 16th, 1964, China had successfully detonated their first atomic bomb and had been placed on the list of Nuclear Weapon holding super powers, falling under France, Great Britain, U.S.S.R., and the U.S., creating even more fear within the NATO and S.E.A.T.O. (South East Asia Treaty Organization). With this knowledge, China had become a larger threat to the U.S. with another Communist country baring Nuclear Weaponry. -
1972- Nixon Pays China a Visit
It was a shock when Pres. Nixon declared to the American people that he was going to be meeting with the leader of the PRC (People's Republic of China) to attempt repairing diplomatic relations with the Communist country after having taken part in the Korean War. Despite the backlash of the American people, Nixon's decision to speak with the PRC helped gradually bring the U.S. and China to a neutral area, softening the threat of Nuclear war. -
1975- The Fall of South Korea
As the U.S. troops are pulled out of South Korea, Communist troops take the opportunity to capture Seigon, taking over South Korea. Without the protection of U.S. troops, the U.N. can't keep up with the brutality of the North Korean soldiers. Pres. Ford pressures the Congress to dive back in and stop the invasion, but Congress would not let up, leaving South Korea to it's fate and all the progress that made by the U.S. lost. -
1979- U.S. and China become Allies
Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping visited the U.S., a first for the Chinese Republic and surprised the American people, to establish relations of an ambassadorial level. With this move, the U.S. and China began lowering their defenses against each other and China began pulling itself away from the U.S.S.R.'s influence, which was a huge victory for the U.S.; is Nixon had not done what he did, it might have resulted in China annexing American territories. -
1985- Mikhail Gorbachev becomes leader of the Soviet Union
With Gorbachev coming into power, he completely changed how the Soviet Union worked, adapting a more Democratic view with free speech, free news, voting for the people, and stopping the threat of Nuclear War. During that time, smaller countries began to break off from the Union, but instead of forcing them to stay he wanted to discuss their separation, keeping the democratic path. This spelled change for the strong Communist supporters, but gave the U.S. room to move and air to breath. -
1989- The Berlin Wall is torn down
With the Soviet Union gradually falling apart, the military couldn't keep the Berlin Wall protected, giving the East and West Germans the chance to break through the wall and rejoin the capital. An announcement was made that East Germans could return to West Berlin; Gorbachev was surprised by this, but decided not to interfere, directing his attention on diffusing the Nuclear Scare. Thousands of people came to tear down the wall, celebrating the event and savoring their freedom from communism. -
1990- The Reunification of Germany
George Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev agreed earlier that year that Germany was to finally be reformed, taking the border of East and West Germany down and allowed the German people to be one country again. With the agreement, the country celebrated, making the 3rd of October their national holiday of freedom. The reunification allowed East Germany to regain it's losses during the Cold War and resume trade with other countries. -
1991- Communism's Last Stand
With the Soviet Union all but completely crumbled and the government scrambling to create a new Constitution that support democracy, eight powerful Communists supports invade and try to take back the country to make it a Communist state once again. The attempt forced Gorbachev to be captured and held till the Russian people defended the country they had made for themselves through Gorbachev's help. Future President Yeltsin joined in, thwarting the coupe and ending the Cold War.
