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Period: to
Cold War
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"Iron Curtain" Speech
Winston Churchill traveled to the U.S. and gave a speech that described the situation in Europe. The phrase "iron curtain" came to stand for the division of Europe. When Stalin heard about the speech, he declared in no uncertain terms that Churchill's words were "a call to war." -
Truman Doctrine
because of the economical damage the war had made, Britain could no longer aid Greece and Turkey financially so they asked the U.S. to take the responsibilty. Between 1947 and 1950 the U.S. sent $400 million in economic and military aid to those countries. The main purpose was to stop communism from spreading. -
House Un-American Activities
The HUAC was an agency that investigated communist influence in the movie industry. The committee believed that communists were sneaking propaganda into films. 500 actors, writers, producers, and directors had their careers ruined because they were blacklisted. -
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Because of the nuclear arms Eisenhower's administration began to rely heavily on the CIA. They used spies to gather information abroad. The CIA also began to carry out operations to weaken or overthrow governments unfriendly to the U.S. -
Marshall Plan
Secratary of State George Marshall proposed his plan to aid the Western European countries after the war. It helped those countries and also prevented the spread of communism. Overall, $13 billion were paid to 16 countries. -
Berlin Blockade
Germany's capital, Berlin, was split into two: one half occupied by the U.S., Britain, and France and the other half by the Soviet Union. The rest of germany was divided exactly the same, so Berlin was surrounded by Soviet-occupied territory. In June 1948, Stalin closed all the highway and railway routes into the West. -
Formation of NATO
The Berlin Blockade had increased the fear of Soviet aggression. Because of that Western European nations, Canada, and the U.S. formed a defensive military alliance called NATO. They pledged military support to one another in case of an attack. -
Berlin airlift
After the Berlin Blockade, there was no other way than to fly food and other supplies to West Berlin. West Berlin only survived those 327 days because of the airlift. In May 1949, the Soviets realized it was beaten and lifted the blockade. -
USSR gets the A-Bomb
The Soviet Union exploded its first atomic bomb in 1949. American experts had predicted, that it would take the USSR at least three more years to make the bomb. Soviet spies have given Soviet scientists the information about the bomb. -
Communist Revolution in China
From 1944 to 1947 the U.S. supported the Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek. Chiang fled to Taiwan after the failor of his government. Now the Communist ruled all the mainland of China. -
McCarthy and his witch hunts
Senator Joseph McCarthy charged the Communists were taking over the government in order to be reelected in 1952. He accused people of Communism without any support. In 1954 he accused the U.S. Army, followed by a nationally televised Senate investigation which showed his bullying of witnesses and cost him public support. -
Rosenberg Executions
Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were minor activists in the American Communist Party. They were believed to have given the Soviets information abput the atomic bomb. The Rosenbergs were found guilty of espionage and sentenced to death. -
Korean War
In June 1950, North Korea attacked South Korea by surprise. The U.S. supported the South while the Soviets and Chinese supported the North. The war ended in a stalemate. -
McCarran International Security Act
This act made it unlawful to plan any action that might lead to the establishement of a totalitarian dictatorship in the U.S.. Truman vetoed the bill. The Congress enacted the law over Truman's veto. -
Warsaw Pact
0.After West Germany joined the NATO, the Soviet Union grew fearful. It formed its own military alliance called the Warsaw Pact. It linked the USSR with seven Eastern European countries. -
The Hungarian uprising
The Soviets dominated Hungarians rose in revolt in 1956. The Soviets overthrew the new democratic government and replaced it with pro-Soviet leaders. The democratic leader was executed. -
Sputnik launched
Nikita Khrushchev didn't want a war, so the two only competed economically and scientifically. On October 4. the Soviets launchedthe first satellite, called Sputnik. One year later, the U.S. successfully launched its first one. -
Bay of Pigs
In mArch 1961, President Eisenhower gave the CIA permission to train Cuban exiles for an invasion of Cuba. Kennedy approved the plan although he had doubts. On the night of April 17 the Cuban exiles landed in Cuba but nothing went as plannes and the disaster left Kennedy in embarrassed. -
Berlin Wall
Nikita Khrushchev ordered the building of the Berlin Wall to stop the flow of refugees from East to West Berlin. The wall isolated East Berlin from A hostile German Democratic Republic. Passing was almost impossible. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
In October 1962, American planes revealed Soviet missile bases in Cuba. If the Soviets would have launched the weapons, nearly Whole America would have been destroyed. The U.S. and USSR agreed that the USSR will remove the missiles if AMerica pledges not to invade Cuba. -
Kennedy Assassination
In November 1963 President Kennedy and his wife drove in an open-air limousine through Dallas. Lee Harvey Oswald, a supporter of Castro, shot the President in the head and he died instantly. His death shocked the whole U.S. -
Gulf of Tonkin
The North Vietnamese fired a torpedo at an American destroyer in the Gulf oof Tonkin. Two days later the Maddox reported another attack which actually never happened. This event led to the involvement in the Vietnam war. -
Beginning of Vietnam War
After the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution had granted the U.S. broad military powers in Vietnam, they started bombin North Vietnam. By June, more than 50.000 U.S. soldiers were battling the Vietcong. Because the Vietcong fought with guerilla tactics, The U.S. used chemicals like napalm and Agent Orange. -
Iranian Hostage Crisis
In November 1997, armed students seized the U.S. embassy in Theran and took 52 Americans hostage. The militants demanded that the U.S. send the shah back to Iran in return for the release of the hostages. Carter refused but they were released on January 20, 1981. -
Soviet/Afghanistan War
The Soviet war in Afghanistan was fought between Soviet-led Afghans and multi-national insurgent groups (Mujahideen). The U.S. supported the Mujahideen in the nine year lasting war. The war ended on May 15, 1988. -
Gorbachev introduced Glasnost and Perestroika
The glasnost policy allowed open criticism of the Soviet society. This was a step toward freedom of press. With perestroika he called for less government control of the economy which was a step closer to a democratic government. -
Iran Contra Affair
Three years after the Iranian hostage taking, Americans were shocked to learn that President Reagan had approved the sale of arms to Iran. In exchange the American hostages were released. Later in a speech, Reagan stated that America's "policy goals toward Iran were well founded". -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
In 1989 East Germany opened the wall and made a free passage between the two parts. It was the first time in 28 years. A year later, East Germany held its first free elections. -
End of Warsaw
In 1990, East Germany left the Warsaw Pact in preparation for its reunification with West Germany.In March 1991, Soviet military commanders relinquished their control of Warsaw Pact forces. A few months later, the pact's Political Consultative Committee met for one final time and formally recognized what had already effectively occurred.
