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The Cold War
The United States and the Soviet Union remained the two superpowers of the world after the second World War. In the years following, these two countries competed for power and influence over the world. The conflict between the communist and democratic country affected the entire world in numerous ways. -
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Nuremberg Trials
During the Nuremberg Trials, more than two hundred Nazi and military officials were tried by the Allied military courts. Many received the death sentence due to the role they played during Holocaust and other war crimes. The Allies eventually came to a decision that Germany would pay war reparations in their currency and industrial equipment. -
Soviet Union's atomic bomb test
The success of the Soviet Union's atomic bomb test shook America as they realized that the Soviet's now had the upper hand when it came to the military. This began a time where the Soviet Union and The United States began replacing conventional war tactics with new bombs. -
Sputnik throws America off
When the Soviets launched their artificial satellite, Sputnik, the U.S. knew their technology was lagging behind them. To counter the Soviets, America established NASA in 1958. -
Soviet Union's missiles spotted in Cuba, almost leads to nuclear war
A U.S. spy plane spotted a Soviet missile on the coast of Cuba, just miles away from the United States. The U.S. confronted the Soviets to which they stated that the missiles were intended to protect Cuba from an American attack. After much discussion, the Soviets removed the missiles and America removed their missiles from Turkey. -
The Berlin Wall falls
The East German government opened the gates of the Berlin wall, allowing thousands of citizens to freely pass through the east and west. Citizens began tearing the wall down out of joy and excitement. Less than one year later, East and West Germany were reunified as one. -
Collapse of the Soviet Union
Many of the fifteen republics under the control of the Soviet Union began declaring their independence, eventually leading to the dissipation of the Soviet Union altogether. After a failed coup, Gorbachev realized he had little power over his country anymore and with that, communism in the Soviet republics dissolved. -
Bosnian War
When Bosnia declared independence from Yugoslavia many Bosnian Serbs did not agree and instead began a war to prevent it from occurring. The Serbs used the tactic of ethnic cleansing, which is the elimination of an ethnic group from society through killing or forced emigration. A US led diplomatic effort ended this bloodshed in 1995. -
European Union is Established
Soviet republics and Eastern European nations formed together in 1992 to create the European Union. This economic and political union has become large enough to compete for power with the United States. -
United States invasion of Iraq begins
In March of 2003 American troops stormed Iraq and took over their government. They created a new constitution and began rebuilding the government with U.S. approved officials, but dealt with violent religious extremists and Saddam loyalists. The fight to help Iraq still continues to this day.
