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Biography: Douglas MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur born January 26, 1880 in Arkansas became a general during World War II and after the war led American occupation in Japan. He helped set up a democratic government in Japan, rewriting their constitution, and outlawing militarism. MacArthur was also involved in the Korean War by making the Inchon landing, driving North Koreans back across the 38th parallel. He wanted permission from President Truman to bomb North Korea and China, but got rejected and was removed from command. -
Biography: Ho Chi Minh
Ho Chi Minh was a Vietnamese Communist revolutionary leader and president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. His goal was to liberate Vietnam from French colonial rule. Ho Chi Minh received support from the Soviet Union and was able to defeat the French at Dien Bien Phu, which lead to the Geneva Conference in 1954. This conference split Vietnam into a Communist North Vietnam and French-backed South Vietnam. -
Biography: Dwight D. Eisenhower
Eisenhower born on October 14, 1890 was a World War II hero and served as our 34th president. During the Cold War he tried to ease a lot of the tension in the Middle East with the proposal of the Eisenhower doctrine. He also was the supreme commander of NATO, launched the space race between the US and the Soviet Union, and ended the war in Korea in 1953. -
Yalta Conference
The Yalta Conference was a meeting between Winston Churhill, the British prime minister, Joseph Stalin, and Franklin D. Roosevelt. They decided to split up Germany into four zones of occupation which would be run by them and France. At this meeting, they also scheduled to meet in San Francisco to create the United Nations. -
United Nations Formed
Fifty one representatives met in San Francisco determined to set up an organization that would preserve peace and make the world a better place. -
The Red Scare
This image was a propaganda poster used in the United States during the Cold War in order enforce the idea of containment. The United States did not want Communism to spread therefore these poster instilled fear into the civilians. Since the civilians did not want to see this happen, they supported the United States in doing what it needed to do in order to prevent communism from spreading. -
Truman Doctrine
This was an American foreign policy that stated American assistance would be supplied to any country being threatened by Communism. This policy established the idea of containment and showed that America saw Communism as a major threat. -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was an American initiative meant to help aid Western Europe and rebuild their economies. The main goals of the plan was to rebuild war devastated regions, remove trade barriers, modernize countries, make Europe prosperous, and stop communism from spreading. -
Berlin Airlift
The United States began sending aircrafts with food, water, and medicine for the citizens in West Berlin as a result of the Soviet blockade. This went on for almost two years, and the United States was able to sustain over two million people in West Berlin. -
NATO Alliance
The United States, Canada, and ten other Western European countries formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to stop the spread of communism in Europe. The Soviet Union saw this alliance as a threat. -
Nuclear Arms Race Chart
This chart shows the number of nuclear warheads the United States and the Soviet Union had during the duration of the nuclear arms race. -
Soviet Income Chart
This graph reveals that the soviet national income gradually decreased during the Cold War. This was most likely due to war debts. -
Cold War Political Cartoon
This political cartoon of John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev arm wrestling conveys the tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. This image depicts not only the nuclear arms race, but also the idea of brinkmanship or being on the "brink" of war. -
Korean War
The Korean War began when 75,000 North Korean troops crossed the 38th parallel and attacked South Korea. This was considered the first military action of the Cold War. American troops got involved a month later fighting on the South Korean side. The Korean War came to an end in 1953 due to the fear of it possibly turning into World War III. As a result of the Korean War, five million lives were lost. -
Duck and Cover Image
This film was shown in schools across the United States in order to teach children what to do in case of a nuclear attack by the Soviet Union. The reality of the situation was actually very scary and dangerous, however the film is able to make light of the situation for the children. -
Warsaw Pact Alliance
As a result of the NATO, the Soviet Union decided to create a rival alliance along with Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania called the Warsaw Pact. This was a Communist alliance and was signed in Poland. -
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was fought between North Vietnam which was supported by the Soviet Union, China, and other communist countries and South Vietnam which was supported by the United States, the Philippines, and other anti-communist countries. North Vietnam ended up winning the war due to the withdrawal of American-led forces. In addition, Communist governments take control over South Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. -
Cold War Technology: Sputnik Launched
The Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I which was the world's first artificial satellite to orbit around Earth. The Soviet's success concerned the United States and sparked the space race. -
NASA
The United States created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA, in an effort to beat the Soviet Union in the space race. This reveals the intimidation that the U.S. feels from the Soviet Union. -
U-2 Spy Incident
A United States U-2 spy plane was shot down while flying over the Soviet Union and crashed. This was an embarrassment for the United States because the Soviet Union found spy technology aboard the plane. The relationship between the Soviet Union and the United States deteriorated. -
Berlin Wall Built
Premier Khrushchev gave the East German government permission to close off its borders. The Berlin Wall was built in two weeks and stayed up for about twenty eight years separating East and West Berlin. The wall was a symbol of the separation in Europe caused by the Cold War. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
This was the closest that the world came to nuclear warfare. The United States and the Soviet Union went through a thirteen day political and military standoff over the nuclear missile installation of the Soviets on Cuba. Luckily, disaster was avoided when the United States accepted Nikita Khrushchev’s offer of removing the missiles if the U.S. promised not to attack Cuba. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
This invasion was a result of the United States State Department and the CIA attempting to overthrow Fidel Castro from power. Unfortunately, American troops were greatly outnumbered by Fidel Castro's troops and ended up surrendering in less than twenty four hours. -
United States Propaganda
This propaganda poster from the United States reveals the enforcement of containment. The purpose of the poster is took look at the Soviet Union in a negative way and get people to not support them as well as not support communism. -
Soviet Union Propaganda
This propaganda poster was used in the Soviet Union to promote Stalin and show that he supports the Soviet Union's future. The purpose of this poster is to get the people to favor Stalin and support his decisions. -
Map of Cold War
This map shows the alliances formed during the Cold War. It also shows which countries were apart of NATO, the Warsaw pact, and the location of communist and anti-communist guerrillas. -
Cold War Military Stand-off
This map shows the location of where the U.S. and the Soviet Union put missiles, troops, submarines, and naval bases. -
"1999" Music Video
Click here to watch Prince's song "1999" which is partially influenced by events that were going on during the Cold War. In this song, Prince talks about people running from destruction, the possibility of dying, and to make the most out of everyday. At the end of the song a child asks, "Mommy, why does everybody have a bomb?" which is indicative of the nuclear arms race during the time of the Cold War. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
As the Cold War began to simmer down across Eastern Europe the spokesman for the Eastern Berlin Communist Party announced a change in relations with West Berlin. He said that citizens of the GDR were free to cross the border. Citizens went to the gate and cheered. -
Video: Cold War History
Click here! This is an informational video about what kind of technology we have now as a result of the Cold War. -
Video: Cold War in 9 minutes
Click here! This video gives an information packed nine minutes about the important events that occurred during the Cold War.
