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Yalta took place in Crimea, Soviet union whereas Potsdam took place in Potsdam, Germany. Yalta and Potsdam included The Big Three, President Roosevelt, Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Premier Joseph Stalin. Although at that time Potsdam had President Truman and Clement Attlee. Yalta was to discuss peace plans after WWII. Potsdam was meant to settle issues left from the Versailles Treaty but failed and ultimately led to the Cold War. -
On August 6th the United States Army airforce dropped a bomb on first Hiroshima, Japan. Shortly after(August 12th) they dropped an atom bomb in Nagasaki, Japan to end the war that started at Pearl Harbor. 80,000 were left dead. -
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The Sinews of Peace Speech, better known as the Iron curtain speech was read at Westminster college. It warned that an Iron curtain had descended across Eastern Europe due to the outrageous, communist policies of the USSR and Joseph Stalin. Shortly after, Truman demanded that Russia leave Iran. -
A pair of nuclear weapon tests were conducted at Bikini Atoll. This was the first detonation of nuclear weapons/devices since the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan. (Fun fact, did you know that Bikini Atol was said to be the dark inspiration for Sponguebob?) -
Joseph Stalin announced in an Election day speech that, as a Communist country, the USSR would no longer be able to work together with countries that were capitalist. Stalin also mentioned that being a capitalist country could lead to things such as "Violent disturbance" and "splitting of the Capitalist world into two cample and the war between them." -
Essentially the USA took the Monroe Doctrine and updated it. This became a defense treaty with Latin America and was signed in Rio de Janeiro and is also known as both the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance and the Hemispheric Defense Treaty. -
The Truman Doctrine was established and that meant that the USA would provide military, political and economic help to all democratic nations under threat from authoritarian forces. Truman also asked congress to support the Greek Government against communism. The Marshall Plan, better known as the European Recovery Program was proposed and would potentially provide financial help to Western Europe after WWII. -
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On February 25th, Communists take over Czechoslovakia. On March 2nd Truman enacted a Loyalty Program to catch Spies in the Cold War. -
March 17th, The Brussels Pact was organized to Protect Europe from Communism. June 24th, the Berlin blockade began in hopes of forcing the Allies to abandon the city. -
North Atlantic Treaty Organization was ratified with many signatures.(April 4th) The Berlin Blockade was destroyed(May 12th). Russia is also getting into atomic warfare and tests its first bomb.(August 29th) -
On October 1st Communist Mao Zedong takes control of China creates the "Peoples Republic of China." As a result, on December 1st, Chiang Kai- Shek(Believes in Nationalism), once head of the Chinese government moved to Taiwan. -
On January 30th President Truman approved the development of the H-bomb. Later, in February, Joe McCarthy(Senator) is reported to do loyalty tests and go on "Communist Witch Hunts." On June 24th, the Korean war begins and Joseph Stalin of the USSR supports North Korea. -
On January 12th the Federal Civil Defense Administration was created to coordinate federal, local, and state defense program activities. On April 11th Truman fires Douglas MacArthur(Former Army General) due to him make untrue public statements that contradicted the administration's policies. -
Britain developed A-bombs. -
Sometime in July the Korean war finally ended. On December 8th The Atoms for Peace speaks was delivered by Dwight D, Eisenhower which led to a program that supplied equipment and information to schools, hospitals, and research institutions throughout the world. -
March 17th through June 4th 11 nuclear bombs were detonated at the Nevada test site. A RAND report for the year was published and stated that the U.S was vulnerable. -
On March 1st, H-bomb Castle- Brave test was the first in a series of many high yield thermonuclear weapon design tests that were conducted by the USA at the Marshall Islands. The KGB, security service to "Sword and shield the communist party" was established in March. March was also the month when the CIA helped overthrow unfriendly regimes in both Iran and Guatemala. -
In July Geneva agreements were signed, the French withdrew and Vietnam was divided at the 17th parallel but would be united within 2 years. -
In May, The Warsaw act was formed otherwise known as the Treaty of Friendship. This treaty established a mutual defense system between many countries.(Between Poland and the USSR) -
On June 29th the Soviet Union sends Tanks to Poznan, Poland the get rid of demonstrations/strikes by workers. The USSR then sent military aid into Afghanistan on September 4th. -
Between October and November, a rebellion was put down in communist Hungary. On October 29th the Suez crisis(Second Arab-Israeli war) begun. This was an invasion of Egypt by Isreal, followed by the United Kingdom and France. -
The USSR launched the Vostok rocket, Sputnik and Sputnik II. Sputnik II carried a dog named Laika into space. Unfortunately, she may have been popular but many other dogs passed away in Russia's attempts to get a dog into space.(In fact when Laika died I believe it was said that Russia hid it from their people because they felt bad for killing yet another dog.) -
On January 31st, the Explorer I was launched and NASA began the Mercury project using Atlas Rocket. Meanwhile, in November, Nikita Khruschev of the USSR demanded his troop's withdrawal from Berlin, Germany. -
Cuba was taken over by Fidel Castro In January. In September Nikita Khrushchev visits the USA and has a series of impromptu changes through interpreters which Is call the Kitchen Debate. -
France develops their first atomic bombs. The USSR reveals in May, that a US Spy plane was shot down on Soviet territory. -
In November, President John F. Kennedy was Elected. December 19th, Cuba works with the Soviet Union to align its beliefs and become communist. -
Berlin border is closed on August 13th and on August 17th construction of the Berlin wall begins in hopes of containing those who wish to leave. In April The Bay of Pigs Invasion happened where a failed landing mission happened on the southwest coast of Cuba by Cuban Exiles who opposed their leader, Fidel Casto. -
The U.S began to be involved a lot more with Vietnam than they were before. In October the Cuban missile crisis happened which first included the USA and the USSR but slowly more and more countries became involved until it became international. -
In July a Nuclear test ban was ratified because many people were getting cancer from being exposed to the test sites. On November 22, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. -
China developed its first Atomic bombs in October. The Gulf of Tonkin accident happened in August when there were two unprovoked attacks by the North Vietnamese's torpedo boats on the destroyers Maddox and Turner Joy of the U.S. that led to the USA being more involved in the war. -
In April U.S. Marines were sent to the Dominican Republic to help fight communism. In July, it was announced that 200,000 U.S. troops would be sent to Vietnam. -
On December 18th American B-52s and fighter bombers dropped over 20,000 tons of bombs, -
U.S. Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara claims that the U.S. Bombing raids failed to meet their objectives. -
In January, North Korea captured the U.S.S Pueblo. Richard Nixon is elected as president and President Johnson decides to run for president. The USSR Red Army absolutely crush a Czechoslovakian revolt. -
Apollo 11 lands on the moon and Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin are the first men to take steps on the moon. -
In April of 1970, President Nixon decides to extend the Vietnam war to Cambodia. -
The papers were released by Daniel Ellsberg and informed the public and congress that they had been lied to. -
February-President Richard Nixon visits China in hopes to become allies and have more leverage over the USSR. In July, SALT I or the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty 1 was signed which places limits and restraints on who could use what weapons. -
In January there was a cease-fire between North Vietnam and the USA. In September the U.S. goes to overthrow the Chilean government. Egypt and Syria attack Isreal in October and Egypt goes on to request aid from the USSR(Better known as the Yom Kippur war.) -
In August Nixon resigned because The House Judiciary Committee approved article of impeachment against him for a variety of reasons. -
On April 17th, North Vietnam successfully defeats south Vietnam. This leads to South Vietnam falling to communist forces. -
I February, Russia and Cuba team up to spread communism in Angola. -
The U.S and China establish formal Diplomatic relations. SALT II is signed, establishing a numerical equality of nuclear weapons delivery systems between two nations and limited the amount of MRV missiles. The Iranian hostage crisis from November 4th to January 20th left 52 American hostages in Iran. In December the USSR invades Afghanistan. -
Polish shipyard workers took a strike, demanded better labor reform, freedom of expression, and religion along with the release of political prisoners. This was led by an electrician named Lech Walesa. -
Ronald Reagan proposes the Strategic Defense Initiative in hopes of protecting the USA from attack by ballistic and strategic nuclear weapons. -
Mikhail Gorbachev became the leader of the Soviet Union and begins to promote campaigns and restore Russia. -
President Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev(USSR) agree to remove all Nuclear missiles. -
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Poland and Hungary become independent. USSR troops withdraw from Afghanistan. Communist governments fall in Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania. -
Lithuania follows the trend and becomes independent. Boris Yeltsin is elected as president of Russia and Germany is finally reunited. -
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A key mistake was the leadership style of everyone, especially Germany at first because they were very communist and unaccepting of others that didn't believe in what they did, then they tried to build a wall around their people. It could have been fixed if Stalin charged his leadership style.
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As mentioned in the "Key Mistake" entry I think that if Stalin would've changed his style to simply be more accepting then he could've had more followers and he wouldn't have had to build the Berlin wall. Although I am sure that would lead to a different outcome than we have today.
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