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History Beyond The Textbook
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History Beyond The Textbook
ORIGINS OF THE COLD WAR
The first serious conflict between the
practices of capitalism and communism
occurred in 1917 after the Russian
Revolution. At this point, the Soviet Union
had become the world’s first major
communist power. With the Russians now
supporting communism, their relations
with the United States became more
difficult. Other events that put a strain on
the relationship were when America
supported the White Army, which opposed
the communists during the Soviet Civil
War, the communists contesting the values
of capitalism, democracy and religion and
The Bolshevik soldiers march to Red Square
ultimately, the Russians withdrawing from
in the Soviet Union
World War I thanks to the Treaty of BrestLitovsk.
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History Beyond The Textbook
COUNTRIES INVOLVED
IN THE COLD WAR
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
THE SOVIET UNION
and its allies
and its allies
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THE YALTA CONFERENCE
Also known as the Crimea or Argonaut
Conference, it was a meeting that was held
February 4– 11, 1945. It was between the
leaders of the United Kingdom (Winston
Churchill), United States (Franklin
Roosevelt), and the Soviet Union (Joseph
Stalin). Many different ideas were discussed
and finalized during this meeting. Among
them were:
 An agreement between the three countries
that they would make sure Nazi Germany
surrendered to them. In addition, they would
maintain a triple occupation of Berlin before
East and West Germany were re-unified with
one another.
British Prime Minister Winston
Churchill (left), United States President
Franklin D. Roosevelt (center), and
Soviet leader Joseph Stalin at the Yalta
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Conference
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History Beyond The Textbook
THE YALTA CONFERENCE
 France might have been able to have a fourth occupation zone in Germany and Austria.
However, this area would have to been taken out of lands that were occupied by the United
States and the United Kingdom.
 A strict period of demilitarization would occur in Germany, in addition to the Nazi regime
being removed from power.
 Reparations for Germany could not come in the form of forced labor.
 An allied reparation council would be created, taking place in Moscow, Russia.
The communist Polish government would be reorganized. The Polish Provisional
Government of National Unity would be established and would have democratic elections.
This did not include the Polish government that was in exile since 1939.
The eastern border of Poland would follow the Curzon Line, as well as getting territorial
compensation from Germany in the West. However, the exact border of where this would
be located would be discussed in a future peace treaty between the two countries.
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THE YALTA CONFERENCE
 Soviet and Yugoslavian citizens would be returned to their own countries, no matter if
they had consent or not.
 Stalin promised Roosevelt that he would participate in the United Nations. This
agreement came after it was decided that the five permanent members of the United
Nations Security Council would have veto power. At the same time, Churchill was trying to
get France on the Security Council.
 Stalin also wanted all 16 Soviet states to be granted entry into the United Nations. The
only two that were granted this request were Ukrainian SSR and Byelarussian SSR.
 Stalin also agreed that he would join the Allies in their fight against the Japanese Empire
within ninety days of the Allies’ defeat of Germany. The Soviet Union would also get the
Kurile Islands and the southern part of Sakhalin after the Japanese were defeated.
 The Committee of Dismemberment of Germany was also going to be established. The
main part of the meeting was to see how Germany would be divided in several different
nations and what borders these nations would have.
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PARTION PLANS FOR
GERMANY
The eventual
Partition Plan
for Germany
Churchill’s Partition
Plan
Roosevelt’s Partition
Plan
Henry Morgenthau’s
Partition Plan
* Henry Morgenthau was the United States Secretary of the Treasury
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History Beyond The Textbook
HIROSHIMA ATOMIC BOMB
The United States, thanks to the
completion of the Manhattan Project, had
constructed the first atomic bomb. In an
effort to end the war in the Pacific, the
United States dropped its first atomic
bomb, nicknamed “Little Boy” on
Hiroshima, Japan. The bomb was
dropped by the B-29 bomber Enola Gay.
The bomb initially killed approximately
80,000 people. After the costs of injury
and radiation were incurred, the total
number of casualties ranged between
90,000 and 140,000. Almost three
quarters of the city’s buildings were
damaged in the attack.
The atomic bomb is dropped over
Hiroshima, Japan
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History Beyond The Textbook
THE SOVIET UNION
DECLARES WAR ON JAPAN
Soviet leader Joseph Stalin
Before 1945, the Soviet Union was in no position to
go to war against Japan. It had been invaded by a
massive German army and suffered enormous losses.
Honoring the agreement that was made during the
Yalta Conference, Joseph Stalin and the Soviet Union
entered the Pacific Front of World War II when the
Soviets declared war on the Empire of Japan. They
said they would do this within ninety days of an Allied
victory in Europe. By launching Operation August
Storm on August 9, the Soviet Union began an
invasion of Manchuria. The invasion happened
between the atomic bombings at Hiroshima and
Nagasaki. The Japanese decided to surrender before
the Soviets’ attack on Manchuria, Sakhalin, and, the
Kuril Islands got out of hand.
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JAPAN SURRENDERS
The United States dropped a second
atomic bomb on the Japanese, this time
on the city of Nagasaki. It was dropped
out of the B-29 Superfortress Bockscar.
Nicknamed “Fat Man,” the bomb killed
40,000 to 75,000 instantly, with the total
deaths reaching approximately 80,000 by
the end of 1945. The United States had
been planning for a third and possible
more atomic attacks in Japan. After these
attacks, Japanese Emperor Hirohito met
with many people in his administration.
They decided that if the Japanese were to
continue to fight, it would result in their
Japanese representatives meet aboard the
obliteration by another atomic bomb.
USS Missouri in September 1945 for the
They decided the only way to save their
official surrender ceremonies
people was to surrender.
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History Beyond The Textbook
THE IRON CURTAIN
Winston Churchill,
Prime Minister of the
United Kingdom
The term “Iron Curtain” was used to describe the influence
of communism that was slowly falling over Europe.
German politician and Nazi Minister of Propaganda Joseph
Goebbels was the first to discuss an Iron Curtain that was
coming down on the countries of Europe. Winston Churchill
popularized the term on March 5, 1946, when he gave his
Sinews of Peace speech. In the speech he stated, “From
Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain
has descended across the Continent. Behind that line lie all
the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern
Europe. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest,
Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia, all these famous cities and
the populations around them lie in what I must call the
Soviet sphere, and all are subject in one form or another, not
only to Soviet influence but to a very high and, in many
cases, increasing measure of control from Moscow.”
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THE GREEK CIVIL WAR
CONTINUES
Conflicts reignited during the Greek Civil
War in March 1946, as it was between
communists and the conservative Greek
government. The Greek government had
been supported by the British, but they
could no longer afford to help them after
spending 85 million pounds on its war
effort. The United States then stepped in,
with President Harry Truman stating that
it would help the Greek government in its
battles against the communists. While
this might have seemed beneficial at the
moment, this began a very troublesome
The map depicts the country
relationship between the two countries.
of Greece
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THE MARSHALL PLAN
The Marshall Plan was a plan that was
devised by United States Secretary of State
George Marshall. The plan called for a
comprehensive program of economic
assistance for the war-ravaged countries of
Western-Europe. The Marshall Plan also
offered the same amount of aid to Japan, but
only if it made specific reforms to its
government and allowed parts of its country
be controlled from the outside. The United
States also offered to aid the Soviet Union.
However, the Soviets later rejected this plan,
saying it was too similar to dollar
imperialism. This term meant that the United
States was trying to create its own
“economic empire” in Europe after World
War II had concluded.
The map shows the countries in Europe
that received aid from the Marshall Plan.
The red bars show how much aid was
received.
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History Beyond The Textbook
COMMUNIST TAKEOVER
OF CZECHOSLOVAKIA
In Czechoslovakia, the communist party
took over after President Edvard Benes
accepted the resignation of all noncommunist ministers. During this time,
communist Klement Gottwald became
the prime minister of the republic. The
communists were now able to have
Flag of Czechoslovakia
control of all the key ministries in
Czechoslovakia. One effect that
communism had on Czechoslovakia was
Coat of Arms of
that the country was originally supposed
Czechoslovakia (left)
to participate in the Marshall Plan.
However, Moscow forced them to bypass
participation in the plan.
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History Beyond The Textbook
THE BERLIN BLOCKADE
The Berlin Blockade occurred when Soviet
leader Joseph Stalin ordered a blockade of all
land routes from West Germany to the western
sectors of Berlin. This was an attempt to starve
out the French, British, and American forces
from the city. The three countries would not let
this move by the Soviets impede their progress,
The three Western Powers launched the Berlin
Airlift, which would help to provide relief to the
citizens of Berlin from the air. This also showed
the dedication of the Western Powers to helping
out the people in Berlin. In particular, the
Western Powers were able to increase the morale
of both the citizens of Berlin and their pilots by
dropping a large amount of goods in Berlin in
April 1949.
Western Powers soldiers loading
milk on to a plane to fly over West
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Berlin
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History Beyond The Textbook
NATO
NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization) was founded on April 4,
1949, by the countries of Belgium,
Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy,
Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway,
Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the
United States. NATO’s main goal was an
alliance of these countries to help each
other resist communism. Another one of
the main points of NATO was that all of
the countries involved considered an
attack on one to be an attack on all. If a
country were to attack one of the
countries, it would be met with an armed
response from all of the countries that
were a part of NATO. This method was
done to keep security in the North
Atlantic countries.
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Flag of NATO
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History Beyond The Textbook
THE RED SCARE
Logo of the Communist Party of
the United States
Beginning in 1947, the “Red Scare” in the
United States had reached its peak.
Americans had an increased fear of
communists infiltrating the United States
government. Due to the Great Depression,
the government feared that Americans could
eventually embrace the ideology. This was
apparent when in 1939, there were
approximately 50,000 Americans who were a
part of the Communist Party of the United
States (CPUSA). Claims of the infiltration of
the government gained credibility when
former CPUSA members Elizabeth Bentley
and Whittaker Chambers said that Soviet
spies and communists had breached the
American government.
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THE SOVIET’S FIRST ATOMIC
BOMB
The Soviet Union tested its first atomic
bomb on August 29, 1949. The test,
which was known to Americans as the
Joe 1, was a success. The bomb was
tested at Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan. This
made the Soviet Union the second
nuclear power in the world. The design of
the bomb was very similar to that of the
“Fat Man” bomb that was dropped on
Nagasaki, Japan. The thing that shocked
Americans was that the development of
the atomic weapon came years ahead of
The first Soviet atomic bomb, Joe 1, explodes in
when they thought the Soviets were going Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan, on August 29, 1949.
to construct the bomb.
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History Beyond The Textbook
MCCARTHYISM
During the height of the Red Scare, Senator
Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin made a speech in
which he claimed he had a list of two hundred five
known communists that were working in the
United States’ State Department. He also claimed
that Secretary of State Dean Acheson was aware
of these claims and did nothing about it. McCarthy
would go on to conduct hearings in Congress in
which he would accuse people of being
communist sympathizers who were trying to
infiltrate the United States government.
McCarthy’s purported “communist witch hunt”
made him politically popular but ruined the lives
of many men and women that he accused, based
on dubious evidence. McCarthy later tried to
accuse members of the army of being communists.
This led to his condemnation in the Senate.
Senator Joseph McCarthy
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History Beyond The Textbook
RECOGNITION OF COUNTRIES
In 1949, the forces of Mao Zedung and the communist movement in China were successful
in driving the Nationalist government of China from power. This came after twenty-two years of civil
war, interrupted by eight years of Japanese occupation. The most populous communist nation in the
world called itself the People’s Republic of China, joining the Soviet Union in proclaiming totalitarian
socialism as an alternative to democratic capitalism. The United States refused to recognize the
People’s Republic of China until 1977.
By 1950, the self-proclaimed Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the People’s Republic
of China recognized one another, as did the Soviet Union. The United States refused to acknowledge
the Democratic Republic of Vietnam; it chose to recognize the French-controlled government of
Vietnam. The United States Military Assistance and Advisory Group aided France in the training of
Vietnamese soldiers. However, the Viet Minh, the pro-communist Vietnamese, received aid from China
because of the Border Campaign of 1950.
At this point, the United States was unsure of the success that France and its Vietnamese
soldiers could have in the conflict, later known as the French Indochina War. It went on from 1946
until 1954, and the United States provided between 80 percent and 90 percent of the money and
equipment to the French to prevent pro-communist Vietnamese leader Ho Chi Minh from gaining
control of the country. In 1954, the French withdrew their troops.
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History Beyond The Textbook
THE KOREAN WAR
The Korean War began on June 25, 1950.
It was the culmination of many border
clashes between North Korea and South
Korea. The communist North Korea was
attempted to exert its influence in South
Korea during South Korea’s free
elections in May 1950. When communist
leaders were not elected, the North
Koreans were angry, demanding that the
South Koreans have another election.
When the South Koreans refused, the
army of North Korea launched an attack
on South Korea. Over time, both the
United States, the People’s Republic of
American trucks cross the 38th Parallel
China, and the Soviet Union became
in Korea
involved in this conflict, as it become part
of the Cold War.
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History Beyond The Textbook
THE ROSENBERG TRIAL
Ethel (left) and Julius Rosenberg
after their conviction
The trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, who
were charged with giving information about the
atomic bomb to the Soviet Union, began on
March 6, 1951. For both the Rosenbergs, there
was a sufficient amount of evidence for the jury
to find them guilty of conspiracy and espionage.
The Rosenbergs were convicted on March 29,
1951 and later sentenced to death by the electric
chair. Their convictions had helped Senator
McCarthy’s claims of communists infiltrating
the United States government. Julius and Ethel
Rosenberg were the only two American citizens
killed for spying during the Cold War.
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U.S. PRESIDENTIAL
ELECTION OF 1952
United States
President Dwight
D. Eisenhower,
Results of the
1952 Presidential
Election
In the United States Presidential Election of 1952, President Harry Truman decided not to
seek re-election for the Democratic Party. The Democrats selected Illinois Governor Adlai
Stevenson to run for their party. The Republicans chose popular war hero General Dwight
D. Eisenhower as their candidate. Eisenhower won in a landslide, ending twenty
consecutive years of Democrats in the White House.
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DEATH OF JOSEPH STALIN
Joseph Stalin’s body lies in state at the
House of Trades in Moscow, Russia
Nikita Khrushchev
On March 5, 1953, Joseph Stalin died of a cerebral hemorrhage. There was no potential
successor to fill in for Stalin. The highest officials in the Communist Party stated that they
would jointly rule the Soviet Union, although a power struggle eventually took place. Nikita
Khrushchev won the struggle and assumed control of the Soviet Union by the mid 1950s.
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END OF THE KOREAN WAR
When Eisenhower was campaigning for president of
the United States, he had promised to go to Korea to
negotiate an end to the conflict. India had proposed a
ceasefire to the United Nations for North and South
Korea. Eisenhower took part in the talks and secretly
threatened to use atom bombs against North Korea if
a truce could not be reached. It agreed to a truce. It
was put into action on July 27, 1953. A demilitarized
zone was established behind the front lines. Peace
talks occurred in Kaesong, the old capital of Korea.
While both North Korea and the United States signed
the truce agreement, South Korea refused to sign the
document.
Graphic shows how territory
changed hands in the early
part of the Korean War
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THE GENEVA CONFERENCE
As predicted, the French lost to the Viet Minh and military leader
Vo Nguyen Giap at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. This battle
marked the end of any involvement from the French in Indochina.
The French surrendered on May 7, 1954. During the Geneva
Conference, the French were able to come up with a ceasefire
agreement with representatives from the Viet Minh. As part of the
deal, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia were granted independence.
Another part of the agreement was that Vietnam would
temporarily be split at the 17th parallel. The agreement also stated
that the citizens of Vietnam would be free to move back and forth
between the two states. In addition, elections would be held in the
country, although they never took place. The North, referred to as
the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, was run by Ho Chi Minh
and was a communist state. The south part of the country was a
non-communist state ran by Ngo Dinh Diem.
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The Geneva
Conference in 1954
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History Beyond The Textbook
THE WARSAW PACT
The Presidential (formerly Governor’s)
Palace, where the Warsaw Pact was
signed
The Warsaw Pact was an agreement that took
place in Eastern Europe and included East
Germany, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary,
Romania, Albania, Bulgaria, and the Soviet
Union. Its purpose was to establish the
Communist alternative to NATO. The
Warsaw Pact, like NATO, had a consultative
committee, civilian secretary general, a
military commander in chief, and a full staff
of soldiers below them. Like NATO, the
members of the pact considered an attack on
one to be an attack on all. The countries
involved in the Warsaw Pact would also not
interfere in each other’s internal affairs and
problems, and they would respect their
privacy.
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SPUTNIK
The first Sputnik, which was a satellite
launched by the Soviets, was sent into
orbit on October 4, 1957. The impact of
the successful launch of the satellite was
felt in the United States. The United
States had failed in two launch attempts
for Project Vanguard, which had intended
to launch the first artificial satellite into
the orbit of earth. Not to be outdone, the
United States launched many satellites
into orbit in rapid-fire succession.
America did not want the Soviets to have
better technology. Some of the satellites
that the United States launched were
Project SCORE, Explorer 1, and the
Courier 1B. Increased government
spending also went toward scientific
research.
A model of the first Sputnik satellite
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CUBAN REVOLUTION
Fidel Castro in 1959
The Cuban Revolution was the revolt that resulted
in the rise of Fidel Castro to power in the now
Marxist Cuba. General Fulgencio Batista, who
was supported by the United
States, was overthrown on January 1, 1959 by a
group known as the 26th of July Movement. Castro
had been exiled to Mexico after being let out of a
fifteen-year sentence early for attacking Batista’s
government. While in Mexico, Castro gathered
more Cuban exiles to start planning for a
revolution against Batista. The fighting raged for
approximately three years, with the exiles slowly
closing in on Batista. Batista fled to the
Dominican Republic. This enabled Castro to take
control of the island, with Manuel Urrutia Lleo
being the first president under him. Soon, Cuba’s
new communist leaders became allied with the
Soviet Union.
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FRANCIS GARY POWERS
U.S. pilot Francis Gary Powers was shot
down in his U-2 spy plane while flying at
a high altitude over the Soviet Union on
May 1, 1960. Powers was captured and
tried, eventually being convicted of
espionage. He was sentenced to prison for
three years, in addition to being given
seven years of hard labor. He only served
twenty-one months of his sentence, as he
was traded along with Frederic Pryor, an
American student, for Soviet KGB
Colonel Vilyam Fisher in Berlin,
Germany. Powers’ capture proved the
United States was spying on the Soviet
Union and the situation was embarrassing
for President Eisenhower.
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Francis Gary Powers
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U.S. PRESIDENTIAL
ELECTION OF 1960
United States
President John F.
Kennedy,
Results of the
1960 Presidential
Election
In the U.S. Presidential Election of 1960, Richard M. Nixon, Eisenhower’s vice president,
was the Republican candidate for the presidency. The Democrats had nominated Senator
John F. Kennedy from Massachusetts. Senator Harry Byrd from Chicago ran under the
independent banner, with Strom Thurmond as a running mate. The election was very close
in the popular vote, but Kennedy won the election with 303 electoral votes.
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BAY OF PIGS INVASION
The Bay of Pigs Invasion occurred between
April 15–19, 1961. It was an unsuccessful
attempted invasion in southwest Cuba by
Cuban exiles, backed by the U.S.
government. They were attempting to
overthrow the government of Fidel Castro.
The invasion occurred shortly after John F.
Kennedy became president. When the
invasion failed, it proved to be a severe
blemish for the Kennedy administration. In
addition, it made Cuba’s Fidel Castro
become very concerned about the tenuous
relationship between the United States and
Cuba. Three major Central Intelligence
Agency officials were forced to resign as
well, with the most notable being CIA
Director Allen Dulles.
The poster warns of the pending
invasion of the Bay of Pigs
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APOLLO PROGRAM
At his inauguration, John F. Kennedy
announced his intentions for the United
States to put a man on the moon. This
would become the start of the Apollo
Program. America did not want to be left
behind in the space race, as they saw Soviet
cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin become the first
man to fly in space on April 12, 1961. The
next day, Congressmen were talking about
catching up with the Russians. Kennedy
was determined to have the United States
put a man on the moon before the Russians.
Kennedy’s challenge for an American to go
to the moon was answered on July 20,
1969, when Neil Armstrong and Buzz
Aldrin landed on the moon.
President Kennedy announcing his
intentions to go the moon on May 25, 1961
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JFK AND KHRUSHCHEV
During a meeting in Vienna, Austria, in June 1961, United States President Kennedy and
Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev discussed issues that were pertinent to both countries.
Many people believed that the Soviet Union would test the American policy of Containment
in Southeast Asia. However, after the failure at the Bay of Pigs and the building of the Berlin
Wall, Kennedy was more determined than ever to not allow a communist threat overtake
Vietnam. Kennedy felt that if this occurred, it would damage the credibility of the United
States in the eyes of its allies abroad. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson also promised that
South Vietnam President Ngo Dinh Diem would receive additional aid from the United
States.
Both Kennedy and Johnson felt that the Diem’s forces would be able to defeat the Viet Minh
on their own. Kennedy was against sending American soldiers to the region would be bad
for the foreign policy of the United States in the long run. However, the army of South
Vietnam was very poor and could not put up much of a fight against the Republic of
Vietnam’s army. Some in the government suggested that United States soldiers be sent to the
region in disguise, but Kennedy rejected this idea. However, Kennedy would increase the
amount of assistance that was sent to the South Vietnamese army.
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THE BERLIN WALL
Construction of the Berlin Wall begins
Construction of the Berlin Wall began on
August 13, 1961. Its purpose was to divide
East Berlin and West Berlin. The wall was
being built by the Soviets in order to stop the
flood of people who had been attempting to
make their way out of East Germany. During
the construction of the wall, some of the
streets that were alongside the barrier were
torn up so that cars and other vehicles would
not be able to make their way through to the
other side. Soldiers were stationed at the
wall, with orders to shoot anyone who tried
to escape from either side. In addition to this,
minefields and chain fences were set up to
further prevent people from escaping.
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U.S. ROOTS IN VIETNAM
When the French withdrew from Vietnam, the United States
organized a conference to prevent Ho Chi Minh and the
communists from controlling all of Vietnam. Vietnam was
divided into two sections, North and South. Like Korea, the
North was governed by Ho Chi Minh and his party. The South
would be independent and have its own elections in 1956. A
temporary government, backed by the United States, was set
up in Saigon. The United States provided financial and
military support to the South.
South Vietnamese who supported Ho Chi Minh made up a
resistance group known as the National Liberation Front. Its
military arm was known as the Viet Cong. The 1956 election
never occurred. The United States became more involved in
the conflict by 1962. The Republic of Vietnam, located in
South Vietnam, was aided by the United States in its war
against the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, in the North, and
Viet Cong forces operating in South Vietnam.
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The map depicts the military
regions of South Vietnam
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CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS
President Kennedy talks with his Cabinet
in a meeting during the Cuban Missile
Crisis.
The Soviets had been secretly installing
military bases on the island of Cuba, which
was only 90 miles off the coast of the United
States. In 1962, these bases had nuclear
weapons on them. President John F.
Kennedy ordered a “quarantine” of the
island, which sparked a thirteen-day conflict
that brought the United States and the Soviet
Union close to nuclear war. In the end, the
Soviets backed down and agreed to withdraw
their nuclear missiles from Cuba, in
exchange for a secret agreement by Kennedy
guaranteeing that the United States would
not move against the Castro regime.
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KENNEDY ASSASSINATION
On November 22, 1963, President John F.
Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.
Kennedy had been struck by gunshots while
riding in his presidential motorcade through
Dealey Plaza in downtown Dallas. The official
explanation was that he was assassinated by
Lee Harvey Oswald, who fired shots from the
sixth floor of the Texas School Book
Depository. This conclusion was made after a
ten-month investigation by the Warren
Commission, which looked into the death of
President Kennedy. After Kennedy was
declared dead at 1 p.m. at Parkland Hospital,
Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn
in as president while on Air Force One.
Speculation persists that there may have been a
larger conspiracy behind the shooting rathern
than Oswald working as the lone gunman.
A photograph taken just seconds after the
fatal shot to President Kennedy
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GULF OF TONKIN INCIDENT
During the Gulf of Tonkin Incident in 1964,
President Johnson claimed that North
Vietnamese naval vessels had fired upon two
American destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin. The
destroyers that were attacked were the USS
Maddox and the USS Turner Joy. Information
released years later showed that the ships were
in North Vietnamese waters and intended to
provoke an attack. The attack gave the United
States justification to become more involved in
the Vietnam War. Shortly after, the Gulf of
Tonkin Resolution was passed by Congress. It
allowed the president to use force to help any
country in Southeast Asia that felt threatened
by “communist aggression.”
The chart shows the United States
Navy’s interpretation of what happened
during the first Gulf of Tonkin incident.
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INCREASED U.S.
INVOLVEMENT IN VIETNAM
On March 8, 1965, approximately 3,500
United States Marines were deployed to
Vietnam. This was the first step in the
increasing involvement of the United
States in the Vietnam War. Ho Chi Minh,
leader of North Vietnam, stated he would
fight the Americans for as long as it
would take. Over the next year, more
American soldiers would be deployed to
Vietnam. By the end of the year, nearly
200,000 American troops had been
deployed to the country. By 1968, there
would be 580,000.
A Viet Cong soldier (lower right) is
held by Americans
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U.S. PRESIDENTIAL
ELECTION OF 1968
United States
President Richard
M. Nixon
Results of the
1968 Presidential
Election
In the United States Presidential Election of 1968, President Johnson declared that he would not be
seeking re-election, mostly due to the ongoing controversy over the Vietnam War. The Democratic
Party nominated Hubert Humphrey. Richard Nixon was once again nominated for the Republican
Party, while George Wallace proved to be a strong candidate for the independent third party candidate.
After another close race in the popular vote between the Democrats and Republicans, Nixon won the
election with 301 electoral votes.
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APOLLO 11
The Apollo 11 mission was the first manned
space mission to land on the Moon. In addition,
it was the fifth flight in the history of the
Apollo program. The mission was launched on
July 16, 1969. The astronauts were Commander
Neil Armstrong, Command Module Pilot
Michael Collins, and Lunar Module Pilot
Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin. Four days later,
Armstrong and Aldrin became the first men to
land and walk on the moon. As stated before,
this fulfilled the late President Kennedy’s goal
of reaching the moon by the end of the 1960s.
Upon landing on the moon, Neil Armstrong
stated “That’s one small step for man, one giant
leap for mankind.”
Buzz Aldrin walks on the moon. Neil
Armstrong took this photo.
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PARIS PEACE ACCORDS
The Paris Peace Accords ended all
American involvement in the Vietnam
War. It was signed on January 27, 1973
by the Democratic Republic of Vietnam
(North Vietnam), the Republic of
Vietnam (South Vietnam), the United
States, and the Provisional Revolutionary
Government that consisted of all
revolutionary groups in South Vietnam.
The main goal of the accords was to end
the conflict in Vietnam and establish
peace in the region. In addition, Congress
cut off the funding for the continued
The signing of the Paris Peace Accords
bombing of Indochina. The accords were
set up by Dr. Henry Kissinger of the
United States and Le Duc Tho of
Vietnam.
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NIXON RESIGNATION
The Nixons leave the White House
after Richard Nixon’s resignation
United States President Richard M. Nixon
resigned from office on August 9, 1974 after
evidence continued to come out that he was
involved in the Watergate scandal. That
occurred when men on Nixon’s payroll broke
into the headquarters of the Democratic
National Committee at the Watergate Hotel
Complex in Washington, D.C., about two years
earlier. When it was revealed that Nixon taped
conversations in many parts of the White
House, tapes were released that directly
implicated Nixon as being involved in the
break-in, and in a number of other questionable
activities. Shortly before Nixon was going to be
impeached, he chose to resign from office.
With his resignation, Vice President Gerald
Ford assumed the role of president.
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NORTH VIETNAM WINS
On April 30, 1975, North Vietnam invaded
South Vietnam. Shortly before this, the last
of the United States Marines were evacuated
from the region. They were transported by
helicopters back to the American bases. The
helicopters, however, were not able to take
all of the South Vietnamese civilians who
had opposed the Communists out. North
Vietnamese troops captured many of the
buildings in the area. The South Vietnamese
had no choice but to surrender. The North
Vietnamese had attained their goal, which
was the fall of the Saigon regime in South
Vietnam. The two countries were now united
under a communist government.
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North Vietnamese leader
Ho Chi Minh
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IRANIAN REVOLUTION
The Iranian Revolution started on January
16, 1979. It was the transformation of Iran
from a monarchy to an Islamic Republic.
The pro-Western Shah of Iran, Mohammad
Reza Pahlavi, was ousted from power. In his
place, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini became
the leader of the Islamic Republic. The
interesting part of the revolution was that it
did not contain many of the aspects of a
traditional revolution, such as a military
rebellion or a war. Many thought that the
regime of Pahlavi would never be
overthrown. The revolution was prophetic in
that the Iranian leaders opposed both the
United States and the Soviet Union, and set
up a government based on the laws of Islam.
Ayatollah Khomeini departs a
plane
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SALT II
The Salt II nuclear weapons treaty was
signed on June 18, 1979 by Leonid
Breznev of the Soviet Union and United
States President Jimmy Carter. The goal
was to have an eventual halt of the
development of strategic nuclear
weapons. The Salt II was designed to
discourage the Soviets from arming their
missiles with new nuclear technology.
The treaty also banned new missile
programs from being created. The
agreement signaled the understanding
that nuclear war was not a reasonable or
acceptable option for either side.
President Carter (left) and Breznev sign the
Salt II nuclear treaty
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IRANIAN HOSTAGE CRISIS
An American hostage being escorted
by the Iranian captors
The Iranian Hostage Crisis was a diplomatic crisis
between Iran and the United States. During this
incident, fifty-three United States diplomats were
taken hostage by members of the Muslim Student
Followers of the Imam’s Line. The reason that the
Americans were being held hostage was that they
perceived Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the former
Shah of Iran, to be a war criminal and demanded
that the United States return him to Iran for trial.
Pahlavi was in the United States to receive medical
treatment. The American diplomats were held
hostage by the Iranians, who would not release
them until their demands were met. Iran and the
United States eventually worked out a deal,
releasing the hostages four hundred forty-four days
after they were captured.
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THE MIRACLE ON ICE
The “Miracle on Ice” was the nickname that
was given to the victory of the United States
Olympic Hockey team over the Soviet Union
in the final group stage game of the 1980
Winter Olympics. The event occurred on
February 22, 1980. The American team was
comprised of athletes for amateur and
college level teams, and was coached by
Herb Brooks. The United States was able to
defeat the Soviets 4-3. After this, the United
States defeated Finland 4-2 in the
championship game for the gold medal. The
Soviet Union ended up winning the silver
medal.
United States captain Mike Eruzione
celebrates after scoring a key goal
against the Soviets.
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U.S. PRESIDENTIAL
ELECTION OF 1980
United States
President Ronald
Reagan
Results of the
1980 Presidential
Election
In the U.S. Presidential Election of 1980, the contest pitted incumbent Jimmy Carter
against Ronald Reagan, former governor of California and the Republican candidate.
Carter had been disliked by the American public for his handling of the Iranian Hostage
Crisis and the terrible state of the economy. This enabled Reagan to win the election by the
wide margin, capturing 489 of the electoral votes compared with Carter’s 49.
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MIKHAIL GORBACHEV
Soviet leader
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev became the General Secretary of
the Communist Party on March 11, 1985, making
him the leader of the Soviet Union. He was able to
defeat Grigory Romanov in the election that was
held after the death of former leader Konstantin
Chernenko. In winning, Gorbachev became the first
leader to be born after the Russian Revolution of
1917. In addition, Gorbachev had a different
approach to managing the Soviet Union. He had
three main programs that he wanted to initiate,
which included glasnost, perestroika, and
demokratizatisya, and uskoreinye, which called for
openness, restructuring, democratization, and
improvement of economic development,
respectively.
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CHERNOBYL DISASTER
The Chernobyl Disaster in Pripyat, Ukraine,
in the Soviet Union was regarded as the worst
nuclear power plant accident in history The
power plant exploded on April 26, 1986
around 1 a.m. There was a tremendous
amount of radioactive fallout in the area,
close to thirty to forty times the amount of
fallout that resulted from the bombing of
Hiroshima, Japan. Over half of the fallout
landed in Belarus. Many areas in Russia,
Ukraine, and Belarus were severely
contaminated, culminating in the evacuation
of close to 336,000 people. The area around
Chernobyl is still uninhabitable.
The aftermath of the Chernobyl Disaster,
which shows the wreckage of the fourth
reactor at the power plant
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REYKJAVIK SUMMIT
The city of Reykjavik
The Reykjavik Summit was a meeting in October
1986, between U.S. President Ronald Reagan and
Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. It was held in the
capital of Iceland. Many topics were discussed,
including human rights and the invasion of
Afghanistan by the Soviets. Gorbachev wanted to
focus on arms control talks. A proposal was made to
eliminate Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces
weapons from Europe. The Soviets also wanted to
have a complete ban of ballistic missiles by 1996.
The United States only wanted to reduce the ballistic
missiles by half after the Strategic Defense Initiative
had been tested and shared. Gorbachev backed out
of the talks, feeling there was a connection between
the SDI program and the ban of INF weaponry.
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IRAN-CONTRA SCANDAL
The Iran-Contra Scandal was announced to
the American public on November 3, 1986.
It was a political scandal in which the
Reagan administration announced that it
had been selling weaponry to Iran to free
the hostages that were being held during
the Iranian Hostage Crisis. In addition, the
profits that were being made from the sale
of weapons to the Iranians were being used
to fund the Sandinista rebels who were
revolting against the government of
Nicaragua. Both actions were opposed to
stated U.S. policy. President Reagan tried
to calm the situation, saying that weapons
The symbol of the Sandinista National
were given to Iran, but not for the exchange
Liberation Front in Nicaragua
of human life.
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U.S. PRESIDENTIAL
ELECTION OF 1988
United States
President George
H.W. Bush
Results of the
1988 Presidential
Election
In the U.S. Presidential Election of 1988, Ronald Reagan did not run again for the
Republican Party due to exercising his maximum two terms in office. However, Reagan’s
vice president, George H.W. Bush, won the Republican nomination. He was pitted against
Michael Dukakis, the governor of Massachusetts and the Democratic candidate. Bush was
able to win the election in another Republican landslide, capturing 426 electoral votes.
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FALL OF THE BERLIN WALL
A crane removes part of the Berlin
Wall toward the end of 1989
Soviet reforms and its eventual state of
bankruptcy allowed the eastern part of Europe to
rise up against the communist governments. On
November 9, 1989, the border that had been
dividing East and West Germany was finally
opened. This occurred after weeks of civil unrest
within the country. Upon hearing this decree, a
swarm of East Germans rushed the wall, with the
guards at the wall caught off guard by the
massive amounts of people who were coming.
The East Germans were able to climb onto the
wall and cross it, meeting up with friends and
family that had been in West Germany. Over the
new few weeks, parts of the wall were taken by
those wanting a piece of history. It was later torn
down with traditional construction equipment.
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THE MALTA CONFERENCE
The Malta Conference was a meeting
between U.S. President George H.W. Bush
and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. It
took place on December 2-3, 1989. While
no agreements were signed, it allowed the
United States and Soviet Union to discuss
the changes that were taking place in
Europe and removing the Iron Curtain
from the country. Both leaders declared
that this was a new era for the world, one
that would be peaceful and consist of no
war and violence. This was a major
turning point in the relations between the
East and West. Many view this conference
as the beginning of the end of the Cold
War.
Gorbachev (left) and President Bush share
dinner and discuss policies during the
Malta Conference.
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BUSH’S CHRISTMAS NIGHT
SPEECH/GORBACHEV
RESIGNS
After the presidents of Russia,
Ukraine, and Belarus formed the
Commonwealth of Independent
States on December 8, 1991, it
meant the Soviet Union came to
an end. Gorbachev did not want
to, but he eventually agreed with
Russian President Boris Yeltsin to
end the Soviet Union on
December 17.
Gorbachev resigns
from office
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A week later, on Christmas Day,
Gorbachev resigned as the leader of
the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union
formally ended the next day. Upon
hearing the news, Yeltsin called
United States President George
H.W. Bush to alert him. That night,
Bush spoke with the American
public on television, stating that the
Cold War had officially ended.
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LEGACY OF THE COLD WAR
In the end, the Cold War cost the United States
up to $8 trillion in military costs. In addition,
more than 100,000 Americans died in Vietnam
and Korea as a result of the United States’
involvement in these conflicts. The Soviets spent
even more of their resources to maintain their
superpower status. In the end, the cost of the
incessant arms race drove the Soviet Union into
bankruptcy and then out of existence.
The end of the Cold War left the United States a
major player in the post-Cold War global
economic and political systems. By 1989,
America was accountable for alliances with fifty
different countries, with United States soldiers
stationed in one hundred seventeen countries.
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