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Formation of the United Nations
As World War 2 was coming to an end, countries were in ruins and the entirety of the world wanted peace. In response to this, representatives from 50 different countries gathered United Nations Conference on International Organization in San Francisco, California to eventually form what would become the United Nations. -
The Truman Doctrine
On this day, President Harry S. Truman presented the Truman Doctrine before a session of congress. In this address, Truman asked for $400 million in economic and military assistance for Turkey and Greece. He did this because there was general fear around communist powers taking over the Mediterranean area. -
The Hollywood 10
10 directors, writers, and producers were blacklisted from Hollywood for their refusal to answer questions about their political beliefs. They were blacklisted due to the immense fear of communism in the United States, so many people speculated they were communists. -
Signing of the Marshall Plan
On this day, President Truman signed the Economic Recovery Act of 1948, which became known as the Marshall Plan. This was named after Secretary of State George Marshall, who once proposed that the United States should provide economic assistance in Europe's restoration. This led to the creation of the European Recovery Program, in which this organization was signed off into existence by the United Nations. -
Formation of NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was created by the United States, Canada, and many other Western European nations to provide security against the rising Soviet Union. The goal of NATO was to keep the allies' freedom safe by military and political means. -
Beginning of the Korean War
The Korean War began when communist North Korea had invaded non-communist South Korea, in which they originally agreed they would split on the 38th Parallel, a line in which the two countries would be divided from one another. -
End of the Korean War
The Korean War ended with North Korea and South Korea signing an armistice agreeing that Korea would remain divided. They returned to the original state, divided at the 38th Parallel. This armistice was signed by representatives of both Koreas, as well as the United States and the People's Republic of China. With this signing, the Korean War had ended. -
Space Race
The competition of the Space Race was between the United States and the Soviet Union. This began when the Soviet Union revealed their similar plans of launching satellites on the moon after the United States had made their announcement of doing the same. Although the Soviet Union had made many impressive firsts, especially with their artificial satellite Sputnik 1, the United States eventually came out on top with the biggest achievement: The first person to step on the moon (Neil Armstrong). -
Bay of Pigs
The Bay of Pigs was an invasion of Cuba launched by the United States in hopes that communist leader Fidel Castro would be pushed from power. This invasion was a massive failure, as Cuban troops outnumbered the American invaders. The invaders surrendered after less than 24 hours of fighting. -
Berlin Wall is Built
On this day, the Berlin Wall was built to stop Soviet-controlled East Germany from escaping to the free West Germany. It divided the city of Berlin into two contrasting zones, both physically and ideologically. -
United States Officially Enters Vietnam War
The United States officially entered the Vietnam War when they sent 3,500 Marines to the shore of Da Nang. Although there were already 25,000 United States military advisers in Vietnam at the time, the unannounced arrival of these Marine troops officially began the war between the United States and Vietnam. -
Soviet Union invades Afghanistan
On this day, the Soviet military invaded the country of Afghanistan to battle anti-communist powers in the country. The Soviet Union wanted to back up the rising communist power in Afghanistan, so they helped the communists in Afghanistan in their battle with the anti-communists. -
Berlin Wall Falls
With the news of the Soviet Union coming to a collapse, there was unrest around the unification of East Germany and West Germany. On this day, a crowd of Germans began destroying the Berlin Wall in protest for a unified Germany.