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Partioning of Germany
Germany was split between the two global blocs in the East and West, a period known as the division of Germany. Over 10 million German-speaking refugees arrived in Germany from other countries in Central and Eastern Europe. -
Hitler was killed
Hitler killed himself with a gun. His wife Eva committed suicide with him by taking cyanide. -
Civil War in Greece
Greek communists unsuccessfully tried to gain control of Greece. The communists accepted defeat and the disbandment of their forces. -
Truman Doctrine Speech
Truman appeared before a joint session of Congress to make his case. Nations could adopt a way of life “based upon the will of the majority”. -
Marshall Plan is announced
Secretary of State George C. Marshall, who announced it in a commencement speech at Harvard University. The Marshall Plan successfully sparked economic recovery. -
Berlin Airlift
U.S., British, and Soviet military forces divided and occupied Germany. Berlin was located far inside Soviet-controlled eastern Germany. -
Creation of NATO
The USSR oversaw the installation of pro-Soviet governments in many of the areas it had taken from the Nazis during the war. -
Soviets test an atomic bomb
the Soviet Union exploded its first atomic bomb. the United States had used two atomic bombs on Japan to cause them to surrender during World War II. -
Korean War begins
a war between North and South Korea. China fought for the North, which was also assisted by the Soviet Union. -
KGB Established
an initialism for Komitet gosudarstvennoy bezopasnosti. the main security agency for the Soviet Union from 1954 until its break-up in 1991. -
Creation of Warsaw Pact
a political and military alliance. a mutual defense organization that put the Soviets in command of the armed forces of the member states. -
Sputnik
the first artificial Earth satellite. The Soviet Union launched it into an elliptical low Earth orbit.
