Cold War Division

Space Race

A competition of space exploration between the United States and Soviet Union.

Marshall Plan

A plan that the US came up with to revive war-torn economies of Europe. This plan offered $13 billion in aid to western and Southern Europe.

Berlin Wall

A wall separating East and West Berlin built by East Germany in 1961 to keep citizens from escaping to the West. (East Germany was communist, West Germany was democratic).

Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD)

If either US or the USSR was hit with a nuclear weapons they would respond with the same, destroying both sides. This idea would keep either side from launching...

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)

Military alliance created in 1949 made up of 12 non-Communist countries including the United States that support each other if attacked.

Red Scare

fear that communists were working to destroy the American way of life

Blacklist

list of persons who were not hired because of suspected communist ties

Cold War (1945-1991)

period of time after WWII where nuclear threats and confrontation were high between the USA and USSR (Russia), rather than actual warfare

Berlin Airlift

airlift in 1948 that supplied food and fuel to citizens of west Berlin when the Russians closed off land access to Berlin

United Nations (UN)

an organization of independent states formed in 1945 to promote international peace and security

HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee)

congressional committee that investigated communist influence in the US in government agencies and the hollywood movie industry the 1940s and 1950s

Nikita Khrushchev

ruled the USSR from 1958-1964

Nuclear Arms Race

the Cold War competition between superpowers (U.S. and U.S.S.R.) to develop more powerful and greater numbers of nuclear weapons

Joseph McCarthy

1950s; Wisconsin senator claimed to have list of communists in American gov't, but no credible evidence; took advantage of fears of communism post WWII to become incredibly influential; "McCarthyism" was the fearful accusation of any dissenters of being communists

Containment

American policy of stopping further expansion/spread of communism around the world, keep communism contained.

Warsaw Pact

An alliance between the Soviet Union and other Eastern European nations. This was in response to the NATO

Sputnik

The first artificial satellite sent into space, launched by the Soviets in 1957

Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin

The first people to walk on the moon. Americans landed on the moon in 1969.

H-bomb (hydrogen bomb)

Ordered by Truman, the first U.S. H-bomb was exploded in 1952. The Soviets exploded their first H-bomb in 1953, and the nuclear arms race entered a dangerously competitive cycle

Truman Doctrine (1947)

Stated that the U.S. would support any nation threatened by communism.

Duck and Cover Drills

Students were urged to DUCK under their desks and COVER their heads to protect themselves from the dangerous debris and radiation associated with a nuclear detonation.

Communism

a political theory derived from Karl Marx, advocating class war and leading to a society in which all property is publicly owned and each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs.

USSR (Soviet Union)

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, includes Russia as a state. Was a communist country.

Iron Curtain

Winston Churchill's term for the Cold War division between the Soviet-dominated East and the U.S.-dominated West in Europe.