학습 · 미국 역사

WWII to the Cold War: Pearl Harbor to the Berlin Wall

From Pearl Harbor (1941) to the fall of the Berlin Wall (1989), the US fought a hot war and a cold one. Master the major events of both.

10 분 TEKS 10A,10B,11A,11B 미국 역사

Two wars, one century

WWII ran four years (1941-1945) and killed about 60 million people worldwide. The Cold War that followed lasted 44 years (1947-1991) and shaped almost every aspect of American foreign policy in the second half of the 20th century.

World War II (1941-1945)

WWII essentials
  • Pearl Harbor (Dec 7, 1941) — Japanese aerial attack on US naval base in Hawaii. FDR called it "a date which will live in infamy." US entered the war the next day.
  • D-Day (June 6, 1944) — Allied invasion of Normandy, France. The largest amphibious assault in history (~156,000 troops). Began the liberation of Western Europe.
  • Atomic bombs (Aug 1945) — Hiroshima (Aug 6) and Nagasaki (Aug 9). Japan surrendered Aug 15.
  • Holocaust — Nazi Germany murdered ~6 million Jews and ~5 million others (Roma, disabled, Soviet POWs, political prisoners). Discovered when Allied troops liberated concentration camps in 1945.
  • United Nations (founded 1945) — created to maintain international peace and prevent another world war. Replaced the failed League of Nations.

The Cold War (1947-1991)

Five flashpoints across 42 years. Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) was the closest the world came to nuclear war.
Five flashpoints across 42 years. Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) was the closest the world came to nuclear war.

After WWII, the US and Soviet Union — recent allies — became geopolitical rivals. Both had nuclear weapons. Direct war was unthinkable, so the conflict played out in proxy wars, espionage, propaganda, and a space race.

  • Truman Doctrine (1947) — pledged US support to countries resisting Soviet communism. Launched 40 years of containment policy.
  • Marshall Plan (1948) — $13 billion in aid to rebuild Western Europe.
  • Korean War (1950-1953) — first hot conflict. Ended in stalemate at the 38th parallel.
  • Sputnik (1957) — Soviet satellite launch. Shocked the US into massive science education investment and eventually NASA.
  • Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) — 13 days that brought the US and USSR to the brink of nuclear war over Soviet missiles in Cuba.
  • Vietnam War (1965-1973) — most divisive war in American history. Ended in US withdrawal.
  • Apollo 11 (1969) — US won the Space Race by landing humans on the Moon.
  • Fall of Berlin Wall (1989) — symbolic end of the Cold War. Soviet Union dissolved 1991.

Check yourself

Quick check #1
Which Cold War event brought the US and USSR closest to nuclear war?
Quick check #2
What was the primary purpose of creating the United Nations in 1945?

Practice with real CBE questions