THE COLD WAR TO THE KOREAN WAR

THE ATOMIC BOMB  AUGUST 6, 1945 THE FIRST ATOMIC BOMB WAS DROPPED ON HIROSHIMA, JAPAN  AUGUST 9, 1945 THE SECOND ATOMIC BOMB WAS DROPPED ON NAGASAKI

JAPAN SURRENDURS!!!  AUGUST 14, 1945  ABOARD THE USS MISSOURI

UNITED NATIONS IS FORMED  1945, THE UNITED NATIONS  INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION TO MAINTAIN PEACE AMONG NATIONS, FOSTER COOPERATION IN HUMAN RIGHTS, EDUCATION, HEALTH, WELFARE AND TRADE.

WHAT ABOUT GERMANY?  STALIN AND FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT DO NOT SEE EYE TO EYE, ALTHOUGH THEY DO ARGEE TO SEPARATE GERMANY AT THE END OF THE WAR WHEN THEY MEET AT YALTA IN FEBRUARY OF  CHURCHILL DID NOT LIKE THE IDEA

THE IRON CURTAIN  MARCH 5, 1946 CHURCHILL COINS THE TERM THE “IRON CURTAIN”  COMMUNISTS BEGIN TO CONTROL NUMEROUS EASTERN EUROPEAN GOVERNMENTS SUCH AS IN ROMANIA, POLAND, BULGARIA, AND MANY BALTIC STATES

THE TRUMAN DOCTRINE  IN 1947, PRESIDENT TRUMAN INTRODUCED AN ANTI-COMMUNIST FOREIGN POLICY AND CALLED FOR AID TO COUNTRIES WHOSE POLITICAL STABILITY WAS THREATENED BY COMMUNISM---TRUMAN DOCTRINE

NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION  IN NOVEMBER OF 1948, THE SOVIETS BLOCKADE WESTERN GERMANY  BERLIN AIRLIFT- AMERICAN AND BRITISH PLANES MADE CONTINUOUS FLIGHTS OVER BERLIN TO DROP IN NEEDED SUPPLIES AND TO KEEP THE CITY OPEN  APRIL 1949, NATO IS FORMED—IT INCLUDED MOST OF THE NATIONS OF WESTERN EUROPE— THE NATIONS ARGEED TO PROTECT EACH OTHER.

CHINA  1949-CHIANG KAI-SHEK IS DEFEATED BY MAO ZEDONG, THE COMMUNIST LEADER OF THE CHINESE CIVIL WAR.  IN AUGUST, THE SOVIETS DETONATE THEIR FIRST ATOMIC BOMB----ARMS RACE!!

KOREA

38TH

THE 38 TH PARALLEL  AFTER WORLD WAR II, KOREA WAS SPLIT NORTH AND SOUTH AT THE 38 TH PARALLEL  THE NORTH WAS COMMUNIST CONTROLLED  THE SOUTH WAS DEMOCRATICALLY CONTROLED

THE NORTH INVADES!!!

THE KOREAN WAR  ON JUNE 25, 1950, THE NORTH KOREAN ARMY CROSSES THE 38 TH PARALLEL.  JUNE 27, THE U.N. CALLS ON ITS MEMBERS TO ASSIST SOUTH KOREA. TRUMAN ORDERS IN U.S. AIR AND SEA UNITS  JUNE 28, NORTH KOREAN FORCES CAPTURE THE SOUTH KOREAN CAPITAL OF SEOUL  AUGUST 4 TH, THE SOVIETS STATE THAT KOREA IS INVOLVED IN A CIVIL WAR AND THAT FOREIGN NATIONS SHOULD NOT INTERVENE.

U.N. STRIKES BACK  BY LATE SEPTEMBER, U.N. FORCES ARE PUSHING BACK THE COMMUNIST FORCES. THE U.N. FORCES PUSH BACK OUT OF PUSAN, AND ALL THE WAY BACK ACROSS THE 38 TH, RETAKING SEOUL, AND INTO NORTH KOREA.

MACARTHUR  ON SEPTEMBER 15, DOUGLASS MACARTHUR, HEAD OF ALL U.N. FORCES, SUCCEEDS IN A RISKY LANDING AT INCHON, BEHIND THE NORTH KOREAN LINES. MACARTHUR CALLS ON THE ENEMY TO SURRENDUR.

CHINA ATTACKS!!!  ON OCTOBER 19 TH, THE U.N. FORCES TAKE THE NORTHERN CAPITAL OF PYONGYANG.  OCTOBER 26 TH, CHINESE TROOPS ATTACK ROK TROOPS AT THE YALU RIVER  NOVEMBER 26-27, THE U.S. EIGHTH ARMY IS CUT OFF BY CHINESE FORCES AT THE CHOSIN RESERVOIR  DECEMBER 4 TH, PYONGYANG IS RETAKEN BY THE COMMUNISTS AS THE U.N. FORCES ARE IN FULL RETREAT.

THE FROZEN WAR/SEOUL SUFFERS/TRENCH STALEMATE

1951  JANUARY 1 ST, THE COMMUNISTS RETAKE SEOUL.  JANUARY 15 TH, THE ENEMY OFFENSIVE IS STOPPED AND THE U.N. FORCES BEGIN A COUNTER OFFENSIVE---U.N. FORCES TAKE SEOUL FOR A SECOND TIME IN APRIL.  APRIL 11, TRUMAN RELIEVES MACARTHUR OF HIS COMMAND. RIDGEWAY TAKES THE REIGNS.  MAY---THE U.N. FORCES PUSH THE COMMUNISTS BACK ACROSS THE 38 TH PARALLEL  JULY---PEACE TALKS BEGIN, BUT DRAG ON AND ON WITH NUMEROUS DISRUPTIONS.

FROZEN STALEMATE/HEARTBREAK RIDGE  BY DECEMBER OF 1951, THE WAR IS STALEMATED NEAR THE 38 TH PARALLEL FOR ANOTHER TERRIBLE KOREAN WINTER. TEMPERATURES DROPPED TO 30 DEGREES BELOW ZERO. THE STALEMATE LASTS UNTIL JUNE OF 1952.

PEACE TALKS/POW’S EXCHANGED  IN NOVEMBER OF 1952, DWIGHT EISENHOWER IS ELECTED PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. IN DECEMBER, HE TOURS KOREA.

1953—TOWARD A COMPROMISE  ON MARCH 5 TH, JOSEPH STALIN DIES.  TRUCE TALKS ARE RESUMED AND SICK AND WOUNDED PRISONERS ARE EXCHANGED.  DESPITE MAJOR COMMUNISTS OFFENSIVES IN JUNE AND JULY, A PEACE AGREEMENT IS REACHED ON JULY 27 TH.

THE KOREAN WAR ENDS ALMOST WHERE IT BEGAN