Communism timeline
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George F. Kennan Writes the Long Telegram
G. F. Kennan had been stationed at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow as minister-counselor since 1944. Although highly critical of the Soviet system, the... Read more
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The Greek Civil War Reignites Following Attack on a Police Station in Litohoro
The Greek Civil War (Greek: ο Eμφύλιος [Πόλεμος], "the Civil War") was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by... Read more
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Full-Scale War Resumes Between the Communist Party of China and the Kuomintang
With the breakdown of talks, an all out war resumed. This stage is referred to in Communist media and historiography as the "War of Liberation"... Read more
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The Czechoslovakia Coup
During the winter of 1947-48, both in the cabinet and in parliament tension between the Communists and their opponents led to increasingly bitter... Read more
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Establishment of the German Democratic Republic (Commonly Known as East Germany)
At the end of the war, Soviet authorities forcibly unified members of the Communist Party of Germany and Social Democratic Party in the Socialist... Read more
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Chiang Kai-Shek Moves His Capital to Taipei
Chiang moved the government to Taipei, Taiwan, where he formally resumed his duties as president on 1 March 1950.Chiang was reelected by the... Read more
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Joseph Stalin Dies
At the end of January 1953 Stalin's personal physician Miron Vovsi (cousin of Solomon Mikhoels who was assassinated in 1948 at the orders of... Read more
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Murrow Attacks Senator Joseph McCarthy On 'See It Now'
Having reported discrete episodes in the Cold War, Murrow and Friendly decided to expose the architect of the paranoia, McCarthy himself. On 9... Read more
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Viet Minh Defeat French at Dien Bien Phu
The Battle of Dien Bien Phu (French: Bataille de Diên Biên Phu; Vietnamese: Chiến dịch Điện Biên Phủ) was the climactic confrontation of the First... Read more
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United States B-26B Invader Bombers Attack Three Cuban Airfields
At about 06.00 Cuba local time on 15 April 1961, eight Douglas B-26B Invader bombers in three groups, simultaneously attacked three Cuban... Read more
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CIA/Brigade 2506 Invasion Fleet Converges on "Rendezvous Point Zulu" South of Cuba
Following the air strikes on airfields on April 15, 1961, the FAR managed to prepare for armed action at least four T-33s, four Sea Furies and five... Read more
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Second Day of Bay of Pigs Invasion
By about 10.30 on 18 April, Cuban troops and militia, supported by tanks, took Playa Larga after Brigade forces had fled towards Girón in the early... Read more
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Third Day of the Bay of Pigs Invasion
The final air attack mission (code-named Mad Dog Flight) comprised five B-26s, four of which were manned by American CIA contract air crews and... Read more
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Fourth Day of the Bay of Pigs Invasion
From 19 April until about 22 April, sorties were flown by A4D-2Ns to obtain visual intelligence over combat areas. Reconnaissance flights are also... Read more
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Construction Begins on the Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall (German: Berliner Mauer) was a physical barrier completely encircling West Berlin, separating it from the German Democratic... Read more
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Operation Chopper
Operation Chopper occurred on January 12, 1962 and was the first time US forces participated in major combat in the Vietnam War. In December of... Read more
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Hue Vesak Shootings
The Hue Vesak shootings refer to the deaths of nine unarmed Buddhist civilians on May 8, 1963 in the city of Huế in South Vietnam, at the hands of... Read more
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President Kennedy Delivers "Ich bin ein Berliner" Speech at Berlin Wall
Under simultaneous and opposing pressures from the Allies and the Soviets, Germany was divided. The Berlin Wall separated West and East Berlin, the... Read more
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Xa Loi Pagoda Raids
The Xa Loi Pagoda raids were a series of synchronized attacks on various Buddhist pagodas in the major cities of South Vietnam shortly after... Read more
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Cable 243 is Sent to Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr., the US Ambassador to South Vietnam
DEPTEL 243, also known as Telegram 243, the August 24 cable or most commonly Cable 243, was a high profile message sent on August 24, 1963 by the... Read more
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President Kennedy Issues NSAM 263, Ordering the Withdrawl of 1,000 Military Personnel from Vietnam by the End of 1963
Kennedy increased the number of U.S. military in Vietnam from 800 to 16,300. It remains a point of some controversy among historians whether or not... Read more
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Arrest and Assassination of Ngo Dinh Diem and His Brother, Nhu
The arrest and assassination of Ngo Dinh Diem, then president of South Vietnam, marked the culmination of a successful CIA-backed coup d'état led... Read more
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Operation Barrel Roll Begins
On 12 December 1964, Barrel Roll was approved by Souvanna Phouma. The program originally consisted of only two U.S bombing sorties per week that... Read more
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Vung Ro Bay Incident
The Vung Ro Bay Incident refers to the discovery of a 100-ton North Vietnamese naval trawler unloading munitions on a beach in South Vietnam's Vung... Read more
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U.S. Military Launches Operation Steel Tiger
Operation Steel Tiger was a covert U.S. 2nd Air Division, later Seventh Air Force and U.S. Navy Task Force 77 aerial interdiction effort targeted... Read more