| Nuclear testing begins |
July 16, 1945 |
The first atomic test was detonated by the United States at the Trinity site on July 16, 1945, with a yield approximately equivalent to 20 kilotons. |
| Cold War |
September 1945 |
***** |
| OSS officers, led by Lieutenant Colonel A. Peter Dewey, land in Saigon |
September 1, 1945 |
***** |
| OSS Lieutenant Dewey killed in Saigon, the first American to be killed in Vietnam |
September 26, 1945 |
***** |
| French troops are fighting in Vietnam |
October 13, 1945 |
***** |
| Oppenheimer resigns as director of Los Alamos |
October 16, 1945 |
Oppenheimer resigns as director of Los Alamos, is succeeded by Norris Bradbury the next day. |
| Eric A. Blair (aka George Orwell) coins the term "Cold War" |
October 19, 1945 |
Eric A. Blair aka George Orwell in an essay titled "You and the Atomic Bomb" on October 19, 1945 in the British magazine Tribune first uses the term "Cold War." |
| United Nations created |
October 24, 1945 |
The United Nations formally comes into being with twenty-nine ratification's having been received. |
| Eleanor Roosevelt appointed as one of first U.S. delegates to the UN |
December 19, 1945 |
Eleanor Roosevelt, the widow of the late President is appointed as one of first U.S. delegates to the UN |
| First unguided Nike missiles are fired |
1946 |
***** |
| Republic of Austria is reconstituted with its 1937 borders but divided into four zones of control - American, British, French, and Soviet |
January 7, 1946 |
***** |
| Enver Hoxha declares the People's Republic of Albania, with himself as Prime Minister |
January 11, 1946 |
***** |
| George Kennan's Long Telegram |
February 22, 1946 |
The Long Telegram describes Kennan's interpretation of the objectives and intentions of the Soviet leadership. |
| Greek Civil War |
March, 1946 |
The Greek Civil War reignites between communists and the conservative Greek government. |
| British soldiers withdraw from their zone of occupation in southern Iran |
March 2, 1946 |
Soviet soldiers remain in their northern sector. |
| Winston Churchill warns of the descent of an Iron Curtain across Europe |
March 5, 1946 |
***** |
| Soviet forces evacuate Iran after a crisis |
May, 1946 |
***** |
| The Philippines gain independence from the United States, and begin fighting communist Huk rebels |
July 4, 1946 |
***** |
| First Indochina War |
September 8, 1946 |
French landings in Indochina begin the First Indochina War. They are resisted by the Viet Minh communists who want national independence. |
| Chinese Civil War resumed between Communist and Nationalist forces |
September 8, 1946 |
***** |
| In a referendum, Bulgaria votes for the establishment of a People's Republic, deposing King Simeon II |
September 8, 1946 |
Western countries dismiss vote as fundamentally flawed. |
| French Indochina War, 4 Fourth |
December 1946 |
Vietminh forces attacked French garrisons, and during the ensuing years guerrilla activity increased in the countryside. |
| The American and British zones of control in Germany are united to form the Bizone |
January 1, 1947 |
***** |
| US Military spending hits a low of $10 billion. |
1947 |
Culminating the demobilization of the World War II military establishment, real military spending hit its postwar low in calendar year 1947 at $10 billion. |
| George Kennan's "X Article" is published in Foreign Affairs |
1947 |
Kennan's telegram summarized Soviet Ideology, their historical fear of the West, and went on to predict future Soviet Foreign Policy, the 'Red Scare,' the Cold War, the weakness of the USSR, the need for "Containment," and the Marshall Plan. |
| Cold War - Phase One (1947-1953) |
1947 |
***** |
| "Truman Doctrine" speech before congress |
March 12, 1947 |
***** |
| President Truman calls for a supplemental defense appropriation of more than $3 billion (1948 dollars) |
March 1948 |
***** |
| Third Geneva Convention |
August 12, 1949 |
***** |
| Secretary of State Dean Acheson tells the National Press Club that America's Pacific defence perimeter is made up of the Aleutians, Ryukyu, Japan, and the Philippines |
January 12, 1950 |
***** |
| NSC-68 (National Security Council Report number 68) |
April 14, 1950 |
NSC-68 would shape government actions in the Cold War for the next 20 years and has subsequently been labeled the "blueprint" for the Cold War. |
| Korean War |
June 25, 1950 - July 27, 1953 |
***** |
| A U.S. Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) of 35 men arrives in Saigon |
August 3, 1950 |
By the end of the year, the U.S. is bearing half of the cost of France's war effort in Vietnam. |
| Fourth Geneva Convention |
October 21, 1950 |
This relates to the protection of civilians during times of war and under any occupation by a foreign power. |
| The original Nike Missile, the Nike Ajax becomes operational |
1951 |
***** |
| XSM-65A Atlas A initial studies begin |
January 1951 |
These tests are conducted for the Lockheed Martin (General Dynamics). SLV-3/SB-1/SB-2 Atlas |
| Nevada Proving Ground is created by President Harry Truman |
January 11, 1951 |
***** |
| The first atomic test, Operation Ranger, is conducted at the Nevada Proving Ground |
January 27, 1951 |
***** |
| Hurricane 25 - First fission weapon test by the UK |
October 3, 1952 |
***** |
| First explosion of a fusion weapon (Hydrogen bomb) |
November 1, 1952 |
***** |
| Ivy Mike 10,200 - First "staged" thermonuclear weapon test (not deployable) |
November 1, 1952 |
***** |
| Cold War - Second Phase (1953-1962) |
1953 |
***** |
| Joe 4 400 - First fusion weapon test by the USSR (not "staged", but deployable) |
August 12, 1953 |
***** |
| Eisenhower proposes “Atoms for Peace” |
December 8, 1953 |
***** |
| Castle Bravo 15,000 USA First deployable "staged" thermonuclear weapon |
March 1, 1954 |
fallout accident |
| Dien Bien Phu, Battle of |
March 13-May 7, 1954 |
The French are defeated at Dien Bien Phu. General Vo Nguyen Giap commands the Viet Minh forces. France is forced to withdraw. The French-indochina War ends. See also: |
| The CIA establishes a military mission in Saigon |
June, 1954 |
Bao Dai selects Ngo Dinh Diem as prime minster of his government. |
| Vice President Richard M. Nixon announces the Eisenhower administration's intention to build an interstate highway system |
July 12, 1954 |
***** |
| Geneva Conference on Indochina declares a demilitarized zone at the 17th parallel |
July 20, 1954 |
The Geneva Conference on Indochina declares a demilitarized zone at the 17th parallel with the North under Communist rule and the South under the leadership of Prime Minister Ngo Dinh Diem. |
| The International Council of Scientific Unions adopts a resolution calling for artificial satellites to be launched during the IGY to map the Earth's surface |
October 1954 |
***** |
| President Dwight D. Eisenhower pledges support to Diem's government and military forces |
October 24, 1954 |
***** |
| Ngo Dinh Diem organizes the Republic of Vietnam as an independent nation |
1955 |
Diem also declares himself president. |
| The Naval Research Laboratory's Vanguard proposal is chosen to represent the U.S. during the IGY |
September 1955 |
Vanguard's intended payload was a mere 3.5 pounds. |
| RDS-37 1,600 - First "staged" thermonuclear weapon test by the USSR (deployable) |
November 22, 1955 |
***** |
| Fighting begins between North and South Vietnam |
1956 |
***** |
| XSM-65A Atlas A missile initial test is unsuccessful |
June 11, 1957 |
***** |
| International Geophysical Year (IGY) |
July 1, 1957, to December 31, 1958 |
***** |
| Sputnik I is launched by the USSR |
October 4, 1957 |
The Sputnik launch changed everything. As a technical achievement, Sputnik caught the world's attention and the American public off-guard. Its size was more impressive than Vanguard's intended 3.5-pound payload. |
| Sputnik II is launched by the USSR |
November 3, 1957 |
***** |
| Grapple X 1,800 - first (successful) "staged" thermonuclear weapon test by the UK |
November 8, 1957 |
***** |
| XSM-65A Atlas A makes its first successful flight |
December 17, 1957 |
***** |
| The Nike Hercules ABM is introduced |
1958 |
***** |
| The United States successfully launches Explorer I |
January 31, 1958 |
***** |
| XSM-65B Atlas B test program |
June 1958 - December 1958 |
***** |
| XSM-65A Atlas A testing is completed |
June 1958 |
***** |
| Congress passes the National Aeronautics and Space Act (commonly called the "Space Act") |
July 1958 |
***** |
| First nuclear test of Operation Argus |
August 1, 1958 |
Redstone rocket #CC50 launched in nuclear test Teak that detonated at an altitude of 77.8-km. Both were part of Operation Hardtack and had a yield of 3.75 Mt. |
| Second nuclear test of Operation Argus |
August 12, 1958 |
***** |
| NASA is created |
October 1, 1958 |
NASA () is created from the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) and other government agencies. |
| XSM-65C Atlas C test program |
December 1958 - August 1959 |
***** |
| SM-65D Atlas D ICBM becomes operational |
October 31, 1959 |
The first US Air Force ICBM squadron goes on Combat Alert at Vandenberg AFB, with 3 SM-65D missiles on unprotected open launch pads. |
| The National Liberation Front (NLF)--called the Viet Cong--is founded in South Vietnam |
1960 |
***** |
| The Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD) doctrine is developed |
1960 |
MAD was first fully described by United States Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. |
| Gerboise Blue 60 - France's first fission weapon test |
February 13, 1960 |
***** |
| President Eisenhower's Farewell Address to the Nation |
January 17, 1961 |
This speech marks the introduction of the term "military-industrial complex". |
| Robert Strange McNamara is appointed as Secretary of Defense by President Kennedy |
January 21, 1961 - February 29, 1968 |
***** |
| The U.S. military buildup in Vietnam begins with combat advisors. |
February, 1961 |
President John F. Kennedy declares that they will respond if fired upon. |
| President Kennedy's message to Congress |
March 28, 1961 |
***** |
| Berlin Wall |
August 13, 1961 |
***** |
| A CIA report estimates that the USSR has 4 ICBMs |
September 1961 |
***** |
| SM-65E Atlas E ICBM becomes operational |
September 1961 |
***** |
| McCloy-Zorin Accords |
September 20, 1961 |
Conceived by Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy, the agreement established a foundation or "roadmap" for all future negotiations between the superpowers with regard to general disarmament. |
| Tsar Bomba exploded by the USSR |
October 31, 1961 |
Largest thermonuclear weapon ever tested at 50,000 megatons. |
| Cold War - Third Phase (1962-1991) |
1962 |
***** |
| Frigate Bird nuclear test |
May 6, 1962 |
A UGM-27 Polaris A-1 missile with a live 600 kt W47 warhead was launched from the USS Ethan Allen (SSBN-608); it flew 1900 km, re-entered, and detonated at an altitude of 3.4 km over the South Pacific. This was part of Operation Dominic I. |
| "Mutual Deterrence" Speech by Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara |
June 1962 |
***** |
| US troop strength increase to nearly 2,808,000 is authorized |
June 30, 1962 |
***** |
| Third nuclear test of Operation Argus |
July 9, 1962 |
Thor missile 195 launched a Mk4 reentry vehicle containing a W49 thermonuclear warhead to an altitude of 248 miles (400 km). The warhead detonated with a yield of 1.45 Mt. This was the Starfish Prime event of nuclear test operation Dominic-Fishbowl |
| SM-65F Atlas F ICBM becomes operational |
November 1962 |
***** |
| Partial Test Ban Treaty |
1963 |
Also put forth by Kennedy; banned nuclear tests in the atmosphere, underwater and in space. However, neither France nor China (both Nuclear Weapon States) signed. |
| Edward N. Lorenz publishes a paper on Deterministic Nonperiodic Flow |
January 7, 1963 |
This paper, published in the Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, describes what would later come to be known as the "Butterfly Effect." It is a landmark paper in mathematics, metorology, and systems theory, and has a myriad of applications. |
| Filming begins on Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb |
January 28, 1963 |
***** |
| Filming ends on Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb |
May 26, 1963 |
***** |
| A Buddhist monk immolates himself in Saigon |
June 16, 1963 |
Buddhist demonstrations occurred from May through August. |
| South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem is assassinated |
November 1, 1963 |
***** |
| Assassination of John F. Kennedy |
November 22, 1963 |
***** |
| Release of Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb is postponed |
December 12, 1963 |
***** |
| Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb is finally released |
January 29, 1964 |
***** |
| Trade embargo imposed on North Vietnam in response to attacks from the North on South Vietnam |
May 4, 1964 |
***** |
| General William Westmoreland succeeds General Paul Harkins as head of the U.S. forces (MACV) in Vietnam |
June 20, 1964 |
***** |
| The Gulf of Tonkin Incident |
August 2, 1964 |
North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked the U.S. destroyer Maddox in the Gulf of Tonkin. A second attack allegedly occurs on August 4. |
| The "Second" Gulf of Tonkin Incident |
August 4, 1964 |
North Vietnamese torpedo boat attack (alleged). North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked the U.S. destroyer Maddox in the Gulf of Tonkin. A second attack allegedly occurs on August 4. |
| President Lyndon Johnson asks Congress for a resolution against North Vietnam |
August 5, 1964 |
President Lyndon Johnson asks Congress for a resolution against North Vietnam following the Gulf of Tonkin incident - Congress debates. |
| Congress approves the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution |
August 7, 1964 |
Congress approves the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution which allows the president to take any necessary measures to repel further attacks and to provide military assistance to any South Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) member. |
| 596 22 - China's first fission weapon test |
October 16, 1964 |
***** |
| The first American combat troops arrive in Vietnam |
March 8-9, 1965 |
***** |
| President Johnson authorizes the use of U.S. ground combat troops for offensive operations |
April 6-8, 1965 |
***** |
| Students for a Democratic Society sponsor the first major anti-war rally in Washington, D.C. |
April 17, 1965 |
***** |
| Generals Nguyen Cao Ky and Nguyen Van Thieu seize the South Vietnamese government |
June, 1965 |
***** |
| Anti-war protests are held in about 40 American cities |
October 15-16, 1965 |
***** |
| First major military engagement occurs between U.S. and North Vietnamese forces |
November 14-16, 1965 |
***** |
| Test No. 6 3,300 - China's first "staged" thermonuclear weapon test |
June 17, 1967 |
***** |
| Thieu is elected president of South Vietnam |
September, 1967 |
***** |
| 50,000 people demonstrate against the war in Washington, D.C. |
October 21-23, 1967 |
***** |
| Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty |
1968 |
***** |
| Siege of Khe Sanh begins |
January 21, 1968 |
***** |
| Tet Offensive |
January 31, 1968 |
***** |
| My Lai massacre |
March 16, 1968 |
Unarmed Vietnamese civilians are killed by members of U.S. Army Lt. William L. Calley Jr.'s platoon. |
| President Lyndon Johnson names General William Westmoreland as Army Chief of Staff |
March 22, 1968 |
He was replaced in Vietnam by General Creighton W. Abrams |
| Paris peace talks begin between U. S. and Vietnamese officials |
May 10, 1968 |
***** |
| Canopus 2,600 France's first "staged" thermonuclear test |
August 24, 1968 |
***** |
| Hamburger Hill, Battle of |
May 10-20, 1969 |
***** |
| President Richard Nixon announces the first troop withdrawals from South Vietnam |
June 8, 1969 |
***** |
| Ho Chi Minh dies |
September 3, 1969 |
***** |
| 250,000 people demonstrate against the war in Washington, D.C. |
November 15, 1969 |
***** |
| The first draft lottery since 1942 begins |
December 1, 1969 |
***** |
| Captain Ernest Medina charged with murder for the murders at My Lai |
March 10, 1970 |
Events leading up the the My Lai Courts-Martial begin, ending with the conviction of Lieutenant William Calley on March 29, 1970. |
| The armies of the U.S. and South Vietnam invade Cambodia to roust North Vietnamese troops |
April 30, 1970 |
The invasion sparks campus protests. |
| Four dead in Ohio |
May 4, 1970 |
Four students are killed by National Guardsmen at Kent State University in Ohio. The killings sparked hundreds of protest activities across college campuses in the United States. |
| More than 100 colleges are closed due to student riots over the invasion of Cambodia |
May 6, 1970 |
***** |
| South Vietnam and the U.S. invade Laos in an attempt to sever the Ho Chi Minh Trail |
February, 1971 |
***** |
| Strategic Arms Limitation Treaties I |
1972 |
Limited the growth of US and Soviet missile arsenals. |
| Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM) |
1972 |
Entered into between the U.S. and USSR to limit the anti-ballistic missile (ABM) systems used in defending areas against missile-delivered nuclear weapons; ended by the US in 2002. |
| Christmas bombing of Hanoi and North Vietnam begins |
December 18, 1972 |
***** |
| Bob Hope gives his last show to U.S. servicemen in Saigon |
December 24, 1972 |
It was his 9th consecutive Christmas show in Vietnam. President Nixon suspends Operation Linebacker II for 36 hours to mark the Christmas holiday. |
| North Vietnamese announces that they will return to Paris if Nixon ends the bombing |
December 28, 1972 |
The bombing campaign was halted and the negotiators met during the first week of January, 1973. |
| Prevention of Nuclear War Agreement |
1973 |
Committed the U.S. and USSR to consult with one another during conditions of nuclear confrontation. |
| United States, South Vietnam, and North Vietnam sign Paris Peace Accords, ending American combat role in war |
January 23, 1973 |
U.S. military draft ends. A cease-fire goes into effect 5 days later. |
| POWs begin to come home as part of Operation Homecoming |
February 12-27, 1973 |
***** |
| Last U.S. combat troops leave Vietnam |
March 29, 1973 |
***** |
| Hanoi releases last 591 acknowledged American POWs |
April 1, 1973 |
***** |
| Smiling Buddha 8 - India's first fission "peaceful nuclear explosive" test |
May 18, 1974 |
***** |
| President Gerald Ford offers clemency to draft evaders and military deserters |
September 16, 1974 |
***** |
| South Vietnamese President Thieu resigns |
April 21, 1975 |
***** |
| Saigon falls |
April 29-30, 1975 |
U. S. Navy evacuates U.S. personnel and South Vietnamese refugees. The last American combat death in Vietnam occurs. South Vietnamese President Duong Van Minh surrenders. |
| North Vietnamese forces take over Saigon |
April 30, 1975 |
***** |
| US Mayaguez is seized by the Khmer Rouge in international waters in the Gulf of Siam |
May 12, 1975 |
***** |
| President Carter scraps the B-l bomber |
June 1977 |
***** |
| Vietnam invades Cambodia and topples Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge government, ending its reign of terror |
December, 1978 |
***** |
| Strategic Arms Limitation Treaties II (SALT II) |
1979 |
Strategic Arms Limitation Treaties I & II (SALT I & II) - Limited the growth of US and Soviet missile arsenals |
| President Jimmy Carter issues Presidential Directive 59 |
July 25, 1980 |
***** |
| Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty |
1987 |
Eliminated tactical ("battlefield") nuclear devices and GLCMs from Europe. |
| Threshold Test Ban Treaty enters into force |
December 11, 1990 |
***** |
| Strategic Arms Reductions Treaty I (START I) |
1991 |
This was signed by George H. W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev; reduced the numbers of U.S. and Soviet long-range missiles and nuclear warheads from 10,000 per side to 6,000 per side. |
| The final nuclear test, Divider, is conducted at the Nevada Proving Ground |
September 23, 1992 |
***** |
| Mutual Detargeting Treaty (MDT) |
1994 |
U.S. and Russian missiles no longer automatically target the other country; nuclear forces are no longer operated in a manner that presumes that the two nations are adversaries. |
| Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) |
1996 |
This treaty prohibits all nuclear test explosions in all environments; was signed by 71 States (US is not signatory). |
| Shakti I 30 - India's first potential fusion/boosted weapon test |
May 11, 1998 |
***** |
| Shakti II 12 - India's first fission "weapon" test |
May 13, 1998 |
***** |
| Chagai-I 9 - Pakistan's first fission weapon test |
May 28, 1998 |
***** |
| Strategic Arms Reductions Treaty II (START II) |
2000 |
***** |
| US withdraws from Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty |
December 13, 2001 |
***** |
| Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty (Moscow Treaty) |
2002 |
***** |
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