Cold War Basics
This term describes a war fought through threats, propaganda, and influence instead of direct battle.
Cold War
This crisis in 1962 brought the U.S. and USSR closest to nuclear war.
Cuban Missile Crisis
This young president pushed for the space race and was assassinated in Dallas.
John F. Kennedy
This Asian peninsula was divided at the 38th Parallel and became a major Cold War battleground.
What is Korea
This nickname described the Vietnam War because it was the first televised conflict.
"Living Room War"
These two superpowers were the main opponents throughout the Cold War.
United States and the Soviet Union
This operation to support West Berlin involved air-dropping supplies during a Soviet blockade.
Berlin Airlift
This U.S. senator led a “Red Scare” witch hunt for communists in the 1950s.
Joseph McCarthy
This general was fired by President Truman for defying orders during the Korean War.
Douglas MacArthur
During the Cold War, this practice involved denying employment and damaging reputations of individuals suspected of communist ties—often without concrete evidence.
Blacklisting
This U.S. policy aimed to stop the spread of communism rather than eliminate it entirely.
Containment
This failed invasion involved U.S.-trained Cuban exiles trying to overthrow Fidel Castro.
Bay of Pigs
This president launched the "Great Society" to tackle poverty, civil rights, and education.
Lyndon B. Johnson
This term describes the strategy of using small, surprise attacks, especially by the Viet Cong.
Guerrilla Warfare
This post-World War II phenomenon saw a sharp increase in birth rates between 1945 and 1965, contributing to suburban growth, school expansion, and long-term cultural change in the United States.
Baby Boom
The U.S. used this economic recovery plan to help rebuild Western Europe and limit the appeal of communism.
Marshall Plan
In 1961, this heavily guarded structure was built to prevent East Germans from fleeing to the West.
Berlin Wall
This leader of the Soviet Union took over after Stalin and faced off with JFK during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Nikita Khrushchev
This chemical used in Vietnam caused environmental damage and long-term health effects.
Agent Orange
This university became infamous in 1970 when National Guard troops opened fire on student protesters.
Kent State
This term is used to describe the divide between communist Eastern Europe and the democratic West.
Iron Curtain
This 1964 incident involved alleged attacks on U.S. naval ships off the coast of Vietnam and led Congress to authorize President Johnson to escalate American military involvement.
Gulf of Tonkin Incident
This couple was executed for allegedly passing atomic secrets to the Soviets.
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg
This strategy, introduced under President Nixon, aimed to reduce American involvement in Vietnam by gradually turning combat responsibilities over to South Vietnamese forces.
Vietnamization
This large infrastructure project, launched under President Eisenhower in 1956, connected major U.S. cities and transformed travel, commerce, and suburban life.
Interstate Highway System