APUSH Period 8: Global Conflict & Domestic Anxiety (1945–1980)

Cold War

An ideological, political, and economic struggle between the capitalist US and communist USSR from 1945 to 1980.

Containment

US strategy to prevent the spread of communism rather than eliminating existing regimes.

Truman Doctrine

1947 policy pledging support to free peoples resisting attempted subjugation, including financial aid to Greece and Turkey.

Marshall Plan

1948 economic aid program to rebuild Western Europe and prevent the rise of communism.

NATO

North Atlantic Treaty Organization; a military alliance formed in 1949 for collective security.

Warsaw Pact

The Soviet response to NATO, consolidating Eastern European communist nations.

NSC-68

A secret report recommending increased defense spending to deter Soviet aggression.

Brinkmanship

Eisenhower's strategy of threatening nuclear war to prevent communist expansion.

Military-Industrial Complex

The relationship between a country's military and the defense industry that influences public policy.

Flexible Response

Kennedy's strategy of using a range of military options rather than relying solely on nuclear arms.

Détente

Nixon's policy to ease tensions between the US and USSR, including the SALT I treaty.

Korean War

Conflict from 1950 to 1953, marking the first military test of US containment policy.

38th Parallel

The dividing line between North and South Korea established after the Korean War.

Second Red Scare

The fear of communism in the US during the late 1940s and early 1950s characterized by McCarthyism.

McCarthyism

The practice of making reckless accusations of subversion without adequate evidence.

Army-McCarthy Hearings

Televised hearings in 1954 that led to the decline of Senator McCarthy's popularity.

HUAC

House Un-American Activities Committee; a congressional group investigating communist influence.

Hollywood Ten

Screenwriters and directors jailed for refusing to testify about their political affiliations.

Alger Hiss

A former State Department official convicted of perjury for lying about espionage.

Rosenbergs

Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed for passing atomic secrets to the Soviet Union.

Domino Theory

The belief that if one country fell to communism, neighboring countries would follow.

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

1964 Congressional resolution allowing LBJ to use military force in Vietnam without a formal declaration of war.

Credibility Gap

The difference between what the US government reported and what the public believed regarding the Vietnam War.

Tet Offensive

A coordinated attack by North Vietnam in 1968 that psychologically marked a turning point in the Vietnam War.

My Lai Massacre

The killing of unarmed Vietnamese villagers by US troops, leading to increased anti-war sentiment in the US.

Vietnamization

Nixon's policy of training South Vietnamese forces to take over combat roles as US troops withdrew.

War Powers Act

1973 law requiring the President to notify Congress within 48 hours of deploying troops.

Fall of Saigon

The 1975 event marking the end of the Vietnam War, resulting in a unified communist Vietnam.