Harry S. Truman

Birth-Death: (1884 - 1972 ) Term: (1945-1953 )

The era of Harry Truman was dominated by the Cold War and the reconstruction of war-torn Europe. The United States remained fairly quiet during this time, in comparison to the rest of the world. Europe had been split in half between the Allies and the Soviet Union. The land and people of Europe had been ravaged by the war, and economies were confused.

Major Events with Harry Truman

1945 - V-E day

    The Germans unconditionally surrender on May 8, 1945, only seven days after Hitler committed suicide in one of the bomb bunkers.

1945 - V-J day

    The first atomic bomb is dropped on the Japanese town of Hiroshima on August 6th. The world is amazed by the power of the weapon, however the Japanese still donšt surrender. The second bomb is dropped on Nagasaki only three days later. On August 9th Japan declares an unconditional surrender.

1945 - San Francisco Conference

    The San Francisco Conference was the final meeting at which the charter for the United Nations was signed by more than 50 countries. The United Nations was now set up to preserve peace and tranquility in the world. The real success came when the agreement was ratified by the Senate.

1947 - Taft-Hartley Act

    The Republican Congress that was elected in 1946 drastically cut down the rights of labor unions. The Taft Hartley Act passed in 1947 provided that unions were subject to being sued for breach of contract. It also declared the closed shop, one that required participation in a union, illegal. Furthermore, it provided that all union officers had to take an oath that they were not members of the Communist Party.

1947 - Truman Doctrine Declared

    During the few years after the war, the Soviet Union made some attempts to establish a Communist government in Turkey and Greece. This was the setting for the Truman Doctrine. President Truman said he would base the policy of the United States on "the frank recognition that totalitarian regimes imposed on free peoples, by direct or indirect aggression, undermine the foundations of international peace and hence the security of the United States." On March 12th the United States began giving aid to Turkey and Greece. Neither turned to Communist regimes.

1949 - North Atlantic Treaty Organization

    On April 4, 1949, twelve nations signed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization charter. On July 21st, the Senate ratified the treaty which stated that "the parties agree that an armed attack on one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all . . . and agree that if such an attack occurs each of them will assist the party or parties attacked by taking such actions as deems necessary, including the use of armed force, to restore and maintain the security of the North Atlantic Area." It was a purely military defensive alliance designed to protect the Western world from the Eastern Communist block nations.