Miracle in Berlin

By David Von Drehle
Washington Post deputy opinion editor and columnist 

The fall of the Berlin Wall in November of 1989 marked an epoch in world history. It signaled the end of the Cold War and a victory of free societies over totalitarianism. But that day would never have come without the resolute decision of Harry S. Truman to save an outpost of freedom in Berlin four decades earlier. And Truman’s decision would not have been possible without the strength of the U.S. aircraft industry to deliver on his promise. This partnership produced a transformative event in aviation history, when, against all odds, a major city was entirely supplied by air for more than a year.  Read More

Address on the Occasion of the Signing of the North Atlantic Treaty: April 4, 1949

On April 4, 1949, the U.S. entered into its first peacetime military alliance, the North Atlantic Treaty. After Secretary of State Dean Acheson signed the treaty, President Truman addressed the crowd. “In this pact, we hope to create a shield against aggression and the fear of aggression–a bulwark which will permit us to get on with the real business of government and society, the business of achieving a fuller and happier life for all our citizens.”

Read on for more from President Truman’s address after the North Atlantic Treaty was signed. For the accompanying historic sound recording, click here.

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The National Security Act of 1947 at 75 Years

By William Inboden, executive director of the Clements Center for National Security and associate professor of Public Policy and History at the LBJ School of Public Affairs

Seventy-five years ago, on July 26, 1947, President Harry S. Truman signed into law the National Security Act of 1947. The scholar Douglas Stuart has rightly called it “the law that transformed America.” Some of the most important institutions of America’s national defense and international leadership, including the National Security Council, Central Intelligence Agency, Department of Defense, and Air Force, all trace their birth to this one law.[1]

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75th Anniversary of the Marshall Plan

June 5, 2022 marked the anniversary of a speech that altered world history. Secretary of State George C. Marshall, who had been a five-star general in World War II, was at Harvard to receive an honorary degree and deliver the commencement address. In unadorned remarks – and with little fanfare – he laid out a plan that would redefine U.S. foreign policy and transform the modern world. To mark the 75^th anniversary of the Marshall Plan and share the rich historical resources archived at the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum, the Truman Library Institute has partnered with the German Marshall Fund of the United States to highlight the achievements of one of the most important American diplomatic initiatives of the 20^th century. Commemorative exhibits are on display at GMF’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., highlighting the post-war crisis, President Truman’s recovery program, and the beginning of a new epoch in western Europe. Read More

#OTD February 22, 1946  |  The Long Telegram

76 years ago, George Kennan, an American diplomat living in Moscow, sent an 8,000-word telegram to President Truman’s State Department. Today, “The Long Telegram” is regarded as a foundational U.S. document, right up there with the Declaration of Independence, The Federalist Papers and George Washington’s Farewell Address. As a sign of its enduring significance, the telegram’s 75th anniversary appears on top-ten lists of historic moments to note in 2021. Read More

The Long Telegram

George Kennan and the Most Influential Cable in American History

Featuring Evan Thomas, in Conversation with Truman Library Director Kurt Graham

Tuesday, February 23 at 5:30 PM CST 

Before the “Cold War,” there was “The Long Telegram.”

75 years ago this month, a Moscow-based U.S. diplomat named George Kennan sent an 8,000-word telegram to President Truman’s State Department. The “problem of how to cope with [the Soviets],” he argued presciently, “is undoubtedly the greatest task our diplomacy has ever faced and probably the greatest it will ever have to face.”

Today, “The Long Telegram” is regarded as a foundational U.S. document, right up there with the Declaration of Independence, The Federalist Papers and George Washington’s Farewell Address. As a sign of its enduring significance, the telegram’s 75th anniversary appears on top-ten lists of historic moments to note in 2021.

What influence did this 19-page cable have in 1946? And how does it continue to inform U.S. policy today? Read More

Truman’s Inaugural Address to the Nation

On January 20, 1949, Chief Justice of the United States Fred Vinson (one of Truman’s four appointees to the Supreme Court) administered the oath of office to Harry S. Truman. At 12:35 p.m., President Truman delivered his inaugural address to the nation. The address totaled 2,264 words. Read President Truman’s Inaugural Address in its entirety below.
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A Presidential Farewell

Truman’s Farewell Address to the Nation

On January 15, 1953, President Truman delivered his farewell address to the nation.

In a mere 24 minutes, President Truman spoke about the peaceful transition of power, the presidency and presidential decision-making, forging alliances, containing the Soviet threat and the Cold War, the Korean Conflict, the use of atomic power, the White House renovation, and the American people.

The 3,757-word address was broadcast nationwide from the Oval Office at 10:30 p.m.

Read on for some of our favorite excerpts from President Truman’s Farewell Address.
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THIS DAY IN HISTORY
Truman Doctrine Announced: March 12, 1947

On this day in 1947, President Harry S. Truman asked for $400 million in military and economic assistance for Greece and Turkey. “It must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures,” Truman declared. “If we falter in our leadership, we may endanger the peace of the world — and we shall surely endanger the welfare of our own nation.”

In asserting that the U.S. would intervene in faraway conflicts, President Truman dramatically reoriented U.S. foreign policy. What went into writing the Truman Doctrine speech?
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THIS DAY IN HISTORY
“Iron Curtain” Speech: March 5, 1946

On this day in 1946, Winston Churchill delivered the “Iron Curtain” speech at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri. President Truman, who had traveled to Fulton with Churchill by train the previous day, joined his friend on the platform and warmly received the speech, now considered one of the opening volleys in the Cold War that followed.

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