The End
Central Europe
Important Personalities
Key Vocabulary and Terminology
Potpourri
100
Despite an attempted coup d’état to change Gorbachev’s policies, the declarations of independence by Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Azerbaijan, Ukraine and other regions led to the collapse of this nation, an end to Communism and an end to the Cold War on 25 December 1991.
What was the USSR?
100
This iconic lightweight vehicle, approved by the USSR to be produced in a COMECON economy, was seen as a model of Socialist production, as anyone who wanted one would eventually get one, though it might take 20 years. Not to be confused with the Czechoslovak “Skoda”, Soviet “Lada”, Polish “Zastava” or Romanian “Dacia”. Give the nickname given to this vehicle, and the country in which it was made.
What was the East German 'Trabi'?
100
US President and former actor who, while in Berlin, demanded, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall”. He is credited with helping to bring about an end of the Cold War through hard line anti-Soviet policies including support for the Mujahedeen in Afghanistan and the Contras in Nicaragua.
Who was Ronald Reagan?
100
This Russian term was used to describe the openness policy in the USSR and its satellites pioneered by Gorbachev in the 1980s. Openness included the removal of restrictions of freedom of speech, freedom of the press and freedom of expression.
What is Glasnost?
100
Credited with having begun the modern civil rights movement in the US, this African American was the first to play in the Major Leagues, signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers and playing in 1947. He was verbally attacked and assaulted as he traveled with the team and was forced to stay in segregated hotels and eat in segregated restaurants. A number of his white teammates supported him though some did not. His number, 42, was retired by baseball in 1997 in his honor.
Who was Jackie Robinson?
200
This was the defining event of a generation considered by many to be the beginning of the end of the Cold War. On 9 November 1989, rather than shoot into the crowds, East German police and military threw down their weapons and joined the crowds as thousands of East Berliners travelled to West Berlin. Germany would reunite in November 1990.
What is the Fall of the Berlin Wall?
200
Initially an open border between east and west, the Berlin Wall was built in 1961 to prevent East Berliners from traveling into West Berlin in an attempt to stop the “brain drain” of talented East Germans into the West. The main crossing point became famous as the place where Soviet and US tanks faced each other down in an 18 hour standoff on 27 October 1961. A museum dedicated to the Berlin Wall, peace and freedom is currently located near this crossing point. Name this important crossing point.
What is Checkpoint Charlie?
200
This Soviet Premier from 1964 to 1982 is credited with expanding USSR’s global influence and economic growth. His hardline "Doctrine" came in response to the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia that this man ordered to crush the “Prague Spring” revolts. He also attempted to take over Afghanistan in 1979 and he supported the Polish Communist Party's clamp down on Solidarity.
Who was Leonid Brezhnev?
200
This Russian term was used to describe the series of economic and governmental reforms in the USSR and its satellites pioneered by Gorbachev in the 1980s. The reforms included a greater reliance on free-market, market-oriented structures to meet consumer needs, encouraging some private ownership and entrepreneurship.
What is Perestroika?
200
NAACP member who refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery Alabama bus to a white woman. She was arrested as a result as racism and segregation were legal. If a white person gets on the bus and wants a seat, an African-American would have to vacate that seat. Her action led to the Montgomery bus boycott that eventually ended the segregation and unfair treatment on the bus lines. This person was instrumental in one of the key events of the US Civil Rights Movement.
Who was Rosa Parks?
300
This Soviet leader recognized the need for political and economic reforms to improve the quality of life in the USSR said that he would not send Soviet or Warsaw Pact tanks to repress reform movements throughout Eastern Europe, leading to major reforms in eastern Europe in 1989.
Who is Mikhail Gorbachev?
300
This Polish Solidarity trade union leader led effective strikes in 1981 and became part of the government before he was arrested and Solidarity was banned. He reemerged in 1989 to lead the reform movement and become the first President of a democratic Poland.
Who was Lech Walesa?
300
Nicknamed “The Iron Lady”, this first female Prime Minister of Great Britain was a strong supporter of the policies of US President Ronald Reagan against the USSR. While in power, she had to deal with several crises including continued violence from the Irish Republican Army and a war with Argentina over the Falkland Islands.
Who is Margaret Thatcher?
300
Foreign policy whereby two Nation-States have the capacity to destroy each other but do not do so for fear of retaliation. This is the cornerstone of the deterrence concept.
What is MAD or Mutually Assured Destruction?
300
This “short” war in 1967 was instigated by the mobilization of Egyptian, Jordanian, Syrian and Iraqi forces along the borders with Israel and the closing of the Straits of Tiran to Israeli shipping. Israel launched preemptive airstrikes and eventually captured the Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip, West Bank and Golan Heights in under a week. Thousands of Palestinians who supported the Arab alliance against Israel were displaced as a result.
What was the 1967 Six-Day War?
400
This Eastern European dictator, a hard-core Stalinist, was executed with his wife when they resisted the 1989 reform movements in Romania.
Who was Romanian Dictator Nicolae Ceausescu?
400
Attempts to create “Socialism with a human face” eventually led to this uprising in Czechoslovakia that was repressed by the Soviet led Warsaw Pact after trying to negotiate and reach a peaceful settlement with Czechoslovak leader Alexander Dubcek. Dubcek was not executed.
What is “Prague Spring”?
400
Leader of Yugoslavia between 1945 and 1980 who famously defied Stalin and left the Soviet sphere of influence in 1948. A leader of “The Third Way” of neutral nations, he was never forced to join the Warsaw Pact or COMECON and traded with both East and West. During his long rule he managed to keep Yugoslavia’s many ethnic groups from battling each other. His death in 1980 eventually led to the violent break-up of Yugoslavia.
Who was Josip Broz “Marshal” Tito?
400
Term used by to describe the refusal to purchase or to participate in an activity. This became a popular tactic used by the US when it refused to take part in the 1980 Olympics in Moscow to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The USSR reciprocated by refusing to take part in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.
What is a boycott?
400
Name of the oil producing cartel that was founded in 1960 by major oil producing countries like Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Venezuela. In 1973, in response to the support for Israel in the Yom Kippur War by the US, UK, France and other nations, many member states decreased production and reduced the amount of oil, effectively creating an oil embargo leading to higher prices, shortages and an “oil shock”.
What is the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries or OPEC?
500
This event was seen by many as the first “domino” when citizens of this country elected the Solidarity trade union/party which won almost all the seats in the Parliament, The Sejm. Include when and where this event took place.
What were the June 1989 elections in Poland?
500
A reform movement and uprising in this country in 1956 was violently repressed by the USSR, who sent in tanks to restore order. Thousands were killed and over 200,000 refugees fled to Austria. Imre Nagy, leader of the uprising, was executed. Despite expectations, the US did not intervene to support the anti-Communist uprising, leading to criticism of President Eisenhower.
What is Hungary?
500
Name of the Czechoslovak dissident and playwright who was jailed following Prague Spring and went on to found the human rights group “Charter 77”. Elected President of Czechoslovakia in the first democratic elections there since 1948 and went on to oversee the peaceful spilt of the Czech and Slovak Republics in 1991.
Who is Vaclav Havel?
500
This is the easing of hostility or strained relations between Nation-States. This term is most often used to describe the climate between the US and USSR in the 1970s following the end of the Vietnam War where relations between the two super powers seemed to improve.
What is Détente?
500
Precipitated by long-term US support for the increasingly corrupt and repressive regime of the Shah, Iranian students and liberal democrats protested and called for reforms in the 1970s. This movement was resisted by the Shah and his secret police, The Savak. The Shah eventually became ill in 1979 and fled to the US for medical treatment. The Iranian uprising was then taken over by the nationalist, popular and radical Islamic cleric Ayatollah Khomeini who had been exiled by the Shah. This event took place in reaction to the US allowing the Shah to leave Iran and to receive medical treatment in the US.
What was the taking of the US Embassy and hostages in Iran or Iranian "Revolution"?
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