Unsuccessful US-backed invasion of Cuba by exiles opposed to the Castro regime that took place on April 17, 1961. The operation had been planned by the CIA during the Eisenhower administration and Director Allen Dulles convinced Kennedy to follow through. Kennedy feared the implications of the US supporting the effort and denied direct military and air support. The lack of support and the ill-founded belief that Cubans would rise up to support the invasion led to an internationally embarrassing failure

Soviet blockade of Western supplies into West Berlin starting on June 25, 1948 after the introduction of the deutsche mark in the newly unified Western Allied occupation zones of the capital. The next day, US and UK airships began supplying the city until the blockade was lifted without comment by the USSR on May 12, 1949. It was a crucial early face-off in the Cold War putting the importance of Berlin front and center

Barrier built in August of 1961 that surrounded all of West Berlin to isolate it from East Germany. Millions of East Germans had left their country through West Berlin leading to severe labor shortages, especially amongst skilled and educated workers. The wall started as barbed wire and quickly grew into a series of walls and barriers manned by armed guards that killed anyone trying to cross illegally. The wall was opened on November 9, 1989 and was soon torn down symbolizing the fall of the authoritarian government in East Germany

Mascot for the Federal Civilian Defense Administration’s education effort about “duck and cover,” a nuclear attack drill communicated to the public. The campaign was aimed at schoolchildren in 1951 to teach them to imitate the cartoon turtle’s response to danger. It was used across the country to instill confidence in the chances of survival if a nuclear attack occurred.

Land formation in the Ralik chain of the Marshall Islands in the central Pacific. It was used for nuclear testing by the US from 1946-58. It was the site of the first ever hydrogen bomb dropped by an airplane in 1956. The area is still too radioactive for inhabitants to return.

The purported lead by the USSR over the US in the number of strategic bombers capable of delivering nuclear bombs. This idea existed during the 1950s and early 60s in the US, but due to U-2 surveillance the government was aware that, in reality, the US had significant numerical superiority over the Soviets

Bretton Woods Conference

Meeting in New Hampshire in July 1944 that created the structure for how the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD-later the World Bank) would stabilize global currencies and trade. These agreements would eventually set the stage for the US dollar to be the global reserve currency and rebuild and supercharge economies that received an influx of loans

Policy of the USSR under Leonid Brezhnev that was articulated in 1968 in response to the Prague Spring. It stated that Soviet and Warsaw Pact forces could intervene in a member country where continued socialist rule was threatened

Brussels Defense Pact

Treaty signed in 1948 by the UK, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg to cooperate in the military defense of their nations. It laid the foundation for the creation of NATO and increased overall European cooperation and integration

Cambodian-Vietnamese War

Conflict that technically lasted from 1978-1989 after Vietnam invaded its neighbor to topple the Khmer Rouge/Democratic Kampuchea under Pol Pot. Vietnam then established a friendly government called the People’s Republic of Kampuchea. International pressure from both China and the US led to Vietnam’s withdrawal in 1989

Cambodian Coup (1970)

Prince Norodom Sihanouk was deposed by a vote of the Cambodian National Assembly on March 18th. Prime Minister Lon Nol helped orchestrate the coup, became the country’s leader, and with US support tried to ban North Vietnamese troops from his country. This would lead to the Cambodian Civil War and lead to the Khmer Rouge controlling the country by 1975

(aka Cambridge Five) UK spy ring that worked on behalf of the USSR from the 1930s to the 1950s. The members were all acquaintances at the exclusive British University of Cambridge and consisted of Donald Maclean, Guy Burgess, Kim Philby, John Cairncross, and Anthony Blunt. They procured and shared copious amounts of secret intel with their Soviet handlers, but were all eventually unmasked in embarrassing and destabilizing moments for British intelligence and their US partners.

A series of nuclear weapon tests by the US under the codename Operation Castle were started on March 1, 1954, with the Bravo detonation at Bikini Atoll. It was the most powerful nuclear detonation performed by the US. It had a 15 megaton yield despite it being predicted to be only 6 megatons. The unpredicted spread of the fallout affected the crew of the Lucky Dragon Number 5, a Japanese fishing vessel, and created widespread protests against atmospheric testing

(Central Treaty Organization, aka Baghdad Pact) Agreement between Turkey, Iran, the UK, Iraq, and Pakistan signed in 1955 that was originally known as the Middle East Treaty organization. The group was to provide mutual defense against possible Soviet aggression in the region. The US became an associate member after Iraq withdrew in 1959. It lasted in some form until Iran withdrew after the Revolution of 1979

Document created in Czechoslovakia in 1977 by Václav Havel and nearly 2,000 others that pushed for democratic reforms after a crackdown on dissent by the communist government. It called for the implementation of human rights guaranteed under the Helsinki Accords signed in 1975. Members of the group that produced it were jailed and persecuted

Checkpoint Charlie/standoff 1961

(aka the Berlin Crisis) A confrontation between US and USSR occupation forces in Berlin at the main crossing point between their respective sectors of control. Under their post-war agreement, US military personnel could pass into any zone, but two months after the creation of the Berlin Wall, East German and Soviet officials began trying to limit such travel. This led to a show of force by the US under General Clay where 10 US Army tanks faced off with 10 Soviet tanks on October 27th until the next day when the Soviet tanks retreated approximately 5 meters back. Their move was matched by the US forces and eventually both sides moved away from the checkpoint

Military overthrow of president Salvador Allende and his democratically elected government that was backed by the Nixon administration due to Allende’s socialist-leaning policies. The coup was led by the Chilean Army under Augusto Pinochet on September 11th and resulted in the death of Allende and the establishment of authoritarian rule under Pinochet

(aka the Senate Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities) Congressional committee in 1975 headed by Senator Frank Church (D-ID) that investigated illegal activity by the FBI, CIA, and NSA including extrajudicial assassinations and coups. It led to the creation of congressional oversight of intelligence activities and a ban on assassinations

(aka Council for Mutual Economic Assistance) Economic aid organization started in 1949 to promote development in the Eastern bloc countries. It eventually spread to include other communist countries such as Mongolia and Cuba. It was a response to the Marshall Plan and sought to create more efficient trade amongst the countries that limited redundant production of materials that would increase competition. It was able to further integrate the socialist nations, but their diverse economies and a lack of cooperation made gains minimal

(aka Communist Information Bureau) International organization founded in 1947 that lasted until 1956. It was the heir to the pre-war Cominform and consisted of the communist organizations in Bulgaria, France, Italy, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Yugoslavia, and the USSR. It was meant to spread communist ideology and propaganda abroad to help the movement spread worldwide. It was disbanded as part of the post-Stalin thaw

communism/democratic socialism/social democracy

Various forms of socialist political thought and theory. Generally, social democracy consists of efforts to further equalize democratic systems with socialist policies and institutions such as providing government services to all. Democratic socialism favors a transition to complete socialism or shared ownership of the means of production through democratic systems. Communism is a theoretical state of pure equality in a classless and moneyless society that is achieved by total government control of all factors of production that is often sought via a dictatorship of the proletariat that ostensibly moves society towards this goal using socialism

An approach to foreign policy by the US under the Truman administration inspired by George Kennan’s 1947 articles on the USSR. The Truman Doctrine was the start of putting these ideas into practice by supplying the anit-communist efforts in Greece and Turkey in order to keep communism from spreading in the Mediterranean

Standoff between the USSR and the US over the placement of nuclear weapons in Cuba that lasted from October 22-November 20, 1962. It began with the discovery of missile sites being built by U-2 flights and became the most tense moment of the Cold War as varying strategies by each side could have easily led to a nuclear exchange. The US imposed a quarantine around Cuba to keep further weapons from landing and in secret negotiations between the Kennedy administration and representatives of Khrushchev, they agreed to eventually withdraw NATO’s nuclear weapons in Turkey and publicly promise to not invade Cuba. Khrushchev eventually agreed to these terms to the dismay of Castro. It weakened his position politically in the Soviet Union and was part of the reason for his removal from power two years later

A movement that was begun by Fidel Castro against the rule of Fulgencio Bastista with an unsuccessful attack on Santiago on July 26, 1953. After his arrest and eventual exile to Mexico, Castro, his brother Raul, Che Guevara, and others invaded Cuba on December 2, 1956, and began a guerilla war. In 1958, the movement was buoyed by the end of US support for the Batista regime and gained wide-spread backing after Batista tried to rig the presidential election in favor of his ally. Castro's forces continued to make gains and by January 1, 1959, Batista was forced to flee. Castro arrived in the capital of Havana a week later and began removing, arresting, and executing Batista supporters. He sought to continue his revolutionary movement in other Latin American countries and his nationalization of US-owned companies and interests in Cuba led to an expansion of the US embargo. Castro consolidated his power from other members of the revolution and by 1960, claimed to have transformed the revolution into a Marxist movement

Initiative under Mao Zedong from 1966 to 1976, to focus more of China’s cultural energy on his vision of communism and the national spirit. He wanted people to recommit to a single-minded focus on the communist revolution which had the effect of inspiring widespread attacks by mobilized youth groups called the Red Guards on anyone seen as elitist, intellectual, or unorthodox

(aka the February Coup) The overtaking of the Czeckoslavakian government in favor of a single-rule communist government. Klement Gottwald was the prime minister of the coalition government created by elections in 1946, but the Communist Party was losing support by 1948. The police and defense apparatus had been filled with communists and they began silencing critics with arrests and harassment. Stalin ordered Gottwald to begin purging other government offices of non-communists and on February 21st, many non-communist ministers resigned in protest. Gottwald forced President Benes to replace them with communists and a new constitution was in place by May, creating a people's democratic state with Gottwald as president

An easing of tensions during the Cold War from the late-sixties to the late-seventies that was highlighted by Nixon’s visit to China, the Helsinki Accords, and the SALT agreements. It fell out of favor in the US with those fearing Soviet human right abuses were being acquiesced to and the expansion of Soviet influence in Africa and other places was being overlooked. It ended with the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan

Final major battle of the First Indochina War between Viet Minh and French colonial forces. The mountainous fortified location was supposed to supply the French with a base for last minute gains before peace negotiations, but resulted in a decisive defeat instead. The base was surrounded, cut-off, and overrun by May 7, 1954

foreign policy political belief adopted by the US in the Cold War that asserted the “fall to communism” of one country in a region would lead to others following suit. President Truman pushed the theory to support Greece and Turkey in the Mediterranean and it was used as justification for involvement in Vietnam and Southeast Asia

People living in areas downwind of the Nevada Test Site such as residents in St. George, UT that suffered increased incidences of radiation-related illnesses. The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act of 1990 allowed some government compensation to these victims, but was limited to $50,000 per person

(or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb) Film directed and co-written by Stanley Kubrick that was released in 1964. It was one of the first films to be included in the Library of Congress’s National Film Registry for its farcical look at the dangerous possibilities associated with Cold War tensions and mistrust

East Berlin Revolt (1953)

Mass protests against harsh government work and production quotas without wage increases. Discontent bubbled over in June just months after the death of Stalin when some citizens expected reform, but were met by even more draconian measures from the Ulbricht regime instead. Strikes turned into a popular movement against the government. Soviet troops in Berlin responded and quelled the resistance to save the GDR’s government

Term for the socialist countries of Eastern Europe aligned with the USSR during the Cold War. The group was generally considered to include Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Poland, Hungary, and Romania. Yugoslavia was originally included before its split with Stalin in 1948. Albania was also aligned with the Soviets, but more independent than the others and withdrew from a direct alliance in 1961. The others stayed true to Moscow for the most part, but Romania often bucked directives and all other countries, save for Bulgaria, saw significant uprisings fueled by desires to move out of the Soviet orbit

East German/Prague Refugee Crisis

Situation in the late summer to early fall of 1989 that saw thousands of East German citizens travel to Prague and pass inside the gates of the West German embassy to try and obtain visas to the West. Eventually negotiations led to the refugees being allowed to travel to West Germany, but were made to give up their East German citizenship

Policy announced on January 5, 1957, that dedicated the US to provide military and economic assistance to countries in the Middle East trying to resist communist aggression. It was inspired by Soviet actions to increase their support in the region after the Suez Crisis

Movement amongst European communist parties away from ties to the USSR beginning in the 1970s. The invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 helped inspire the move. Eurocommunists believed in socialist solutions for their countries, but did not want to be aligned with a world-wide movement, especially one associated with the totalitarian tendencies of the USSR

A ramp up of tension in the Cold War after the thaw of détente that began in 1977 with the deployment of the advanced and mobile SS-20 missiles by the USSR in Eastern Europe. NATO responded with plans to install new Pershing II missiles in Western Europe. The deployment escalated tensions and started protests from Europeans, who felt it destabilized the arms race and put them more directly in target areas. The crisis ended in 1987, with the INF Treaty that banned ground-based intermediate missiles

French Strikes of 1947

Series of post-war strikes that began at the Renault automobile factory in April against continuing production quotas and low pay that were sparked by a reduction in the bread ration. The French Communist Party joined the strike and the government responded by removing all FCP officials from their positions. The government pushed through a wage increase to get most workers to return, but the tumult convinced observers that the government and economy were under threat of falling to communism

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade that reduced tariffs in order to facilitate trade in the post-WWII global economy based on a lack of discriminatory policies resulting in all countries benefitting from negotiated tariff rates. Twenty-three counties agreed to the terms in 1947, and starting on January 1, 1948, world trade began to boom. GATT would be replaced by the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995 with 125 nations and 90% of trade under its guidance

Geneva Accords (1954)

Agreements issued at the Geneva Convention on July 21, 1954, concerning the future of the former French colony of Indochina. It called for a ceasefire and division of Vietnam along the 17th parallel. It also called for elections in Laos and Cambodia the following year and Vietnamese elections before July 1956 to unify the country under a single government. The agreements were non-binding and though followed in part, the situation quickly devolved into new conflicts. Diem of the South refused to sign the agreement and refused to allow the reunification elections it called for

First meeting between superpower leaders President Reagan and Secretary Gorbachev in November 1985. No agreements were made, but the discussions about arms control built up a rapport between the two leaders that would allow for further agreements that helped facilitate the end of the Cold Wa

Gerboise Bleue (nuclear test)

Codename of the first French nuclear bomb test on February 13, 1960. The explosion had a 70 kiloton yield, about three times as powerful as the devices dropped on Japan. It was tested in the desert region of western Algeria (at the time a French colony). The achievement was part of France’s effort to remain aloof from the constraints of NATO which it believed created an over-dependence on the US

German reunification/Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany

(aka Two Plus Four Agreement) Agreement that reunified Germany in October 1990. The parties involved were East and West Germany along with the WWII Allies (France, the UK, US, and USSR). It ended the post-war occupation of Germany and finalized the border changes between Germany, Poland, and the USSR bringing a final conclusion to the interim situations created by WWII

Soviet policy championed by Mikhail Gorbachev that focused on transparency and openness of government action. It included the wider dissemination of information and allowed for more political discourse

Social Studies Terms 25-26

Flashcard

•

Social Studies

•

9th - 12th Grade

•

Practice Problem

•

Hard

Julie Solano

FREE Resource

Student preview

167 questions

Show all answers

FLASHCARD QUESTION

Front

Attack on Vilnius

Back

After the Lithuanian legislature declared independence on March 11, 1990, the USSR responded with military action on January 11-13, 1991, killing 14 civilians and injuring over a hundred more. The people were trying to keep Soviet troops from controlling the local TV tower and studio to hinder the independence movement. Gorbachev authorized no more military violence after the event.

FLASHCARD QUESTION

Front

Austrian neutrality (1955)

Back

The USSR agreed to end post-war occupation along with the Western Allies in the State Treaty of May 15, 1955. It formally reestablished the Austrian republic with pre-1938 sovereignty and borders. Anschluss and restoration of the Habsburgs was forbidden and on October 26th, the day after all occupation forces withdrew a constitutional law of perpetual neutrality was passed.

FLASHCARD QUESTION

Front

Balkan Pact (1953)

Back

(aka the Pact of Ankara, Balkan Entente, and the Balkan Union) Agreement between Greece, Turkey, and Yugoslavia to coordinate military actions of a defensive nature. It was seen as a deterrent to Soviet aggression in the region

FLASHCARD QUESTION

Front

Baltic Way

Back

Peaceful demonstration on August 23, 1989, across Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia where around two million people joined hands in a 600km human chain expressing their unity in the struggle for independence from the USSR

FLASHCARD QUESTION

Front

Ban the Bomb Movement

Back

Anti-nuclear movement that began in the UK to protest the installation of missile bases. It was also opposed to the construction of nuclear power plants. It grew as a pressure movement advocating for overall disarmament, the ending of nuclear testing, and the responsible disposal of nuclear waste

FLASHCARD QUESTION

Front

Bandung Conference

Back

(aka Asian-African Conference) Meeting in Indonesia held from April 18-24, 1955, between 29 countries invited by Indonesia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, and Pakistan to discuss means of asserting their influence over policy in Asia and Africa. It condemned colonialism “in all of its manifestations” which was a rebuke of both Western and Soviet actions. It set the stage for the Non-Aligned Movement

FLASHCARD QUESTION

Front

Basic Treaty (1972)

Back

An agreement between West and East Germany that established recognition and economic trade between the two countries. It was an outgrowth of the Ostpolitik of Willy Brandt and cleared a path for both nations to gain admittance to the UN the following year.

Access all questions and much more by creating a free account

Create resources

Host any resource

Get auto-graded reports

Continue with Google

Continue with Email

Continue with Classlink

Continue with Clever

or continue with

Microsoft

Apple

Others

Already have an account?

Similar Resources on Wayground

104 questions

Flashcards về Dữ liệu Tổ chức

Flashcard

•

KG - University

103 questions

Understanding the Housekeeping Department

Flashcard

•

12th Grade

100 questions

theme 1 Flashcards

Flashcard

•

12th Grade

77 questions

Le Seconde invasioni e la nascita dell’Europa

Flashcard

•

6th Grade

72 questions

tanh

Flashcard

•

10th Grade

130 questions

Vocabulary and Structures for English Proficiency

Flashcard

•

12th Grade

200 questions

Vocabulary Flashcards

Flashcard

•

10th Grade

121 questions

Greek Vocabulary Flashcards

Flashcard

•

Popular Resources on Wayground

15 questions

Fractions on a Number Line

Quiz

•

3rd Grade

20 questions

Equivalent Fractions

Quiz

•

3rd Grade

25 questions

Multiplication Facts

Quiz

•

5th Grade

29 questions

Alg. 1 Section 5.1 Coordinate Plane

Quiz

•

9th Grade

$fractions$

22 questions

fractions

Quiz

•

3rd Grade

11 questions

FOREST Effective communication

Lesson

•

20 questions

Main Idea and Details

Quiz

•

5th Grade

20 questions

Context Clues

Quiz

•

6th Grade

Discover more resources for Social Studies

17 questions

World War 2 (World History 25-26)

Quiz

•

9th Grade

15 questions

Unit 4 FA: Charlemagne, feudalism and catholic church

Quiz

•

10th Grade

20 questions

Unit 7.5 Imperial Rebellions

Quiz

•

10th Grade

15 questions

1920s Quizizz

Quiz

•

11th Grade

33 questions

Unit #2 PFL & Eco Exam (2024 Version)

Quiz

•

11th Grade

15 questions

SBAC Practice HSS26_Vasquez

Quiz

•

9th - 12th Grade

8 questions

1990's Review

Quiz

•

11th Grade

26 questions

US History Benchmark Review

Quiz

•

11th Grade