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WH Unit 13 Test: The Cold War Era (1945-1991)

Total questions: 52

Worksheet time: 26mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

A state of tension and hostility between nations aligned with the US, and nations aligned with the Soviet Union. 

a)

The Red Scare

b)

The Cold War

c)

The Bay of Pigs

d)

Détente

2.

Why did Stalin want Eastern Europe under the control of the Soviet Union?

a)

To spread capitalism and create a buffer zone between Russia and Britain.

b)

To spread communism and create a buffer zone between Russia and Germany.

c)

To spread communism and create more Lebenraum.

d)

To expand collectivized agriculture and grow the manufacturing capacity of East Germany.

3.

What was the "iron curtain?"

a)

The Berlin Wall

b)

A literal cast iron wall that was built between the communist world and the capitalist world.

c)

A symbolic line of separation between free market nations and communist nations

d)

The name of the Soviet missile operation.

4.

Which word best describes the Truman Doctrine as it relates to communism?

a)

Imperialism

b)

Containment

c)

Proliferation

d)

War

5.

A massive aid package from the US that funneled billion of dollars worth of  food and economic assistance to Europe to help the countries rebuild after WWII.

a)

The Truman Doctrine

b)

The Marshall Plan

c)

The Schlieffen Plan

d)

The Iron Curtain

6.

Which four nations split control of Germany and Berlin after WWII?

a)

The US

Britain

France

The Soviet Union

b)

The US

Britain

France

Germany

c)

The US

Britain

China

The Soviet Union

d)

The US

Britain

Poland

The Soviet Union

7.

What was the Berlin Airlift?

a)

An East Berlin communist helicopter base.

b)

When western powers flew in food & supplies to blockaded West Berlin.

c)

When western powers flew in food & supplies to communist-controlled East Berlin.

d)

When the Soviet Union flew in supplies to communist prisoners blockaded in West Berlin.

8.

The Soviet Alliance system that was the answer to NATO.

a)

The Warsaw Pact

b)

The Moscow Pact

c)

The UN

d)

The USSR

9.

What led to fears of "mutually assured destruction?"

a)

The growth in the number of nuclear weapons in the US and the Soviet Union.

b)

The fact that North Korea was emerging as a thriving totalitarian state.

c)

The fear that overspending on the military would financially ruin the US and the Soviet Union.

d)

The growth in the number of naval vessels in Germany during the years leading up to the Cold War.

10.

Reduction of tensions between the US and the Soviet Union in the 1970s.

a)

Detente

b)

Mutually Assured Destruction

c)

The Treaty of Versailles (1974)

d)

The Iron Curtain

11.

The closest the US and The Soviet Union came to nuclear war happened in 1962, when communism had taken over in this nation, and the Soviets wanted to put nuclear missiles there.

a)

Cuba

b)

North Korea

c)

Vietnam

d)

Cambodia

12.

Took power in 1953 after Stalin died, and denounced Stalin's abuse of power, shut down the prison camps, but still held tight government control.

a)

Nikita Khrushchev

b)

Leonid Brezhnev

c)

Vladmir Lenin

d)

Mikel Gorbachev

13.

Key figure in the United States, leading the House Un-American Activities committee (the "witch hunt" for communists in America).

a)

Joseph McCarthy

b)

Arthur Miller

c)

Dwight Eisenhower

d)

Richard Nixon

14.

There was a postwar economic boom in America, but it was followed by a downturn when America had become too dependent on foreign oil. Issues in the Middle East caused gas prices to rise, which caused a stagnant economy, and inflation, known as "the malaise era." When did this downturn occur?

a)

1950s

b)

1960s

c)

1970s

d)

1980s

15.

Which innovation in America was commissioned by the Eisenhower administration?

a)

The New Deal

b)

The Interstate Highway System

c)

The Sunbelt

d)

The VA

16.

Creating unequal treatment and barriers between certain people and success.

a)

discrimination

b)

segregation

c)

apartheid

d)

quid-pro-quo

17.

What is the significance of this case?

1954: Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

a)

The Supreme Court declared that segregated schools were unconstitutional.

b)

The Supreme Court declared that segregated businesses were unconstitutional.

c)

The Supreme Court declared that poll taxes and literacy tests were unconstitutional.

d)

The Supreme Court declared that segregated schools were constitutional and up to the states to decide.

18.

Lyndon Johnson's program that expanded Medicare, Medicaid, Wellfare, Housing assistance, etc; but as a result caused more dependence upon the government among the poor, and more financial hardship on the middle class.

a)

The Great Society

b)

The New Deal

c)

The Malaise Experiment

d)

The Johnson Accords

19.

How was growth reignited in the American economy under Ronald Reagan?

a)

Government spending was cut, and taxes were cut. People had more money to spend, so that stimulated the economy, creating more tax dollars, which helped cut the deficit.

b)

Government spending soared, economic stimulus checks were paid to the people, the national debt rose, but the people had money to spend so it was okay.

c)

Government spending on the military decreased because the Cold War was over, so Reagan redirected tax dollars to food stamps & medicaid.

d)

Government spending decreased, taxation increased until the national debt was paid, then taxes were cut.

20.

The government keeps most features of a capitalist economy but takes over responsibility for social & economic needs of its people, providing things like

National health care

Unemployment insurance

Old-Age pensions

Support for qualified students to attend college.

a)

welfare state

b)

communism

c)

socialist repubic

d)

capitalist hybrid economy

21.

Which statement best describes the British Empire after WWII?

a)

Britain regained its prominence in the world, but after Margaret Thatcher took power, the welfare state expanded, and they suffered economically.

b)

Britain was financially in trouble, lost most of their empire, then went further in debt by expanding the welfare state until Margaret Thatcher stopped the bleeding.

c)

Britain was able to keep control of India, but let the rest of their empire go; they expanded the welfare state.

d)

Britain was financially hurt after WWII; they lost their entire empire, the Queen regained power when Churchill died; she handed it over to Margaret Thatcher in 1979.

22.

Which nation made major headlines by leaving the European Union in 2020?

a)

Britain

b)

Russia

c)

Italy

d)

Germany

23.

Which nation had the sharpest increase in gross domestic product between 1950 and 1975?

a)

The US

b)

Japan

c)

China

d)

The Soviet Union

24.

Which of these is NOT a reason Mao & the Communists won in China?

a)

They had the support of peasants

b)

They had the support of women

c)

They had support of urban factory workers

d)

They perfected guerilla warfare

e)

Jiang & the nationalists failed to end economic hardships.

25.

Which of these groups was LEAST likely to face persecution initially by Mao's communist government in China.

a)

Confuscians

b)

Christians

c)

Buddhists

d)

Landlords

e)

Peasants

26.

What happened during China's "Great Leap Forward" in 1958-1960.

a)

Mao forced collectivized agriculture and backyard industries in communes, causing a famine that killed 55 million people.

b)

Mao instated collectivized agriculture and a factory system that ended famine in China.

c)

Mao forced all Chinese off of the farms and into the factories... therefore there was no food production, so 55 million starved.

d)

Mao was able to expand manufacturing in China, which led to them becoming a global economic superpower by 1960.

27.

1966: Mao launched a new program he called the “____” intended to purge China’s counterrevolutionaries.

Bands of teenage “Red Guards” were told to read from the “Little Red Book” (Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung) and attack people they deemed “bourgeois.”

a)

The Chinese Purge

b)

The Cultural Revolution

c)

The Communist Revolution

d)

The Great Leap Forward

28.

Which US President established diplomatic relations with Mao's communist China by visiting him in Beijing?

a)

Johnson

b)

Kennedy

c)

Nixon

d)

Carter

29.

The Kim Dynasty (Kim Il Sung, son Kim Jong Il, and grandson Kim Jong Un) rule ____ as an isolated totalitarian communist regime, focusing more on testing nuclear weapons than feeding their starving people.

a)

North Korea

b)

South Korea

c)

Taiwan

d)

Hong Kong

30.

What is the significance of the "38th Parallel/DMZ"

a)

It is a demilitarized zone between communist North Korea and US-aligned South Korea, location of conflict during the Korean War.

b)

It is a demilitarized zone between communist South Korea and US-aligned North Korea, location of conflict during the Korean War.

c)

It is a demilitarized zone between communist Soviet Union and US-aligned North Korea, location of conflict during the Korean War.

d)

It is a demilitarized zone between communist China and West Korea, location of conflict during the 3rd Sino-Japanese War

31.

Who was Ho Chi Minh?

a)

Leader of communist North Korea.

b)

Leader of Communist North Vietnam & the Viet Cong.

c)

Leader of Communist South Vietnam & the Viet Cong

d)

Leader of US-aligned South Vietnam.

32.

Which US President is most responsible for the escalation of the war in Vietnam?

a)

Kennedy

b)

Johnson

c)

Nixon

d)

Ford

33.

Which event did the President use in 1964 as an excuse to escalate the war in Vietnam?

a)

The Bay of Pigs Invasion

b)

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident

c)

The Vietnam Missile Crisis

d)

The Tet Offensive

34.

What happened after American troops withdrew from Vietnam in 1973?

a)

Within a couple of years, Vietnam was a thriving democracy.

b)

Within a couple of years, North Vietnam took control and the nation fell to communist control.

c)

Within a couple of years, the South Vietnamese were able to conquer North Vietnam on their own.

d)

Within a decade, Vietnam fell under Chinese rule; they took Saigon and renamed it Kim Jong Il City.

35.

Which answer best fits with why Pol Pot is significant?

a)

The Killing Fields; the Khmer Rouge; Cambodia

b)

The Viet Cong;

The Tet Offensive; The Vietnam War

c)

The Great Society;

Chinese Communism;

The Great Leap Forward

d)

The Vietnam War; Saigon;

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident

36.

Who were the mujahedin?

a)

Muslim guerilla fighters who received US aid to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan.

b)

Muslim guerilla fighters who received Soviet aid to fight the US in Afghanistan.

c)

Leaders of the Taliban government in Afghanistan who rose up against the Ayatollah in the Iran Hostage Crisis.

d)

Leaders of the Khmer Rouge during the "Killing Fields" genocide in Cambodia.

37.

A new Soviet Leader who significantly changed policy in the Soviet Union in the 1980s and began a better relationship with the West.

a)

Nikita Khrushchev

b)

Leonid Brezhnev

c)

Mikhail Gorbachev

d)

Boris Yeltsin

38.

Gorbachev’s plan to reform the government & economy, and lessen restrictions on immigration.

Reduced the size of the bureaucracy by cutting out corrupt officials.

Allowed limited private enterprise.

Allowed farmers more land and allowed them to sell food in the free market.

Let factory managers replace central planners as decision makers, in hopes of improving quality of goods.

Cut government spending.

a)

Glasnost

b)

Kristallnacht

c)

Perestroika

d)

The Great Leap Forward

39.

What happened after perestroika was implemented in The Soviet Union.

a)

The Soviet economy recovered.

b)

The Soviet army began attacking more countries.

c)

The Soviet Union collapsed; the economic problems only got worse.

d)

The Soviet Union was only affected in the smaller republics, but not Russia.

40.

What is the significance of "Solidarity" in Poland?

a)

It was a shipworker's union that revolted against the Soviet Union, supported by the Pope; their leader eventually became the President of Poland.

b)

It was a shipworker's union that revolted against the the Polish government, supported by the Soviet Union; their leader eventually became Pope John Paul II.

c)

It was government program that rationed food in the Soviet Union, hated by the Pope; their leader eventually became the President of Poland.

d)

It was government program that wanted to end Roman Catholicism in Poland, angering the Pope; their leader eventually became the President of Poland.

41.

Eastern European country that broke apart PEACEFULLY into two separate nations after the fall of the Soviet Union.

a)

Czechoslovakia

b)

Austria-Hungary

c)

Yugoslavia

d)

Vietnam

42.

Eastern European country that broke apart with a lot of unrest into separate nations after the fall of the Soviet Union.

a)

Czechoslovakia

b)

Austria-Hungary

c)

Yugoslavia

d)

Vietnam

43.

Why did so much chaos happen in Bosnia after the fall of the Soviet Union and the breakup of larger countries in the Balkans?

a)

Power struggles between different ethnic groups in the region.

b)

Power struggles between communists and capitalists in the region.

c)

Power struggles between Christians and Hindus in the region.

d)

Russia was constantly invading and trying to take the lands back.

44.

Which set of problems most directly contributed to the situation shown in this 1991 cartoon featuring Mikhail Gorbachev?

a)

refusal to adopt and accept aid from the Marshall Plan

b)

a forced famine in Ukraine and rebellions in the gulag

c)

invasions by foreign troops and Soviet cities under military siege

d)

a deteriorating Soviet economy and secessionist republics desiring independence

45.

The U.S. Economy is different from the former Soviet Union's economy because in the United States,

a)

there is more economic freedom

b)

there are fewer goods available

c)

the state makes all the decisions

d)

there is less economic freedom

46.

What prompted the passing of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution referred to in the text? "President Lyndon Johnson used the attacks to win Congressional approval for the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. It authorized the President to take all necessary measures to prevent futher aggression.

a)

attacks on an American warship, the Maddox

b)

attacks on American troops during the Tet Offensive

c)

attacks on the Vietnamese refugees known as the "boat people"

d)

attacks on American gunboats in the Mekong Delta

47.

Which set of letters shows the correct chronological sequence of the events in the chart?

a)

A-C-D-B

b)

B-A-C-D

c)

C-D-B-A

d)

D-B-A-C

48.

Immediately after World War II, which country exerted political and economic control over Poland, Hungary, and Romania?

a)

France

b)

United States

c)

Soviet Union

d)

Great Britain

49.

The Great Leap Forward was a program designed to _______

a)

spread Chinese communism throughout Asia

b)

increase farm and industrial output in China

c)

purge China of bourgeois tendencies

d)

protect North Korea from South Korea

50.

Why did Chinese peasants readily support Mao Zedong and the Communist Party during the Chinese civil War?

a)

the peasants welcomed the opportunity to exercise decision making privileges in special group communes

b)

the peasants would have less government corruption and more jobs would be available with the Communists

c)

The Communists set up work communes which provided fertile land plots to all peasants

d)

the Communists redistributed land to peasants and ended both military oppression and oppression by landlords

51.

Which of the following was a major objective of China's Cultural Revolution in the 1960s?

a)

introducing democratic reforms

b)

reinforcing communist ideology

c)

restoring ancient religious traditions

d)

expanding contact with Western nations

52.

Which program instituted by the Communist Party of China led to as many as 15 million citizens dying from starvation?

a)

the Hundred Flowers Campaign

b)

the Cultural Revolution

c)

the Great Leap Forward

d)

the first Five-Year Plan