1.4b How significant was Gorbachov's refusal to continue to support the GDR? Flashcards
What were the 2 policies Gorbachov introduced in the USSR?
Perestroika and Glasnost
Why did Perestroika and Glasnost mean the USSR had to stop investment into the GDR?
The USSR needed economic improvement
What policy did Gorbachov have to stop to be able to implement Perestroika and Glasnost?
The Brezhnev Doctrine
What did the end of the Brezhnev Doctrine mean for the GDR?
That they were much more susceptible to overthrow in the event of a rebellion
How did the USSR stab the GDR in the back?
They became increasingly close with the FRG, having diplomatic relations
How did Perestroika and Glasnost cause a loss of identity for the GDR?
They had relied on a Soviet-style system but didn’t want to become Capitalist because they would be too similar to the FRG
How did Perestroika and Glasnost lead to added opposition of the SED?
There was pressure to reform through organised opposition
Define Perestroika and Glasnost
Restructuring and Openness
When was the Accord between Honnecker and the Protestant Leadership?
1978
What did the Accord between Honnecker and the Protestant Leadership do?
Showed acceptance of a ‘Church within Socialism’ as they aimed for a working relationship
How was the Church’s relationship with the State when the Accord was signed?
Shaky
Upto __% of Church Synods were IMs
Upto 25% of Church Synods were IMs
What resulted from the SED trying to further suppress the Church by 1987?
Environmental Library Raid
What event was openly discussed in Church that would not have been tolerated elsewhere?
The democratisation of the GDR
What limited the Church’s pressure to reform?
The Stasi presence in the Church
What Church forum for reform was created in 1987?
‘Church from below’ - showed that young Christians were rejecting the cautious approach of Church leaders
In the 1989 elections, what percentage of the vote did the SED win?
98%
What did research by the Central institute for Youth find in Leipzig?
Widespread disillusionment
By 1988, __% of young workers felt ‘strong identification’ with the GDR
By 1988, 20% of young workers felt ‘strong identification’ with the GDR
By 1988, __% of young workers felt ‘hardly any’ or ‘no’ identification with the GDR
By 1988, 25% of young workers felt ‘hardly any’ or ‘no’ identification with the GDR
How did many people leave the GDR in the late 1980s?
Through Hungary and into Capitalist Austria or the FRG
What was the objective of the Church in the 1980s?
Simply survival
Church membership fell from __& of the population to just __%
80% to 30%
Name the 5 reasons for the demand for change in the 1980s
- Long-term stagnation
- Gorbachov’s reforms
- Church incubation of discontent
- Rise of protest groups
- Increasing inability of the SED to control the population
