1949-1956

Question 1

When was the Tehran Conference?

Answer 1

November 1943

Question 2

What was the main goal of the Tehran Conference?

Answer 2

To plan a winning strategy to end the war.

Question 3

When was Comecon established?

Answer 3

25 January 1949

Question 4

What was Comecon?

Answer 4

A reaction to the Marshall Plan that was in line with Communist views.

Question 5

What was the FRG? Who was in it?

Answer 5

Federal Republic of Germany. All of Britain, France and the USA’s designated land in Germany came together as one state (West Germany).

Question 6

What was the GDR? Who was in it?

Answer 6

German Democratic Republic. Russia’s designated land in Germany. (East Germany).

Question 7

What spurred the West to establish NATO?

Answer 7

The USSR’s threat to Berlin and invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1949.

Question 8

What was NATO?

Answer 8

North Atlantic Trade Organisation. A military alliance that meant if one country was attacked, the rest would come to it’s aid.

Question 9

When was NATO formed?

Answer 9

April 1949

Question 10

What was the Warsw Pact?

Answer 10

A Communist alliance in response to West Germany joining NATO.

Question 11

When was the Warsaw Pact formed?

Answer 11

May 1955

Question 12

When did the Soviets develop an atom bomb?

Answer 12

1949

Question 13

When did the USA develop the Hydrogen Bomb?

Answer 13

1952

Question 14

When did the USSR get a Hydrogen Bomb?

Answer 14

1953

Question 15

When did the USA develop the ICBM?

Answer 15

1957

Question 16

When did Eisenhower take office?

Answer 16

January 1953

Question 17

When did Stalin die?

Answer 17

5 March 1953

Question 18

Who was in power after Stalin?

Answer 18

Nikita Krushchev

Question 19

When and where did Krushchev and Eisenhower meet? What came of it?

Answer 19

July 1955. Geneva. While no decisions were made, tensions relaxed.

Question 20

What was the Hungarian Uprising?

Answer 20

Hungarian people protesting against fuel shortages, poor harvest and lack of political freedom.

Question 21

When was the Hungarian Uprising?

Answer 21

1956

Question 22

Who was Imre Nagy and what did he believe?

Answer 22

He was the new Prime Minister, appointed by Kruschev. He believed people should have freedom within the Communist regime.

Question 23

What did Nagy do when he was appointed?

Answer 23

He released a set of reforms. He let non-communist parties join the Hungarian government, released political prisoners and persuaded Krushchev to withdraw troops from Hungary. Krushchev was prepared to accept these.

Question 24

What did Nagy do that Krushchev could not allow? When?

Answer 24

1 November 1956. Nagy announced that Hungary would leave the Warsaw Pact.

Question 25

What happened on 4 November 1956?

Answer 25

1000 tanks and 200,000 soldiers invaded Budapest to reinstate control.
Supporters of Nagy put up a fight.
Eventually, 20,000 Hungarians died.
Despite Hungary’s requests, the West did not intervene because of Containment.

Question 26

After the Hungarian Uprising, a new pro-Soviet government was set up under whom?

Answer 26

Janos Kádár

Question 27

What did Kádár promise Nagy? What then happened?

Answer 27

He promised him and his followers free passage out of the embassy in which they were hiding. Soviet agents then kidnapped them. The Hungarian government then announced he had been tried and executed him 2 years later.

Question 28

How did the USA look after the Hungarian uprising?

Answer 28

They looked worse. They said they woukd do all they could to stop Communism, but didn’t aid Hungary.

Question 29

How did the USSR look after the Hungarian uprising?

Answer 29

Krushchev looked stronger. The Eastern Bloc now knew they couldn’t leave the Warsaw Pact.
Kruschev became more able to deal with the USA and knew they would do little due to MAD.

Question 30

What did the Hungarian Uprising do for USA-USSR relations them.

Answer 30

It soured them, tensions increased.

Question 31

What were the decisions made at Tehran?

Answer 31

The USA and Britain woukd launch an attack on Western Germany, thereby opening a ‘second front’. This would help the USSR, who were suffering heavy loss at the Eastern Front, in that the Germans would have to put more men in the West.
The USSR would declare war against Japan. They would aid the USSR, but only once the war in Europe was over.
They agreed Poland should receive the land Germany took, but the USSR could keep the land they took from Poland.
There was an lverall agreement that there should be an international body to settle disputes through negotiation, rather than war. This laid the groundworks for the future United Nations.

Question 32

How did the Tehran Conference affect tensions?

Answer 32

Stalin first thought both side were delaying the second front to have the Soviet Union weakened in the East, so he was happy to hear otherwise.
Churchill was displeased because he had wanted a second front in the Balkans, but Roosevelt sided with Stalin.
The USA thought British colonialism was as big a threat to world peace than the USSR.
There was some tension between the USA and Britain, but relations between the USA and the USSR were getting better.
After 1945, the USA and the USSR would be the only two global superpowers.