Breakdown of the Grand Alliance 1945-47

Question 1

When and where was the UN formed?

Answer 1

1944 at Dumbarton Oaks near Washington

Question 2

Who was part of the assembly of the UN?

Answer 2

All nations

Question 3

What else was there in the UN as well as an assembly?

Answer 3

A Security Council to deal with crises

Question 4

Who were the permanent members of the UN?

Answer 4

USA, Britain, France, USSR and China

Question 5

What did the USSR disagree with about the UN?

Answer 5

The right of veto that the permanent members had, but had to concede it

Question 6

What did the UN set up in response to the US bombings of Japan?

Answer 6

The Atomic Energy Commission

Question 7

What was the Atomic Energy Commission for?

Answer 7

To create rules for the control of nuclear weapons

Question 8

What happened to the Atomic Energy Commission?

Answer 8

The USSR and USA disagreed on the use of veto over decisions made by it and the agreement collapsed

Question 9

Which countries did the Alliance argue over treaties with before the Paris Peace Treaties?

Answer 9

Italy, Bulgaria, Finland, Romania and Hungary

Question 10

When were Paris Peace Treaties completed?

Answer 10

1947

Question 11

What did the USSR hope for in terms of Germany?

Answer 11

That Germany would have elections and the Communist party there would form a coalition with other parties and eventually take control of government

Question 12

What was the SED?

Answer 12

The Socialist Unity Party

Question 13

Where was the SED set up and what did it do?

Answer 13

The Soviet zone, and it merged the Socialist and Communist east German parties

Question 14

How was the SED set up, and what was the result of this?

Answer 14

Violently, leading to the rejection of the merger in the West and made the Allies suspicious

Question 15

What did Stalin do to try and hide the intentions of the SED?

Answer 15

Insist on the use of democratic means by the SED

Question 16

Why did the UK and USA want their zones to have economic recovery?

Answer 16

They were having to divert resources to deal with thousands of eastern refugees flooding their areas

Question 17

What had to happen in order for the USSR to receive some of the (previously agreed) Western reparations, and what did the Soviets think of this?

Answer 17

There had to be a whole German economic system created; the Soviets saw this as an attempt to spread capitalism and so increased production in their zone

Question 18

How did the USA and UK join their zones, and what was the new zone called?

Answer 18

Economically, and Bizonia

Question 19

Why was Bizonia formed?

Answer 19

In order to improve the economy

Question 20

What did the USSR see the formation of Bizonia as?

Answer 20

A breach of Potsdam and the start of a new West German state

Question 21

When was the Moscow Conference of Foreign Ministers?

Answer 21

1946

Question 22

What happened at the Moscow Conference of Foreign Ministers?

Answer 22

The USSR tried to demand that there be a unified German political system but Britain and the USA insisted that the economy be sorted beforehand- no agreements were made and Bizonia was built up

Question 23

What happened when the British could no longer support containment of Communists in the Greek Civil War, and how did it happen?

Answer 23

President Truman got $400m from Congress by announcing the ‘Truman Doctrine’ as a crusade against Communist ‘tyranny’

Question 24

What was the Marshall Plan created to deal with?

Answer 24

The crippling economic problems in Europe post-war, which the US feared would lead to Communist support

Question 25

What did the Marshall Plan do?

Answer 25

It gave aid to European states, although tried to create supranational integration of Europe

Question 26

What did the USSR see the Marshall Plan as?

Answer 26

The spreading of capitalism and US imperialism

Question 27

What did the USSR do in response to the Marshall Plan?

Answer 27

They refused to allow Eastern countries to take Marshall aid and created Cominform to coordinate Soviet policies in the cross national Communist parties

Question 28

When did Churchill make his ‘Iron Curtain’ speech?

Answer 28

1946

Question 29

What did Churchill say in the ‘Iron Curtain’ speech?

Answer 29

That Soviet control had descended over eastern Europe

Question 30

What did Stalin claim in terms of the ‘Iron Curtain’ speech?

Answer 30

Stalin claimed the Soviet control over the east was purely defensive

Question 31

What happened when Poland fell to Communism?

Answer 31

The West tacitly accepted it; elections were engineered for a Communist victory, but the new leader Gomulka was not keen on Soviet control

Question 32

How did Romania and Bulgaria turn Communist?

Answer 32

Through legitimate election and some terror

Question 33

How did Yugoslavia turn Communist?

Answer 33

The Yugoslavian Communists won independently

Question 34

What was the problem for Stalin in terms of Yugoslavia?

Answer 34

Their leader Tito had ambitious plans of his own, which Stalin found difficult to control

Question 35

How did Czechoslovakia turn Communist?

Answer 35

Czechoslovakian Communists won power legitimately in 1946

Question 36

What did the Czechoslovakian Communists want to do, and what happened as a result?

Answer 36

They wanted to attend the conference on Marshall aid, however Stalin stopped them; the hard-line Communists then took over and expelled opposition in 1948. The Hungarian Socialists and Communists were brought into line by Stalin by 1949

Question 37

What did France decide in terms of which side to be on?

Answer 37

France tried to be a bridge between East and West initially, but after the Communist movement there led violent strikes against Marshall aid they moved clearly to the West

Question 38

What happened in Italy in terms of Communism?

Answer 38

Italy had a strong Communist movement, but with CIA and Catholic religious propaganda support they were defeated and Italy aligned to the West