Cold War 1945-49

Question 1

Why was the Treaty of Versailles a root cause of the Cold War?

Answer 1

The Russians pulled out of WW1 before it ended so did not gain anything under the terms of the Treaty- this angered them

Question 2

Why was the Warsaw Uprising of 1944 a reason for the breakdown of the wartime alliance in WW2?

Answer 2

The Russians should have helped the London Poles fighting against the Germans but they did not- this was because, selfishly, they wanted Poland to be communist after the war

Question 3

When was the Yalta Conference?

Answer 3

February 1945

Question 4

What were the main 3 things discussed at the Yalta Conference?

Answer 4

Poland- the largest Eastern European country
The shape of post-war Europe
What should happen to Germany- a framework settlement was discussed

Question 5

What happened to the ‘Big Three’ leaders by the time of the Potsdam Conference?

Answer 5

Stalin was the only original member- Roosevelt had died and been replaced by Truman and Churchill had not be re-elected and had been replaced by Atlee

Question 6

When was the Potsdam Conference?

Answer 6

July-August 1945

Question 7

What breaking news was announced by the USA at the Potsdam Conference?

Answer 7

The USA announced that they had developed, and tested, an atomic bomb

Question 8

Name 3 effects of the dropping of the atomic bomb on Japan

Answer 8

70,000 of Hiroshima’s 78,000 buildings were destroyed
Long term radiation poisoning
Blast wave burned people immediately
Shadows were burnt into the ground
Wildlife and vegetation was completely destroyed

Question 9

When did the USSR develop and test their own atomic bomb?

Answer 9

August 1949

Question 10

What did the ‘Big Three’ decide to do with Germany after the war ended?

Answer 10

It was to be split into 4 occupational zones- each run by one of the allies (Britain, France, the USA and the USSR)

Question 11

What did the western powers do to their zones of Germany after 1947?

Answer 11

They fused them together- firstly, the USA and Britain created Bizonia and then the French joined not later on and it became Trizonia

Question 12

What was the trigger reason for Stalin’s Berlin Blockade?

Answer 12

When the western powers created their own currency (the Deutschmark) which was a higher value than the currency in the eastern zone

Question 13

How did the allies respond to the Berlin Blockade?

Answer 13

They used the Berlin Airlift- they flew supplies in and out of West Berlin

Question 14

What was the Truman Doctrine?

Answer 14

Truman’s belief system based on the domino theory- he wanted to help countries vulnerable to communism and pledged to support them and ‘contain’ the spread of communism in Europe

Question 15

What was the Marshall Plan?

Answer 15

The financial aid and resources sent to countries it help them recover after WW2

Question 16

Which country surprisingly took advantage of Marshall aid?

Answer 16

Yugoslavia (it was a communist country but an independent one)

Question 17

Name 3 methods used by Stalin in his take over of central and Eastern Europe after 1946

Answer 17

Rigged elections
Used the red army to intimidate leaders
Murdered Masaryk in Czechoslovakia
Installed elite communists in key government positions

Question 18

Why was Greece a concern for the USA and why did they want to support them?

Answer 18

There was a civil war in Greece between the communists and the capitalists- Britain pulled their financial support from the Greeks which left them vulnerable to communism

Question 19

Why did Truman also want to help Turkey in 1947?

Answer 19

It’s geographical position close to the USSR meant that it was vulnerable to communism and he through the domino theory might mean that Turkey became communist

Question 20

What was NATO and when was it formed?

Answer 20

The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and it was created in April 1949 (after Stalin’s Berlin Blockade was lifted)

Question 21

What was the Warsaw Pact and when was it created?

Answer 21

It was the communist rival organisation to NATO and it was created in 1955 when West Germany joined NATO.

Question 22

Why was the Russian Revolution of 1917 important as a root cause of the Cold War?

Answer 22

This was when communism was first born and it was a different belief system and way of life to the capitalist USA