cold war: 1956

Question 1

explain Khrushchev’s secret speech

Answer 1

-speech denouncing Stalinism and the cult of the individual
-pointed out how dictatorial Stalin was
-the speech seemed to signify a new era in the Communist Party
-people began to believe that the Soviet Union would no longer be oppressive
(led to the Polish Uprising)

Question 2

explain the Hungarian Uprising (23 October 1956- 4 November 1956)

Answer 2

-spontaneous uprising by students in Budapest
-crowds were protesting the harsh communist dictatorship under leadership of Imre Nagy
-rebellion soon got out of hand, so the Russian army was sent to control the situation
-Nagy betrayed the USSR, withdrawing from the Warsaw Pact and appealing to the West for recognition and help
-at this point, USSR sent the army back to Hungary to suppress the revolt once and for all (they sent in 200,000 men and 4000 tanks against the Hungarian population)
-Hungarians armed with only basic rifles and Molotov cocktails
-3000 Hungarians killed, Nagy later executed