Cold War to 1945 Flashcards
COLD WAR TO 1945
COLD WAR TO 1945
What did the Soviet Union think about the capitalist powers of Great Britain and the USA?
They wanted communism to be overthrown
How many American soldiers died in the Russian Civil War?
279
How many British soldiers died in the Russian Civil War whilst fighting for the Whites?
359
Who did France give Renault tanks to in a war vs Russia in 1920?
Poland
What did Churchill say about stopping communism?
‘Strangle Bolshevism in the cradle’
What did the USSR sign with Nazi Germany on the 23rd August 1939, stunning the West?
The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
What was a potential reason for the USSR signing the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact?
They feared that the West would come to an understanding with Germany and not help the USSR in the event of an invasion
When did the USSR invade Poland?
17th September 1939
When did Stalin invade the Baltic States?
Summer of 1940
When did Operation Barbarossa begin?
June 1941
When did the USA join the Grand Alliance?
December 1941
How many tanks and aircraft did Churchill agree to send to the USSR in September 1941?
2250 tanks and 1800 fighter aircraft
What did Stalin ask Churchill for in July 1941?
For a British invasion of France and the opening of a second front
What was the reason for tension in the Grand Alliance?
The issue of the Second front
What did FDR promise in 1942?
An invasion
What did Stalin question Churchill about in Moscow in 1942?
Whether the British troops were afraid of the Germans
How many Germans divisions were fighting the USSR when the Grand Alliance was formed?
180 divisions
How many Germans divisions were fighting the British in North Africa when the Grand Alliance was formed?
3 divisions
What did Stalin fear Western Allies were doing?
Allowing the Red Army to be weakened so the the USSR would unable to influence post-war Europe
When was Italy invaded by a joint Anglo-American force?
July 1943
When did Stalin, FDR and Churchill meet in Tehran?
November 1943
What did FDR promise Stalin in Tehran?
There would be a landing in May 1944
What question was significant at the Tehran conference?
The Polish Question
What was agreed at the Tehran Conference in regards to an invasion of France?
Anglo-American forces would invade France in May 1944
What was it agreed at the Tehran Conference the USSR would join after Germany was defeated?
The war against Japan
What was it agreed the USSR would receive at the Tehran Conference?
Polish territory
What did the Allies agree at the Tehran Conference they would only accept from Germany?
An unconditional surrender
When was D-Day?
6th June 1944
When did Hitler commit suicide?
30th April 1945
What did Stalin want to create after the war?
A buffer zone to protect Russia from the West
Who mistrusted the West after the Munich Agreement of 1938, which meant that they must surrender to Germany?
Czchoslovakia
Who mistrusted the West after the Munich Agreement of 1938, which meant that they must surrender to Germany?
Czechoslovakia
What did Czechoslovak President Benes sign with the USSR in December 1943?
The Treaty of Friendship
What did the Treaty of Friendship between Hungary and the USSR guarantee?
That the Communist party would have a position of primary importance after the war
What had Hungary participated in in 1941?
Operation Barbarossa
When did the Red Army enter Hungary?
September 1944
What % of the vote did the Communists win in Hungary in November 1945?
17%
How many key roles in government did the Communists receive in Hungary?
3
How many Polish Army officers were executed in the Katyn Forest Massacre?
22,000
When was the Yalta Conference?
February 1945
What was agreed at the Yalta Conference in regards to Germany?
Germany would be divided into 4 zones
What did Stalin promise at the Yalta Conference?
Free elections would be held in the countries occupied by the Red Army
What did Stalin agree to the formation of at the Yalta Conference?
The United Nations
How much was it agreed at Yalta that Germany had to pay in reparations?
$20 billion over 5 years
When did Germany formally surrender to the Allies?
7th May 1945
When was the Potsdam Conference?
17th July 1945 to the 2nd August 1945
What did Truman tell Molotov at the Potsdam Conference?
The Soviets had to stick to agreements - relations were no longer a ‘one way street’
When was the USA’s first successful atomic bomb test?
16th July 1945 - day before Potsdam
What did the West recognise at the Potsdam Conference?
That Eastern Europe would be in the Soviet sphere of influence
Why did Churchill storm out the room in a meeting with Stalin at the Tehran Conference?
Stalin ‘joked’ that 50,000 - 100,000 German officers should be executed so that they could not start another war
At what conference was the Percentages Agreement drawn up?
4th Moscow Conference October 1944
How was it agreed that Romania would be divided?
USSR got 90%, others 10%
What happened to 16 representatives of Poland when they were invited by the USSR to discuss the future of Poland?
They were arrested and put on show trials in Moscow where they were forced to confess to collaboration with the Nazis
What was the USSR by nature?
Expansionist
What did Stalin annex in 1940?
The Baltic States
What were countries liberated by the Red Army forced to adopt?
Communist regimes
How many Soviets died fighting in WW2?
25 million
What policy did Truman adopt in 1945?
A containment policy
What allowed the USA to be aggressive when dealing with the Soviets?
They had an atomic bomb
