history cycle test:

Question 1

case study 2: Cuban Missile Crisis:

Answer 1

-the most famous and significant of the Cold War ‘close calls’
-tension between the US and USSR reached its most dangerous level during the 13 days of the c.m.c in October 1962
-it was the closest the sides came to an all out war and potentially apocalyptic nuclear war

Question 2

changing US relationship with Cuba:

Answer 2

-after gaining independence from Spain in 1898, Cuba was under significant economic influence and control of the US
-the US was a key buyer of Cuba’s main raw export, Sugar and also the main source of the countries manufactured goods and imports. US companies were heavily involved in Cuba and owned most major companies
-the country also essentially became the ‘naughty playground’ of rich US businessmen and the corrupt Cuban government was essentiallly a puppet
-the gov. was also a brutal dictatorship that used repression to keep control of the increasingly discontent population living in poverty.

Question 3

Cuban Missile Crisis: background

Answer 3

-in 1959 the Batista regime was forcibly overthrown by a socialist revolutionary, Fidel Castro, promising to restore power to the people and end American controlled corruption (NOT Soviet linked, totally independent!)
-soon after taking over, he began to nationalise foreign-owned companies and also redistributing agricultural land to peasants (previously foreign owned too)
-US responded by imposing economic sanctions and stopped all trade with them: a huge blow considering they were by far their largest trade partner. Castro responds by signing a trade agreement of $100 million with USSR leader Krushchev!
-march 1960, Eisenhower approved a plan to remove Castro from power by force

Question 4

The Bay of Pigs incident:

Answer 4

-new US president, John F Kennedy, in 1961. Inherits issues of previous government, including how to deal with Cuba
-pushes ahead with plans drawn up by previous government of invading Cuba by landing US-trained Cuban exiles, supported by US air strikes painted to overthrow Castro and install a new government
-however, to mantain plausible deniability, Kennedy had scaled back initial extent of air strikes and also chose to have the exiles land in an isolated beach known as the Bay of Pigs

Question 5

the Bay of Pigs failure:

Answer 5

-the plan was an embarrassing failure:
1. the US failed to control the air and take out the Cuban airforce
2. the exiles were unable to land as they were immediately fired upon and were expected due to the poor secrecy of the plan
-troops were captured and paraded by Castro who became more popular due to his repelling of an American invasion
-additionally, despite their attempts to hide involvement, it was clear the US was behind the invasion AND that they had deliberately tried to hide this

Question 6

impact of the Bay of Pigs:

Answer 6

-there were two significant effects of the incident:
1. Kennedy looked weak- as the youngest ever President, already has question marks over his experience and judgement, the failure hurt his image even more. Additionally, his half-hearted invasion attempt made Castro and Krushchev believe he was weak and easy to push around
2. USSR-Cuba alliance deepens- the USSR had already been secretly supplying Cuba with weapons, but the invasion alarmed Cuba and this was massively stepped up and announced publicly! The USSR made Cuba the best equipped army in Latin America with missiles, tanks, jet bombers/fighters and more!

Question 7

the USSR arms Cuba:

Answer 7

-the US were alarmed by the Soviets arming Cuba, however, as long as they were only conventional weapons they would have to tolerate the situation
-the far greater alarm and danger came in September 1962 when report began to emerge in the US of nuclear missiles potentially being brought to Cuba
-on 14th October 1962, American spy planes took detailed photographs over missiles sites in Cuba which confirmed their worst fears- the USSR was building nuclear missile sites in Cuba!

Question 8

why did Krushchev place missiles in Cuba?

Answer 8

1. To defend Cuba: the revolution in Cuba was an unexpected gift for the USSR to have a communist nation on the US’ doorstep-similarly, the US would never simply accept the situation and would always try to remove Castro, therefore drastic action was needed to preserve the government
2. Closing the ‘missile gap’: the US had a muchgreater number of long-range ICBMs and also had missiles placed in Europe which would strike the USSR. By placing missiles in Cuba this evened the gap and made it harder for the US to threaten the USSR
3. To bargain with the US: Krushchev wanted to extract some concessions from the US and was giving himself a bargaining chip to use, this was arguably encouraged further by Kennedy indecision and weakness with the Bay of Pigs-Krushchev felt he could push him!

Question 9

Kennedy response to the blockade:

Answer 9

-Kennedy did not have many attractive options available to him
-he was absolutely determined to not back down, arguably even more so due to his already weakened international standing and believed the missiles absolutely had to be removed!
-however, the two most likely ways to do this, an invasion or air strikes on Cuba, would lead to all-out war with the USSR
-he settled on a blockade of the island (or quarantine zone as he publicly called it) that would block any Soviets ships bringing weapons to the island as they would be searched by the US navy on the way

Question 10

the blockade:

Answer 10

-the blockade was announced in a major press conference on 22nd October
-the main advantage of the blockade was that it would stop the Soviets from bringing further equipment to Cuba and would show a firm stance but without actually declaring war
-essentially, it would force Krushchev to make the next move and test his resolve to see if he would actually take the step of beginning a war. The Soviet Union has the option of ignoring the blockade and trying to force their way through, which would be an act of war
-however this could still cause war. Additionally this did not solve the problem of the missiles already on the island

Question 11

stage one of the crisis- soviet ships approach the blockade zone:

Answer 11

23rd Oct- Krushchev sent a letter to Kennedy saying he would not observe the blockade and US draws up plans and mobilises soldiers for invasion of Cuba
24th Oct- Soviet ships continue to approach blockade zone, however, at the last minute turn back and observe the blockade
25th Oct- new photos show missile base building is rapidly speeding up and US raises DEFCON level to 2. one step before all out nuclear war!
26th Oct- Krushchev send letter to remove missiles if US promised to not invade Cuba (first time admitting that missiles were actually on the island!) Crisis appears to be de-escalating

Question 12

stage two of the crisis- Kennedy makes final decision over Cuba

Answer 12

27th Oct- Krushchev sends a second letter to Kennedy, this time more threatning in tone and also revises his demands, saying he wants all US missiles removed from Turkey
-later that same day an American U2 spy plane is shot down over Cuba and th pilot killed. Kennedy is advised to immediately retaliate and launch an invasion of Cuba. However, he chooses to ignore the second letter and instead replies by accepting the first. He threatens to invade if the Soviets did not withdraw
28th Oct- Krushchev agrees to the terms and begins to dismantle and return the missiles to the Soviet Union, bringing the crisis to an end

Question 13

who won the Cuban Missile Crisis? outcomes for USA

Answer 13

1. huge personal victory for him and saw reputations and standing massively improved. He had made Krushchev back down and publicly won the crisis by achieving missile removal AND stood up to hardliners in own government and did things ‘his way’
2. however, in private, the crisis was even more with the US secretly removing the Turkey missiles as part of the agreement with Krushchev and Cuba remained a communist country and a thorn in side of the US
3. this would be a huge challenge for containment as Cuba would become the main promoter of communist revolutions across Latin America for decades

Question 14

who won the cuban missile crisis? outcomes for USSR

Answer 14

1. Krushchev was able to portray himself as the protector of Cuba and keeping them safe in a long-term was hugely valuable as Cuba would be a useful base from which to spread communism in Latin America
2. removal of threatening Turkey missiles were strategic win (though could not be used for propaganda purposes since it was kept secret!)
3. as a result, this looked like a public defeat and humiliation for the USSR, they had clearly backed down and came away looking ‘weaker’

Question 15

case study 3: The Vietnam War

Answer 15

-as the c.m.c wound down however, the Keenedy government began to increasingly involve the US in the most famous, and culturally significant, conflict of the Cold War: Vietnam
-arguably most disastrous foreign policy decision making in US history. The War would deeply divide the US and was a clear cut failure in the policy of containment

Question 16

background to the Vietnam War- end of second world war

Answer 16

-development of conflict in Vietnam bears strong similarities with Korea
-Vietnam was a French colony, Indochina, before being occupied by the Japanese during the second world war. The Japanese were register by a resistance movement, the Viet Minh, led by a Communist named Ho Chi Minh
-when Japan was defeated, Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnam independent. However, the French intended to return and re-establish control over Indochina
-the Viet Minh then fought the French for independence over the next nine years

Question 17

more background to the Vietnam War-end of second world war

Answer 17

-despite financial backing from the US, who feared a Communist takeover of Vietnam more than they disliked the other of French colonial rule, the French were eventually defeated by the Viet Minh at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu
-negotiations began immediately afterwards and in July 1954 France signed the Geneva Peace Accord with the Viet Minh which temporarily divided Vietnam into two parts, North and South. This would last until internationally supervised elections took place in 1956
-however, the US prevented elections from taking place as they feared the Communists would win. This formally divided Vietnam into two

Question 18

what was the Vietnam War?

Answer 18

-like Korea, the Vietnam War was not a conflict started by the Americans, but a war between a divided country which they became involved in (but much more gradually in the case of Vietnam)
-north Vietnam was controlled by communist Viet Minh, whereas the South was governed a staunchly anti-communist dictator, Ngo Dinh Diem
-however, Diem’s regime was extremely unpopular with the Vietnamese people. He was wealthy elite, a Catholic who hated Buddhism and was very corrupt and harsh in his repression of opponents. The Americans knew Diem was a problematic leader, but felt they had no choice but to back him

Question 19

what was the vietnam war? 2.0

Answer 19

-the actions of the Diem government led to increased rebellion and armed struggle by groups against them. These intensified over the course of the next few years and by 1959 the north vietnamese government began to fun and give military assistance to these rebels
-this group would become known as the Viet Cong. They were made up of South Vietnamese who opposed the government as well as communists from the north under the orders of the Viet Minh
-the Viet Cong began waging a guerilla war against the south vietnamese government in the hopes of overthrowing them and reuniting the country

Question 20

what was the vietnam war? 3.0

Answer 20

-the Viet Cong mainly relied upon guerillas warfare, constantly ambushing souhtern government forces, officials and attacking government buildings
-the Viet Cong did NOT generally get involved in large pitched battles. They relied upon scretely when it came to getting around and quickly dissapearing after an attack so they were hard to target and capture
-additionally, they used their links to the peasants to hide out in the countryside and it was VERY difficult to distinguish between ordinary peasants and VC

Question 21

what happened in the Vietnam War?

Answer 21

-the VC were very well supplied with the Ho Chi Minh trails being used to transport supplies and manpower from the north to the south through the jungles of neighbouring Laos and Cambodia
-VC, overall, were a formidable opponent and the south vietnamese government were hopelessly incapable of dealing with them

Question 22

how did the US get involved in the Vietnam War?

Answer 22

-the government in the south was propped up only due to the increasingly heavy backing of the US government which decided the south falling to communism would be a crucial part of the ‘Domino Theory’ in action
-however, the US was cautious about getting too involved in the conflict. Instead they were dragged deeper and deeper into it over the course of multiple presidencies before finally withdrawing almost 20 years after sending soldiers

Question 23

under Eisenhower:

Answer 23

-Eisenhower involved the US in Vietnam as early as the war with France. He had American planes supporting French troops during some operations
-when the new governments were setup, he offered economic aid to the south and also some military
-900 military ‘advisors’ were sent to the south to help deal with the uprisings that had begun

Question 24

under Kennedy:

Answer 24

-Kennedy continued where Eisenower left off and increased funding for the southern government and also increased the number of military ‘advisors’
-12,000 US troops were in Vietnam by the end of 1962 and the Americans had supplied the south with 300 helicopters
-however, by 1963, Diem was unpopular as ever and huge protests continued to take place in the cities. Budhist monks burned themselves alive in protest at the government and the government’s response was more repression
-in november, Diem was overthrown in a coup and was killed along with his family. The already weak Southern government was now in total chaos

Question 25

under Johnson:

Answer 25

-Kennedy was assassinated in 63 and replaced by his vice-president, Johnson
-Johnson was an even greater supporter of war in Vietnam and believed a full scale war would be necessary to halt the spread of communism (and the South was still in chaos following the coup against Diem)
-Johnson was given the excuse he needed for his plan with the ‘Gulf of Tonkin Incident’ in August 64 saw two American warships attacked by North Vietnamese gunboats while they were in international waters
-congress passed a resolution granting Johnson powers to massively escalate the war in Vietnam-which he did

Question 26

what did Johnson do?

Answer 26

-Johnson massively escalated the conflict in two ways:
1. Significant increase in ground troops in Vietnam to fight the VC (and this time officially called combat troops, not advisors!)
- the government actually institued a ‘draft’ system whereby young men were chosen at random and called up to fight for the army as and when needed
-by 1968, over 500,000 US troops were stationed in Vietnam
2. Operation Rolling Thunder- the US began an enormous bombing campaign against the north vietnamese to put pressure on them to come to the negotiating table and halt their backing for the VC. Huge bombing of Northern cities, factoriesm bases, and crucially the Ho Chi Minh trail
-the escalation by Johnson led to the war becoming extremely bloody and the body count significantly increased on both sides

Question 27

what more did Johnson do?

Answer 27

-however americans (very simplistically) measured their success mainly through their ‘kill count’ and believed that they were putting pressure on the north who were close to quitting and becoming exhausted. The war was increasingly highly controversial at home too, but hopefully was close to an end
-their fantasy was dispelled in January 1968 when the north launched their greates attack of the war-the ‘Tet Offensive’. They attacked 30 different targets and cities in the south, including temporary capture of the US embassy in Saigon. Tet was a strategic failure for the north, but americans public knew the war was nowhere near done and support for the war fell massively
-in addition to anger over controversial abuse of civilians by US soldiers, (My Lai Massacre) Johnson decided not to run again for president in 68

Question 28

under Nixon:

Answer 28

-the US public were desperate to see the back of the Vietnam war and new President Nixon sought to withdraw the US from the war. However, they could not simply hand over Southern Vietnam and admit defeat
-Nixon introduced a policy of ‘Vietnamisation’ by handling more responsibility for the war to southern troops and withdrew over 400,000 troops in his first two years
-at the same time he increased combing massively and to neighbouring Cambodia to put pressure on the north to agree a peace deal, leading to Nixon withdrawing all US troops in 1973

Question 29

end of the vietnam war:

Answer 29

-however, the war between the VC and south re-ignited with months of the final withdrawal
-this time, without the support of the US, the south was totally unable to repel the communist forces who managed to toally defeat them by 1975
-the communists therefore won and would unify Vietnam under their rule (under whom it remains today!)

Question 30

why did the US lose the vietnam war?

Answer 30

-the USA was a vastly superior military force than the Viet Cong and the north vietnamese government yet despite putting a huge amount of effort into the war, they ultimately lost. This was mainly down to four main reasons:
1. Poor US tactics vs Strong Viet Cong tatics
2. Press and media coverage of the war
3. Anti-war protests
4. Individual events of 1968, e.g. My Lai Massacre and Tet Offensive

Question 31

US tactics in the vietnam war:

Answer 31

poor US tatics:
-the US relied mainly on bombing between 65-72, however despite the enormous damage done, this was not enough to defeat the communists, onyl slow them down
-US found it very difficult to know who was a VC fighter and so ‘Search and destroy’ mission in villages to hunt down andy VC often involved killing far more innocent civilians mistaken for VC or killed as collateral
-chemical weapons, Agent Orange and Napalm, were used to destroy jungles where VC hid however saw many civilians killed or injured in brutal ways as a result
-extremely low quality soldiers once draft began, often young, uneducated men from poor background and little motivations to fight

Question 32

VC tactics in the vietnam war:

Answer 32

-the VC were heavily outnumbered and less well equipped and therefore always avoided open warfare
-instead fought guerilla warfare and only every engaged in combat on their terms, they had no headquaters that could be destroyed, they laid booby traps all over the countryside and mainly relied on ambushes to attack southern/US soldiers
-in contrast to US search and destroy, VC dealt far better with peasant and tried to be helpful as possible to keep them onside (and stop them from betraying them to the US army)
-soldiers were deeply committed to the cause and had unshakable morale, severity of war only hardened resolve

Question 33

press and media coverage of the war:

Answer 33

-initially positive, as it became clear the war a disaster, the US media turned on the government
-media attacked the war on two fronts, both on a practical level arguing the US was losing and debunking government claims otherwise and also regularly reporting on the atrocities being committed by American soliders
-the war was the first time that the public was getting a close to uncensored account of what was happening e.g. peasants having huts set on fire, prisoners executed, children crying from napalm burns etc
-the public could not support what they were seeing

Question 34

anti-war protests:

Answer 34

-media coverage led to the war becoming increasingly unpopular which triggered large scale anti-war protests across the country
-whilst many people still continued to support the government, the anti-war movement was staunchly opposed to the war and US society became highly polarised and divided, especially due to actions of some protesters such as burning american flags at protests
-over 700,000 people attended a protest in Washington in november 1969
-the protests and social division they were creating was putting a huge strain on the government and put great pressure on them to end the war

Question 35

events of 1968:

Answer 35

-Tet Offensive: media coverage was mostly positive until Tet Offensive shattered US government myth that VC were being worn down. Despite the offensive failure, it was clear that the US tactics were not working and the media lost patience with the government
My Lai Massacre: among the worst astrocities committed by the US army, was uncovered. March 1968, a US army ‘Search and Destroy’ mission descended upon village of My Lai and murdered all 400 civilians in the village, mostly women and children-the truth of the event was revealed by an army photographer who captured evidence of the events. The event shocked the american public and support for the war massively decreased