The collapse of communism in eastern Europe Flashcards
1
Q
May 1989
A
Hungarians began dismantling the barbed-wire fenced between Hungary and non-communist Austria.
2
Q
June
A
- Free elections are held for the first time in Poland since WW2
- Solidarity wins almost all the seats it contests
- Eastern Europe gets its first non-communist leader, President Lech Walesa
3
Q
September
A
- Thousands of East Germans on holiday in Hungary and Czechoslovakia refuse to go home
- They escape into West Germany
4
Q
October
A
- There are enormous demonstrations in East German cities when Gorbachev visits the country
- The East German leader, Honecker, orders troops to fire on the demonstrators but they refuse!
5
Q
November
A
- Thousands of East Germans march to the checkpoints at the Berlin Wall
- The guards throw down their weapons and join the crowds in fully dismantling and vandalising the Wall
6
Q
Also in November
A
- Huge demonstrations in Czechoslovakia
- The Czech government opens its borders with the West
- They also allow the formation of other political parties
7
Q
December
A
- In Romania there’s a short but very bloody revolution
- Ends with the execution of communist dictator Ceausescu
- The Communist Party in Hungary renames itself the Socialist Party
- They declare free elections will be held in 1990
- In Bulgaria, there are huge demonstrations against the communist government
8
Q
March 1990
A
Latvia declares independence from the USSR.
9
Q
Did Germany reunite?
A
Yes, once the Berlin Wall was down there was a speedy reunification and Germans in both countries embraced the idea enthusiastically.
10
Q
What did Gorbachev think of the German reunification?
A
- Gorbachev was less enthusiastic despite his idealism
- He expected that a new united Germany would be friendlier to the West than to the East
- Gorbachev finally accepted German reunification
- Even allowed Germany to become a member of NATO but it wasn’t a small thing for him to accept
- Like all Russians, he lived with the memory that German aggression in WW2 had cost the lives of 20 million Soviet citizens
11
Q
What date did Germany become a united country once again?
A
3rd October 1990
