The Nuclear Age and the Cold War Flashcards
How many nuclear weapons have been created during war?
Only two nuclear weapons have ever been created during war
Who use these to nuclear weapons that were created?
The United States used it near the end of World War II which was in 1945
What did the United States use these nuclear weapons for?
Bombs were dropped on Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nigaski
What are complicated about the nuclear weapons?
Signs of nuclear or atomic weapons is very on complicated but the effects of the weapons are easy
What happens to victims underneath explosions?
They were vaporised instantly as heat was so intense. Bodies got so hot, they disappeared into thin air
What causes very strong bomb blasts?
They have huge explosive capacity
What happens to the people near the fire that swept through the cities? 3km
Fire was so great that clothes caught on fire on people that were 3 km away from the centre.
What do explosions release?
Release rays of nuclear radiation
What did radiation poisoning do to people?
Radiation poisoning kills tens of thousand people and deaths continue to occur years after
Why has nuclear weapons not been used in war again?
Because of the destruction caused by the bomb
Summarise what happened at the end of World War II
Ali powers for the access powered. The Allied powers defeat of Germany and Italy in May 1945. This ended the war in Europe
When did the Yalta conference take place?
It took place in February 19 45 before the end of war
What happened at the Yalta conference?
Allies decided Germany was defeated and would be divided into four zones
When did the alleys divide up Germany and Berlin?
In June 1945 and they took over the German government
When did the countries move into Berlin?
In July 19 45 the American, British and French troops moved into bourbon
When was the Potsdam conference?
It was from the 17th of July to the 2nd of August. It was held at the end of war
Who are the participants in the Potsdam conference?
The Soviet union which is Russia, Britain and the United States
What was the purpose of the Potsdam conference?
Gather to decide how to administer the punishment to Nazi Germany
What did the three nations at the Potsdam conference represent?
The three nations represented by Communist party general secretary Joseph Stalin and prime minister Winston Churchill, Clement Attlee, President Harry S Truman
What were the reasons of tension between the Allies?
- Soviet union was occupying central and eastern Europe
- Britain had a new prime minister
- America had a new president
- The US had tested an atomic bomb
- Stalin knew about the bomb
Describe what happened when the Soviet union was occupying central and eastern Europe
Russian tubes did not want to with draw from countries in eastern Europe. Stalling insisted his control of eastern Europe was defensive measure. But it was possible for future attacks from the western Europe
Why did Britain are having a new prime minister increased tension?
Dream the conference the general election was held in Britain. Churchill’s party was defeated. Clement Attlee became prime minister and Attlee deeply distrusted Stalin
Who was America’s new president?
Vice President Harry Truman became president
Why did America get a new president?
President Rooseveldt died before the end of World War II
Describe why tension increased as America had a new president
Roosevelt trusted Stalin not to take over Eastern Europe. At the end of the war the allied unity collapsed. Truman was much more suspicious of Stalin than Roosevelt was
When did the US test an atomic bomb?
16th of July 1945
Where did America’s successful tested atomic bomb take place?
New Mexico desert in the USA
Define atomic bomb
Much more powerful than other bombs it can also be called a nuclear bomb
Describe the scenario that USA had tested an atomic bomb
Churchel entryman agreed that the weapon should be used to defeat Japan
When did Truman tell stalin and about the bomb?
Truman did not how stalling until 25 July
What did Stalin already know about?
He already knew about the bomb that he was not told about. His KGB Spies had infiltrated the group that made the bum.
What happened when the Potsdam declaration has been broadcasted to Japan?
On the 26th of July the Potsdam declaration had been broadcasting stupid Japan. It was threatening total destruction until the Japanese government surrendered
Who was Britain’s old prime minister and who is the new prime minister?
Wednesday in Churchill’s party was defeated. Clement Attlee became the new prime minister
What happened to buildings during nuclear explosions?
Roof tiles mounted half a kilometre away and windspeed on the ground directly beneath the explosion was 600 km/h and the force of the wind flattened the buildings
When did the Cold war almost become the hot war?
Early 1960s
Why was it almost the hot war?
Superpowers competed over control of Cuba
What did both USA and USSR have in common?
Nuclear weapons
What was the first signs of war since WW II?
Tension over Cuba
What is Cuba?
Cuba is an island off the coast of the American state of Florida.
What was Cuba ruled by?
Capitalist oppressive and corrupt government ruled by General Batista
How was Cuba close to the USA?
Close economic ties - USA corporations had important investments
What was Cuba regarded as in the 1950s?
Playground of the rich who travelled there from the USA
What was life like for the ordinary Cubans?
Poor and had few human rights
Why were many Cubans involved in fighting a guerrilla war against Batista’s regime?
Cubans were very unhappy with the Batista government
Who was the revolutionaries?
Led Fidel Castro and Che Guevara
When and who toppled the Batista regime?
In 1959 the revolutionaries toppled the regime
Castro came into power what did he implement?
Social reforms which included:
* land redistribution from the rich to the poor
* nationalisation of American owned businesses
What threatened the USA is economic interest?
President Kennedy became alarmed at the socialist programme formed by Castro
Then who tried to overthrow Castro’s government?
The USA government
The Cuban exiles trained by the US Army invaded what?
Q bar at the Bay of pigs
Who was defeated at the Bay of pigs?
The Americans were defeated by the Cuban Army. This cause the USA to be humiliated
Define humiliated
Made to feel uncomfortable because of shame or wounded pride
What led Castro to ask the Russians for help?
The Bay of pigs invasion
What help was offered to Cuba?
Russian leader offered economic aid and weapons
Who was the Russian leader?
Khrushchev
What did the USA now have after the Bay of pigs invasion?
A hostile state which was backed up by the Soviet on its doorstep. USA already had tension with Russia
When did the world come close to a nuclear world war?
During the time of the Cuban missile crisis
Castro feared another attack, what did he agree to?
Russian military assistance
Why did the Russian leader want to have the United States within the range of fire?
He believed it would reduce the risk of potential attack on Russia
Where did America have nuclear missile station?
In western Europe and in Turkey which were close to Russian soil
Where and when did the USS are start to build missile installations?
In 1962 they started building missile installations in Cuba in a very secretive manner and at a great speed
Who photographed the construction site in Cuba?
American spy ships
How did the American government blockade seas around Cuba?
They used its navy warships
Who demanded for the removal of the Soviet missile bases?
President John F Kennedy
After negotiation the Russian leader decided to remove the missiles in Cuba. What is the USA have to do in return?
The US guaranteed it would not attack Cuba
When did a great change take place in Russia?
During World War I
What happened during the Russian revolution of 1917?
The king was overthrown and a communist government took over the government
Who was the Russian king?
Tsar Nicholas II
What was Russia renamed in 1917?
Union of Soviet Socialist republics – USSR
Who was the leader of the communist political party called Bolsheviks?
Lenin
What did Lenin and the Bolsheviks offer?
Peace, land and bread
What did the ordinary and poverty stricken Russians want?
Peace, land and bread
When did Russia with draw from World War I?
1917
Who took over the leadership of the Soviet union when Lenin died?
Stalin
When did Lenin die?
1924
What type of leader was Stalin?
Ruthless dictator
How did Stalin create a mighty military industrial world power?
Extreme violence
Who was in power when WWII ended in 1945 for Russia?
Stalin
What happened to the Russian States from 1917 to 1991?
Straight from the Baltic and black seeds to the pacific ocean and consisted of 15 Soviet Socialist republics
What is the capital city of Russia?
Moscow
Define the Communist ideology
No few rich people controlling all the wealth
Government should rule in interest of all
Wealth equally shared between people
Centrally planned – economic equality
No one can own private property or make a profit
State owned large industries and other sources of wealth
Not democratic
Define ideology
Set of beliefs, values and ideas
What is the ideology of communism like?
Highly sophisticated
Who developed some of the Communist ideology?
Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky
What type of movement is communism?
Revolutionary movement that promote the violent overthrow of capitalism
Where did communism become popular?
Among poor people all over the world
Who was communism a threat to?
America and Western Europe. They tried to stamp it out
What type of country is the United States of America?
Capitalist country
When did America become extremely powerful?
During world War one
What does the United States of America occupy?
Most of North America with its 50 states
What is the capital of the United States of America?
Washington DC
What are the countries that are allied with the USA referred to as?
The west
What does the west include?
Capitalist, democratic countries in Western Europe including Britain
Define the capitalist ideology
Nothing wrong with some people being rich and others poor
Possibility of making a profit motivate people to work harder
Individuals own private property 
Government does not control the economy
Maybe democratic but sometimes fascist 
Who let America to the final stages of World War II?
Harry Truman
What was Harry Truman strongly opposed to the Soviet union for?
Expanding its control in Europe and other parts of the world
What did Harry Truman wanted the United States to resist against?
Communism and the limit Soviet expansion
Who is Albert Einstein?
Best known scientist who have ever lived
Where did Einstein grow up?
Germany
What did Einstein develop?
Scientific ideas that change your understanding of the universe
When was Albert Einstein awarded the Nobel Prize in physics? 
1921
How was Einstein involved in the making of nuclear or atomic bombs?
His scientific theories were used to develop the first nuclear bomb
Why did Einstein leave Europe?
To escape the Nazis and went to live in America. He was Jewish
What did Einstein encourage the American government to invent?
An atomic bomb used to stop Nazi ideas from spreading 
What were the atomic bombs invented by American scientists used for?
Axis power - Japan
When was the Manhattan project started?
In 1939 the US government started the Manhattan Project
What was the Manhattan Project?
A top-secret research project to research and produce an atomic bomb
When did scientist work on the Manhattan Project?
From 1939 to 1945
What was the codename for the bombs the Manhattan Project was trying to make?
The gadget
Define gadget
Small tool with a particular function
When did the gadget successfully explode?
16th of July 1945
Where did the gadget successfully explode? 
In a desert near Los Alamos in state of New Mexico
What happened to the sand when the gadget exploded?
The heat of the explosion was so hot that the sand turned to glass
Who was the leader of the Manhattan Project?
Robert Oppenheimer
What did Robert realise when there was a successful explosion?
He was relieved about the success but at the same time he realised it had deadly destructive power
When was the city of Hiroshima bombed?
Sixth of August 1945
When was the city of Nagasaki bombed?
Ninth of August 1945
Why were those two Japanese cities chosen as targets?
They produce weapons of war for Japan
How many people died at Hiroshima?
90,000 people
How many people died at Nagasaki?
60,000 people
When did Japan finally admitted that they had been defeated?
On the 14th of August 1945
Why did the Second World War end on the 14th of August 1945?
America and Japan were no longer fighting
Why have we been living in an age that is often called the nuclear age?
The threat of terrifying and devastating nuclear weapons change the nature of war forever
What was Einstein deeply concerned about?
Humanity and world peace
What did Albert Einstein tried to persuade leaders to do?
Give up nuclear weapons
Why did America drop the bombs?
They wanted to in the war in the Pacific against the Japanese. There are three main reasons
What are the three main reasons for America dropping the bombs?
- To avoid further casualties
- To keep Stalin out of Japan and to frighten Russia 
- To frighten the Japanese military leaders into surrendering
Define casualties
People injured, killed, captured or missing in the wall
Where did casualties occurred during the invasion of Japan?
On both sides
What would’ve happened to the people of war continued between America and Japan?
It would have caused the death of about 250,000 people per month, mostly Asians
Why did America use the atomic bomb to keep stalling in check?
Used to intimidate the Soviet union
Define intimidate
Bully someone or make them afraid of you
What did the USA use the atomic bombs to show when it comes to military?
Show that they were militarily superior to the USSR
Why did America want to stop the USSR from invading Japan?
They did not want to share a victory with the USS are like they did in Germany
What is force the Japanese to surrender?
The destruction caused by the bombs would instil fear of further destruction
Define justified
Provide good enough reason to or something
When did Russia join the allies in the war?
In 1941, Hitler’s troops invaded Russia
During World War II what side was Russia on?
Same side as Britain, France and America
Why did Capitalist USA and Communist Russia fight on the same side? 
They had the same enemies which was Germany, Italy and Japan
When did Russia develop their own nuclear weapons?
By 1949
Why was it called a hot war?
Nuclear bombs were too dangerous and too destructive
Define Cold War
Rivalry Between USA and the USSR 
Why was it called the Cold War?
It was not fought between two powers on the battlefield
What two countries with the most powerful countries in the world?
America and Russia
What was America and Russia often referred to as? 
Superpowers
Define Superpowers
The two strongest powers after World War II
What was the nuclear arms race?
Competition in which two countries, the United States and the Soviet union, tried to build up the most nuclear weapons during the Cold War
What did the policy of the arms race became known as?
Mutual assured destruction (MAD)
What does the mutual assured destruction agreement mean?
If one side attacked with nuclear weapons then the other side would respond with a nuclear attack too
When did the Cold War almost become a hot war?
In the early 1960s the superpowers completed over control of Cuba
What was the first signs of war sent the end of World War II?
Detention over Cuba
What was the tension over Cuba a threat of?
Nuclear destruction
What is Cuba?
An island off the coast of American State of Florida 
What’s the type of government did Cuba have?
Capitalist, oppressive and corrupt government ruled by general Batista
Who did Cuba have close economic ties with?
America
What type of investments did America have in Cuba?
American corporations had important investments in Cuba
What was Cuba regarded as in the 1950s?
The playground of the rich who travelled there from the USA
What was lifelike for ordinary Cubans?
Poor and few human rights
What happened when the Cubans were very unhappy with the Batista government?
Many were involved in fighting a guerrilla war against his regime
Who was the revolutionaries?
Led by Fidel Castro and Che Guevara
When and who top of that Batista regime?
In 1959 the revolutionaries top of the Batista
Where did the rich Cubans go to?
Fled to America
What race grew out of the Cold War?
The space race
When did military scientist in the USSR and the USA begin developing Rockets?
After World War II
What would the Rockets be able to do?
Carrie nuclear bombs over long distances
Why would they creating rocket that could carry nuclear weapons?
They were much faster than aeroplanes and could be fired without warning
Who took the lead in the rocket technology?
The Russians
Who and when was the first satellite put into space?
In 1957 Soviet union put the first satellite into space
Why was there a fear that America might never catch up in the space race?
They did had no idea that Russian science was so advanced
When the USA felt inferior, what did they do?
Decided to compete in a space race with the Russians
What was the space race competition all about?
Along competition to be first in the exploration of space
What is the type of competition was the space race?
Peaceful competition
Who and when was a dog sent into space?
In 1957 the Russians send a dog into space
What was the dog’s name?
Laika
What did the dog into space mission provide scientist with?
First information on the behaviour of a living creature in space
When did the dog die in space?
After a few hours in space from overheating and stress
Who was the first person to go into space?
In 1961, the astronaut Yuri Gagarin was the first person
At the start what was the goals for the space race?
No set goals
What was president Kennedy is set goal?
Landing a man on the moon before the Russians
What was publicised for the world to see in terms of America?
American space activities in the race to the moon we’re open the publicised
What is the Russian activities publicise?
Space programs were secret and launches were not announced in advance. Only success we made public
When was the first moon landing?
The 20th of July 1969
Who landed on the moon?
Armstrong, Aldrin, Collins
What was written in most American newspapers?
Lee story was about Armstrong being the first man to walk on the moon
What was a source of national pride for America?
The landing on the moon
What did the landing send a message about?
America could complete in and win the Cold War
Who won the space race?
American astronauts
Who was the space race important for?
All humankind
What did Armstrong say when he landed on the moon?
One small step for man, One giant leap for mankind 
Who became the leader of the USSR in 1985?
Milhaud Gorbachev
What did Gorbachev begin to introduce in order to help the economy?
Re-forms in the USSR - Perestroika
What does perestroika mean?
Restructuring of the Soviet economy
What did Gorbachev also introduce?
Glasnost - A policy of openness
What type of new freedom was given to the Soviet people?
Greater freedom of speech
What did the reforms in the Soviet union have affects on?
Communist countries in Eastern Europe
When did mass demonstrations against the Communist government in East Germany take place?
1989
Who was east Germany is head of state?
Erich Honecker
When it did East Germany’s head of state resign?
October 1989
What did the new east German government prepared to do?
A new law to lift the travel restrictions for east German citizens
What was called West Germany?
Britain, France and the United States combine economies of the western zones of Germany under their control
What did the Soviet union compose on the eastern zone of Germany?
East Germany was imposed the Communist rule
Between which period did many people immigrate from East Germany to West Germany?
Between 1946 and 1961/3,000,000 people immigrated from East Germany to West Germany
Where was the capital city of Germany situated?
East
What was Berlin divided into?
Western Allied occupied West Berlin and Soviet occupied East Berlin
When could people who lived in East Berlin visit the west?
They work during the day and in the evening if they could visit West Berlin to meet friends and relatives
How many movie tickets were sold each year in West Berlin to East Berlin is?
8 million
How many people from the east came daily to West Berlin to work in factories and workshops?
60,000 people
For how many years could people move fairly freely in both parts of the city?
13 years
How many people from East Berlin and the Soviet zone visited the West Berlin every day?
200,000
When did the USSR order the blocking off of East Berlin from West Berlin?
August 1961
What was put up across the border of Berlin?
A barbed wire fence. Over next three months construction workers began building a solid wall 
When did the Wall was built, what happened to the people living in East Berlin?
No longer to go to West Berlin
Where did the wall cause an outrage for?
In the west
Who faced each other in Berlin?
American and Soviet tanks
What explicit orders did the east German Communist government give?
To shoot and kill attempted defectors
What happened when people try to cross the Berlin Wall?
Heavily guarded and about hundreds of people were killed and many winded trying to cross the wall
What happened on November 9, 1989?
A member of the new east German government was asked at a press conference when the new east German travel north to come into force
What did the gods do when thousands of East Berliners gathered at the border crossing?
Had not been given orders about what to do. They refused at 1st to open the borders
What happened when the gods were unable to control the crowds?
They allowed the gate to open and thousands of people to post through with little or no identity checking
What did the east and west Berlin is do you win the United?
Danced in the streets in what became the biggest party the city had
Why was the wall still Gardens?
Military tried to repair some of the damage done to the wall
What happened when the German government soon collapse?
German reunification followed in 1990 and the war was completely destroyed
When was the Cold War declared officially over?
December 1989
Who declared that the Cold War was officially over?
American President George HW Bush senior and Gorbachev
After the Cold War what did Gorbachev think he could save?
V Communist system in the USS are – his new policies failed
What happened in late 1991?
The Soviet union dissolved and Communist government came to an end
