Glossary

Question 1

Bloc

Answer 1

A group of countries that have made an alliance because of shared interests

Question 2

Bourgeoisie

Answer 2

According to Karl Marx, the middle classes who hold the power and need to be overthrown

Question 3

Bolshevik

Answer 3

The political party that took power in Russia in 1917, led by Lenin; the bolsheviks later become known simply as the communist party

Question 4

Boycotting

Answer 4

Refusing to buy goods or services from someone for political reasons

Question 5

Capitalism

Answer 5

The economic system followed by the west during the Cold War; people have the right to start and own businesses in a free market

Question 6

Cheka

Answer 6

The secret police of east Germany during the Cold War

Question 7

Cold War

Answer 7

The term used to describe the tensions between the Soviet Union and the west between WW2 and 1991

Question 8

Communism

Answer 8

an economic and political system in which
there is no private ownership; people contribute based on their ability and take only what they need

Question 9

Congress

Answer 9

The American parliament, made up two houses l the Senate and the House of Representatives

Question 10

Cult of personality

Answer 10

When a leader (such as Stalin) uses media to create an image of themselves that makes them almost god-like

Question 11

Defectio

Answer 11

The act of changing loyalties from one country to another

Question 12

Delegation

Answer 12

A group of people sent to represent a country on a visit abroad or at a conference or summit

Question 13

Democracy

Answer 13

A system of government where citizens elect their leaders or have a say in their county’s laws

Question 14

De-Stalinisation

Answer 14

The period after Stalin’s death in which Khrushchev tried to make changes to the Soviet Union

Question 15

Détente

Answer 15

Improving relations between the ussr and the usa during the 1970s

Question 16

Doctrine

Answer 16

A rigid set of beliefs or principles

Question 17

Dollar imperialism

Answer 17

The idea that the USA spreads its influence and power around the world using money

Question 18

Domino theory

Answer 18

The theory followed in the USA from Eisenhower onwards that communism would make countries fall like dominoes; when one country becomes communist, its neighbours would soon fall too

Question 19

Embargo

Answer 19

A ban on trade with a particular country

Question 20

Exile

Answer 20

Being forced to stay away from your home; this can be forced or it can be a choice if the consequences of going home are arrest or death

Question 21

FBI

Answer 21

Federal Bureau of Investigation; the USA’s security and national crime investigation organisation

Question 22

Guerilla warfare

Answer 22

The use of ambushes and raids by small armed groups; used successfully in cuba by Castro and by the Vietcong in Vietnam

Question 23

House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)

Answer 23

The committee in the us House of Representatives that pursued and investigated those suspecting of being involved in communist activity

Question 24

Ideology

Answer 24

A guiding political belief eg communism

Question 25

Industrialisation

Answer 25

The movement from an economy based mainly on agriculture to one based mainly on manufacturing

Question 26

Intelligence

Answer 26

The gathering of secret information by a country about other countries

Question 27

Intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM)

Answer 27

Long distance nuclear missile

Question 28

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Answer 28

An organisation that oversees the world’s economies

Question 29

Kremlin

Answer 29

The headquarters of the Soviet government in Moscow during the Cold War

Question 30

Lend Lease

Answer 30

The loans given to European countries during WW2 by the usa

Question 31

Maoism

Answer 31

A version of communism based on the ideas of Mao Tse-tung of china

Question 32

McCarthyism

Answer 32

The name given to the anti-communist hysteria that engulfed the USA in the 1950s; named after senator Joseph McCarthy

Question 33

Nationalist

Answer 33

A loose term for a person who wants independence for their country; can be right wing or left wing

Question 34

New look

Answer 34

The defence policy followed by US President Eisenhower

Question 35

Politburo

Answer 35

The group that officially decides government policy in a communist country

Question 36

Proletariat

Answer 36

The workers who should rise up and take control according to Marxism

Question 37

Propaganda

Answer 37

Information used to promote a particular point of view; it often uses exaggeration or outright lies

Question 38

Proxy war

Answer 38

An indirect war between the superpowers where the USA or USSR fund the other enemy; examples include Korea, Vietnam and Angola

Question 39

Red Scare

Answer 39

The widespread fear of communism; usually refers to 1920s in the USA but can also refer to McCarthy era in the 1950s

Question 40

Regime

Answer 40

A government

Question 41

Reparation

Answer 41

Money paid by a defeated country after a war to pay for the reconstruction

Question 42

Secretary of defence

Answer 42

Senior figure in us government, responsible for defence, security and the military

Question 43

Secretary of State

Answer 43

US chief diplomat — equivalent to UK foreign secretary

Question 44

Security council

Answer 44

Senior committee of the United Nations

Question 45

Self-determination

Answer 45

The right for people to choose how their country should be governed

Question 46

Sphere of influence

Answer 46

the idea that the Soviet Union and the USA would have countries or regions that were under their ‘influence’ after the Second World War; for Stalin, this was a way of guaranteeing security

Question 47

Summit

Answer 47

A meeting of leaders of countries

Question 48

Superpower

Answer 48

A country that has significantly more power than others (military or economic), with which it can dominate and control world events (eg USA and USSR)

Question 49

Trade union

Answer 49

An organisation of workers, usually in a particular industry, that protects their interests, negotiates pay rates and improves working conditions

Question 50

Telegram

Answer 50

A message sent down a wire and them printed out

Question 50

Treaty of friendship

Answer 50

An agreement made between the USSR and china in 1950

Question 51

Tsar

Answer 51

Emperor of Russia before the 1917 revolutions

Question 52

Unilateral disarmament

Answer 52

The policy of giving up nuclear weapons without an agreement from other countries to do the same

Question 53

United Nations

Answer 53

International organisation that aims to stop conflict and encourage cooperation between countries; formed after WW2

Question 54

USSR

Answer 54

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics; a ‘soviet’ is a workers’ council

Question 55

Veto

Answer 55

The right to overrule a decision

Question 56

Vietcong

Answer 56

The communist guerrilla fighters in Vietnam

Question 57

Viet Minh

Answer 57

Vietnamese communists, supporters of Ho Chi Minh

Question 58

World Bank

Answer 58

An international organisation that provides loads to help countries develop