Paper 1- Cold war & Vietnam Flashcards
(139 cards)
1
Q
Why were the west so scared of communism?
A
- The wealthiest people would lose a lot of money and their business and their power
- fear of dictatorship- lack of individual rights and being controlled
- communism is the opposite of the “American Dream”
2
Q
Who were America paying money to to stop communism?
A
- Germany
* Greece
3
Q
At the Yalta conference what was agreed?
A
- Stalin agreed to enter the war against Japan once Germany surrendered
- Germany would be divided into four zones: American, French, British and Soviet
- the capital of Germany would also be divided
- The Big Three agreed to hunt down and punish war criminals responsible for the genocide
- they agreed to join the new United Nations Organisation
- the countries of Eastern Europe were allowed to have free elections
4
Q
What were there disagreements on at the Yalta Conference?
A
•Stalin wanted to move the border of the USSR to poland, Churchill did not approve but knew he could not do much to stop it
5
Q
Who were the Big Three?
A
USA, UK and Russia
6
Q
What was the Yalta conference for?
A
To decide the future of Europe
7
Q
When was the Yalta Conference?
A
Feb 1945
8
Q
When was the Potsdam conference?
A
July 1945
9
Q
What was agreed at the Potsdam conference?
A
•agreed to hunt down Nazi war criminals
10
Q
What was disagreed on at the Potsdam conference?
A
- Stalin wanted to destroy Germany to protect the USSR from future threats
- Truman did not want to repeat the mistakes of the Treaty of Versailles
- disagreed about reparations- 20million russians had died in the war and the Soviet Union had been devastated
- disagreed over policies- Truman was unhappy
11
Q
How many Russians died in WW2?
A
20 million
12
Q
Who was Winston Churchill? Which conference did he attend?
A
The British PM and he attended Yalta
13
Q
Who was Franklin D Roosevelt? Which conference did he attend?
A
He was the USA president, he attended Yalta
14
Q
Who was Joseph Stalin? Which conference did he attend?
A
The USSR Leader (Russia) and he attended both Yalta and Potsdam
15
Q
Who was Clement Attlee? Which conference did he attend?
A
The British PM, he attended Potsdam
16
Q
Who was Harry Truman? Which conference did he attend?
A
The US president, he attended Potsdam
17
Q
What did the Hungarian Communist Rakosi describe Stalins control over Europe as?
A
“Slicing salami” meaning that he did it step by step.
18
Q
Why were the usa prepared to help and support people and countries who wanted to become democracies with capitalist economies?
A
Because they saw it as simply the defence of people’s freedom against a system they did not want.
19
Q
Describe what it was like living in a communist USSR?
A
- people could only vote for members of the communist party
- peoples lives were closely controlled- newspapers censored, non-communists put in prison
- the rights of individuals were seen as less improve than the good of society
- the standard of living was much lower than in the USA
- unemployment low
- there were no extremes of wealth and poverty
20
Q
Why were the USA and USSR motivated to work together?
A
Because they both had Hitler as a common enemy
21
Q
How did the allied leaders get on at Yalta?
A
They got on well together
22
Q
How did the change in leaders between the yalta and potsdam conferences effect the relationship between leaders?
A
Harry Truman (the new US president) was much more anti-communist than Roosevelt and very suspicious of Stalin’s intentions.
Stalin did not trust Truman and Attlee and they did not trust him.
23
Q
When did Germany surrender?
A
Germany surrendered on 8 may 1945
24
Q
What did Truman inform Stalin about and what were the consequences of this?
A
Truman informed Stalin about a new weapon he was going to use against japan.
In 1945 this began a new arms race between the USA and the USSR.
25
What was the Truman Doctrine?
The name given to a speech and set of ideas made by US president Harry Truman in 1947, It was made after the US President heard how the USSR were going to support a communist revolution in Greece.
26
What was a said in the Truman Doctrine speech?
"it must be the policy of the United States to support free people's who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities"
27
What was the Marshall Plan?
After seeing the example of Greece, Truman realised that communism was spreading to countries where there was poverty and destruction after the war. His plan was to invest $17 Billion into the "rubble heap of Europe"
28
How much money was the Marshall Aid?
$17BILLION
29
When was the Berlin Crisis?
1948/49
30
What were the other names for the Berlin Crisis?
Berlin Blockade and Berlin Airlift
31
In the first three days of the Berlin Airlift how many landings were made?
500 landings in the first three days
32
How long did the Berlin Airlift last?
10months
33
How many trips were made during the Berlin crisis?
100,000 trips
34
Why did Russia blockade Western Berlin?
Because Russia wanted to control Western Berlin so they tried to starve Britain, France and America out of Berlin
35
Where did Russia blockade?
Western Berlin
36
Who were the Western countries?
UK, USA and France
37
How did the Western countries react to the Berlin Blockade?
They flew in supplies to the East of Germany (communist area) including food, clothing and oil to stop the people from starving to death.
38
What was the first testing point of the Cold War? Who won?
The first testing point was the Berlin Blockade.
| The western countries won because Stalin backed down
39
What was the airlift often referred to as?
LeMay's feed and coal company
40
On average how many tonnes of supplies were being taken to the western Berlin during the blockade per day?
5000 tons of supplies a day
41
What was the population of the three western sectors Berlin?
2,500,000 people
42
How much did the operation to feed and supply Berlin cost?
Millions of dollars
43
What did the Berlin Airlift hasten the creation of?
The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) a Western European military alliance of countries protecting each other
44
What was the "Iron Curtain"?
In a speech in march 1946 Winston Churchill claimed that an "iron curtain" had descended across Europe separating the democratic nations from the communists.
45
Were elections held in each eastern Europe and what was the outcome of this?
They were held in every East European country but there is evidence to suggest that they were rigged to allow the USSR-backed communist countries to take control. By May 1948 all Eastern European states had communist governments.
46
What did Stalin create to keep a tight grip on his neighbours?
Cominform (1947) and Comecon (1949) were trading alliances of communist countries. They became known as the satellite states because their governments and economies depended heavily on the USSR.
47
What was the policy of containment?
The aim to stop the spread of communism without pushing it back
48
What were the two aims of the Marshall aid?
* to stop the spread of communism
| * to help the economies of europe to recover which would eventually provide a market for American exports
49
What was the Warsaw Pact and when was it set up?
A communist version of NATO, set up in 1955
50
What was the cause of the Berlin Blockade?
In 1948 the French, American and the British zones merged to become one zone. West Germany began to recover and prosper where as East Germany was in poverty and hunger.
To Stalin it seemed as if the Allies were building up West Germany to attack him.
51
Why was Stalin so easily able to cut ofd West Berlins physical links with the west?
Because Berlin was deep into the Soviet-controlled zone.
52
What did many people fear the Berlin blockade would do?
Provoke war
53
In the late 1950s how many warheads did America and the USSR have?
America- 5000 warheads
| USSR- 0 warheads
54
By the 1960s how many warheads did America and the USSR have?
America- about 32,000
| USSR- almost 10,000
55
What does MAD stand for and what does it mean?
Mutually
Assured
Destruction
It meant that there were so many weapons the everyone would die if there was a war due to the huge amounts of technology and weapons/missiles.
56
Where was Cuba located?
Less than 100miles off the coast of America
57
Why did America previously support Cuba?
Its leader Batista, was anti-communist. US businesses also dominated Cuba and the US also dominated Cuba militarily.6
58
Why did the US policy go wrong in 1959 in Cuba?
Fidel Castro a young communist led a campaign of guerrilla warfare against Batista and overthrew him.
59
What happened when Castro took over Cuba?
* he took over many US owned businesses and land
* he gave the land to ordinary Cuban Farmers
* he made close links with the USSR (led by Krushchev)
60
When was the Cuban Missile Crisis?
1962
61
Why could the Americans not knock down the road blocks (blockade)?
Because Stalin would have seen this as an act of war.
62
What is meant by the term "Cold War"?
A cold war is a state of conflict between two nations that does not involve direct military action, caused by political hostility.
63
Why did the Western countries not give up Berlin?
Because if they did, there would be a possibility that Stalin would take over the whole of Germany.
64
What happened at the Bay of Pigs?
* President Kennedy supplied weapons and transport for 1500 Cuban exiles to land in Cuba and overthrow Castro
* they were met at the Bay of Pigs by 20,000 Cuban troops with weapons supplied by the USSR.
* all of the exiles were killed and captured within a few days
* this was humiliating for Kennedy as it made him look inexperienced and weak to the USSR.
65
What were the consequences of the Bay of pigs ?
* Kennedy looked inexperienced and weak in the eyes of the USSR
* Castro used the events of this as propaganda to build up support
* the Berlin wall was built to create a physical, permanent divide in Europe
* this also led to the Cuban Missile Crisis
66
Who was Kennedy? (List things about him which are specific to the Cuban Missile Crisis)
* was in the army, fought in japan- saw the japanese killing themselves so that they wouldnt be dishonoured
* doesn't want war
* war hero- president
* youngest president- youthful and energetic
* bad health
* knows that overwhelming power does not make the enemy back down
67
Who was Castro? (List)
* Leader of Cuba- overthrew Batista
* would never stop
* knew Krushchev wasn't willing to fight
* Cubans willing to die for socialism
* willing to commit the ulitmate sacrifice (bicycle game)
68
What was Krushchev like?
* doesnt want war
* peasant
* uneducated
* soldier in WW2- saw how horrible and destructive war was
69
Why did Krushchev put missiles in Cuba?
* the USA had missiles in West Europe and Turkey- threats to the USSR, so this would restore the missile balance
* keen to defend Castro as Cuba was the only Communist country in the Western Hemisphere
* propaganda
* Wanted to produce more nuclear warheads and close the 'missile gap' between the USA and the USSR
70
When were the nuclear missile sites spotted by a US spy plane?
On October 14 1962
71
What happened at 4:00pm on October 27th 1962?
A US spy plane was shot down by a Russian Missile fired from Cuba. The US pilot dies in the crash.
72
What happened at 5:25pm on October 27th 1962?
Russian Cargo tankers are 1km away from the US battleship, when a Russian submarine appears between the russian tankers and the US battleships. 2/3 Russian officers decide to attack with nuclear missiles, but the 1/3 officer does not so they can't continue with it. The subs turn away.
73
Why did Kennedy choose to blockade rather than invade Cuba?
* it would show firm action without using immediate force
* it would give Krushchev time to consider his next actions
* it would give the US an option of an air strike or invasion later if the blockade did not work
74
When was it announced that The USSR would be prepared to remove the missiles from Cuba?
28th October 1962
75
What were the consequences of the Cuban Missile Crisis?
* this was the closest that the USA and the USSR came to nuclear conflict in the Cold War.
* the USA and the USSR set up a hotline (telephone link) between Moscow and Washington DC so that problems could be discussed to avoid future crises.
76
What were the positive and negative outcomes of the Cuban Missile Crisis on The USA?
+Kennedy was seen by world opinion as the 'victor' as the soviets backed down
+Kennedy stood up to his military advisors who wanted to invade Cuba. The crisis showed how dangerous their ideas were
- castro remained in power- still communist threat
- Kennedy had made enemies
- Kennedy agreed in secret not to invade Cuba
77
What were the positive and negative outcomes of the Cuban Missile Crisis on the USSR?
+Krushchev had prevented a US invasion of Cuba
+He could claim to have acted as a peacemaker by agreeing to remove the missiles from Cuba
+Krushchev had an agreement that NATO missiles in Turkey would be removed
- many in the USSR felt humiliated
- the USSR lied to the world about nuclear missiles in Cuba
- in 1964 Krushchev was replaced as soviet leader
78
What were the positive and negative outcomes of the Cuban Missile Crisis on Cuba?
+Castro remained in power and the US agreed not to attempt further invasions
+Cuba maintained heavily armed
-Cuba remained poor and isolated, unable to trade with the USA- depending on the USSR
79
How did the USA support France's fight against the Vietnamese Communist Army in North Vietnam?
They sent $500million a year
80
Which part of Vietnam was communist and which was capitalist?
North Vietnam- Communist
| South Vietnam- Capitalist
81
What did the US do to involve themselves in Vietnam in 1955?
They helped to rig elections in South Vietnam. The winner President Diem won 600,000 votes; there were only 450,000 voters in South Vietnam! They supplied Diem with $1.6billion in his 8years in charge.
82
Why did the US support Diem?
Despite him being cruel and hated by many, Diem was anti-communist, so the US only supported him to tackle communism.
83
Why did people in South Vietnam turn to support communism?
They would support it to get rid of Diem as he was cruel and hated
84
Why did the USA send the CIA to assassinate Diem in 1962?
Because many of the South Vietnamese were turning communist to stop Diem
85
When were US soldiers officially sent into Vietnam?
1965
86
What were the strengths and weaknesses of the tactic of the Viet cong- a spike trap pit?
+inexpensive
+easy to make
+americans fear
- can only catch one person at a time
- slow
87
What were the strengths and weaknesses of the tactic of the Viet cong-viet cong tunnel?
+protected from above ground attacks
+inexpensive
-can only catch American soldiers slowly
88
What were the strengths and weaknesses of the tactic of the Viet cong- guerilla warfare?
+couldnt be spotted by the US soldiers
+americans fear
-only catch a few men at a time
89
When was the Vietcong formed?
1960
90
How did the US use bombing as a Tactic in the Vietnam war?
Operation Rolling Thunder was started on the 7th February 1965. It was bombing raids on Military and industrial targets in North Vietnam.
91
What were the successes and failures of Operation Rolling Thunder?
+Damaged NVietnams war effort/damaged supply routes
+enabled USA to strike at communist forces
- US air power would not defeat communists- only slow down
- the Viet Cong continued to operate supply routes
- it cost the USA $400,000 to kill one Viet Cong fighter
92
What chemical weapons did the US use?
Agent Orange:
•a highly toxic "weedkiller" that destroyed the jungle in which the Viet Cong hid
•it burned through skin to the bone
•many civilians and soldiers were also killed by this weapon
•had health effects- cancer and deformed babies
93
How much agent orange was used in the Vietnam war?
82million litres were used to spray thousands of square kilometres of jungle
94
When was the Vietcong formed?
1960
95
How did the US use bombing as a Tactic in the Vietnam war?
Operation Rolling Thunder was started on the 7th February 1965. It was bombing raids on Military and industrial targets in North Vietnam.
96
What were the successes and failures of Operation Rolling Thunder?
+Damaged NVietnams war effort/damaged supply routes
+enabled USA to strike at communist forces
- US air power would not defeat communists- only slow down
- the Viet Cong continued to operate supply routes
- it cost the USA $400,000 to kill one Viet Cong fighter
97
What chemical weapons did the US use?
Agent Orange:
•a highly toxic "weedkiller" that destroyed the jungle in which the Viet Cong hid
•it burned through skin to the bone
•many civilians and soldiers were also killed by this weapon
•had health effects- cancer and deformed babies
98
How much agent orange was used in the Vietnam war?
82million litres were used to spray thousands of square kilometres of jungle
99
What were the problems with search and destroy missions?
* raids were often based on inadequate information
* inexperienced US troops often walked into traps
* innocent villages were mistaken for Viet Cong people
100
Who fought in the US army in the Vietnam war?
* inexperienced 18/19 year olds drafted into war
* most of them died in the first month at war
* most people in the US army were not bright as they were poorer and therefore could not pay their way out
* 25% of people were black
101
How old was the average person in the US army in Vietnam?
19
102
What problems did the US army face in Vietnam?
* racial tensions
* new guys treated badly- no training
* guerilla traps
* jungle diseases, mosquitos, ants
* rainforest- 90% humidity
* plants in forest- couldn't see the enemy
103
Why were the US army so inexperienced as a whole in Vietnam?
* 18 year olds had to join war or they would face a 5 year prison sentence
* had to do at least 1year of duty
104
Why were most of the US soldiers uneducated in the Vietnam war?
* from poor backgrounds
* higher proportion of black people were drafted into army (12% of the US society=black)
* the "draft" was the conscription introduced in 1967
105
How many deaths in Vietnam (of the US soldiers) were caused by factors other than combat?
18%
106
How many returning soldiers came back with a Heroin addiction after Vietnam?
30%
107
Why did so many people take drugs in Vietnam?
Most young US soldiers hated the situation so they turned to drug abuse and sold food and equipment on the black market
108
When was the "draft" introduced into the Vietnam war?
1967
109
What was 'fragging' and why did it occur in Vietnam?
* some soldiers blew up their own officers when on patrol- (they would say that they stepped on a booby trap)
* this was an excuse to return to base& not fight
110
What was the "Ho Chi Minh Trail"?
* a supply route that started in the North and ends in South Vietnam
* allowed the Viet cong to transport supplies to the South without fear of detection
111
What were the events of My Lai Massacre?
* march 1968 a unit of young US soldiers called 'Charlie Company' started a search and destroy mission in the Quang Ngai region of SVietnam
* they were told that there was a headquarters and 200 viet cong in the village and were under the impression that they should kill everyone in the village
* in 4 hours 300-400 civilians were killed (mostly women, children and old men)
* only 3 weapons were recovered and no viet cong were found
112
How many civillians were killed in My Lai?
300-400
113
When was My Lai?
16th March 1968
114
What was the Impact of My Lai on the troops?
* at the time it was treated as a success- men involved were praised
* treated as a normal part of war
* many then turned against the war
* many suffered from PTSD
* morale poor
115
What was the impact of the My Lai Massacre on the public?
* more reason why the US shouldn't be in Vietnam in the first place
* no trust in government- media lying
116
What was the public told about My Lai?
They were told that it was a military battle in which 200-300 Viet Cong were killed along with a few civilians.
However in 1969 it was published that there were no Viet Cong and it was just a mass murder
117
Why was My Lai a huge turning point in the Cold War for America?
Because it led to the belief that America had lost this war because they were murdering those that they were supposed to be protecting (South Vietnam).
118
What was the impact of My Lai on the Vietnamese?
* more likely to turn to communism as they have seen first hand the effects of being capitalist.
* this also led to the loss of the war for American as they had turned the people that they were supposed to protect against them
119
What impact did My Lai have on the American people?
* soldiers were called "baby killers"
* the era of the hippies as American people did not want to take part in American society- turned against capitalism
* street protests of young people wanting to stop war
* soldiers feel betrayed and back stabbed by the war- returned as killers not heroes
* young people ran away to mexico and canada to avoid being sent to war
120
Who were the Viet Cong?
Communists from the North trying to take over Vietnam
121
What was the Tet Offensive?
* during the Tet new year holiday Viet Cong attacked over 100 cities and other military targets
* they attacked Saigon the capital of S.Vietnam and tried to capture the US embassy there
* around 4500 Viet Cong fighters tied down a much larger US and South Vietnamese force for two days
* the Viet Cong lost around 10,000 experienced fighters
122
How many cities were attacked in the Tet Offensive?
Over 100
123
When was the Tet Offensive?
January 1968
124
Why was the Tet Offensive such a huge turning point of the Cold war?
* before it, American leaders were convinced they could win the war
* after, it became clear that it would take many more troops and more time than it was worth to have military victory
* Americans were not expecting such a co-ordinated and effective response from Vietcong
* Walter Cronkite (senior media spokesman) said that it would be a draw
125
What effect did the Tet Offensive have on the president?
Lyndon B Johnson did not run again for president.
126
How many universities went on strike against the war?
400
127
What was the weekly cost of benefits for poor families? What is the significance of this?
$53
America couldn't even pay that as they were paying $20billion on the war
128
How many students were shot in a protest against Vietnam?
4
129
How much did it cost America per every Viet cong that died?
$400,000 per every vietcong
130
How many US soldiers were killed in Vietnam?
58,267
131
How many viet cong soldiers died?
1.1 million
132
How many vietnamese civillians died?
2million
133
How long did draught soldiers spend training for Vietnam?
6 weeks
134
Who did the political leaders of America blame the loss of the Vietnam war on?
The media because they showed the public the images of what really happened in My Lai
135
When did vietnamisation begin?
When Nixon became president in 1969
136
When did the Americans leave Vietnam?
1973
137
What was Vietnamisation?
When US soldiers were pulled out of Vietnam but financial support was given to the South Vietnamese army (ARVN).
138
What happened in october 1972?
A peace agreement was was worked out with North Vietnam, but the president of South Vietnam refused to sign it so the North Vietnamese pulled out of the talks.
Nixon then mounted huge bombing raids on N. Vietnam until they were forced to sign.
In Jan 1973 the Paris Peace Agreement was signed and the Americans left Vietnam.
139
Why did the president of South Vietnam, Nguyen Van Thieu refuse to sign the peace agreement in 1972?
Because he thought the Americans were going to abandon him
