US History Semester 2 Final Exam Study Guide

Vocabulary terms covering the Great Depression, New Deal, World War II, and the Cold War era based on the semester final exam study guide.

New Deal

Government programs started by Franklin D. Roosevelt to help America out of the Great Depression.

Hoovervilles

Name given to shantytowns to show distrust in President Herbert Hoover.

Bank Runs

Americans frantically withdrew their money, leaving banks with no cash.

The Jungle

Novel exposing the horrors of the meatpacking industry.

Progressivism

A reform movement in the early $20th$ century.

Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill

Leaders of the United States and Great Britain who worked together during WWII.

Battle of the Atlantic

Long naval battle between the Allies and Germany over control of Atlantic shipping routes.

Stalingrad

Major battle where the Soviet Union defeated Germany; turning point on the Eastern Front.

Operation Torch

Allied invasion of North Africa in $1942$.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

U.S. general who led Allied forces in Europe.

VE Day

Victory in Europe Day; Germany surrendered on May $8$, $1945$.

Philippines / Bataan Death March

Forced march of American and Filipino prisoners by Japan where many died.

Doolittle Raid

First U.S. air raid on Japan during WWII.

Battle of Coral Sea

U.S. and Australia vs. Japan; first naval battle fought mainly with airplanes and the first time a Japanese invasion was stopped.

Battle of Midway

Turning point in the Pacific War where the U.S. defeated Japan and began island hopping.

Imperialism

Act of countries taking over other lands and territories for goods and resources.

Trench Warfare

Style of fighting used during WWI where soldiers fought from trenches.

Aircraft Carriers

Naval ships that allow planes to take off and land in the middle of the ocean.

Militarism

The belief that governments should build up militaries for offensive or defensive purposes.

Manhattan Project

Top secret mission to develop the nuclear bomb.

Joseph Stalin

Leader of the Soviet Union; communist government.

Adolf Hitler

Leader of Germany; fascist dictatorship.

Hideki Tojo

Military leader of Imperial Japan; militarist government.

Franklin D. Roosevelt

President of the United States; democratic government.

Axis Powers

Germany, Italy, and Japan.

Allied Powers

England, United States, France, Soviet Union, and China.

$38th$ Parallel

Line separating North and South Korea.

Containment

America’s foreign policy aimed at stopping the spread of communism.

Red Scare

Widespread fear of the rise of communism.

Truman Doctrine

U.S. policy sending financial aid to Greece and Turkey to fight communism.

Berlin Airlift

U.S. and Great Britain flew food and supplies into West Berlin to resist Soviet expansion without war.

NATO

Alliance of democratic nations formed to defend against communism.

Vietnam War

Conflict between communist North Vietnam and non-communist South Vietnam involving the United States.

Warsaw Pact

Military alliance created by the Soviet Union in response to NATO.

Korean War

War between communist North Korea and South Korea; the U.S. entered to fight communism.

Bay of Pigs Invasion

Failed attempt to overthrow Fidel Castro’s communist government in Cuba.

Tet Offensive

Massive surprise attack by the Viet Cong in $1968$; turning point of the Vietnam War.

Fall of Saigon

End of the Vietnam War in $1975$ when North Vietnam captured South Vietnam.

Pol Pot

Leader of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia who carried out genocide killing millions.

Iranian Hostage Crisis

Iranian students stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and held Americans hostage.

Dtente

A lessening of tensions between the U.S. and Soviet Union.

Realpolitik

Foreign policy based on practical goals rather than ideals.

Glasnost

Soviet policy of openness and freer discussion of social problems.

Perestroika

Restructuring of the Soviet economy and government in the $1980s$.

SALT I

Treaty between the U.S. and USSR to reduce the arms race.

Strategic Defense Initiative (Star Wars)

Ronald Reagan’s missile defense program using advanced technology to stop Soviet missiles.

Mikhail Gorbachev

Soviet leader who introduced reforms that helped end the Cold War.

Cuban Missile Crisis

Conflict caused when the Soviet Union attempted to place nuclear missiles in Cuba.

China (Nixon visit)

Richard Nixon visited China in $1972$ to improve relations.