APUSH Unit 7.3

Benito Mussolini

An Italian politician, journalist, and leader of the National Fascist Party, Mussolini played a key role in the establishment of fascism as a political movement. He served as Prime Minister of Italy from 1922 until his ousting in 1943 and was known for his authoritarian regime and alliance with Nazi Germany during World War II.

Adolf Hitler

A German politician and leader of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (Nazi Party), He rose to power as Chancellor of Germany in 1933 and later Führer in 1934. He is known for initiating World War II in 1939 and for his central role in the Holocaust, the systematic extermination of millions of Jews and others perceived as undesirable by the Nazi regime.

Neutrality Act of 1935

A federal law aimed at preventing American involvement in future overseas wars by restricting trade and loans to belligerent nations during conflicts.

Neutrality Act of 1936

An amendment to the Neutrality Act of 1935 which prohibited the export of arms and munitions to belligerents.

Neutrality Act of 1937

An act that expanded the 1936 neutrality measures, allowing trade with warring nations on a 'cash-and-carry' basis.

Quarantine Speech of FDR

A speech delivered by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1937, advocating for international action against aggressive nations and suggesting a 'quarantine' of these nations to maintain peace.

Blitzkrieg

A German military strategy used in World War II characterized by rapid, surprise attacks and overwhelming force.

Cash and carry

A policy adopted under the Neutrality Act that allowed countries at war to purchase American goods provided they paid in cash and transported the items themselves.

Arsenal of Democracy

A phrase used by President Roosevelt which referred to the U.S. as a supplier of weapons and supplies to those fighting against Axis powers in World War II.

Lend-Lease Act

The 1941 law that allowed the U.S. to supply military aid to foreign nations during World War II, particularly those whose defense was deemed vital to the security of the United States.

Atlantic Charter

A statement made by the U.S. and the UK in 1941, outlining their goals for the post-war world, including self-determination and disarmament.

Pearl Harbor

The location of the surprise military attack by the Japanese on December 7, 1941, that led to the United States' entry into World War II.

War Production Board

A U.S. government agency established during World War II to manage the production and allocation of war supplies.

Office of Price Administration

A U.S. agency created to control prices and rents after the outbreak of World War II to curb inflation.

Office of War Information

A U.S. government agency created to disseminate information and propaganda to promote support for the war effort during World War II.

Manhattan Project

A secret U.S. government research project during World War II that developed the atomic bomb.

Double V for African Americans

A campaign during World War II advocating for victory against fascism abroad and racial discrimination at home.

Korematsu vs. US 1944

A landmark Supreme Court case that upheld the government's decision to intern Japanese Americans during World War II as a wartime necessity.

Rosie the Riveter

A cultural icon representing women who worked in factories and shipyards during World War II, symbolizing women's economic power and contributions.

Strategic bombing

A military strategy employed during World War II aimed at destroying the enemy's ability to wage war by targeting infrastructure, military bases, and civilian morale.

Island hopping

A military strategy used by the Allies in the Pacific during World War II, capturing select islands to create staging areas for further attacks on Japan.

Hiroshima

The Japanese city where the first atomic bomb was dropped by the United States on August 6, 1945.

Nagasaki

The Japanese city where the second atomic bomb was dropped by the United States on August 9, 1945. Leading to Japanese surrender.

Big Three

The leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union during World War II, specifically Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin.

Yalta Conference

A meeting held in February 1945 between the leaders of the Big Three to discuss post-war reorganization and the future of Europe.

United Nations

An international organization established in 1945 to promote peace, security, and cooperation among countries worldwide.

Iron Curtain

A term coined by Winston Churchill to describe the division between the Soviet-controlled countries of Eastern Europe and the democratic countries of Western Europe during the Cold War.

Cold War

The state of political hostility and military tension between the Soviet Union and the United States, along with their respective allies, after World War II.

satellite nations/soviet bloc

Eastern European countries under the influence or control of the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

Containment

A U.S. foreign policy strategy adopted during the Cold War aimed at preventing the spread of communism beyond its existing borders.

George Kennan argument

The idea proposed that the U.S. should adopt a policy of containment to limit Soviet expansion.

Truman Doctrine

A foreign policy initiated in 1947, asserting U.S. support for countries resisting communism.

Marshall Plan

A U.S. program initiated in 1948 to provide economic aid to European countries to help rebuild their economies after World War II and prevent the spread of communism.

Berlin blockade

A Soviet attempt to cut off West Berlin from Allied access in 1948-49, leading to the Berlin Airlift.

Berlin airlift

The Allied operation in 1948-49 to supply West Berlin by air after the Soviet blockade.

NATO

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a military alliance established in 1949 between North America and Western Europe to counter Soviet threats

Warsaw Pact

A military alliance formed in 1955 between the Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc countries in response to NATO.

Arms race

A competition between the U.S. and the Soviet Union during the Cold War to develop and accumulate superior weapons.

National Security Act 1947

A U.S. law that reorganized and consolidated military and intelligence agencies into the National Security Council and the Central Intelligence Agency.

Korean War

A conflict from 1950 to 1953 between North Korea (with support from China and the Soviet Union) and South Korea (supported by the United States and United Nations) resulting in a stalemate.

38th parallel

The dividing line between North and South Korea, established after World War II.

Eisenhower Doctrine

A policy proclaimed in 1957, pledging U.S. military and economic assistance to Middle Eastern countries resisting communist aggression.

Military Industrial Complex

A term coined by President Eisenhower to describ.e the relationship between the military and defense contractors that influences public policy

Dulles’s brinkmanship

The foreign policy strategy advocating for a tough stance against the Soviet Union, threatening nuclear retaliation.

MAD- mutual assured destruction

A military strategy during the Cold War where both sides possess enough nuclear weapons to destroy each other, thus deterring full-scale war.

Sputnik

The first artificial Earth satellite launched by the Soviet Union in 1957, marking the beginning of the space race.

NASA

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, founded in 1958 in response to the Soviet launch of Sputnik.

Fidel Castro

The Cuban revolutionary leader who overthrew the government of Fulgencio Batista in 1959 and established a socialist state allied with the Soviet Union.

Bay of Pigs

A failed 1961 CIA-backed military operation aimed at overthrowing Fidel Castro's Cuban government, resulting in a humiliating defeat for the United States and escalating Cold War tensions

Berlin Wall

A barrier constructed in 1961 by East Germany that separated East and West Berlin, symbolizing the division between the communist East and democratic West.

Cuban Missile Crisis

A 1962 confrontation between the U.S. and the Soviet Union over the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba, bringing the world to the brink of nuclear war.

Nuclear Test Ban Treaty 1963

An agreement between the U.S., the Soviet Union, and the UK prohibiting all nuclear tests conducted under water, in the atmosphere, and in space.

Red Scare

A period of intense fear of communism and anti-communist sentiment, particularly in the U.S. during the early Cold War.

The Smith Act-1940

A U.S. law that made it a criminal offense to advocate the violent overthrow of the government or to belong to organizations that did so.

McCarran Internal Security Act 1950

A law that required communist organizations to register with the U.S. government and made it illegal to be a member of such organizations.

HUAC- House Un-American Activities Committee

A congressional committee created in 1938 to investigate communist influence in the U.S. government and society.

Rosenberg Case

The 1951 trial of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, accused of espionage for allegedly transmitting atomic secrets to the Soviet Union.

McCarthyism

The practice of making accusations of subversion or treason without proper evidence during the Red Scare.

Employment Act of 1946

A U.S. law aimed at promoting maximum employment, production, and purchasing power.

GI Bill

A law enacted in 1944 providing various benefits to returning World War II veterans, including education and housing assistance.

Baby Boom

A significant increase in birth rates in the United States following World War II, leading to a demographic shift.

Levittown

An early example of a large suburban housing development built in the U.S. after World War II, symbolizing post-war suburbanization.

Sun Belt

A region in the southern U.S. that experienced significant population growth and economic development after World War II.

22nd Amendment 1951

An amendment to the U.S. Constitution that limits presidents to two terms in office.

Taft-Hartley Act

A 1947 U.S. labor law that restricted the activities and power of labor unions.

Fair Deal

A series of proposals put forward by President Harry S. Truman to expand social programs and civil rights in the post-war United States.

Modern Republicanism

A political philosophy adopted by President Eisenhower, promoting moderate government and social welfare while supporting capitalism and free enterprise.

Interstate Highway Act 1956

Legislation that authorized the construction of a nationwide network of interstate highways to improve transportation and national defense.