Adv M.E. FINAL TEST study guide

MAIN Causes of WWI

Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, and Nationalism were the key long-term causes of World War I.

Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

Sparked the beginning of World War I due to the web of alliances and rising tensions in Europe.

MAIN Causes of WWI

Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, and Nationalism were the key long-term causes of World War I.

Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

Sparked the beginning of World War I due to the web of alliances and rising tensions in Europe.

Allies

The alliance of countries including France, Britain, Russia, and later the United States during World War I.

Central Powers

The alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

Schlieffen Plan

Germany's military strategy to avoid a two-front war by quickly defeating France before turning to fight Russia.

Modern Weapons/Trench Warfare

Led to massive casualties and a stalemate on the Western Front due to new technology and defensive fighting.

Western Front vs. Eastern Front

The Western Front was characterized by trench warfare and stalemates; the Eastern Front was more fluid and mobile.

U.S. Isolationism

America's initial policy to avoid involvement in European conflicts during World War I.

Reasons the U.S. entered WWI

Unrestricted submarine warfare, the Zimmermann Telegram, and economic ties with the Allies.

Total War

A war that involves the complete mobilization of resources and people, affecting the lives of all citizens in the warring countries.

Paris Peace Conference

The 1919 meeting of the Allies to set the peace terms after World War I, leading to the Treaty of Versailles.

The Treaty of Versailles

Officially ended World War I; it blamed Germany, imposed harsh reparations, and redrew borders in Europe.

Fourteen Points

Woodrow Wilson's plan for postwar peace, promoting self-determination and the League of Nations.

League of Nations

An international organization aimed at keeping peace after World War I but weakened by the U.S. refusal to join.

Nicholas II Autocratic Rule

Czar Nicholas II maintained complete control over the Russian Empire and resisted democratic reforms.

Bloody Sunday

A 1905 massacre of peaceful protesters that sparked outrage and led to unrest against the czar.

Duma

A Russian legislative body created after the 1905 revolution, with limited real power.

WWI

Caused immense strain on Russia's economy and military, contributing to the fall of the czarist regime.

Marxism

The political and economic theory advocating for a classless society; it inspired Russian revolutionaries.

The Bolsheviks

A radical Marxist group led by Lenin that seized power during the Russian Revolution.

Peace, Land, & Bread

The Bolshevik slogan promising an end to war, land for peasants, and food for workers.

Bolshevik Revolution(s)

A two-part revolution in 1917 where the czar abdicated in March and the Bolsheviks took power in November.

March/Czar abdicates

Czar Nicholas II stepped down during the March Revolution due to mass protests and military mutiny.

November/Provisional government crumbles

The Bolsheviks overthrew the Provisional Government and took control of Russia.

Russian Civil War

Conflict between the Red Army (Bolsheviks) and the White Army (anti-Bolsheviks) from 1918 to 1921.

White vs. Red Army

The Red Army supported the Bolsheviks, while the White Army was a mix of monarchists, liberals, and foreign powers.

Lenin’s Rule

Lenin led the Bolsheviks, implemented the NEP, and consolidated power in the new Soviet state.

Actions after the Bolshevik Revolution

Lenin pulled Russia out of WWI, redistributed land, and nationalized industries.

NEP

New Economic Policy that allowed limited capitalism to revive the Russian economy after the civil war.

The newly formed Soviet Union

Established in 1922, uniting several republics under a communist government.

Characteristics of Communism

A system where the state owns the means of production and aims to eliminate class divisions.

Stalin’s Rule

Marked by dictatorship, purges, forced collectivization, and aggressive industrialization.

Characteristics of Totalitarianism

Government control of all aspects of life, including economy, education, and media, with the use of propaganda and repression.

Great Purge

Stalin's campaign to eliminate dissent within the Communist Party and consolidate his power.

Command Economy

An economic system where the government controls all production and distribution of goods.

Collective Farms/Kulaks

Stalin's policy of combining individual farms into large, state-run enterprises; kulaks were wealthy peasants who resisted.

The Five-Year Plans

Stalin's goals to rapidly industrialize the Soviet Union and boost production in heavy industry.

Women’s Role in the Soviet Union

Women gained more rights and joined the workforce, especially in education, medicine, and industry.

Experience of new democracies

Many new European democracies struggled with instability, weak coalitions, and economic crises after WWI.

Weimar Republic

Germany’s democratic government after WWI, plagued by political extremism and economic problems.

Dawes Plan

A 1924 U.S. financial plan to stabilize Germany’s economy through loans and restructured reparations.

Kellogg-Briand Pact

A 1928 international agreement to renounce war as a means of solving disputes, signed by over 60 nations.

Great Depression

A global economic crisis starting in 1929 that caused mass unemployment and suffering worldwide.

Role of Tariffs

Countries raised tariffs to protect domestic industries, which worsened the global economic downturn by reducing trade.

Fascist nations/Dictators

Countries like Italy, Germany, and Spain adopted authoritarian regimes led by Mussolini, Hitler, and Franco.

Similarities/differences between fascism and communism

Both reject democracy and use totalitarian methods, but fascism is nationalist and often racist, while communism promotes class struggle and internationalism.

Mussolini’s rise to power

Mussolini gained support by promising to restore Italy’s greatness and used violence and propaganda to seize control.

Hitler’s rise to power

Hitler gained support by exploiting economic woes, nationalism, and anti-Semitism, eventually becoming Germany’s dictator.

Nazism

A German form of fascism emphasizing extreme nationalism, racial purity, and loyalty to Hitler.

Japanese Authoritarianism

Military leaders took control of Japan in the 1930s, promoting imperial expansion and suppressing opposition.

U.S. Neutrality Acts

Laws passed in the 1930s to keep the United States out of foreign conflicts by banning arms sales and loans to warring nations.

Munich Conference

A 1938 meeting where Britain and France appeased Hitler by allowing him to take the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia.

Appeasement

The policy of giving in to an aggressor's demands to maintain peace, used by Britain and France toward Nazi Germany.

The Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact

A 1939 agreement between Germany and the Soviet Union to not attack each other and secretly divide Eastern Europe.

Blitzkrieg

Germany’s “lightning war” strategy using fast-moving tanks, planes, and infantry to quickly overwhelm enemies.

Battle of Britain

An air battle in 1940 where the British Royal Air Force successfully defended the UK against German air attacks.

Winston Churchill

British Prime Minister during most of World War II, known for his leadership and refusal to surrender.

The Blitz

Sustained bombing campaign by Germany against British cities, especially London, during 1940–41.

Operation Barbarossa

Hitler’s failed invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, breaking the Nazi-Soviet Pact.

Island Hopping

The U.S. military strategy in the Pacific of capturing key islands while bypassing heavily fortified Japanese positions.

Kamikaze tactics

Japanese suicide attacks by pilots who crashed their planes into Allied ships to inflict maximum damage.

Hitler’s Final Solution

The Nazi plan to systematically exterminate the Jewish population of Europe.

Battle of Stalingrad

A brutal Soviet victory that marked a major turning point in the war on the Eastern Front.

D-Day

The Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied France on June 6, 1944, the largest amphibious invasion in history.

Contention between the allies during the war (over 2nd front)

The Soviet Union pressured Britain and the U.S. to open a Western front sooner, causing tension.

Problems facing postwar governments

European nations faced economic ruin, displaced populations, and the need to rebuild infrastructure and governments.

Japanese Occupation

After WWII, the U.S. occupied Japan, implementing democratic reforms, economic changes, and demilitarization.

Cold War

A period of political and military tension between the U.S. and the Soviet Union from 1945 to 1991, without direct warfare between them.

Yalta Conference

A 1945 meeting where Allied leaders decided to divide Germany and hold free elections in Eastern Europe.

UN

The United Nations, founded in 1945 to promote international peace and cooperation.

Potsdam Conference

A 1945 meeting that increased tensions as the U.S. and Britain demanded free elections in Eastern Europe, which Stalin resisted.

The Iron Curtain

A term by Churchill describing the Soviet-controlled division between Eastern and Western Europe.

Containment

The U.S. policy of preventing the spread of communism beyond its existing borders.

Truman Doctrine

A U.S. promise to support countries resisting communism, starting with aid to Greece and Turkey.

Marshall Plan

A massive U.S. aid program to help rebuild European economies after WWII and prevent the spread of communism.

Berlin Airlift/Wall

The 1948–49 U.S.-led effort to fly supplies into West Berlin after the Soviet blockade, and the 1961 wall that divided the city.

NATO

A military alliance formed in 1949 between the U.S., Canada, and Western European nations for mutual defense.

Warsaw Pact

A Soviet-led military alliance of Eastern European countries formed in response to NATO.

Satellite Countries

Eastern European nations controlled politically and economically by the Soviet Union after WWII.

Brinkmanship Policy

The Cold War strategy of pushing dangerous situations to the edge of war to force the opponent to back down.

Sputnik

The first artificial satellite, launched by the Soviet Union in 1957, which started the space race.

The U-2 Incident

A 1960 event where the USSR shot down a U.S. spy plane, worsening U.S.-Soviet relations.

Iranian Revolution

A 1979 uprising that replaced the Shah with an Islamic government led by Ayatollah Khomeini.

Ayatollah Khomeini

Islamic leader who took control of Iran in 1979 and opposed U.S. influence.

Hostage Crisis

A 1979–1981 event where Iranian students seized the U.S. embassy and held 52 Americans hostage for 444 days.

Destalinization

Khrushchev’s policy of reducing Stalin’s influence by removing his image and reforming harsh policies.

Chinese/Soviet Split

A breakdown in relations between China and the Soviet Union over ideological and strategic disagreements.

Richard Nixon

U.S. president who promoted détente and visited both China and the Soviet Union to ease Cold War tensions.

Detente

A policy of easing Cold War tensions through diplomacy and arms control.

SALT negotiations

Strategic Arms Limitation Talks between the U.S. and USSR to limit nuclear weapons.

Ronald Reagan

U.S. president in the 1980s who took a hard stance against communism and increased defense spending.

Gorbachev

Last leader of the Soviet Union who tried to reform it with glasnost and perestroika.

Glasnost Policy

Gorbachev’s policy of openness and transparency in government and media.

Perestroika

Gorbachev’s policy of restructuring the Soviet economy and political system.

Fall of Communism

A wave of revolutions in Eastern Europe and the collapse of the USSR in 1991.

Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)

A loose alliance formed by former Soviet republics after the USSR’s dissolution.

German reunification

The 1990 process of East and West Germany becoming one country after the fall of communism.

Cuban Missile Crisis

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

U.S.-Soviet Relationship During the Cold War

Marked by mutual distrust, competition, and an arms race, with periods of high tension and brief cooperation.

U.S. Leader During Cuban Missile Crisis

John F. Kennedy, President of the United States in 1962.