7.2 and 7.3

The Russo-Japanese War

A war fought between 1904-1905, resulting in a humiliating defeat and social instability for Tsarist Russia

Causes of the collapse of the Soviet Union

Heavy central planning of the Soviet economy, leading to corruption and stagnation; the drain on the Soviet economy caused by the Arms Race with the United States; the inability of the Soviet economy to keep up with the economic progress of Western countries

Causes of the Russian Revolution of 1917

Autocratic rule and repression by the Tsarist regime; disastrous military defeats and high casualties in World War I

The Cultural Revolution

A sociopolitical movement initiated by Mao Zedong in China from 1966 to 1976 that aimed to purge capitalist and traditional elements from society, promote Maoist ideology, and maintain Mao's position as the leader of China

Central Powers

The countries that formed an alliance during World War I, which included Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire

Causes of World War I

The alliance system and the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand

Consequences of World War I

German reparations under the Treaty of Versailles; the breakup of the Ottoman Empire

Pearl Harbor

A U.S. naval base attacked by Japanese forces in 1941, causing the U.S. to enter World War II on the side of the Allies

Schlieffen Plan

A German plan, developed before World War I, that envisioned a fast defeat of France followed by an attack on Russia

Example of war propaganda

Posters, cartoons, and films, such as the famous "Uncle Sam Wants You" poster used to recruit soldiers during World War I

Technologies used in WWI

Poison gas, machine guns, tanks, aircraft, trench warfare, and unrestricted submarine warfare

Sykes-Picot Agreement

A secret agreement between Britain and France to divide the Middle East between them

Reasons for the US entering WWI

Unrestricted submarine warfare, Zimmerman Telegram, economic reasons, moral outrage, ideology (14 Points), etc

Dawes Plan

A plan for the repayment of war reparations by Germany after World War I, intended to stabilize the German economy and promote economic recovery in Europe

Mein Kampf

A book written by Adolf Hitler while he was in prison in the 1920s, outlining his ideology and intentions

Blitzkrieg

A German term, meaning "lightning war," that was a military strategy developed by the Germans in the early years of World War II and involved a coordinated rapid attack to quickly overwhelm the enemy

Fascism

A political ideology that advocates for a strong authoritarian government, strict control of the economy, and suppression of individual rights in favor of the collective good

Great Depression

The crash of the U.S. stock market in 1929

Lebensraum

A German term, meaning "living space," that was central to Nazi ideology

Manhattan Project

The research and development project undertaken by the United States during World War II to develop the first atomic bombs

Yalta Conference

A famous meeting between the leaders of the U.S., Britain, and the Soviet Union that took place in Crimea in 1945 with the objective of discussing the post-war reorganization of Europe and the establishment of the United Nations

Kamikaze

A military tactic used by the Japanese during World War II, which involved the intentional crashing of aircraft into enemy targets

Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact

A pre-World War II agreement in which Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union agreed not to attack each other, but to partition Poland

Two causes of World War II

The economic effects of the Great Depression, and a policy of appeasement by western European countries towards Hitler and his expansionist policies

NATO

A military alliance formed in 1949 by several Western European and North American countries to counter the threat of Soviet aggression

Iron Curtain

The political and military barrier that separated Western Europe and Eastern Europe during the Cold War

Containment

The foreign policy strategy adopted by the United States during the Cold War to prevent the spread of communism by containing it within its existing borders

Proxy wars

Conflicts that were fought between the United States and the Soviet Union indirectly through their allies during the Cold War

Domino Theory

The Cold War political theory that suggested that if one country fell to communism, neighboring countries would also fall

Main causes of the Cold War

Rising tensions between the U.S, and Soviet Union due to differing political ideologies, Soviet attempts to spread communism, and the division of Europe into Eastern and Western blocs

Kuomintang

At the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949, the Kuomintang retreated to Taiwan, where they established the Republic of China

Space Race

The period of intense competition between the Soviet Union and the United States to achieve milestones in space exploration

Nonaligned countries

Countries that did not align with either of the two opposing geopolitical alliances during the Cold War were known as nonaligned countries

Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD)

A military doctrine in which the use of nuclear weapons by one side would result in the total annihilation of both the attacker and the defender

Glasnost

A term that refers to an increase of political openness, freedom of expression, and transparency in the Soviet Union