HIstory DBQ

Communism

An economic system where the government makes all decisions and owns resources like land and businesses to increase equality.

Capitalism

An economic system where individuals make choices, resources are owned for profit, and production is determined by market forces.

Democracy

where the people elect leaders

Dictatorship

where power is held by one person or a small group

Domino theory

The U.S. adopted a policy of containment based on the Domino Theory, which sought to prevent the spread of Soviet influence.

Weapons of the Cold War

Weapons of the Cold War included propaganda, nuclear weapons (weapons of mass destruction), and espionage.

Imperialism

powerful states influencing weaker ones remained driving forces throughout this period.

Nationalism

devotion to one's country

Cold War

A state of conflict and rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union from roughly 1945 to 1991. It is defined as a battle conducted through propaganda, espionage, and proxy wars rather than direct military engagement.

Opium Wars

Britain began selling opium, an addictive drug, into China. When China tried to ban opium to protect its citizens, Britain retaliated with military forces.

Sphere of influence

Foreign nations established this, which were regions where a foreign power held exclusive economic rights.

Mandate of heaven

the divine right to rule; Internal turmoil, such as the Taiping Rebellion, and the failure of the Qing to stop foreign "barbarians" led many to believe the dynasty had lost the “Right to rule“

Revolution of 1911

Sun Yat-sen (the "father of the nation") helped overthrow the Qing to form a republic based on the "Three Principles of the People": Nationalism, Democracy, and the People's Livelihood.

Qing Dynasty

Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) ruled China

Boxer Rebellion

The Boxer Rebellion (or the Righteous and Harmonious Fists) was an anti-foreign uprising in 1900 supported by Empress Dowager Cixi but eventually crushed by an eight-nation alliance.

The Long March

In 1934, when Nationalist forces encircled them, the Communists made a 6,000-mile forced retreat. Only 8,000 of the original 100,000 survived, but it secured Mao's position as the undisputed leader.

Great Leap Forward

(1958): A plan to rapidly industrialize through collectivization (forming massive communes) and using backyard furnaces to make steel. It was a disaster that led to the Famine of 1959-1962, killing between 20 and 45 million people.

The Cultural Revolution

(1966-1976): An upheaval launched by Mao to rid China of capitalism and "old" traditions. Youth were organized into Red Guards who destroyed the "Four Olds" (customs, culture, habits, and ideas) and attacked teachers and officials.

Jose Marti

Cuba was a Spanish colony for 400 years. José Martí was a national hero and poet who led the struggle for independence from Spain in the late 1800s, promoting racial equality and national sovereignty.

The Platt Amendment

Afterward, the U.S. forced the Platt Amendment into the Cuban constitution, granting the U.S. the right to intervene in Cuban affairs and establishing a naval base at Guantanamo Bay.

Fulgencio Batista

Fulgencio Batista was a Cuban nationalist and former president who later seized power in a 1952 military coup to become a repressive dictator. As a person, he was viewed by many as a corrupt tyrant who turned Havana into a playground for the American mafia while using his military police to kill and torture those who disagreed with him. His main role was maintaining a government that protected the massive financial interests of the United States until he was defeated by Fidel Castro’s guerrilla forces and fled the country on January 1, 1959.

The Bearded Men

In 1956, Fidel and brother landed the yacht Granma and retreated into the Sierra Maestra mountains to wage guerrilla warfare (armed struggle to overthrow). The rebels, known as "The Bearded Men" (Los Barbudos), gained peasant support and won victories over Batista's demoralized army.

Nationalize

Once in power, Castro began to nationalize (bring under state control) land and businesses, including those owned by U.S. companies

Bay of Pigs Invasions

1961: President John F. Kennedy approved of a plan by the CIA to overthrow Castro's government with the help of Cuban refugees living in the US. The plan is a complete failure.

Tiananmen Square

In 1989, students held pro-democracy protests in the square; the government responded with a violent military crackdown. A lone protester known as Tank Man became famous for standing in front of a column of tanks.

Mao Zedong

Chairman of the Communist Party of China, he led the country from its establishment in 1949 until his death in 1976, implementing policies like the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution. He is known for his efforts to transform China into a socialist society through radical reforms. Mao Zedong was a revolutionary leader who played a crucial role in establishing the People's Republic of China and is often regarded as the founding father of modern China. Mao used guerrilla warfare tactics and focused on gaining support from the peasant population rather than urban workers.

Chiang Kai Shek

Chiang Kai Shek was a Chinese political and military leader who served as the leader of the Republic of China. He played a key role in the Chinese Civil War against the Communist Party and the Second Sino-Japanese War, leading the Nationalist government until his retreat to Taiwan after the defeat by communist forces in 1949.

Role of sugar in cuban economy

The Cuban economy was heavily dependent on sugar, which made it face economic volatility and vulnerable to price fluctuations. Sugar was a key export and economic driver, providing jobs and attracting foreign investment, especially from the U.S. However, the industry has faced challenges over time.

Monroe Policy

a plan to keep European countries from interfering with nations in the Americas, especially Cuba. U.S. leaders believed Cuba was like an "apple" that would naturally fall into the hands of the United States once it was no longer part of Spain. They allowed Spain to keep ruling Cuba for a while just to make sure no other powerful country could take it before the U.S. was ready.

Fidel Castro

Fidel Castro was a revolutionary leader, and a lawyer who overthrew the dictator Fulgencio Batista to rule Cuba for nearly fifty years. He transformed the nation into a communist state by taking control of all private land and businesses. While his government provided free healthcare and education to everyone, it also ruthlessly suppressed anyone who disagreed with him. organized the 26th of July Movement to overthrow Fulgencio Batista. After a failed attack on the Moncada Barracks, Fidel and his brother Raul Castro fled to Mexico, where they met the Argentine doctor Che Guevara.

Cuban Missile Crisis

The Cuban Missile Crisis was a 1962 confrontation where the Soviet Union secretly put nuclear missiles in Cuba, bringing the world very close to a nuclear war,. The crisis ended peacefully when the Soviets removed their missiles in exchange for a U.S. promise not to invade Cuba and the removal of American missiles from Turkey,.

The situation at the end of WW2

At the end of World War II, traditional European powers were weakened or bankrupted while Nazi Germany was completely destroyed. The United States and the Soviet Union were the only major nations to emerge stronger, becoming the world's two new dominant superpowers.

the differences between democracy and dictatorship and capitalism and communism

At the end of World War II, traditional European empires were bankrupted or weakened while Nazi Germany was destroyed and divided into occupation zones,. Only the United States and the Soviet Union emerged as dominant superpowers, with the U.S. possessing a thriving economy and the world's only atomic weapons,. This shift marked the beginning of a new international order and the Cold War, as the wartime alliance dissolved into a global contest between capitalist and communist ideologies,.