Final Exam Study Sheet Notes

Cold War

Cold War: Political and military tension between the USA and the USSR after WWII, characterized by the absence of direct fighting, but intense proxy wars, ideological battles, and an arms race.
Winston Churchill: British leader who coined the term “Iron Curtain” to describe the symbolic division between communist Eastern Europe and democratic Western Europe.
Berlin Wall: A physical barrier erected by East Germany in 1961, dividing East (communist) and West Berlin (democratic), becoming a potent symbol of the Cold War.
Iron Curtain: The symbolic, ideological, and physical division between the communist East and the democratic West in Europe during the Cold War.
Containment: A US strategy to prevent the spread of communism, involving various measures, including military alliances, economic aid, and political pressure.
Truman Doctrine: A US policy, initiated in 1947, to provide support to countries resisting communism, initially focusing on Greece and Turkey.
Marshall Plan: A US economic aid program to rebuild Europe after WWII (1948-1952), aimed at preventing the spread of communism by fostering economic stability.
Berlin Airlift: A US-led effort in 1948-1949 to supply West Berlin by air during the Soviet blockade, showcasing Western resolve.
NATO: The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a military alliance of Western countries formed in 1949 to counter the USSR.
38th Parallel: The line dividing North (communist) and South Korea after WWII, solidified by the Korean War (1950-1953).
Demilitarized Zone (DMZ): A buffer zone between North and South Korea, established after the Korean War, symbolizing the ongoing division.
Joseph McCarthy: A Senator who led anti-communist witch hunts (McCarthyism) in the early 1950s, characterized by unsubstantiated accusations and political repression.
Bay of Pigs Invasion: A failed US-backed Cuban invasion in 1961 to overthrow Fidel Castro, highlighting the US efforts to contain communism in the Western Hemisphere.
Cuban Missile Crisis: A tense standoff in 1962 when the USSR placed nuclear missiles in Cuba; a US blockade and diplomatic negotiations averted war.
Arms Race: A competition between the USA and the USSR to build up their nuclear arsenals, leading to a precarious balance of power known as “mutually assured destruction” (MAD).
Space Race: A competition to explore space, a key aspect of Cold War rivalry, culminating in the US moon landing in 1969.
Project Gemini/Apollo: US space programs; Apollo achieved the historic feat of landing humans on the moon.
Domino Theory: The belief that if one country falls to communism, neighboring countries will follow, justifying US intervention in Southeast Asia.
Vietcong: Communist guerrillas in South Vietnam, supported by North Vietnam, who fought against the US and South Vietnamese forces during the Vietnam War.
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution: A resolution passed by the US Congress in 1964, giving the US president power to escalate the Vietnam War, following alleged attacks on US ships.
Military Draft: The forced military service during the Vietnam War, a policy that sparked widespread protests and resistance.
Tet Offensive: A large Vietcong attack in 1968 that shifted US public opinion against the Vietnam War, revealing the conflict's complexity and challenging US claims of progress.
SALT Agreement: The Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, treaties between the USA and the USSR to limit nuclear weapons, representing efforts toward détente.
Detente: Relaxation of Cold War tensions in the 1970s, characterized by increased diplomatic engagement and arms control agreements.
Glasnost: Gorbachev’s policy of openness in the USSR, allowing for greater freedom of speech and information.
Perestroika: Gorbachev’s economic restructuring in the USSR, aimed at decentralizing the economy and introducing market elements.
Mikhail Gorbachev: The last Soviet leader, who introduced reforms (Glasnost and Perestroika) that ultimately led to the end of the Cold War.

Great Depression

Black Tuesday: The Stock market crash in 1929, marking the beginning of the Great Depression.
Hoovervilles: Shantytowns built by homeless people during the Great Depression, named mockingly after President Herbert Hoover.
Bonus Army: WWI veterans who marched on Washington D.C., demanding early payment of their promised bonuses.
New Deal: FDR’s programs and policies implemented to combat the Great Depression, encompassing relief, recovery, and reform.
First Hundred Days: The early period of intense New Deal legislation, during which many key programs were enacted.
Bank Holiday: A temporary closure of banks to stop runs and stabilize the banking system.
Fireside Chats: FDR’s radio talks to reassure Americans during the Depression.
Relief, Recovery, Reform: The three main goals of the New Deal: providing immediate relief to those in need, stimulating economic recovery, and implementing reforms to prevent future crises.
Alphabet Soup Programs: The numerous New Deal agencies, often referred to by their initials, characterized by the significant expansion of the federal government (e.g., CCC, WPA, AAA, TVA, REA).
Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC): A New Deal program that provided jobs for young men planting trees, building parks, and undertaking other conservation projects.
Works Progress Administration (WPA): A New Deal program that created jobs building public projects such as roads, bridges, and schools.
Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA): A New Deal program that paid farmers to reduce crop production to raise prices.
Rural Electrification Administration (REA): A New Deal program that brought electricity to rural areas.
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA): A New Deal program that built dams for electricity and flood control in the Tennessee Valley.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC): A New Deal program that insured bank deposits, increasing confidence in the banking system.
Court-Packing Scandal: FDR’s failed plan to add Supreme Court justices who would support his New Deal legislation.
Pension: Retirement payments for the elderly, a key component of the Social Security Act.
National Labor Relations Act (Wagner Act): Legislation that protected workers’ right to unionize and engage in collective bargaining.
Collective Bargaining: Negotiation between unions and employers regarding wages, hours, and working conditions.
Social Security Act (SSA): Legislation that provided retirement and unemployment benefits, as well as assistance to families and individuals in need.
Deficit Spending: Government spending more than it collects in taxes, a policy advocated by Keynesian economics and employed during the New Deal to stimulate the economy.
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC): A regulatory agency created to regulate the stock market and prevent abuses.
Dust Bowl: A severe drought and dust storms in the Midwest that caused widespread farm failures and displacement during the Great Depression.

Roaring 20s

Return to Normalcy: Warren G. Harding’s campaign promise to return to pre-WWI life, characterized by isolationism and economic prosperity.
Recession: An economic slowdown after WWI, as the economy adjusted from wartime production.
President Harding: A US president whose term was marked by scandals, including the Teapot Dome Scandal.
Teapot Dome Scandal: A corruption scandal involving oil reserves leased illegally to private companies.
Installment Buying: Purchasing goods on credit with monthly payments, contributing to consumerism during the 1920s.
Communism: A political system with government ownership of property and centralized control, a major fear during the Red Scare.
Kellogg-Briand Pact: An agreement to outlaw war, though largely ineffective due to lack of enforcement mechanisms.
Prohibition: The ban on alcohol sales (18th Amendment) from 1920 to 1933.
Al Capone: A famous gangster during Prohibition, known for bootlegging and organized crime.
Organized Crime: Illegal businesses, such as bootlegging, that flourished during Prohibition.
Fad: A popular trend, such as dance crazes, that swept through society.
Flappers: Young women with new fashion and freedoms, challenging traditional gender roles.
Harlem Renaissance: An African American cultural and artistic movement centered in Harlem, New York City.
Louis Armstrong: An influential jazz musician during the Harlem Renaissance.
The Great Gatsby: A novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald symbolizing 1920s wealth and excess.
Lucky Lindy: Charles Lindbergh, the first pilot to complete a solo transatlantic flight.
Babe Ruth: A famous baseball player, symbolizing the popularity of sports in the 1920s.

Red Scare

Red Scare: A fear of communism in the US after WWI, fueled by the Bolshevik Revolution and labor unrest.
Sacco & Vanzetti Trial: A controversial trial of two Italian immigrants accused of murder, highlighting anti-immigrant sentiment and fears of radicalism.
Palmer Raids: Government raids on suspected radicals and immigrants, led by Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer.
Quota System: Limits on immigration, favoring immigrants from Western Europe.
Scopes Trial: The “Monkey Trial,” a trial over teaching evolution in schools, symbolizing the clash between science and religion.
Marcus Garvey: A Black nationalist leader who advocated for racial separatism and a return to Africa.
Election of 1928: Herbert Hoover elected president, just months before the stock market crash.

World War II

Totalitarian State: A government that controls all aspects of life, suppressing individual freedoms (e.g., Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy).
Adolf Hitler: The Nazi leader of Germany, responsible for the Holocaust and the instigation of WWII.
Nazi Germany: Germany under Hitler’s fascist rule, characterized by extreme nationalism, racism, and aggression.
Fascism: An authoritarian government with strong nationalism, centralized control, and suppression of opposition.
Neutrality Acts: US laws designed to keep the country out of war, reflecting isolationist sentiment.
Munich Conference: An agreement in which Britain and France appeased Hitler by giving him the Sudetenland, a region of Czechoslovakia.
Appeasement: Giving in to demands to avoid conflict, a policy followed by Britain and France toward Hitler before WWII.
Nazi-Soviet Pact: A non-aggression pact between Germany and the USSR, allowing Hitler to invade Poland without Soviet intervention.
Invasion of Poland: The event that triggered the start of WWII in Europe on September 1, 1939.
Allied Powers vs Axis Powers: The two main sides in WWII: Allies (US, UK, USSR) vs Axis (Germany, Italy, Japan).
Lend-Lease and Cash and Carry: US policies that provided aid to the Allies before entering WWII, circumventing neutrality laws.
Battle of Britain: An air battle between the UK and Germany, in which the British Royal Air Force (RAF) successfully defended the country from German invasion.
Attack on Pearl Harbor: A Japanese surprise attack on December 7, 1941, that led the US to enter WWII.
War Production Board: An agency that coordinated US war manufacturing, converting factories to produce military goods.
Rosie the Riveter: A symbol of women working in factories during WWII, as men were fighting in the war.
Executive Order #9066: Authorized the establishment of Japanese internment camps in the US.
Japanese Internment: The forced relocation and imprisonment of Japanese Americans during WWII, based on fear and prejudice.
Korematsu v. United States: A Supreme Court case that upheld the constitutionality of Japanese internment during WWII.
Operation Overlord: The D-Day invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, marking the Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe.
VE Day: Victory in Europe Day, marking the end of WWII in Europe on May 8, 1945.
Kamikaze: Japanese suicide pilots who crashed their planes into enemy ships.
Potsdam Declaration: Allied demand for Japan’s unconditional surrender.
The Trinity Test: The first successful test of an atomic bomb.
Little Boy and Fat Man: The atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, respectively.
Hiroshima and Nagasaki: Japanese cities destroyed by atomic bombs, leading to Japan’s surrender.
VJ Day: Victory over Japan Day, marking the end of WWII on August 15, 1945.
Nuremberg Trials: Trials of Nazi leaders for war crimes committed during WWII.
The Holocaust: The genocide of 6 million Jews and others by Nazis during WWII.

World War I

MANIA: The causes of WWI: Militarism, Alliances, Nationalism, Imperialism, Assassination.
Triple Entente vs Triple Alliance: The two main sides before WWI: Triple Entente (France, Britain, Russia) vs Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy).
Assassination of Franz Ferdinand: The trigger event of WWI, the assassination of the Archduke of Austria-Hungary.
Gavrilo Princip: The assassin of Franz Ferdinand, a Serbian nationalist.
Trench Warfare: A type of fighting from trenches with heavy casualties and little territorial gain, characteristic of WWI.
U-boats: German submarines used to attack enemy ships.
American Expeditionary Force: US troops in WWI, led by General John J. Pershing.
Victory Gardens: Home gardens to support food supply during WWI.
War Bonds: Loans from citizens to fund the war effort.
Freedom of the Seas: The right to travel and trade by sea without interference.
Unrestricted Submarine Warfare: A German policy of sinking ships without warning, including passenger ships.
Sinking of the Lusitania: The sinking of a British passenger ship by a German U-boat, killing American civilians and turning US public opinion against Germany.
Zimmermann Note: A German proposal to Mexico to join the war against the US, intercepted by the British and further inflaming US public opinion.
Paris Peace Conference: The meeting to set postwar terms after WWI.
The Big Four: The leaders of the US, UK, France, and Italy at the Paris Peace Conference.
Treaty of Versailles: The harsh treaty ending WWI, which blamed Germany for the war and imposed heavy reparations.
Wilson’s 14 Points: US President Woodrow Wilson’s plan for peace and the establishment of the League of Nations.
Peace Without Victors: Wilson’s idea for a fair peace that did not seek to punish the defeated nations.
League of Nations: An international group to prevent future wars, though ultimately ineffective due to the absence of the US and other major powers.
Reparations: Payments Germany had to make after WWI, contributing to economic instability.

Progressive Era

Gilded Age: A period of rapid growth and corruption before the Progressive Era reforms.
Patronage: Giving jobs for political support, also known as the spoils system.
Political Bosses: Powerful local leaders controlling politics, often through corruption.
Muckrakers: Journalists exposing corruption and social problems.
Progressives: Reformers seeking social and political change.
Upton Sinclair: The author of The Jungle, which exposed abuses in the meatpacking industry.
Lincoln Steffens: A journalist who exposed political corruption in cities.
Ida Tarbell: A journalist who exposed the Standard Oil monopoly.
Primary Election: Voters choose party candidates.
Initiative: Citizens propose laws.
Referendum: Citizens vote on laws.
Recall: Citizens remove elected officials.
Trustbuster: A person breaking up monopolies (e.g., Teddy Roosevelt).
Square Deal: Theodore Roosevelt’s fair policies for workers, consumers, and businesses.
Pure Food & Drug Act: A law to regulate food and medicine safety.
William Taft: Theodore Roosevelt’s successor, later a Supreme Court justice.
18th Amendment: Prohibition of alcohol.
19th Amendment: Women’s right to vote.
Woodrow Wilson: The president during WWI and Progressive Era reforms.
Conservation: Protecting natural resources.
Temperance Movement: A campaign against alcohol consumption.
Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU): A leading temperance group.
Booker T. Washington: An African American leader who promoted vocational education.
WEB DuBois: An African American leader who advocated for civil rights and higher education.
NAACP: The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, an organization fighting for African American rights.

US Imperialism

Isolationism vs Expansionism: The debate over US involvement abroad.
Opening of Japan: Commodore Perry forced Japan to trade with the US.
Seward’s Folly: The purchase of Alaska, initially mocked but later recognized for its value.
Imperialism: Extending a country’s power through colonization or other means.
Alfred T. Mahan: A naval officer who advocated for a strong navy to expand US power.
Great White Fleet: A US Navy fleet that showed US naval power worldwide.
Annexation of Hawaii: The US took control of Hawaii, strategically important for trade and military purposes.
Queen Liliuokalani: The last Hawaiian queen, overthrown by the US.
Open Door Policy: US policy to keep China open to trade, preventing European powers from establishing exclusive control.
Boxer Rebellion: A Chinese uprising against foreign influence.
Yellow Journalism: Sensational news to sell papers, contributing to public support for the Spanish-American War.
Joseph Pulitzer & William Randolph Hearst: Newspaper publishers known for yellow journalism.
Jose Marti: A Cuban independence leader.
“Remember the Maine”: A US battleship sunk in Havana harbor, sparking the Spanish-American War.
Spanish-American War: A US war with Spain that resulted in the US gaining territories such as Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines.
Rough Riders: A volunteer cavalry led by Theodore Roosevelt during the Spanish-American War.
Emilio Aguinaldo: A Filipino leader who fought against US control after the Spanish-American War.
Platt Amendment: A US amendment that gave the US control over Cuba’s foreign policy.
Foraker Act: A US act that established US control of Puerto Rico.
Panama Canal: A shortcut between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, built by the US.
Roosevelt Corollary: A US policy that asserted the US right to intervene in Latin America to maintain stability.
Big Stick Policy: President Theodore Roosevelt’s diplomacy backed by military power.
Dollar Diplomacy: US policy using economic power to influence countries, particularly in Latin America.
Moral Diplomacy: President Woodrow Wilson’s policy promoting democracy and human rights.