Flashcards · 9489 · A Level Topic 7

International option: International history, 1909–94 (A Level) flashcards

17 cards on A Level Topic 7, subtopics 7 to 9. Pick a subtopic or study them all.

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How did the USSR keep control of Eastern Europe?: Through local communist parties, the security services, economic links such as Comecon and the Warsaw Pact military alliance (1955).
Hungary 1956 vs Czechoslovakia 1968: Hungary: Imre Nagy’s uprising was crushed by Soviet forces in October-November 1956. Czechoslovakia: Dubček’s Prague Spring, "socialism with a human face", ended with the Warsaw Pact invasion in August 1968.
What was the Brezhnev Doctrine?: The Soviet claim, made after the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia, of a right to intervene in any socialist state where socialism was threatened.
What was Solidarity?: The independent trade union that emerged in Poland in 1980. Martial law was declared in December 1981, but Solidarity survived and returned in the 1989 changes.
Why did Soviet control of Eastern Europe collapse in 1989?: Economic stagnation, nationalism and popular opposition, Gorbachev’s glasnost and perestroika and his refusal to use force to prop up allies, and Western pressure. The Berlin Wall fell on 9 November 1989; the USSR dissolved in December 1991.

Which laws of 1950 built the apartheid system?: The Population Registration Act, which classified people by race, and the Group Areas Act, which assigned residential areas by race. The National Party had won power in 1948.
Why was the Sharpeville massacre (March 1960) a turning point?: Police killed protesters against the pass laws. The ANC and PAC were banned afterwards, and the ANC turned to armed struggle.
What happened at the Rivonia trial (1964)?: Nelson Mandela and other ANC leaders were sentenced to life imprisonment.
How did apartheid end, 1990-94?: President de Klerk unbanned the ANC and freed Mandela on 11 February 1990. Negotiations led to the first non-racial election in April 1994, and Mandela became president.
What was Rhodesia’s UDI (November 1965)?: Ian Smith’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence from Britain, made to preserve white minority rule. Sanctions followed but were weakened by leaks through South Africa and Mozambique.
How did Rhodesia become Zimbabwe?: A guerrilla war by ZANU and ZAPU forces intensified in the 1970s. After the Lancaster House talks (1979), elections in 1980 brought Robert Mugabe to power and Zimbabwe became independent in April 1980.

How did the Japanese occupation (1942-45) affect independence movements in Malaya and Indonesia?: It weakened the prestige of colonial rule and, in Indonesia, gave nationalist leaders room to organise. Sukarno and Hatta proclaimed independence on 17 August 1945.
Why was the Malayan Union replaced by the Federation of Malaya (1948)?: Britain’s post-war Malayan Union plan met strong Malay opposition, so it gave way to the Federation of Malaya in 1948.
What was the Malayan Emergency (1948-60)?: A British-led counter-insurgency against the Malayan Communist Party. Britain conceded independence (Merdeka) on 31 August 1957 under Tunku Abdul Rahman while the fighting continued.
How was Malaysia formed, and how did it change in 1965?: In September 1963 Malaya joined with Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore to form Malaysia. Singapore left in August 1965.
When did the Netherlands recognise Indonesian independence?: December 1949, after four years of war and negotiation following the 1945 proclamation.
What was Konfrontasi?: Indonesia’s confrontation with the new state of Malaysia, 1963-66. After the events of 30 September 1965, power passed from Sukarno to General Suharto, who became acting president in 1967.