Gorbachev: Part I

Who was Gorbachev and what were his aims?

Who? He was born in 1931. Gorbachev was the leader of the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1985 until its collapse in December of 1991.He was part of the Communist Party. Once he was the head of state in 1988, launched programs, dubbed glasnost ("openness") and perestroika ("restructuring"), that were supposed to make the state more efficient and less corrupt, but resulted in public discontent and nationalistic urges among the Soviet Union's satellite republics. He was the prime minister of the Soviet Union and helped to establish better relations with the United States.

Aims: - He wanted to end the Cold War.

- He wanted to improve the run-down Soviet economy by using his reforms perestroika and glasnost, in doing that, he believed in allowing more freedom to the common man.

- Pull the Red Army out of the Afghanistan.

- Save communism.

Perestroika-was economic, political and social restructuring. Gorbachev aims to reduce central governments power over the economy. He wanted to change Soviet Unions command economy into market economy and allowed the individuals to make their own decisions on the market. He also aimed to reduce spending on military wise and spent on other aspects such as basic necessities.

Glasnost - means political openness. He allowed media to report on the problems of Soviet Union and legalized banned films. He aimed to loosen the control the central government had over the people and media. He encouraged the civilians to speak out and provide him with ideas on how to govern the country.

Describe Gorbachev’s main policies of Glasnost and Perestroika and what were the consequences of these policies for the Soviet Union?

- Because people head so much freedom, there were a lot of new problems in the Soviet Union.

o A lot more strikes on freedom, speech and religion.

o Growing crime rates.

- In 1991 coup d’tat was launched --> this was to prevent the signing of a new union treaty and to restore the power and authority of the party.

- Glasnost resulted in the communist party loosing the grip on the media.

o As a result: Long-denied problems such as poor housing, food shortages, alcoholism, widespread pollution, creeping mortality rates and the second-rate position of women were now receiving increased attention.

o Glasnost enabled increased contact between Soviet citizens and the western world, particularly with the USA. Restrictions on travel were loosened, allowing increased business and cultural contact.

o During the late 1980s, as glasnost and perestroika led to the liquidation of the Soviet empire.

What were the consequences of Gorbachev’s policies for Eastern European reform movements?

o Poland/Solidarity union movement

o Czechoslovakia/ the Velvet Revolution

o Fall of the Berlin Wall

- In August 1980 unemployed Polish electrician announced the birth of Solidarity Union Movement.

- 17,000 workers seized control of the Lenin Shipyard Gdansk.

- Their leader Lech Walesa was the leader.

- Soon 20 other area factories joined.

- Poland had to agree to their demands which were:

o The right to organize freely and to strike.

o Better wages

o Benefits

- People begin to think that Communism could be reformed.

- Over the next 15 months union’s membership grew from 9 million to 1 quarter of the country’s population.

- 1981 Polish Prime minister outlaws Solidarity.

o Arrests a lot of the members including Walesa

- Solidarity still worked underground and were funded by the US as well as Pope John II.

- 1989 Solidarity is officially recognized with a 400 page agreement.

- It formed the first non-communist government in the Soviet Union.

Velvet Revolution 1989

It was a revolution in Czechoslovakia which led to the overthrow of the Communist Government which had ruled the nation for 40 years.

- November 1989 police shut down a peaceful student demonstration in Prague.

- Students and other workers began to strike across Czechoslovakia, and began to meet with the government officials in hopes to reach an agreement that would satisfy all parties.

- 1989 General Secretary of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia is replaced.

- The president resigns.

- It becomes obvious that the Velvet Revolution was successful in changing the government.

- This ended the strikes and the demonstrations.

- Three years later the nation is split in 2. Slovakia and Czech Republic.

Fall of the Berlin Wall (1961)

Berlin Wall was a barrier that surrounded West Berlin, cutting it off from Eas Berlin and surrounding parts of East Germany. Was built by the Communist government in 1961 to prevent people fleeing to the West, and fell in 1989.

- After WWII Germany was occupied by four powers:

o Russia

o France

o Britain

o United States

- Berlin is Germany’s main sector, but was split into 4.

- Became conflict between the East and the West.

- Russia becomes worried about the freedom, economic growth and integrations in the Western Germany.

- 1949-1961 2.7 million East Germans flee to Western Germany.

- 1961 barriers went up around the whole West Berlin.

- 96 miles long.

- This wall divided the city in 2, cutting people off from their jobs and families.

- Around 200 people were killed trying to cross.

Notes for Chapters 4 and 5.

Chapter 5 Notes:

- United Nations are established.

- Encouraged for countries to join and maintain peace between each other.

- However there are problems with the UN, because there were many powerful leaders.

- Each wanted their own way.

- US believed they were going to win the Cold War, but that was not so.

- President’s lies are exposed. Such as the U-2 planes.

- Even though the presidents lied, people still like them.

- CIA breaks the law, so a new group is formed to keep an eye on the CIA.

- Vietnam War kills a lot of Americans, and they had no safe place to go to.

- Pinochet comes to power, but he is a mean dictator.

- Détente is created to lower nuclear risk.

- USSR makes a fine for the immigrants that want to leave the country.

- Nixon makes bad decisions for his country.

- Nixon decided it would be for the best to make Cold war happen on his ground, but that was a bad move.

- Watergate weakens Nixon, his authority begins to crumble.

- Wars Power Act is a 60 day limit on future military deployments without the consent of Congress.

- Nixon vetoes, but it does not work.

- He bombs Cambodia.

- 1974 Nixon resigns.

- Brezhnev Doctrine, He wants to control everything.

- Tightens the rules on the media and arts.

- Helsinki is the conference on Security and cooperation’s in Europe. Signed in 1975.

- USA Ford and Kissinger were accused for abandoning the human rights.

- Havel went to jail.

- Pope came to Poland which was his homeland.

Chapter 4:

- Khrushchev makes many mistakes.

- There is a domino affect, if one country accepts communism, other countries will follow.

- US is worried that countries will become communist.

- A lot of countries try to stay neutral throughout the Cold War.

- Nasser chooses to be neither communist nor capitalist. Uses the situation to his advantage.

- Korea splits in 2.

- USSR supports North Korea, US supports South Korea.

- Kennedy and Diem are assassinated.

- Johnson is afraid to go to war because of fear.

- Germany is still divided; no one knows how to find peace in Germany.

- Ulbricht wants to build a wall, but does not tell USSR about his decision.

- USA takes a lot away from France; France begins to question their actions.

- There are a lot of wars happening at home.

- Baby Boom- there are a lot more educated people.

- Martin Luther King Jr is assassinated with Kennedy.

- China has a Cultural Revolution on their hands.

- Soviet Union’s and Chinese relations get bad.

- US wants to start working with the Chinese government.

Deng and Fall of Communism Questions

1. Describe the struggle for power following Mao, the emergence of Deng Xiaoping and the defeat of the gang four.
After Mao’s death, no one knew what to do because there was no one in line to be the new ruler of China. Two groups began fighting over this position; these were The Meoists (the Gang of Four, one of which was Mao’s wife) and Deng. At first the Gang of Four or the Maoist were the ones that were gaining control over China, but as soon as Mao dies, they were arrested and put in jail for their crimes. Therefore Deng was the one who got control over China at the end through his relationships. He mostly was able to gain full power over China, because he allowed his allies to gain control before himself.
2. Describe some of the economic policies and the Four Modernizations for China under Deng.
The four Modernizations planned on modernizing the agriculture, the industry, technology, national defense as well as the science. This movement helped China to invest, and they began to do international trade. After Mao’s death, Deng introduced capitalism, and changed the focus to industry, this allowed private businesses to open. This brough a lot of success to Chinas economy because of agriculture
3. What were the political limits and changes under Deng and how did these culminate to Tiananmen square conflict in 1989?
After the death of Hu, people went out into the Tiananmen Square to protest for democracy, however this did not go well when the government decided that the people had too much freedom. The protest was outlawed and the government threatened the students, but for weeks nothing happened. On June 3, 1989, thougsands of people once again gathered in the Tiananmen Square, however this time couple hundred people actually got killed for their protests.

Chapter 3.

1. Soviet Union crashed
2. The end for the Cold war was the end for the Soviet Union.
3. Wilsons 14 points
I. The Abolition of Secret Treaties Secret treaties were common before the First World War, and many blamed them for helping spark the conflict.
II. The Freedom of the Seas The freedom of the seas allowed for freedom of navigation outside territorial waters at times of war and peace, but also allowed for total and partial blockades "for the enforcement of international covenants." This proposal was opposed in particular by the United Kingdom.
III. Free Trade Free trade provided for the removal of economic barriers between peaceful nations, also called for the introduction of equality in trading conditions.
IV. Disarmament Disarmament "to the lowest point consistent with domestic safety."
V. Adjustment of Colonial Claims. Wilson called for decolonization and national self-determination for formerly colonized countries, and for the people of the world to give equal weight to the opinions of the colonized peoples as to those of the colonial powers.
Points six through thirteen were more specific, dealing with the situation of specific countries:
VI. Russia In the aftermath of the October Revolution and the context of the ongoing Civil War, Russia was to be assured its independent development. This also called for a withdrawal from occupied Russian territory.
VII. The restoration of Belgium Belgium to be evacuated and restored to the status quo ante bellum.
VIII. Alsace-Lorraine France had lost Alsace-Lorraine to Germany following the 1870-71 Franco-Prussian War; it was to be returned.
IX. Italy The borders of Italy were to be redrawn on lines of nationality. Ignoring the territorial promises made under the secret 1915 London Pact, whereby Italy was persuaded to enter the war on the Allies' side, this became a source of resentment in that country.
X. Austria-Hungary Autonomous development of the peoples of Austria-Hungary.
XI. Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, and other Balkan states The integrity of Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, and other Balkan states was to be respected, their territories deoccupied, and Serbia was to be given access to the Adriatic Sea.
XII. Ottoman Empire Sovereignty for the Turkish portion of the Ottoman Empire, autonomous development for other nationalities, and free navigation of the Dardanelles.
XIII. The Polish question The establishment of an independent Poland with access to the sea.
XIV. A general association of nations Point 14 called for a multilateral international association of nations to enforce the peace, foreshadowing the League of Nations (and, after the Second World War, the United Nations).
No one wants to listen to him.
Aggression in Manchuria, United States isn’t helping them

Pearl Harbor.
Hitler then declares war on the US, four days after the bombing.
Stalin is purging anyone who is against him.
Russia learns to control everyone with fear, its working.
America is trying to show everyone that communism is bad.
- Trying to spread capitalism.
- United States is hope unlike U.S.S.R.
No one can take the communism from Stalin, he kills anyone who tries.
Khrushchev is trying to separate Stalin from communism.
- Wants U.S.S.R to take responsibility for their mistakes
- Problems occur riots.
- Hungarian sets a rebellion against Soviet Union.
- They want things to change.
Mao is communist, but has a very different system than Stalin.
Maoà Great Leap forward, but it fails.
Many mistakes made by the communist.
1956- Berlin wall.
Capitalism is starting to look better to people.
- They don’t want to fight.
- They are trying to fix mistakes.
- Helping Germany with unemployment.

Long term, Short term Causes of the Chinese Civil War.

The Chinese civil war was an armed conflict between the Nationalists Kuomintang and the Communists People Liberation Army.

The event lasted from January 1946 to May 1950.
Long term:
The fall of the Qing Dynasty and the death of Sun Yat-Sei. --> Chiang’s Kai-Shek’s rise to power and his decision of getting rid of the left wing faction inside the government at all costs.

Short term:
Long march
Sino-Japanese War
Results of WWII.

For more than 2000 year’s people lived under the rule of dynasties and emperors from the Manchu dynasty until the Qing Dynasty.

Sun-Yat Sen (1912) --> people have high hopes of a democratic government however people were not accustomed to political freedom.

Chiang (1925) --> after the death of Sun- Yat Sen.
-->Country has political fears and high unequal wealth. Instead of concentrating in satisfying the people’s needs and wants, Chiang focuses to eliminate the opposition from the PLA which increased people’s discontent.
Chiang --> “the sky could not have 2 suns” and therefore there should only be 1 sole leader that would rule the country.
--> the peasants that were 90% of the people were left unattended and therefore this increased the political instability as the situation was similar to 1912. China was still a unindustrialized country with famine and backwards farming techniques.

April 7th, Chiang and the KMT had a meeting arguing that communist activities were both socially and economically disruptive -> April 12th, Chiang turned against the CCP and arrested hundreds of members which resulted in a massacre called “the Shanghai Massacre”.


Short term causes:
Long Marchà 100, 000 people walked 6,000 km to escape from the Nationalist government persecution.
-> Communists confiscated property, weapons from the local warlords and landlords and recruited peasants “solidifying the appeal for the masses”.
-> Only 7.000 to 8,000 men made it to Shananxi, this great retreat made Mao the undisputed leader of the communist party of China and increased his appeal towards the peasants.
-->This event widened more the left and the right factions and increased Chiang’s commitment to eliminate the CCP.

The Second Sino-Japanese war (1937-1945)
-->During the Japanese invasion and occupation of Manchuria Chiang Kai-shek saw the CCP as a greater threat than the Japanese and focus in both fight the Japanese and fight the CCP.
--> Xi’an Incident; Zhyang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng kidnapped Chiang and forced him to make a truce with the CCP.
-->The developments of the Second Sino-Japanese war were advantageous to the Communists. ------>By the end of the war, most of the peasants were in support of the communists rather than to Nationalists.
"The Japanese are a disease of the skin. The Communists are a disease of the heart.”




When the Sino-Japanese War ended; Mao Zedong went on the 28th of August of 1945 to Chongqing in order to negotiate with the Kuomintang government to try and safeguard peace and democracy. When the two sides were still at the negotiation table Chiang Kai-Shek ordered the Kuomintang government to sent troops to attack the liberated areas in the central plains. à Ignored completely the truce agreement which had been signed at the start of the Sino-Japanese which sparked the event known as the Chinese Civil War.

The Twilight of Zapatismo.

Mexico was in cheos, mainly because of the revolutionary leaders during the Mexican revolution. During the Mexican war, Mexico printed off more money than they had and caused hyper inflation, Mexico went through famine and desieses and many financial problems. Many of Gonzales troops start to die because of the bad conditions and deseases. ( Gonzales was mean, he killed a lot of men and women, threatened people). Everyone was going through really hard times. Carranza was least affected by all this, or so it seemed, he wanted to modernize and mobilize. He was anti clericalism and wanted the catholic church under his control. He wanted Mexico to stay neutral in WWII, but he had many problems, his main problem was the military, he had to make sure the army was under control. Felix Diaz (Porfirio Diaz's nephew) vs. Corranza. Corranza felt threatened by him because the US liked him. The felicistas were as hard to defeat as Villa and Zapata. The felicistas movement was helpful to Villa and Zapata, it drew Carranza's focus away from them. Meanwhile Zapata is trying to attack tagrets only to impress foreign consuls. Carranza became frightened and wanted to get rid of Zapata, and eventually killed him in April 1917. Because of this Zapata became an icon in Morelos.

Long term-

Treaty of Versailles- Germans were treated harshly after World War I and soon came to a common conclusion that they were which formed into Nationalist, another long term cause of WWII.

The League of Nations- this League was created to provide immediate help to countries that were a threat, or if they broke any part of the treaty, but failed. This action showed Hitler that he would not be punished for his consequences and so he began to go against the Treaty.

Industrialism- many things got better and progressed. This includes weapons, and machinery which resulted in the appeal for war.

Short term-

The Czech crisis- Chamberlain handed over Czechoslovakia to Hitler in an attempt to please him. On 1939 Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia. No shots were fired. Germany got the Sudate land, the border where people speak German. The League of Nations did nothing, the only thing the U.S. did was put a 25% tax on German goods

Germany’s rearment-

Germany’s army increased their troops to 400,000 troops even though the agreement of Treaty of Versailles stated they could only have 100,000. à the League of Nations did nothing.

à France feels scared, but no one is willing to help. No consequence for Germanys actions.

Invasion of Poland-

Germany invaded Poland. France and Britain figured they were next to be invaded, so they formed an ally, and declared war.

No consequence once again for Germany.