World History Final Study Guide PDF

World History Final Exam Vocabulary- Matching 20 points: 1.​ Blitzkrieg 2. Third Reich 3. Appeasement 4. Dunkirk 5. D-Day 6. Battle of the Bulge 7. Battle of Midway 8. Douglas MacArthur 9. Nuremberg Trials 10. Pearl Harbor 11. Battle of Guadalcanal 12. Iron Curtain 13. Warsaw Pact...

World History Final Exam Vocabulary- Matching 20 points: 1.​ Blitzkrieg 2. Third Reich 3. Appeasement 4. Dunkirk 5. D-Day 6. Battle of the Bulge 7. Battle of Midway 8. Douglas MacArthur 9. Nuremberg Trials 10. Pearl Harbor 11. Battle of Guadalcanal 12. Iron Curtain 13. Warsaw Pact 14. NATO 15. Marshall Plan 16. Space Race 17. Mao Zedong 18. Nikita Kruschev 19. SALT 20. Muhammad Ali Jinnah 1.​ Mao Zedong: (1893-1976) Leader of the Communist Party in China that overthrew Jiang Jieshi and the Nationalists. Established China as the People’s Republic of China and ruled from 1949 until 1976. 2.​ D-Day: June 6, 1944 - Led by Eisenhower, over a million troops (the largest invasion force in history) stormed the beaches at Normandy and began the process of re-taking France. The turning point of World War II. 3.​ Battle of the Bulge: December, 1944-January, 1945 - After recapturing France, the Allied advance became stalled along the German border. In the winter of 1944, Germany staged a massive counterattack in Belgium and Luxembourg which pushed a 30 mile “bulge” into the Allied lines. The Allies stopped the German advance and threw them back across the Rhine with heavy losses. 4.​ Dunkirk: A city in northern France on the North Sea where in World War II (1940) 330,000 Allied troops had to be evacuated from the beaches at Dunkirk in a desperate retreat under enemy fire. 5.​ Iron Curtain: A political barrier that isolated the people of Eastern Europe after WWII, restricting their ability to travel outside the region. 6.​ Marshall Plan: A United States program that aimed at providing economic aid for the reconstruction of Europe (1948-1952). 7.​ NATO: North Atlantic Treaty Organization; an alliance made to defend one another if they were attacked by any other country; US, England, France, Canada, Western European countries. 8.​ Warsaw Pact: An alliance between the Soviet Union and other Eastern European nations. This was in response to NATO. 9.​ Pearl Harbor: Base in Hawaii that was bombed by Japan on December 7, 1941, which angered America and forced them to enter the war. 10.​Battle of Midway: 1942 World War II naval battle between the United States and Japan, a turning point in the war in the Pacific. The U.S. Navy intercepted a Japanese invasion fleet heading for Midway Island, achieving an overwhelming victory. 11.​Douglas MacArthur: American general, who commanded allied troops in the Pacific during World War II. 12.​Battle of Guadalcanal: A 1942-1943 battle of World War II, in which Allied troops drove Japanese forces from the Pacific island of Guadalcanal. It was codenamed Operation Watchtower. 13.​Nuremberg Trials: Trials of the Nazi leaders, showed that people are responsible for their actions, even in wartime. 14.​Appeasement: A policy of making concessions to an aggressor in the hopes of avoiding war. Associated with Neville Chamberlain’s policy of making concessions to Adolf Hitler. 15.​Third Reich: The Third Republic of Germany which began Hitler’s rule in 1933 and ended with his defeat in 1945. 16.​Blitzkrieg: “Lighting war”, type of fast-moving warfare used by German forces against Poland in 1939. A surprise attack using rapid, overwhelming force. 17.​Space Race: It was a 20th-century competition between the Cold War rivals, the United States and the Soviet Union, to achieve superior spaceflight capability. The United States had won the Space Race, by landing on the moon. 18.​Nikita Khrushchev: He was the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964. Chief policy maker after Stalin; he conducted a period of Stalinization while also being in charge during the Cuban Missile Crisis and the building of the Berlin Wall. 19.​SALT: Negotiations between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics opened in 1969 in Helsinki designed to limit both countries' stock of nuclear weapons. 20.​Muhammad Ali Jinnah: Indian statesman who was the founder of Pakistan as a Muslim state (1876-1948). 1.​ The US wanted to force a quick unconditional surrender by the Japanese to reduce the number of American lives lost, and wanted to avoid a costly land invasion. The atomic bomb served as a tool to bring the war in the Pacific to a close sooner. The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki led to Japan’s surrender. It was also seen as a demonstration of power by the U.S. 2.​ Germany’s invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, violated international agreements, leading Britain and France to declare war to honor their alliance with Poland. Aggressive expansionist policies of Hitler was another reason. He violated international law and his actions threatened global stability. 3.​ (D-Day or Operation Overlord) On June 6, 1944, the Allies launched a massive invasion at Normandy, France, to liberate Western Europe from Nazi control, marking a major turning point in WWII. (largest invasion force in history). 4.​ (Munich Conference) Held in 1938, this meeting allowed Nazi Germany to annex the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia as part of an appeasement strategy by Britain and France to avoid war. The Munich Agreement is often criticized because it allowed Hitler to strengthen Germany’s position without military intervention. It is seen as a failed attempt to prevent World War II, as Hitler continued his aggressive expansion. 5.​ (Why did the two Germanys reunite at the end of the Cold War). Germany reunified in 1990 due to the collapse of the Soviet Union, the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, economic difficulties in East Germany, and growing public demand for unity(fall of communist blocs). The end of the Cold War and support from both East and West Germany, along with international backing, made reunification possible. Germany officially reunified on October 3, 1990. 6.​ Which nation caused the United States to join WWII? The nation that caused the United States to join World War II was Japan. On December 7, 1941, Japan attacked the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, leading the U.S. to declare war on Japan the following day. This event marked the U.S. entry into the war. 7.​ Forms of fascism: Authoritarianism, nationalism, totalitarianism. Italian Fascism (1920s–1940s): Led by Mussolini, it emphasized a strong, centralized state, militarism, and Italian nationalism. Mussolini's regime promoted total control over society and economy, with state-led corporatism and suppression of political opposition. German Nazism (1930s–1945): Under Hitler, Nazism was a more radical form, with a focus on racial purity, anti-Semitism, and the expansion of German territory. It combined extreme nationalism with ideas of Aryan superiority and a brutal regime that led to the Holocaust. In contrast to fascists in most other European countries, Mussolini opposed anti-Semitism during the first 12 years of his rule. After 1933, however, he sometimes allowed anti-Semites within his party to condemn “unpatriotic” Jews in the press. Spanish Falangism (1930s–1970s): Led by Franco, it combined fascist ideas with Spanish Catholicism and traditional values, focusing on national unity and conservative authoritarianism, without the racial focus seen in Italy and Germany. Portuguese Estado Novo (1930s–1974): Under Salazar, it was a corporatist and authoritarian regime, with a strong role for the Catholic Church, promoting national unity and stability, while suppressing political freedoms. Japan's fascism, led by military leaders like Hideki Tojo, was focused on militarism, imperial expansion, and emperor worship. Japan was distinct in its religious and imperialistic focus. 8.​ Which nation lost the most lives during WWII? The Soviet Union and China. (24-27 million deaths in the USSR). 9.​ What was significant about Taiwan during the Chinese Civil War? Taiwan became significant during the Chinese Civil War (1927–1949) because it became the stronghold of the Nationalist government (Kuomintang, KMT) after their defeat by the Communist forces in mainland China. It became a key anti-communist centre during the Cold War, and it was supported by the U.S. 10.​Policy of detente: Détente was a 1970s Cold War policy aimed at easing tensions between the U.S. and the Soviet Union through arms control and improved relations. Détente began under U.S. President Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Leonid Brezhnev, but it gradually faded in the late 1970s due to factors like the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, which led to a return of Cold War hostilities. 11.​What was the name of the alliance between the USSR and its satellite countries? Warsaw Pact (established in 1955). 12.​Who was the leader of the Communist Party in China? Mao Zedong. He was the founding figure of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. 13.​What was the Truman Doctrine? The Truman Doctrine, announced by U.S. President Harry S. Truman in 1947, was a policy aimed at containing the spread of communism during the early stages of the Cold War. It specifically focused on providing political,  military, and economic support to countries threatened by communism, particularly in Greece and Turkey, which were facing communist insurgencies. 14.​Why did the Soviets blockade West Berlin? To pressure the Allies to abandon West Berlin and stop unifying their occupied zones. Stalin wanted Germany to remain weak, as a strong Germany could represent a threat to the Soviet Union. The Western Allies disagreed and were encouraging Germany to rebuild in the Western sectors. The Allies responded with the Berlin Airlift, supplying West Berlin by air until the blockade ended in 1949. 15.​Who led the reforms to democratize the Soviet Union? Mikhail Gorbchev. In the 1980s, he introduced key reforms such as glasnost (openness) to encourage political transparency and perestroika (restructuring) to reform the economy and political system. 16.​The USSR followed Marxist-Leninist Communism, which aimed for a classless society with state control over the economy and no private ownership. The Communist Party had absolute political power, and the government planned economic activity through systems like Five-Year Plans. The goal was to eliminate capitalism and create a society of shared wealth, but it became increasingly authoritarian over time. 17.​Which American General helped establish a democracy in Japan? Douglas MacArthur. He implemented democratic reforms, including a new constitution that granted civil rights, established a parliamentary government, and limited the powers of the emperor. His efforts played a key role in transforming Japan into a peaceful and democratic nation after the war. 18.​What was a German Blitzkrieg? Germany's strategy to avoid a long war in the first phase of World War II in Europe. Germany's strategy was to defeat its opponents in a series of short campaigns. It focused on rapid, surprise attacks using a combination of airstrikes, artillery, and fast-moving infantry and tanks to overwhelm and quickly defeat enemy forces. The goal was to strike hard and fast, disrupting enemy defenses and preventing them from organizing a response. Blitzkrieg was successfully used in the early stages of the war, notably in the invasions of Poland (1939), France (1940), and other countries. 19.​Why was the Battle of Midway important? It was a turning point in the war because the Japanese navy lost four of their large carriers which were critical in the Japanese effort to overtake American islands. Over 3,000 Japanese were killed during this battle as well, which added on to an already stunning defeat. It was also a major win for the U.S. It shifted the balance of power in the Pacific and boosted American morale. 20.​What was the dividing of India into two nations known as? Known as Partition (1947), creating India (primarily Hindu) and Pakistan (primarily Muslim). The division was driven by religious tensions and led to widespread violence, mass migrations, and significant loss of life, especially in the Kashmir region, which remains a source of conflict between the two countries.  21.​Why was the Truman Doctrine and containment very similar? The Truman Doctrine and containment were similar because both aimed to prevent the spread of communism during the Cold War. ​ The Truman Doctrine (1947) was a specific policy by President Truman to provide military and economic aid to countries threatened by communism, particularly in Greece and Turkey. ​ Containment was a broader strategy that sought to limit Soviet influence globally, preventing communism from spreading to new countries. Both were rooted in the belief that communism posed a threat to democracy and global stability, and both aimed to stop its expansion, particularly in Europe and beyond. 22.​Why were some European countries afraid of Germany reuniting after the Cold War? Some European countries were afraid of Germany reunifying after the Cold War due to concerns about military power, economic dominance, and the potential for revived nationalism. 1.​ Military Power: A unified Germany could become a powerful military force in Europe, potentially unsettling the balance of power. 2.​ Economic Dominance: Germany’s strong economy might overshadow its neighbors, leading to fears of economic domination or competition. 3.​ Historical Concerns: Many European nations, particularly those that were occupied by Nazi Germany during World War II, feared the return of German nationalism, which had previously led to aggression and war. These fears were addressed through diplomatic efforts, including the Treaty on the Final Settlement (1990), which outlined the conditions for Germany's reunification and included military restrictions and assurances to maintain peace in Europe. Despite the optimism of the time, some Western leaders opposed German reunification, fearing it would once again make Germany a dominant power in Europe given its history in both world wars.