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Credit Sprint / Study guides / World History Unit 8

Credit Sprint's Guide to AP® World History, Unit 8: Cold War and Decolonization, c. 1900 to the present

AP® weight 8–10%

After 1945 the United States and the Soviet Union led rival blocs in a global Cold War, while empires dissolved and new nations in Asia, Africa and the Middle East emerged. Many tried to avoid alignment, and conflicts and development challenges continued.

The Cold WarUnited StatesNATO, containmentcapitalism Soviet UnionWarsaw Pactcommunism rivalry Proxy wars: Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan

What you need to know

  • The Cold War divided the world into capitalist and communist blocs. NATO and the Warsaw Pact, the arms race and proxy wars, including Korea, Vietnam and Afghanistan, defined the conflict, with the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 as the most dangerous moment.
  • Communist China emerged after the 1949 revolution led by Mao Zedong. The Great Leap Forward caused a famine, and the Cultural Revolution persecuted intellectuals. After Mao, Deng Xiaoping introduced market reforms.
  • India gained independence in 1947 and was partitioned into India and Pakistan, with mass migration and violence. Gandhi's nonviolent resistance inspired other movements.
  • Decolonization in Africa and Asia came through negotiation or war, such as in Algeria and Vietnam. New leaders such as Nkrumah and Nehru sought development, and the Non-Aligned Movement refused to join either bloc.
  • Israel was created in 1948, leading to Arab-Israeli wars and displacement of Palestinians. Oil became a key resource, and OPEC gained influence in the 1970s.
  • The Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 after reforms by Gorbachev (glasnost and perestroika), the cost of the arms race, and nationalist movements in Eastern Europe.

Exam traps

Watch forThe Non-Aligned Movement was not neutral in every sense. It refused formal alliances but its members still took sides on many issues.
Watch forDecolonization did not end foreign influence. Neocolonialism describes continued economic dependence.
Watch forThe Cold War was global, with major conflicts outside Europe, in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

Key terms

  • Cold War: The rivalry between the U.S. and the Soviet Union from the 1940s to 1991, fought without direct large-scale combat.
  • Containment: The U.S. policy of stopping the spread of communism.
  • NATO: A Western military alliance formed in 1949.
  • Warsaw Pact: The Soviet-led military alliance of Eastern European states formed in 1955.
  • Proxy war: A conflict in which the superpowers backed opposing sides without fighting each other directly.
  • Marshall Plan: U.S. aid that helped rebuild Western Europe after World War II.
  • Berlin Wall: A barrier built in 1961 to stop East Germans from fleeing to the West, torn down in 1989.
  • Cuban Missile Crisis: A 1962 standoff over Soviet missiles in Cuba that brought the superpowers close to nuclear war.
  • Korean War: A conflict (1950 to 1953) that divided the peninsula at the 38th parallel.
  • Vietnam War: A conflict in which the U.S. supported South Vietnam against communist North Vietnam, ending in 1975.
  • Mao Zedong: The leader of China's Communist Party who founded the People's Republic of China in 1949.
  • Great Leap Forward: Mao's campaign of rapid industrialization that caused a deadly famine.
  • Cultural Revolution: Mao's campaign in the 1960s to purge opponents and tradition, which brought chaos and persecution.
  • Deng Xiaoping: The Chinese leader who introduced market reforms in the late 1970s.
  • Partition of India: The 1947 division of British India into India and Pakistan, accompanied by mass migration and violence.
  • Mohandas Gandhi: The leader of India's independence movement who used nonviolent civil disobedience.

Practice questions

Five of the 36 Unit 8 questions in Credit Sprint. Every choice is explained in the app.

1. The policy of containment adopted by the United States after World War II aimed to
  1. end all American involvement in foreign affairs
  2. push the Soviet Union back to its 1914 borders by force
  3. stop the spread of communism without directly fighting the Soviet Union
  4. encourage communist revolutions in Latin America
Show answer

stop the spread of communism without directly fighting the Soviet Union. Based on George Kennan's ideas and the Truman Doctrine, it led to aid for Greece and Turkey, the Marshall Plan and alliances such as NATO.

2. The Korean War (1950-1953) ended with
  1. the reunification of Korea under a government set up by the United States
  2. a victory by North Korea that united the whole peninsula
  3. a Soviet occupation of Japan and the end of American bases there
  4. an armistice and a Korea still divided near the 38th parallel
Show answer

an armistice and a Korea still divided near the 38th parallel. North Korea, backed by China and the USSR, fought South Korea and a UN force led by the United States, and neither side won decisively.

3. The Algerian War of Independence (1954-1962) differed from many other African decolonizations because
  1. it was a long violent struggle against France
  2. Algeria received independence peacefully through negotiation in 1946
  3. Algeria was ruled by Britain, which resisted independence until 1970
  4. Algeria's independence was granted by the United Nations without fighting
Show answer

it was a long violent struggle against France. The FLN fought a guerrilla war, France used harsh methods including torture, and independence in 1962 led to a mass exodus of settlers.

4. Which of the following best explains the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979?
  1. Afghanistan had invaded the USSR first
  2. Britain asked the Soviets to take control
  3. The Soviets wanted to defend Afghanistan from a Chinese invasion
  4. The USSR sought to support a friendly communist government against Islamist rebels
Show answer

The USSR sought to support a friendly communist government against Islamist rebels. The war became costly, with U.S.-backed mujahideen resistance, and it drained Soviet resources before withdrawal in 1989.

5. Which of the following was a common challenge for newly independent states after decolonization?
  1. A lack of any national leaders
  2. Total economic independence from the global market
  3. An absence of any foreign involvement
  4. Borders drawn by colonizers that ignored ethnic
Show answer

Borders drawn by colonizers that ignored ethnic. Weak institutions, ethnic tensions and economic ties with former rulers made nation-building difficult in many places.