Reasons the Cold War ended - failure of communism in Eastern Europe

1. The Cold War
1945-1989
Failure of
Communism in
Eastern Europe
Reasons the Cold War ended

2. Reasons the Cold War ended
In today’s class I am learning to:
• Describe changes which brought
about the end of Communism in
Eastern Europe
• Analyse the impact of these
changes in ending the Cold War

3. Reasons the Cold War ended
During the Cold War,
the USSR controlled the
Eastern Bloc.
These were the Eastern
European countries of:
• Bulgaria
• Czechoslovakia
• East Germany
• Hungary
• Poland
• Romania

4. Reasons the Cold War ended
The Soviets took all
steps to command the
Eastern Bloc.
This included sending
in the USSR military to
attack any country
which moved away from
Soviet control. This
happened in Hungary in
1956 and Czechoslovakia
in 1968.

5. Reasons the Cold War ended
During the 1980s,
there were growing
anti-Soviet protests
across the Eastern
Bloc.
This eventually led to
the collapse of
Communism across
Eastern Europe, as
Communist parties were
swept from power.

6. Reasons the Cold War ended
There were many reasons
that people were
unhappy with Communism.
Some were religious and
wanted freedom, others
were angry at the
poverty they faced. It
is even claimed that TV
showed people the
different lives led
elsewhere in the world.

7. Reasons the Cold War ended
In Poland, there were
two main elements to
the anti-Communist
protests.
Polish people were
angry due to food
shortages and high
prices. A trade union
called Solidarity
attracted many
supporters.

8. Reasons the Cold War ended
Solidarity became more
than just a trade
union. It was led by
Lech Walesa, and had 10
million members.
Poland was also very
religious. Pope John
Paul II was Polish and
he inspired protests
for religious freedom.

9. Reasons the Cold War ended
Solidarity was banned
however protests and
strikes took place
across Poland.
Negotiations took place
which led to free
elections in June 1989,
and Solidarity – now
legal - took power in
Poland, ending
Communist rule.

10. Reasons the Cold War ended
The end of Communism
in Poland was not
stopped by the USSR.
Therefore all across
Eastern Europe, other
people demanded their
freedom too. As this
happened, it
undermined the
strength of the USSR,
leading to its end.

11. Reasons the Cold War ended
The changes in Poland
could not have
happened without
Mikhail Gorbachev’s
leadership.
A different Soviet
leader might have
chosen to send in the
military, which may
have discouraged
further change.

12. Reasons the Cold War ended
East Germany was the
next country to see
changes.
The division of Germany
at the end of World War
Two was a key starting
point for the Cold War.
In addition, the Berlin
Wall was one of the
most famous symbols of
the Cold War.

13. Reasons the Cold War ended
In August 1989, the
border between Austria
and Hungary was opened.
This led to huge
numbers of people
leaving the East.
There were increasing
public protests in East
Germany calling for
more changes and
movement.

14. Reasons the Cold War ended
In November 1989, the
Berlin Wall was
opened, essentially
ending Communist
control.
There were then free
elections in East
Germany in March 1990.
This then led to
German reunification
in October 1990.

15. Reasons the Cold War ended
Further changes took
place all around
Eastern Europe.
The Communist leader of
Czechoslovakia (Milos
Jakes) stood down in
November 1989. Then in
March 1990, Hungary
held free elections,
ending Communist rule.

16. Reasons the Cold War ended
Soon Communist control
ended across all of the
Eastern Bloc.
The most violent
revolution was in
Romania where the
country’s hated leader,
Nicolae Ceausescu and
his wife, Elena were
both executed on
Christmas Day 1989.

17. Reasons the Cold War ended
The collapse of the
Eastern Bloc made it
difficult for the
Soviet Union to
continue.
The USSR would have
fewer soldiers and
natural resources
because they no
longer controlled
these places.

18. Reasons the Cold War ended
The Soviet Union was
the world’s largest
country and still
rich in economic
resources.
There would also be
economic savings from
not having to control
Eastern Europe, so
this need not have
ended the USSR.