SAT II World History : The USSR
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for SAT II World History
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Example Questions
Example Question #74 : 1900 C.E. To Present
The Great Purge took place in which country in the twentieth century?
France
The U.S.S.R.
The U.S.
The U.K.
Vietnam
The U.S.S.R.
The Great Purge was a campaign initiated by Stalin in 1934 to remove all “undesirable” elements from the Communist Party and the Soviet Union. In practical terms, it involved the removal of numerous government officials from their positions, the execution of much of the Red Army’s leadership, repression of the peasantry, and the execution and imprisonment of intellectuals. The Purge was primarily caused by Stalin’s desire to consolidate his control over the Communist Party and to remove any factions who might remain loyal to his chief challenger, Leon Trotsky.
Example Question #4 : Russian Revolution And The Cold War
The policies of Glasnost and Perestroika were introduced by which Russian leader?
Nikita Khrushchev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Vladimir Lenin
Dmitry Medvedev
Joseph Stalin
Mikhail Gorbachev
When Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev rose to power in 1985 he set about reviving the stagnant Russian economy. He soon realized that the Soviet Union’s extensive economic problems could not be resolved without a complete restructuring of the political and social institutions of the U.S.S.R. To this end he adopted two famous policies called “glasnost” (openness) and “perestroika” (restructuring). “Perestroika” sought to replace Russia’s planned economy with something much more akin to a western economic system, whereas “glasnost” was designed to implement openness and accountability into the Soviet government. These two major reforms are usually credited with bringing about the end of communism and fracturing the Soviet Union.
Example Question #5 : Russian Revolution And The Cold War
Glasnost was primarily intended to __________.
Support the growth of industry and agriculture in the Ukraine
Promote the interests of Russia in the Balkan region
Liberate the serfs from economic servitude
Liberalize an increasingly orthodox and conservative Russian society
Provide greater transparency of the actions taken by the Soviet government
Provide greater transparency of the actions taken by the Soviet government
“Glasnost” was a policy of openness implemented by Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev in the waning years of the Soviet Union. Its primary intention was to provide the public with greater access to information and ensure higher levels of accountability in the government.
Example Question #3 : Russian Revolution And The Cold War
In which months of 1917 was Russia beset by revolution?
April and September
April and November
March and November
April and October
March and December
March and November
The Russian Revolution of 1917 is the collective term given to the process whereby the Tsarist regime was overthrown and replaced by the Soviet Union. Due to differences at the time between the European and Russian calendars, the two revolutions are called either “the February and October Revolutions” or “the March and November Revolutions.” The March revolution overthrew the Tsarist regime and replaced it with a provisional government; however, the Socialists were still not in complete control, and in November, Lenin overthrew the provisional government and established the Soviet Union.
Example Question #11 : Russian Revolution And The Cold War
The Brezhnev Doctrine stated that __________.
the concentration of power in the hands of a few oligarchs was antithetical to the nature of communism and would ensure the demise of the Soviet Union
the Soviet Union would win the Cold War due to its massive supply of raw resources
the key to winning the Cold War was to win the Space Race and to ensure technological superiority
communist countries were responsible for aiding the spread of Communism around the world
the Soviet Union could not survive without incorporating some elements of capitalism
communist countries were responsible for aiding the spread of Communism around the world
The Russian Premier during much of the 1960s and all of the 1970s was Leonid Brezhnev. He argued, in what would come to be called the Brezhnev Doctrine, that all Communist states (particularly the Soviet Union) had a responsibility to aid the spread of Communism around the world. And, furthermore, to ensure that those states that had become Communist remained so.
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