Edexcel A-Level History 9HI0
The Crusades, c1095–1204Paper 1
England, 1509–1603: Authority, Nation and ReligionPaper 1
Britain, 1625–1701: Conflict, Revolution and SettlementPaper 1
Britain, c1785–c1870: Democracy, Protest and ReformPaper 1
Russia, 1917–91: From Lenin to YeltsinPaper 1
In Search of the American Dream: The USA, c1917–96Paper 1
Germany and West Germany, 1918–89Paper 1
Britain Transformed, 1918–97Paper 1
Anglo-Saxon England and the Anglo-Norman Kingdom, c1053–1106Paper 2
England and the Angevin Empire in the Reign of Henry II, 1154–89Paper 2
Luther and the German Reformation, c1515–55Paper 2
The Dutch Revolt, c1563–1609Paper 2
France in Revolution, 1774–99Paper 2
Russia in Revolution, 1894–1924Paper 2
The Unification of Italy, c1830–70Paper 2
The Unification of Germany, c1840–71Paper 2
Mao’s China, 1949–76Paper 2
The German Democratic Republic, 1949–90Paper 2
India, c1914–48: The Road to IndependencePaper 2
South Africa, 1948–94: From Apartheid State to ‘Rainbow Nation’Paper 2
The Rise and Fall of Fascism in Italy, c1911–46Paper 2
Spain, 1930–78: Republicanism, Francoism and the Re-Establishment of DemocracyPaper 2
The USA, c1920–55: Boom, Bust and RecoveryPaper 2
The USA, 1955–92: Conformity and ChallengePaper 2
Lancastrians, Yorkists and Henry VII, 1399–1509Paper 3
Rebellion and Disorder Under the Tudors, 1485–1603Paper 3
The Golden Age of Spain, 1474–1598Paper 3
The Witch Craze in Britain, Europe and North America, c1580–c1750Paper 3
Industrialisation and Social Change in Britain, 1759–1928: Forging a New SocietyPaper 3
Poverty, Public Health and the State in Britain, c1780–1939Paper 3
Britain: Losing and Gaining an Empire, 1763–1914Paper 3
The British Experience of Warfare, c1790–1918Paper 3
Protest, Agitation and Parliamentary Reform in Britain, c1780–1928Paper 3
Ireland and the Union, c1774–1923Paper 3
The Changing Nature of Warfare, 1859–1991: Perception and RealityPaper 3
Germany, 1871–1990: United, Divided and ReunitedPaper 3
The Making of Modern Russia, 1855–1991Paper 3
The Making of Modern China, 1860–1997Paper 3
Civil Rights and Race Relations in the USA, 1850–2009Paper 3
Mass Media and Social Change in Britain, 1882–2004Paper 3
The Making of Modern Russia, 1855–1991
Gorbachev and the impetus to reform
- 3 things to know
- Paper 3
Overview
Recall questions on the state of the economy in 1985, the alcohol campaign, the Afghan war, Chernobyl, falling oil prices, uskorenie, and early nationalist unrest.
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
Which 1986 disaster damaged the regime's credibility?
What was the state of the Soviet economy when Gorbachev took power?
Questions from this subtopic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
Which 1986 disaster damaged the regime's credibility?
Model answer
The Chernobyl nuclear accident in April 1986.
- 2
Which foreign war weakened the USSR before Gorbachev's reforms?
Model answer
The war in Afghanistan (from 1979), which drained resources and morale.
- 3
What was the state of the Soviet economy when Gorbachev took power?
Model answer
Growth near zero, technology far behind the West outside the military, agriculture requiring vast grain imports, and revenue dependent on falling oil prices.
- 4
What was the alcohol problem?
Model answer
Consumption had roughly doubled since the 1950s with severe effects on health, life expectancy and productivity, prompting Gorbachev's 1985 anti-alcohol campaign.
- 5
What were the consequences of the anti-alcohol campaign?
Model answer
Some improvement in health and productivity, but a collapse in state revenue from alcohol duty and a boom in illegal distilling, so it was abandoned.
- 6
How did the Afghan war weaken the USSR?
Model answer
Nine years of inconclusive fighting cost around 15,000 Soviet lives and vast sums, damaged the army's prestige, and produced a disillusioned generation of veterans.
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