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COLLAPSE OF COMMUNISM IN EUROPE - Coggle Diagram
COLLAPSE OF COMMUNISM IN EUROPE
POLAND
CAUSES/EVENTS
severe economic crisis - 200% food price rises in 1989
reforms in USSR and abandonment of Brezhnev Doctrine led to push for reform in Poland - re-legalisation of Solidarity
Elections in June 1989 - Solidarity won almost all of 35% seats available, formed coalition with Communists then removed them in 1991 when USSR collapsed
RESULTS
HUNGARY
CAUSES/EVENTS
economic crisis = popular demand for reforms
Miklos Nemeth promoted to PM after he managed to negotiate a loan from FRG, enacted reforms such as multi-party elections and human rights
inspired by Poland Round Table Talks, they had free 1990 elections where the new Socialist party won less than 10% of the vote
CZECHOSLOVAKIA
CAUSES/EVENTS
happy and thriving working class/economy but tired of seeing Western prosperity from behind the Iron Curtain and had debts to the West
Vaclav Havel led a small group of protestors after the collapse of the Berlin Wall that became the Civic Forum when it combined with other opposition groups
Velvet Revolution on 17-28 November 1989 - series of anti-Communist demonstrations that ended with the resignation of the Communist Party leadership on 27 November and election of Havel as President on 29 December
CONCLUSIONS
the speed and strength of the collapse of Communism in Europe demonstrated the strength of popular demand for its fall
the lack of resistance of the USSR to the fall of Communism demonstrated the extent of the economic and political turmoil in the nation, and confirmed Gorbachev's ending of the Brezhnev Doctrine to the West
as the Communist Bloc states separated themselves from USSR and from Communism, the West had a much smaller and less ideologically opposed enemy to deal with
BALTIC STATES
CAUSES
increased nationalism due to declining power of USSR
unified movement with Baltic Way 23 August 1989
USSR RESPONSE
initially tried to give them more devolved power within USSR
sent RA into Vilnius Jan 1991, killed 12 people - after independence in Feb 1990