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How and why did the Cold War end?

Analyze the end of the Cold War, including the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the resulting position of the United States in the world (TEKS US History RC1 History; RC3 Government and Citizenship).

A STAAR-level answer on the end of the Cold War for the Texas US History EOC: the reasons the Soviet Union weakened, the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and the new role of the United States as the sole superpower, with worked stimulus questions.

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  1. What this topic is asking
  2. Why the Soviet Union weakened
  3. The fall of the Berlin Wall
  4. The collapse of the Soviet Union
  5. The United States as sole superpower
  6. Try this

What this topic is asking

The Cold War that dominated the postwar world came to a sudden, peaceful end. The TEKS want you to explain how and why the Cold War ended: the weakening and collapse of the Soviet Union, the symbolic fall of the Berlin Wall, and the resulting position of the United States as the world's sole superpower. This is a Reporting Category 1 (History) topic.

Why the Soviet Union weakened

The fall of the Berlin Wall

As Gorbachev's reforms loosened control, the people of Eastern Europe pushed out their communist governments. In 1989 the Berlin Wall came down, an iconic moment marking the approaching end of the Cold War and the reunification of Germany.

The collapse of the Soviet Union

In 1991 the Soviet Union dissolved, breaking apart into independent nations such as Russia, Ukraine, and others, and ending communist rule. The decades-long superpower rivalry was over, and it had ended peacefully, without the direct war that had been feared for so long.

The United States as sole superpower

Try this

Q1. State two reasons the Soviet Union weakened and the Cold War ended. [2]

  • Cue. Any two of: a stagnant communist economy unable to match the West; the heavy cost of the arms race; US pressure (Reagan's military buildup); Gorbachev's reforms loosening Soviet control.

Q2. Explain how the end of the Cold War changed the position of the United States. [2]

  • Cue. With the Soviet Union gone, the United States became the world's only superpower, the dominant military and economic power, reshaping global politics.

Exam-style practice questions

Practice questions written in the style of TEA exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.

STAAR (US History, style)1 marksThe fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 is best seen as a symbol of
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A single-select item (Reporting Category 1, History).

Correct answer: the collapse of communist control in Eastern Europe and the approaching end of the Cold War.

Markers reward identifying the wall's fall as the symbolic end of the divide between the communist East and the democratic West. Distractors connecting it to the start of World War II or the building of the Soviet Union reverse the meaning and the timeline.

STAAR (US History, style)2 marksPart A: What happened to the Soviet Union in 1991? Part B: Explain how the end of the Cold War changed the position of the United States in the world.
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A two-part evidence-based item (Reporting Category 1, History).

Part A (1 point): the Soviet Union collapsed and broke apart into independent nations, ending communist rule and the Cold War.

Part B (1 point): explain that with its rival gone, the United States became the world's only superpower, leaving it as the dominant military and economic power and reshaping global politics.

Markers reward stating the Soviet collapse and explaining the emergence of the United States as the sole superpower.

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