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GCSEHistoryEdexcelExam QuestionsSuperpower Relations & the Cold WarThe Development of the Cold War, 1947-1955

Syllabus Edition

First teaching 2016

Last exams 2025

The Development of the Cold War, 1947-1955 (Edexcel GCSE History): Exam Questions

Exam code: 1HI0

19 mins19 questions
Easy
Medium
Hard
11 mark

What year was the Truman Doctrine announced? 

  • 1945.

  • 1946.

  • 1947.

  • 1948.

Choose your answer

21 mark

What was the main aim of the Marshall Plan?

  • To promote isolationism.

  • To rebuild European economies after the Second World War.

  • To strengthen the Soviet Union.

  • To allow the USA to establish ‘dollar imperialism’.

Choose your answer

31 mark

When did Stalin begin the Berlin Blockade?

  • 1946.

  • 1947.

  • 1948.

  • 1949.

Choose your answer

41 mark

What was the first military alliance formed during the Cold War?

  • NATO.

  • Warsaw Pact.

  • Cominform.

  • Comecon.

Choose your answer

51 mark

When was the Warsaw Pact established?

  • 1950.

  • 1953.

  • 1955.

  • 1957.

Choose your answer

61 mark

Where in Germany was the GDR?

  • West Germany.

  • East Germany.

  • West Berlin.

  • East Berlin.

Choose your answer

71 mark

How long did the Berlin Airlift last?

  • 6 months.

  • 9 months.

  • 11 months.

  • 1 year.

Choose your answer

81 mark

What was Cominform's main purpose?

  • To unify East and West under one ideology.

  • To spread capitalism among the Eastern Bloc.

  • To allow the USSR to control the governments of the satellite states.

  • To promote free trade between Eastern Europe.

Choose your answer

91 mark

Which country was excluded from Cominform due to growing tensions with the Soviet Union? 

  • Yugoslavia.

  • Czechoslovakia.

  • Poland.

  • Hungary.

Choose your answer

101 mark

How much money did the Marshall Plan give to European countries?

  • $12.7 million.

  • $12.7 billion.

  • $13 million.

  • $13 billion.

Choose your answer

11 mark

Which organisation was created as a consequence of the Marshall Plan?

  • NATO.

  • The GDR.

  • Comecon.

  • Warsaw Pact.

Choose your answer

21 mark

What event caused the Berlin Blockade?

  • The USSR built missile sites in Berlin.

  • Protests in East Berlin to be unified with West Berlin.

  • A mass refugee crisis from East Germany.

  • Trizonia introduced a new currency called the Deutschmark.

Choose your answer

31 mark

What was the main consequence of the Berlin Airlift?

  • The reunification of Germany.

  • The creation of the United Nations.

  • The withdrawal of Soviet troops from Berlin.

  • The solidification of the division of Berlin into East and West

Choose your answer

41 mark

Which event is considered the first major crisis of the Cold War? 

  • Cuban Missile Crisis.

  • Berlin Crisis.

  • The Berlin Wall.

  • The Hungarian Uprising.

Choose your answer

51 mark

What was a short-term cause of the Warsaw Pact?

  • The Truman Doctrine.

  • The creation of the United Nations.

  • The Potsdam Conference.

  • West Germany joining NATO.

Choose your answer

11 mark

What was the impact of the Warsaw Pact on Cold War tensions? 

  • It led to the dissolution of NATO, decreasing tensions between East and West.

  • It decreased the likelihood of war as both sides knew that they could not defeat the other.

  • It divided Europe into two armed camps, increasing tensions.

  • It had no impact on tensions as the Western countries refused to acknowledge its existence.

Choose your answer

21 mark

What was the impact of the Berlin Airlift on US-Soviet relations?

  • The Berlin Airlift improved US-Soviet relations as it resolved the tension surrounding who should govern Berlin.

  • The Berlin Airlift worsened US-Soviet relations. The event was a massive victory for the West over the East, humiliating the USSR.

  • The Berlin Airlift worsened US-Soviet relations. The USSR had proven that it had ultimate power over Berlin which the USA had to accept.

  • The Berlin Airlift had no impact on US-Soviet relations. The event caused a stalemate between the USA and the USSR with neither being able to declare dominance over Berlin.

Choose your answer

31 mark

Why did the Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan increase Cold War tensions?

  • Stalin believed that it was the role of the United Nations, and not the USA, to provide money to other countries.

  • Stalin saw the Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan as a threat to capitalism and the Soviet Union.

  • Stalin called the Marshall Plan ‘pound imperialism’ because of how the USA was trying to expand its ‘empire’ using money. 

  • Stalin was upset that Marshall Aid was not offered to Eastern European countries and the USSR.

Choose your answer

41 mark

Why did Berlin cause continued issues between East and West?

  • Berlin fell into the US territory of Germany. The USA felt that it should govern the whole of Berlin without Soviet influence.

  • Berlin fell into the Soviet territory of Germany. The USSR felt that it should govern the whole of Berlin whereas the Western powers felt it should control part of Berlin.

  • Berlin was the centre of Nazi Germany. Both countries felt they needed to control it to stop the Nazis from taking back control of Germany.

  • Berlin was an important trading hub for the rest of Europe. Both the USSR and the USA wanted to own this trade route.

Choose your answer