Eastern Bloc
Definition
The Eastern Bloc refers to the group of socialist states under the influence or direct control of the Soviet Union during the Cold War.
Analogy
Think of the Eastern Bloc as a group of friends who always hang out together because they're influenced by the most popular kid in school (the Soviet Union). They follow his rules and trends, even if they don't necessarily agree with them.
Related terms
Iron Curtain: A term used to describe the division between free (Western) and repressed (Eastern) societies during the Cold War.
Warsaw Pact: A military alliance of communist nations in eastern Europe organized in 1955 in answer to NATO.
Soviet Union: A federal socialist state in northern Eurasia that existed from 1922 to 1991. It was a one-party state governed by the Communist Party with Moscow as its capital.
"Eastern Bloc" appears in:
Study guides (1)
Practice Questions (7)
What principle remained constant in Eastern Bloc countries' political systems throughout the Cold War period?
What would be a feminist perspective on women's roles in Eastern Bloc countries during the Cold War?
What term describes the political and military tension between Western Bloc and Eastern Bloc following World War II?
What name is given to period from late-1940s to early-1990s when tensions were high between the Western Bloc and Eastern Bloc?
How did Brezhnev Doctrine influence Eastern Bloc countries during Cold War?
What long-term international impact did Winston Churchill's "Iron Curtain" speech in 1946 have on the relations between Western Europe and the Eastern Bloc?
Which Eastern Bloc country was first to separate from Soviet control during late '80s?
Resources
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