Hello, my name is Mr. Williams and I'm going to be a history teacher for today.

This lesson is part of a series of lessons about the end of the Cold War, which focus on the years 1970 to 1991.

I'm really looking forward to teaching you today, so let's get started.

By the end of today's lesson you'll be able to explain the events that led to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

There are four key words that are essential to understanding today's lesson.

They are reunification, bringing things or people back together after they've been separated.

Coup, a sudden and illegal takeover of a government, usually by a small group of people, often involving the military.

Republic.

In this context, it means one of the multiple states that were joined together as part of the Soviet Union under the central Soviet government.

And dissolution.

When a country or organisation officially ends or breaks apart.

There are three parts to today's lesson.

In this first part of the lesson we'll be learning about the reunification of Germany after the fall of the Berlin wall.

When Mikhail Gorbachev became Soviet president in March, 1985, he realised that the Soviet Union needed major reforms. When Mikhail Gorbachev became Soviet president in March, 1985, he realised that the Soviet Union needed major reforms to address its economic problems and end the unsustainable Cold War rivalry with the West.

By reforming communism, Gorbachev hoped to strengthen it.

However, his new thinking led to significant changes in the Soviet Union and its relations with other countries, which ultimately led to the end of the Warsaw Pact and the collapse of the Soviet Union itself in 1991.

On the 7th of December, 1988, Gorbachev used a speech to the United Nations to announce that the Soviet Union was abandoning the Brezhnev doctrine that allowed the Soviet Union to intervene in Eastern European countries to protect communism.

Gorbachev's announcement meant that these countries could now choose their own governments without fearing Soviet invasion.

A leading Soviet official described this new approach as the Sinatra doctrine after the American singer Frank Sinatra's song, "My Way." He stated, "Now every country decides on its own which road to take." Although it was not his intention, Gorbachev's shift in policy inspired democratic movements across Eastern Europe, leading to the fall of communist regimes and the end of Soviet control.

Let's take a moment to check your understanding.

Gorbachev wanted to end communist rule in Eastern Europe.

Is this true or false? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you said that statement was false, but let's see if you can justify that response.

So pause the video now have a go at explaining why the statement is false and then press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, you could have said that the statement was false because Gorbachev wanted to strengthen communism by reforming it.

He did not intend for his reforms to lead to the spread of democracy across Eastern Europe.

Well done if your justification looks similar to the one on the screen.

Let's do another quick check of your understanding.

What was the Sinatra doctrine? Pause the video, have a go at answering the question and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, well done for your efforts on that question.

You were asked to explain what the Sinatra doctrine was, and your answer could have included.

"The Sinatra doctrine was the nickname given to the Soviet Union's policy after Gorbachev's decision to abandon the Brezhnev doctrine and allow Eastern European countries to choose how they were governed.

It was named after the US singer, Frank Sinatra, who had a song called, "My Way" As it suggested that each country was free to choose their own way." Well done if you wrote something similar.

In East Germany, the authorities tried to resist reform by maintaining strict control over their citizens and suppressing protests.

However, growing public demand for freedom and the changes sweeping across Eastern Europe made it impossible for them to maintain their grip on power.

In November, 1989, the mounting pressure led to the fall of the Berlin wall and the collapse of the East German government.

On the 3rd of October, 1990, East and West Germany were formally reunited into a single democratic country.

This reunification marked the end of decades of division and symbolised a new era of freedom and unity in Europe.

It was celebrated with massive public events, including fireworks, concerts, and gatherings at landmarks like the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin.

Let's take a moment to check your understanding.

The East German authorities tried to resist demands for democratic reform.

Is this true or false? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you said that was true, but let's see if you can justify that response.

So pause the video now, have a good at explaining why that statement's true and then press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, so the statement is true, and to explain why you could have said, "The East German authorities tried to resist reform by maintaining strict control over their citizens and suppressing protests." Well done if you wrote something similar to that.

We are now ready for the first practise task of today's lesson.

On the screen are some events that are listed in the incorrect order, and I want you to place them in the correct chronological order.

So pause the video now, have a go at putting the events in the correct chronological order, and when you are ready to see the correct answer, press play.

Okay, well done for all of your hard work on that first practise task.

You were asked to place the events in the correct chronological order, which is as follows.

Firstly, Mikhail Gorbachev became leader of the Soviet Union.

The Soviet Union abandoned the Brezhnev doctrine.

Democratic movements spread across Eastern Europe.

East German authorities unsuccessfully resisted reform.

The Berlin wall fell, and then Eastern and West Germany were reunified.

Well done if you got that correct.

We're now ready to move on to the second part of today's lesson in which we'll be learning about the events that led to the end of the Warsaw Pact.

For most of the Cold War, the world had been divided by two opposing military alliances.

In April, 1949, the USA, Britain and France joined 12 other western nations to create the North Atlantic Treaty organisation, NATO, to resist Soviet expansion.

Then in 1955, the Warsaw Pact was formed as a Soviet-led military alliance uniting the communist states of Eastern Europe against the capitalist democratic states of the West.

The Warsaw Pact symbolised the Soviet domination of Eastern Europe.

The alliance allowed the Soviet Union to exert control over its satellite states, and when countries attempted to leave, as Hungary did in 1956, and Czechoslovakia did in 1968, the Soviet Union used military force to prevent this.

As part of the reunification process, Germany sought to join NATO, which it achieved on the 12th of March, 1991.

The new German government viewed joining NATO as a way to ensure security and stability in a unified democratic Germany, as well as to strengthen ties with Western Europe and the USA.

Let's take a moment to check your understanding.

The paragraph on the screen contains some errors and is incorrect.

I want you to identify and correct the errors.

So pause the video now.

Have a good at doing that and press play when you're ready to see the corrected paragraph.

Okay, well done for your hard work on that task.

You were asked to identify and correct the mistakes in the paragraph, and the corrected paragraph should read as follows.

"In April, 1949, the USA, Britain and France joined 12 other western nations to create the North Atlantic Treaty organisation, NATO.

In response, the Soviet Union established the Warsaw Pact in 1955.

The Warsaw Pact was an alliance of communist states in Eastern Europe.

Well done if you got that correct.

Let's do another quick check.

After reunification in 1990, Germany became a member of the Warsaw Pact.

Is this true or false? Pause the video and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you said that was false, but we need to be able to justify our responses.

So pause the video now, have a go at explaining why that's false, and then press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, so the statement was false, and to explain that you might have said, "After reunification in 1990, Germany became a member of NATO to ensure security and stability and to strengthen ties with Western Europe and the United States." Well done if you wrote something similar.

As NATO expanded, the Warsaw Pact was in decline.

By the end of the 1980s, the Soviet Union's weak economy meant that it could no longer provide economic and military support to members of the alliance.

Furthermore, the USSR'S military reputation had been undermined by its failed invasion of Afghanistan, which ended in a humiliating withdrawal in February, 1989.

By the end of 1989, it became obvious that the Warsaw Pact could not survive as former Soviet satellite states rejected communism in favour of democracy.

The alliance no longer served any purpose.

By early 1990, military corporation had stopped and the Warsaw Pact formally ended in July, 1991.

Let's do a quick check of your understanding.

In what year was the Warsaw Pact officially ended? Was it A 1988? B, 1989? C, 1990? or D, 1991? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, the correct answer is D, 1991.

Well done if you got that right.

We're now ready for the second practise task of today's lesson, and I want you to answer the question, "Why was the Warsaw Pact formally ended in July, 1991?" You should explain why in one paragraph and you should use the following words in your answer.

Decline, Afghanistan, economic problems and democracy.

Pause the video now, have a go at writing your paragraph, and press play when you're ready to compare your paragraph with a model response.

Okay, well done for all of your hard work on that second practise task.

You were asked to answer the question, "Why was the Warsaw Pact formally ended in July, 1991?" And you were asked to write one paragraph.

So your paragraph could have included.

"By the beginning of the 1990s, the Warsaw Pact was in decline.

The military reputation of the Soviet Union had been badly damaged by the failure in Afghanistan.

In addition, economic problems meant that the Soviet Union was struggling to provide military and economic support to Warsaw Pact members.

Most importantly, the spread of democracy meant that the alliance which had been established to unite the communist countries of Eastern Europe no longer served any purpose." Well done if you wrote something similar for your paragraph.

We're now ready to move to the third and final part of today's lesson in which we'll be learning about the events that led to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Gorbachev's attempts to reform communism and reduce Cold War tensions won him many admirers in the West.

In 1990, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Explaining their decision, the Nobel Peace Prize Committee praised Gorbachev's leading role in the peace process and declared that during the last few years dramatic changes have taken place in the relationship between east and west.

Confrontation has been replaced by negotiations.

Old European nations have been allowed to regain their freedom.

While he was celebrated in the West, Gorbachev became increasingly unpopular in the Soviet Union.

On the 1st of May, 1990, he became the first Soviet leader to be openly jeered at the annual May day parade.

Through his policies of perestroika, reconstruction, and glasnost, openness, Gorbachev aimed to modernise the economy and society of the Soviets Union, but they caused economic problems like shortages and higher prices.

Gorbachev also loosened the communist party's control, leading to instability and challenges to the government's authority.

Let's do a quick check of your understanding.

Which statement most accurately describes Gorbachev's popularity in Western countries and the Soviet Union? Is it A, he was popular in Western countries and popular in the Soviet Union? Is it B, he was unpopular in Western countries, but popular in the Soviet Union? Is it C, he was popular in Western countries and unpopular in the Soviet Union? Or is it D, he was unpopular in Western countries and unpopular in the Soviet Union? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you selected the correct answer was C, Gorbachev was popular in Western countries, but he was unpopular in the Soviet Union.

Many leading members of the communist party held Gorbachev in contempt, believing that his reforms had weakened communism rather than reviving it.

As a consequence, on the 19th of August, 1991, a group of senior communist government officials known as the Gang of eight, led a coup that removed Gorbachev from power.

The new government declared a state of emergency, a situation where the government grants itself special powers to deal with a crisis, and they ended the policies of perestroika and glasnost.

They would've made further changes, but they were prevented from doing so because they were only in power for three days.

The new government lacked popular support and they faced opposition from important political leaders.

Boris Yeltsin, the chair of the Russian Supreme Soviet, declared the new government to be illegal and played a crucial role in opposing the coup.

He rallied public support and famously climbed onto a tank outside the Russian parliament building in Moscow to address a crowd, urging them to resist the coup and refuse to obey the new government.

Gorbachev returned to Moscow and resumed his position as leader on the 21st of August, but the coup had badly damaged his authority and weakened the USSR even further.

Let's do a check of your understanding.

I want you to discuss this question with a partner.

"Who were the gang of eight and why did they lead a coup against Gorbachev on the 19th of August, 1991?" Pause the video, talk to your partner and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, welcome back.

I hope that was a useful conversation.

You were asked to answer the question, "Who were the gang of eight and why did they lead a coup against Gorbachev?" And you could have said, "The Gang of eight were a group of senior communist government officials who were angry with Gorbachev because they believed his reforms were weakening communism.

They led a coup against Gorbachev so they could reverse his reforms." Well done if you and your partner covered those points in your discussion.

Let's do another quick check.

What impact did the coup have upon Gorbachev's authority? Is it A, it had no impact on Gorbachev's authority? B, it strengthened Gorbachev's authority? Or C, it weakened Gorbachev's authority? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

The correct answer is C, the coup weakened Gorbachev's authority.

Well done if you got that right.

The Soviet Union was made up of 15 Republics, each with its own distinct culture and language.

By 1990, increasing demands for independence from some of these Republics meant that the USSR was on the verge of collapse.

Gorbachev attempted to stop the Soviet Union from disintegrating by introducing a new constitution that would give the Soviet Republics much greater independence, but he was unsuccessful.

People in the Republics had seen how the countries of Eastern Europe had been able to break away from Soviet control, and they wanted the same.

They demanded full independence.

Between March, 1990 and August, 1991, the Baltic Republics of Lavia, Lithuania and Estonia declared themselves independent.

This led to demands for independence from other Republics.

On the 8th of December, 1991, the remaining Republics, with the exception of Georgia, took advantage of Gorbachev's weakness to declare independence from the Soviets Union and the establishment of the commonwealth of independent states, or CIS.

Gorbachev was powerless to stop them.

On the 25th of December, 1991, Gorbachev officially announced his resignation as Soviet leader and the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Let's check your understanding.

Which three Baltic Republics declared independence from the Soviet Union between 1990 and 1991? Was it A, Latvia, Lithuania and Ukraine? B, Lithuania, Moldova and Estonia? C, Latvia, Estonia and Albania? Or D, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you selected D, the correct answer is Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.

Let's do another quick check.

The Soviet Republics all accepted Gorbachev's new constitution, giving them greater independence.

Is this true or false? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you said that statement was false, but let's see if you can justify why.

Pause the video now, have a good explaining why the statement's false and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay.

To justify why the statement was false, you could have written, "The Soviet Republics refused Gorbachev's constitution giving them greater independence because they wanted full independence like the former satellite states of Eastern Europe." Well done if you came up with something similar.

You're now ready for the third and final task of today's lesson, and I want you to write an account that analyses the events that resulted in the collapse of the Soviet Union.

You should aim to write about three key events and may wish to write about the following.

The end of the Warsaw Pact, the coup against Gorbachev, and demands for independence from Soviet Republics.

You should try to organise your answer in chronological order.

So pause the video now, have a go at writing your narrative, and then when you're ready to compare your answer to a model response, press play.

Okay, well done for all of your hard work on that final practise task.

You were asked to write an account analysing the events that led to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

You are asked to write about three events in chronological order, and your first paragraph could read something like this.

"In 1988, Gorbachev announced that the Soviet Union would abandon the Brezhnev doctrine.

As a result, many countries rejected communist rule in favour of democracy.

This included East Germany, which was reunified with West Germany to become a democratic state in October, 1990.

By 1990, all the former Soviet satellite states in Eastern Europe had become democracies, and the Warsaw Pact, which had already been in decline, had no reason to exist.

As a consequence, the Warsaw Pact was officially ended in July, 1991.

The loss of Soviet control in Eastern Europe and the end of the Warsaw Pact angered many people in the Soviet Union." For you second paragraph, you could have gone on to write, "Many communists directed this anger towards Gorbachev because they believed his reforms had weakened communism and the USSR.

In August, 1991, this anger led to a group of hardline communists known as the Gang of eight overthrowing Gorbachev in a coup with the aim of reversing his reforms. The coup lacked popular support, and Gorbachev was returned to power after just three days.

Although he returned to power swiftly, the coup greatly damaged Gorbachev's authority and this made it more difficult for him to deal with the demands for independence from the Soviet Republics." And finally, you could have concluded your narrative by writing something like this.

"Gorbachev attempted to appease the Soviet Republics' demands by developing a new constitution, which gave them more independence, but this was rejected and the Republics continued to demand full independence.

After the coup, Gorbachev was in a weak position.

The Baltic Republics had declared independence, and on the 8th of December, 1991, the remaining Republics, with the exception of Georgia, took advantage of Gorbachev's weakness to declare their independence and the establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

This led to Gorbachev resigning and announcing the dissolution of the Soviet Union on the 25th of December, 1991." You've worked really, really hard on that final practise task.

Well done for all of your efforts, and well done if you wrote an answer that looked similar to the model answer that we've just gone through.

We're at the end of our lesson now, so it's a really good opportunity for us to pause and recap the key learning points.

The Soviet Union lost control of Eastern Europe from 1989 onwards.

In 1990, Germany was reunified as a democratic state, and the Warsaw Pact ended in July, 1991.

Gorbachev's reforms and his attempts to reduce Cold War tensions made in popular in the west, but extremely unpopular in the Soviet Union.

On the 19th of August, 1991, Gorbachev was overthrown in a coup.

Although he returned to power three days later, his authority was severely weakened.

From 1990 onwards, demands for independence from Soviet Republics intensified and critically weakened the Soviets Union.

And then finally, on the 25th of December, 1991, Gorbachev resigned as Soviet leader and announced the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Well done for all of your hard work in today's lesson, you've done really well.

It's been a pleasure to teach you.

I look forward to teaching you again in the future.