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

This lesson is part of a unit of lessons on Cold War crises between 1958 and 1970.

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

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

Reform, a change introduced to improve something, often a system or law.

Warsaw Pact, a military alliance of Eastern European countries led by the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

It was formed in 1955 in response to NATO.

Doctrine, a set of beliefs or principles.

And satellite state, a country that is dominated by another country.

Today's lesson's split into three parts.

In this first part of the lesson, we're going to be learning about the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia that took place in August, 1968.

In the spring of 1968, the new leader of Czechoslovakia, Alexander Dubcek, introduced a series of reforms known as the Prague Spring.

Dubcek was a dedicated communist, but he wanted to win support for communism in Czechoslovakia by removing its worst features and introducing economic changes and greater freedoms for the Czech people.

Dubcek's reforms caused concern in the Soviet Union.

The Soviet leader Brezhnev was worried that Dubcek's reforms would threaten communism in Czechoslovakia, and he feared that the country would leave the Warsaw Pact.

Leaders of other Warsaw Pact members, concerned that changes in Czechoslovakia would lead to demands for reform in their countries, urged Brezhnev to take action.

Let's check your understanding.

Why was Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev concerned about the Prague Spring reforms in Czechoslovakia? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see a model answer.

Okay, you were asked to explain why Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev was concerned about the Prague Spring reforms in Czechoslovakia, and your answer may include the following.

"Brezhnev was worried that Dubcek's Prague Spring reforms "would threatened communism Czechoslovakia "and feared the country might leave the Warsaw Pact.

"He was also under pressure from other Warsaw Pact leaders "who were worried that people in their countries "might start to demand reform." Well done if you wrote something similar to the answer that we've just gone through.

On the 20th of August, 1968, the Soviet Union, along with troops from other Warsaw Pact nations, such as East Germany, Poland, Hungary, and Bulgaria, launched a large-scale military invasion of Czechoslovakia to crush the Prague Spring movement.

The invading force consisted of approximately 500,000 soldiers, along with tanks, artillery, and aircraft.

Despite being vastly outnumbered and outgunned, the people of Czechoslovakia took part in remarkable acts of resistance against the invading forces.

In the capital city of Prague, people attempted to block the advance of the invading army by constructing makeshift barriers using cars, furniture, and any other available materials.

Buildings were set on fire and protestors assembled in Wenceslas Square, one of the main squares in Prague.

Students tore down street signs to confuse the invaders and tanks were attacked with petrol bombs.

Much of the resistance to the Soviet invasion was peaceful however.

For example, outside the Radio Prague Building, unarmed civilians, including women and children, stood in front of tanks with arms raised in defiance, refusing to let the invaders pass.

Despite the bravery of ordinary Czechs, there was no armed resistance by the Czech army who were ordered to remain in their barracks.

Approximately 100 Czech people are thought to have been killed during the invasion.

They were no match for the overwhelming strength of the invading army.

Dubcek was arrested and sent to Moscow, along with some of his key allies.

In Moscow, Dubcek was forced to reverse his reforms and accept the end of Czechoslovakia's move towards becoming a freer, more open democratic society.

Let's do a quick check of your understanding.

I want you to discuss this question with a partner.

How did ordinary Czech people attempt to resist the Soviets' invasion of Czechoslovakia? Pause the video now, discuss the question with your partner, and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Okay, welcome back, I hope that conversation was useful.

You were asked how ordinary Czechoslovakia people attempted to resist the Soviet invasion.

And your answer may have included the following.

"They constructed barricades, stood in front of tanks, "removed street signs, threw petrol bombs, "and set fire to buildings." Well done if in your conversation with your partner you covered those points.

Let's do another quick check.

What happened to Alexander Dubcek? a: He was killed fighting the invading army.

b: He was captured and executed.

c: He was arrested and sent to Moscow.

d: He escaped and fled to France.

Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you selected option c, Alexander Dubcek was arrested and sent to Moscow.

Okay, you're now ready to attempt the first practise task of today's lesson, and this activity is called, "If this is the answer, what is the question?" For each of the answers in the table on the screen, I want you to write a relevant question.

And the first one's been done for you.

So for the answer, "Dubcek", a question could be, "Which Czech leader introduced the Prague Spring reforms?" There's more than one question you could write for each of the answers.

So pause the video now, have a go at the activity, and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

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

You were asked to identify a question for each of the answers in the table, and let's go through them now.

So for the answer, "Brezhnev", you could have written, "Which Soviet leader ordered "the invasion of Czechoslovakia?" For the answer, "The 20th of August, 1968", you could have written, "When did the Soviet Union invade Czechoslovakia?" For the answer, "Wenceslas Square", you could have written "Where did Czech people gather "to protest during the Soviet invasion?" And finally, for the answer, "100", you could have written, "How many Czech people were killed "during the Soviet invasion?" Very well done for all of your hard work on that first practise task.

Let's move on to the second part of our lesson.

The Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia was criticised around the world, and in this second part of the lesson, we're going to be learning about how Brezhnev responded to that criticism, and we're going to be learning about something that became known as the Brezhnev Doctrine.

Many criticised the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia as an aggressive attempt by the Soviet Union to dominate another European country.

In September, 1968, in response to international criticism, Brezhnev wrote an article in the Soviet newspaper, "Pravda", justifying the invasion.

The ideas in the article became known as the Brezhnev Doctrine.

The Brezhnev Doctrine stated that the Soviet Union had the right to invade any country in Eastern Europe whose actions posed a threat to the security of the Warsaw Pact.

Brezhnev argued that when a threat arises to the cause of communism in any country, it becomes not only a problem for the people of that country, but also a general problem, the concern of all communist countries.

Brezhnev argued that it was essential to invade Czechoslovakia because as well as being a threat to communism in Czechoslovakia, Dubcek's reforms were a threat to communism in other countries, a threat to the Warsaw Pact, and a threat to the security of the Soviets Union.

The Brezhnev Doctrine reinforced the idea of a Soviet's sphere of influence and made it clear that all member countries had to remain part of the Warsaw Pact.

Moreover, the Brezhnev Doctrine emphasised that the Soviet Union would not tolerate any attempts at reform that threatened to weaken communism.

An invasion of Czechoslovak sent a clear message that the Soviet Union was prepared to intervene militarily and use force to maintain control over its satellite states in Eastern Europe.

Let's do a check of your understanding.

"The Brezhnev Doctrine was published "before the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia." Is this true or false? Pause the video now, press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, very well done if you said the answer was false, but we need to be able to justify our answer.

So there's two justifications on the screen.

a says, "In response to international criticism, "the doctrine was first published "in a Soviet newspaper a month after the invasion." And justification b says, "In response to international criticism, "the doctrine was first articulated "in a speech a year after the invasion." Which of these justifications is correct? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, very well done if you said that the correct answer is justification a, "The Brezhnev Doctrine first appeared "in an article that Brezhnev had published "in 'Pravda' a month after the invasion." Let's do another check of your understanding.

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

I want you to identify and correct the mistakes.

So pause the video now and then press play when you're ready to see the corrected version.

Okay, very well done for your efforts.

You were asked to identify and correct the mistakes in the paragraph and the corrected paragraph should read, "The Brezhnev Doctrine stated "that the Soviet Union had the right "to invade any country in Eastern Europe "whose actions posed a threat "to the security of the Warsaw Pact.

"Brezhnev used this argument "to justify the invasion of Czechoslovakia." Well done if you identified and corrected all of the mistakes in that paragraph.

You're now ready for the second practise task of this lesson.

I would like you to explain the importance of the Brezhnev Doctrine for the relationship between the Soviet Union and its satellite states.

You should identify two ways it was important and write two paragraphs to explain why.

Pause the video now, attempt the question, and press play when you're ready to go through a model response.

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

You were asked to explain the importance of the Brezhnev Doctrine for the relationship between the Soviet Union and its satellite states.

For your first paragraph, your answer may include, "The Brezhnev Doctrine was important for the relationship "between the Soviet Union and its satellite states "because it sent a clear message that they all had "to remain part of the Warsaw Pact.

"One reason for the Soviet invasion "of Czechoslovakia was Brezhnev's fear "that the country would leave the Warsaw Pact "and that this was a threat to the alliance.

"The Brezhnev doctrine made it clear "that the Soviet Union would not tolerate any "of its satellite states from weakening the Warsaw Pact "and was prepared to use force "to prevent them from leaving." Well done if your first paragraph looks similar to the one that we've just gone through.

For your second paragraph, you could have written, "The Brezhnev Doctrine was important "for the relationship between the Soviet Union "and its satellite states because it made it clear "that the USSR would not tolerate reforms "that weakened communism.

"The Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia "was partly motivated by Brezhnev's beliefs "that the Prague Spring reforms were a threat to communism.

"Consequently, the Brezhnev Doctrine made it clear "that military action would be taken "against any satellite state "that introduced similar reforms. "This increased Soviet control over its satellite states." Well done for all of your hard work on that second practise task, and well done if the paragraphs you wrote look similar to the ones that we've just gone through in our model answer.

We're now ready to move to the third and final part of our lesson where we're going to be looking at the consequences of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in more detail.

Although the Soviet Union took control of Czechoslovakia quickly, protest against the invasion continued until April, 1969.

In January 1969, in a shocking act of protest against the continued Soviet occupation of his country, a 20-year-old university student called Jan Palach set himself on fire in Wenceslas Square in Prague.

Palach's funeral was attended by hundreds of thousands of people and his death became a symbol of anti-Soviet resistance in Europe.

In April 1969, Dubcek was forced to step down as leader of Czechoslovakia and was replaced by Gustav Husak, a hardline communist loyal to the Soviet Union.

Husak, under the influence of the Soviet Union, led a determined attempt to reestablish strict communist control over Czechoslovakian society in a process referred to as normalisation.

Husak arrested thousands of people who had supported Dubcek's reforms and reintroduced strict censorship of the media.

Czechoslovakia remained under strict communist control for the next 20 years.

Let's do a check of your understanding.

I want you to discuss this question with a partner.

From 1969, the new Czech leader Gustav Husak led a process of normalisation in Czechoslovakia.

What did this involve? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see a model answer.

Okay, welcome back, I hope that was a useful conversation.

You were asked to discuss with a partner what the process of normalisation in Czechoslovakia involved, and you could have written something like this.

"As part of the process of normalisation, "Husak worked with the USSR to reestablish "strict communist control over Czechoslovakia.

"As part of this, Husak reversed all "of Dubcek's Prague Spring reforms." Well done if your conversation covered those points.

In the short term, the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia increased tensions between east and west.

But only briefly.

In 1968, American attention was focused on a presidential election, and the USA was also involved in a costly war in Vietnam.

Furthermore, US President Johnson had an unspoken agreement with Brezhnev that the USA would not intervene in Czechoslovakia, provided that the Soviet Union did not intervene in Vietnam.

Therefore, the USA condemned the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, but there was no prospect of them providing military aid to the Czechs.

The USA's allies in Western Europe followed their lead and condemned Soviet actions, but provided no support to Czechoslovakia.

The communist parties in France and Italy were sufficiently outraged by Soviets' aggression in Czechoslovakia that they declared themselves formally independent of the Soviet Communist Party.

As a consequence, the Soviet Union lost influence in these countries, where those who had once supported the USSR began to develop their own form of communism.

Let's check your understanding.

The Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia led to a long-term increase in tension between the USA and the USSR.

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 that was false, but we need to be able to justify that answer.

So on the screen are two justifications.

a says, "The Soviet invasion "of Czechoslovakia reduced tensions "between the USA and the USSR." Whereas justification b says, "The Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia led to a short-term increase in tensions "between the USA and the USSR." Which of those justifications is correct? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct response.

Okay, very well done if you said that the correct justification was b, the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia did increase tensions between the USA and the USSR, but it was only a short-term increase.

Okay, let's do another quick check of your understanding.

I want you to discuss this question with a partner.

"Why did the USA not intervene "to support Czechoslovakia during the Soviet invasion?" I want you to aim to identify at least two reasons.

So pause the video now, discuss the question with a partner, and press play when you're ready to see a model response.

Welcome back, I hope that was a useful conversation with your partner.

You were asked to discuss why the USA did not intervene to support Czechoslovakia during the Soviet invasion.

And you could have covered the following points.

"The USA was in the middle of a presidential election." "The USA was involved in a conflict in Vietnam." "There was an unspoken agreement "that the USA would not intervene in Czechoslovakia "as long as the Soviet Union did not intervene in Vietnam." So well done if you covered those points in your discussion.

let's move on.

The invasion of Czechoslovakia had a negative impact on the Soviet Union's relationships with some other communist countries.

For example, it led to increased tension with China, which had been communist since Mao Zedong took power in 1949.

Despite both states being communist, rivalry had developed between the two.

Many in China were concerned about what they regarded as Soviet aggression against a fellow communist country, and it increased fears that the Soviet Union might invade China in the same way.

Several communist countries in Europe also criticised the Soviet Union's actions.

Albania left the Warsaw Pact in protest while President Ceaușescu of Romania refused to send troops to take part in the invasion of Czechoslovakia, and increasingly took an independent line from the USSR.

After condemning the invasion of Czechoslovakia, Romania joined Yugoslavia in moving further away from the Soviet Union by making formal alliances with China.

Let's take a moment to check our understanding.

"Which country left the Warsaw Pact in protest "of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia?" Was it a: Albania, b: Czechoslovakia, c: East Germany, or d:Poland? Pause the video now and press play when you're ready to see the correct answer.

Okay, well done if you said that the correct answer was a, the country that left the Warsaw Act in protest at the Soviet Union's invasion of Czechoslovakia was Albania.

You're now ready for the third and final practise task of today's lesson.

So what I'd like you to do for this is explain two consequences of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia.

You should identify two consequences and then write one paragraph per consequence to explain each one.

Pause the video now, have a go at this question, and press play when you're ready to go through a model answer.

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

You were asked to explain two consequences of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia.

And for your first paragraph, you might have written something like this.

"One consequence of the Soviet invasion "of Czechoslovakia was that it led "to the end of the Prague Spring.

"Dubcek was replaced as leader "of Czechoslovakia by Husak in 1969.

"Husak was a hardline communist "and very loyal to the Soviets Union.

"As a result, he worked with the Soviet Union "to reestablish strict communist control in Czechoslovakia.

"This led to Husak launching a process known "as normalisation, which reversed all "of the Prague Spring reforms." Well done if your first paragraph looks similar to the one that we've just gone through.

For your second paragraph, you could have written something like this.

"Another consequence of the Soviet invasion "of Czechoslovakia was that it damaged "the USSR'S relationships with other communist countries.

"For example, in China, the Soviet invasion was seen "as aggression against a fellow communist country, "and it increased fears "that the USSR might invade China too.

"In Europe, the Soviet Union was criticised by Romania "and led to Albania leaving the Warsaw Pact.

"As a result of the Soviet invasion, "Romania and Yugoslavia both moved away "from the Soviet Union and made alliances with China." Very well done for all of your efforts on that final practise task, and well done if your answer looks similar to the one that we've just gone through.

We're at the end of our lesson now, so it's a good time for us to pause and just recap some of our key learning points from today's lesson.

Dubcek's Prague Spring reforms in Czechoslovakia was seen as a threat to communism, the Warsaw Pact, and USSR security.

The Soviet Union invaded Czechoslovakia in August, 1968 and replaced Dubcek with Gustav Husak, who reversed the Prague Spring reforms. Soviet leader Brezhnev justified the Soviet invasion by arguing that it was necessary to defend communism and protect the Warsaw Pact.

This justification became known as the Brezhnev Doctrine.

The invasion increased tension with the USA in the short term, but while the USA condemned the invasion, they did not intervene.

And finally, the invasion damaged the Soviet Union's relationship with some communist countries.

Well done for all of your hard work today.

It's been a pleasure to teach you and I hope to teach you again in the near future.