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Year 11
AQA

The Cuban Revolution and its consequences

I can explain the consequences of the Cuban Revolution.

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New
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Year 11
AQA

The Cuban Revolution and its consequences

I can explain the consequences of the Cuban Revolution.

Download all resources
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Share activities with pupils
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These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The USA was closely interested in Cuba in the mid-20th century.
  2. The Batista government was very unpopular in Cuba.
  3. Fidel Castro gained power in Cuba after a revolution.
  4. The US opposed many of the actions of the Castro government.
  5. Cuba increasingly developed trade and security relations with the USSR.

Keywords

  • Sphere of influence - a region of the world in which one state is dominant

  • Nationalised - when the government takes control of a business or property

  • Embargo - an official ban on trade with another country

Common misconception

Castro immediately turned to the USSR for support after the Cuban Revolution.

Castro mainly turned to the USSR for support in 1960, after the USA had already begun restricting trade with Cuba.


To help you plan your year 11 history lesson on: The Cuban Revolution and its consequences, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Share extracts of JFK's October 1960 speech on Cuba. At the time, he was running to be president. Students should discuss whether the speech suggests American policy was successful at the time. Students may also consider potential issues with the source provenance.
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Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering
supervision-level

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

copyright

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Write the missing word. A is someone who is forced to flee from their own country for their own safety.
Correct Answer: refugee, Refugee
Q2.
Which satellite state suffered from a 'brain drain' between 1949 and 1961?
Correct answer: East Germany
West Germany
USA
USSR
Q3.
How mnay East Germans crossed the border to the West between 1949 and 1958?
300 000
750 000
1.5 million
Correct answer: 3 million
6 million
Q4.
Where was the Berlin Wall built?
Around East Berlin
Correct answer: Around West Berlin
Around all of Berlin
Q5.
Who claimed that "a wall is a hell of a lot better than a war"?
Correct answer: John F Kennedy
Nikita Khrushchev
Willy Brandt
Q6.
Starting with the earliest, sort the following events into chronological order.
1 - End of WW2
2 - Berlin Blockade and Airlift
3 - Korean War
4 - Hungarian Uprising
5 - Berlin Wall built

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is an official ban on trade with another country called?
Correct Answer: embargo, an embargo, Embargo, An embargo
Q2.
Who became leader of Cuba in 1959 after its revolution?
Correct Answer: Fidel Castro, Castro
Q3.
How close is Cuba to the USA?
less than 15 km away
Correct answer: less than 150 km away
less than 1500 km away
Q4.
Which country did Cuba increasingly cooperate with after the USA began restricting trade with it?
Correct Answer: USSR, Soviet Union, the USSR, the Soviet Union, Russia
Q5.
Which action in 1959 increased US suspicions that Castro might be a communist?
Correct answer: All foreign-owned land in Cuba was nationalised.
He launched a trade embargo against the USA.
Soviet military officials were invited to Cuba.
Q6.
Starting with the earliest, sort the following events into chronological order.
1 - Batista ruled over Cuba.
2 - Castro took power.
3 - All foreign-owned land in Cuba was nationalised.
4 - US trade restrictions introduced.
5 - Cuba began working more closely with the USSR.
6 - US trade embargo began.
7 - Diplomatic relations between the USA and Cuba were cut off.

Additional material

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