20th-Century World Leaders Part 6 Quiz

Answer: Helmut Kohl

Helmut Kohl (1930-2017) was the longest serving German chancellor in the 20th century, in power for 16 years and 26 days. On 3 October 1990, he oversaw the German reunification. In international affairs, he was strongly committed to European integration and French-German cooperation.

He supported President Reagan's more aggressive policies to weaken the Soviet Union. He played a vital role in the eastern enlargement of the European Union, leading the effort to push for international recognition for the independence of Croatia, Slovenia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Domestically, he was successful in the economic reforms of integrating the former East Germany into a reunified Germany.

Answer: William MacKenzie King

William Mackenzie King (1874-1950) was the Canadian prime minister from 1921 to 1926, 1926 to 1930 and 1935 to 1948. He was the longest serving Canadian prime minister in the 20th century with a total of 21 years and 154 days in office. During the Second World War, he mobilized Canadian funds, supplies and volunteers to support Britain, at the same time boosting morale on the home front. He played an active role in laying the foundations of Canada's welfare state.

Answer: Richard Nixon

Richard Nixon (1913-1994) was the vice-president from 1953 to 1961 and president from 1969 to 1974. In 1972, he visited China to establish diplomatic relations, initiated détente and the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty with the USSR. In 1973, he ended American involvement in the Vietnam War.

In the same year, he supported Israel in the Yom Kippur War by airlifting to supply their losses, resulting in the oil crisis at home. The Watergate scandal in late 1973 led to his resignation, and has tended to overshadow his many achievements while in office.

Answer: Francois Mitterrand

Francois Mitterrand (1916-1996) was the longest serving French president in the 20th century. During his time in office, he abolished the death penalty, implemented the 39-hour work week and ended government monopoly in radio and TV broadcasting. In the Maastricht Treaty, he pushed for the advancement in European integration with German chancellor Helmut Kohl.

Answer: Mikhail Gorbachev

Mikhail Gorbachev (born 1931) believed that USSR had to make significant reforms after the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. He ordered the withdrawal of troops to end the Soviet-Afghan War, and held summits with President Reagan to limit nuclear weapons, leading to the end of the Cold War.

In domestic affairs, the policy of glasnost (openness) allowed for more freedom of speech and press. Perestroika (restructuring) was to decentralize economic decision to improve efficiency which undermined the power of the one-party system. This led to the Eastern Bloc to abandon the Marxist-Leninist administration, resulting in the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, and the break-up of the USSR and Yugoslavia in the early 1990s. In 1990, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his "leading role in the peace process which today characterizes important parts of the international community".

Answer: Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan (1911-2004) was aged 70 when he became the American president, serving from 1981 to 1989. From 1967 to 1975, he was the Californian governor. In March 1981, he survived an assassination on his life.

In domestic affairs, he implemented sweeping new political and economic policies which were popular with the conservatives. With the introduction of supply-side economic policies, known as "Reaganomics", his administration proposed lower tax and economic deregulation improving the economic conditions which were slowing down during Carter administration.

In 1983, he ordered the invasion of Grenada to prevent Communism from taking over the country and in 1985 agreed with Mikhail Gorbachev to reduce by 50% spending on nuclear weapons. In 1986, he ordered the bombing of Libya due to a West Berlin bombing where two U.S. servicemen were killed plus 200 others were injured. In 1986, he asked Gorbachev to "tear down this wall" in a speech at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate. In 1989, he witnessed the tearing down of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Cold War

Answer: Boris Yeltsin

Boris Yeltsin (1921-2007) served as the first Russian president from 1991 to 1999. After his election as president of Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR) in 1991, he played a leading role in the dissolution of USSR.

The lack of experience in a capitalist marker economy led to economic collapse and inflation. Amid the collapse, only a small numbers of oligarchs obtained a majority of the state property and wealth. Between 1994 and 1999, secessionist sentiment led to the First and Second Chechen War and the War of Dagestan. In 1999, he resigned due to growing internal pressure and handed power to Vladimir Putin.

Answer: Lech Walesa

Lech Walesa (born 1943) was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1983 for "his contribution and considerable personal sacrifice to ensure the worker's right to establish their own organizations". He served as the President of Poland from 1990 to 1995. As the leader of Solidarity, he led the country to end the communist rule in 1989. During his time in office, he oversaw the successful transition from communism to capitalist free markets.

After the narrow loss of the 1995 presidential election, he established the Lech Walesa Institute.

Answer: Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela (1918-2013) was the South African president from 1994 to 1999. During his presidency, he fought for the reconciliation between the racial groups. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was created to investigate past human rights abuses.

He introduced policies for land reform and expanded healthcare services. After declining a second term, he focused his effort on combating poverty and HIV/AIDS through his foundation. In 1993, he was jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize with F.W. de Klerk.

Answer: Tunku Abdul Rahman

Tunku Abdul Rahman (1903-1990) was the first Chief Minister of the Federation of Malaya from 1955 to 1970. He dominated the Malaysian politics for 13 years after the country achieved independence in 1957. In 1963, he witnessed the formation of the Malaysian Federation comprised of Sabah, Sarawak in North Borneo and Singapore.

However in 1965, Singapore was asked to leave the Federation due to racial tensions between the Malay and the Chinese. In 1969, his poor handling of the race riots in Kuala Lumpur led to his resignation in 1970.

Despite the critics, he was regarding as the founding father of Malaysia.