Cambridge International AS & A Level History: every topic, by paper

What is a primary source?

A source produced at the time of the events being studied, or by someone who took part in them.

What is a secondary source?

A source produced later by someone who was not there, e.g. a historian's book.

What does provenance mean?

Where a source comes from: who produced it, when, why and for whom.

Who was king of France when the Revolution began in 1789?

Louis XVI.

What were the three Estates in pre-revolutionary France?

First Estate: clergy; Second Estate: nobility; Third Estate: everyone else, about 97% of the population.

Why was France bankrupt by the 1780s?

Costly wars, especially support for the American War of Independence, and an unfair tax system that exempted the privileged.

What was the Industrial Revolution?

The shift from hand production to machine and factory production in Britain from about 1750.

Name three causes of the Industrial Revolution in Britain.

Population growth, the agricultural revolution, available coal and iron, capital from trade, and inventions.

What was the significance of James Watt's steam engine?

His improved engine (patented 1769) was more efficient and could drive machines, so factories no longer depended on water power.

What is nationalism?

The belief that people with a shared language, culture and history should form their own state.

What happened in the 1848 revolutions?

Uprisings across Europe demanded liberal reforms and national unity, but most were crushed by 1849.

Who was Mazzini?

An Italian nationalist who founded Young Italy and wanted a united Italian republic.

Who was the last Tsar of Russia?

Nicholas II (ruled 1894–1917).

What was the 1905 Revolution triggered by?

Bloody Sunday: troops fired on peaceful protesters in St Petersburg, and defeat in the Russo-Japanese War.

What was the October Manifesto (1905)?

Nicholas II's promise of civil rights and an elected parliament, the Duma.

What were the two alliance blocs before 1914?

The Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy) and the Triple Entente (Britain, France, Russia).

What is imperialism?

Building an empire by gaining control of other territories.

What was the 'Scramble for Africa'?

The rapid colonisation of Africa by European powers from the 1880s, formalised at the Berlin Conference (1884–85).

When was the Treaty of Versailles signed?

28 June 1919.

Who were the 'Big Three' at the Paris Peace Conference?

Wilson (USA), Lloyd George (Britain) and Clemenceau (France).

What were Wilson's Fourteen Points?

His aims for peace, including self-determination, open diplomacy, free trade, disarmament and a League of Nations.

What was the 'Roaring Twenties'?

The 1920s economic boom in the USA, with rising consumer spending and new culture.

Give three causes of the 1920s boom.

New industries (cars, electrical goods), mass production, credit (hire purchase), advertising and Republican laissez-faire policies.

What was Henry Ford's contribution to the boom?

The moving assembly line, which made cars such as the Model T cheap enough for ordinary people.

Who led the USSR after Lenin's death in 1924?

Joseph Stalin, after a power struggle with Trotsky and others.

How did Stalin defeat his rivals?

He used his position as General Secretary to appoint supporters, and allied with different factions in turn against Trotsky, Zinoviev, Kamenev and Bukharin.

What was 'Socialism in One Country'?

Stalin's policy of building socialism in the USSR first, rather than Trotsky's permanent revolution.

What was the Weimar Republic?

The democratic German government from 1919 to 1933.

What was Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution?

It allowed the President to rule by emergency decree.

What was the Spartacist Uprising (1919)?

A communist revolt in Berlin crushed by the government using the Freikorps.

When did Mussolini come to power in Italy?

October 1922, after the March on Rome.

Why was there discontent in Italy after the First World War?

The 'mutilated victory' (Italy gained less land than expected), economic problems, strikes and fear of communism.

Who were the squadristi (Blackshirts)?

Fascist armed squads that attacked socialists and trade unions.

What was the Cold War?

A state of hostility between the USA and USSR and their allies from 1945, without direct war between them.

What was agreed at the Yalta Conference (February 1945)?

Germany to be divided into zones, free elections in Eastern Europe, and the USSR to join the war against Japan.

What tensions emerged at Potsdam (July–August 1945)?

Disputes over Poland's borders and reparations; Truman had replaced Roosevelt and told Stalin about the atomic bomb.