Teachers recommend solving Kerala Syllabus Plus Two History Previous Year Question Papers and Answers Pdf March 2024 to improve time management during exams.
Kerala Plus Two History Previous Year Question Paper March 2024
Question 1.
Match column ‘A’ with appropriate items from Column ‘B’.
| A | B |
| Rani Lakshmibai | Delhi |
| Kunwar Singh | Kanpur |
| Bahadur Shah | Jhansi |
| Nana Sahib | Arrah |
Answer:
| A | B |
| Rani Lakshmibai | Jhansi |
| Kunwar Singh | Arrah |
| Bahadur Shah | Delhi |
| Nana Sahib | Kanpur |
Answer any 4 questions from 2 to 7. Each carries 1 score. (4 × 1 = 4)
Question 2.
Who was the founder of the Khalsa Panth?
a) Guru Nanak
b) GuruArjan
c) Guru Gobind Singh
d) Guru Tegh Bahadur
Answer:
c) Guru Gobind Singh
Question 3.
Identify the author of Padmavat:
a) Kabir
b) Malik Muhammad Jayasi
c) Ramananda
d) Baba Farid
Answer:
b) Malik Muhammad Jayasi
Question 4.
Who is popularly known as ‘Garib Nawaz?
a) Khwaja Muinuddin
b) Muhammad bin Tughlaq
c) Akbar
d) Shaikh Nizamuddin
Answer:
a) Khwaja Muinuddin
Question 5.
Which of the following group is connected with the Vachanas?
a) The Alvars
b) The Sikhs
c) The Nayanars
d) The Virashaivas
Answer:
d) The Virashaivas
Question 6.
The Code of Conduct associated with temples in ancient Kerala:
a) Kaccam
b) Sabhai
c) Viruti
d) Noduttal
Answer:
a) Kaccam
Question 7.
Point out the Travancore ruler who defeated the Dutch in the battle of Colachal.
a) Kunjali Marakkar
b) Sakthan Thampuran
c) Marthanda Varma
d) Tipu Sultan
Answer:
c) Marthanda Varma
Question 8.
Arrange the following in chronological order: (4 x 1 = 4)
♦ The Kurichiya Revolt
♦ The Pazhassi Revolt
♦ Temple Entry Proclamation
♦ Kundara Proclamation
Answer:
- The Pazhassi Revolt (1793-1805)
- Kundara Proclamation (1809)
- The Kurichiya Revolt (1812)
- Temple Entry Proclamation (1936)
Question 9.
Mark the following places on the outline map of ancient India provided:(4 × 1 = 4)
♦ Bodh Gaya
♦ Sarnath
♦ Sanchi
♦ Amaravati
Answer:
- BodhGaya
- Sarnath
- Sanchi
- Amaravati
Answer any 8 questions from 10 to 18. Each carries 2 scores. (8 × 2 = 16)
Question 10.
Why were Stupas built?
Answer:
Stupas are mounds where the relics of Buddha were buried. Asoka distributed the relics of Buddha to every important town and ordered to construct stupas over them.
Question 11.
Define Ziyarat and Qawwali.
Answer:
- Ziyarat-Pilgrimage to the tomb shrine of a sufiguru.
- Qawwali – Performance of music during Ziyarat.
Question 12.
Write a short note on Milkiyat.
Answer:
Personal land of the Zamindar. It was cultivated for the private use of Zamindars.
Question 13.
Define the terms jama and hasil.
Answer:
- Jama-Assessed tax
- Hasil – Collected tax
Question 14.
Who were jotedars?
Answer:
Jotedars were rich peasants in Bengal who controlled local trade and money lending.
Question 15.
Name the two hill folks who lived around the Rajmahal Hills during the early 19th century.
Answer:
- Paharias
- Santhals
Question 16.
Mention any two rumours connected with the Revolt of 1857.
Answer:
- New cartridges were greased with the fat of cow and pig.
- The British mixed the bone dust of cows and pigs into the atta sold in the market.
- The British is conspiring to destroy the caste and religion of the Hindus and Muslims.
Question 17.
Name any two pictures associated with the Revolt of 1857.
Answer:
- Relief of Lucknow
- InMemoriam
- Justice
- Miss wheeler
- Rani Lakshmi Bai
- The clemency of canning
- Execution of Mutineers in Peshawar
- The British Lion’s vengeance on the Bengal Tiger.
Question 18.
Name any two Tinais mentioned in the Sangam poems.
Answer:
- Kurinchi
- Mullai
- Palai
- Marutham
- Neital
Answer any 2 questions from 19 to 21. Each carries 3 scores. (2 × 3 = 6)
Question 19.
Mention any three causes for the decline of Harappan Civilization.
Answer:
- Deforestation
- Climatic change
- Excessive floods
- Over use of the land
- Shifting the course/ drying up of the river
Question 20.
Name any three chronicles of the Mughal period.
Answer:
- Akbar Nama
- Badshah Nama
- Humayun Nama
- AlemgirNama
Question 21.
Point out the three early local campaigns of Mahatma Gandhi.
Answer:
- Champaran Satyagraha -1917-Bihar
- Kheda Satyagraha-1918-Gujarath
- Ahmedabad Mill Strike -1918 – Gujarath
Answer any 4 questions from 22 to 26. Each carries 4 scores. (4 × 4 = 16)
Question 22.
What are the limitations of inscriptional evidences?
Answer:
- Technical limitations: letters are very faintly engraved.
- Inscriptions may be damaged or letters missing.
- Not sure about the exact meaning of the words used in the inscriptions.
- Not all have been deciphered, published and translated.
- Many have not survived the ravage of time.
- Significance of the recorded events.
- Project the perspective of the person who commisioned them.
Question 23.
Explain the ideal occupations of four varnas
Answer:
- Brahmanas – Study and teach vedas, perform sacrifices and give and receive gifts.
- Kshatriyas – Engage in warfare, protect people and administer justice, study the vedas, get sacrifices performed and give gifts.
- Vaishyas – Engage in agriculture, pastoralism and trade
- Shudras – Serve the three higher varnas.
Question 24.
Describe the Amara Nayaka System existed in the Vijayanagara Empire.
Answer:
In Vijayanagara Empire there was the system of “Amara Nayaka”. This system had many Of the features of the “Iqta system’ of the Delhi. Sultans. Amara Nayakas were military commanders. Vijayanagara kings gave them some regions to govern. These regions were called ‘Amara’.
The governing of these regions was done by the Amaranayaks. They collected taxes of different kinds from the famers, traders, artisans and big merchants. A big portion of the income was used for their personal needs. The other part was spent in maintaining horses and elephants. A small portion was also spent on maintaining temples and irrigation. Amaranayakas rendered military help to the kings of Vijayanagara.
It was by using this military might that the kings brought the Southern Peninsula under their control. Amaranayakas were to give the king tribute every year. They also had to visit the king and give him gifts to show their loyalty to him. To show that the king had power over them, he used to transfer amaranayakas to different places. Even then by the 17th century the amaranayakas became powerful and some of them started challenging the authority of the king. Some even established independent states. This caused the slow disintegration of Vijayanagara.
Question 25.
Why did the Taluqdars of Awadh revolt against the British?
Answer:
The governing of these regions was done by the Amaranayaks. They collected taxes of different kinds from the famers, traders, artisans and big merchants. A big portion of the income was used for their personal needs. The other part was spent in maintaining horses and elephants. A small portion was also spent on maintaining temples and irrigation. Amaranayakas rendered military help to the kings of Vijayanagara. It was by using this military might that the kings brought the Southern Peninsula under their control.
Amaranayakas were to give the king tribute every year. They also had to visit the king and give him gifts to show their loyalty to him. To show that the king had power over them, he used to transfer amaranayakas to different places. Even then by the 17th century the amaranayakas became powerful and some of them started challenging the authority of the king. Some even established independent states. This caused the slow disintegration of Vijayanagara.
Question 26.
How did the partition of India affect women?
Answer:
The British wanted to avoid the talukdars and make settlements with the real owners of the land. They thought this would reduce exploitation of the farmers and increase the government’s income. But in reality none of these happened. The officials soon realized that the tax imposed on the farmers was much more than their capacity to pay. In short the Summary Settlement was a failure. It satisfied neither the farmers nor the talukdars.
As the talukdars lost their positions, their social status was lost. The relations between them and the farmers were ruined. Before the take-over by the British, there was cordiality between the talukdars and the farmers. Although the talukdars were strict, they often behaved like the guardians of the peasants. They helped the peasants in their needs. They also gave the peasants loans during festivals. The peasants also showed loyalty to the talukdars. But the coming of the British spoiled all these. The peasants got no consideration from the British.
The British charged them heavy tax and used strict methods to collect it. During crop failure, or times of trouble, or feasts, the British never helped the peasants. The ousted talukdars wanted to get back their lost estates and power. They became the strongest enemies of the British. In places like Awadh, where the revolt was the worst, the talukdars and the farmers were in the forefront of the revolt. Many of the talukdars were loyal to the Nawab.
They joined Begum Hazrat Mahal, the wife of the Nawab, in her fight against the British. Even in failure, the talukdars did not abandon the Begum. The taking over of Awadh by the British made the sepoys also unhappy. Many o f them were from Awadh itself. They did not like the idea of their birthplace getting into the hands of the British.
Historians have analyzed the feelings of the common people during and after the Partition. Many have written about the terrible experiences of many women. The worst victims of the Partition were women. Many of them were raped. Many were kidnapped and sold. They were forced to live a new life with strangers in a strange land. Somehow many of them suffered indescribable difficulties. But some adjusted with the new situation.
The governments of India and Pakistan did not bother to realise the complexities of human relations. Both governments decided to exchange women belonging to their respective countries – the Pakistani women in India had to go to Pakistan and Indian women in Pakistan had to come to India. Following this, a countrywide search was made to locate the women abducted frofri both sides. Those who were found were sent back to their countries. Nobody bothered to seek the opinion of the women involved in this exchange. Thus women were denied to take decisions about their own lives. According to statistics, a total of 30,000 women were rescued this way – 22,000 women from India and 8000 women from Pakistan. This rescue operation lasted until 1954.
Answer any 2 questions from 27 to 29. Each carries 5 scores. (2 × 5 = 10)
Question 27.
How did the Harappan people procure raw materials for craft production?
Answer:
They collected their raW materials from the subcontinent. They used the following strategies:
i) Establishment of Settlements: They established settlements in the areas where raw materials were easily available. For example they made settlements in places like Nageswar and Balakotfrom where they could get shells. They made settlement in Shortughai (Afghanistan) where lapis lazuli were easily available. They made settlements in Lothal where carnelian and limestone were easily got.
| SETTLEMENTS | RAW MATERIALS |
| Nageswar, Balakot | Shells |
| Shortughai | Lapis lazuli (Afghanistan) |
| Lothal | Carnelian (from Bharuch) Limestone (From South Rajasthan and North Gujarat) Copper (From the Khetri mines in Rajasthan) |
Question 28.
Why did Magadha become the first among the Sixteen Mahajanapadas?
Answer:
There are many reasons that made Magadha overcome its enemies and become number one. They are the following:
- Magadha was a fertile region. The fertile silt helped agriculture and increased production. They were able to produces surpluses.
- There were iron ore mines close to the capital and Magadha controlled them. They could make high class weapons using iron from these mines.
- An essential part of the Magadhan army was elephants. They were plenty in the forests of Magadha. Magadha used elephants on a large scale in battles.
- Ganges and its tributaries helped the Magadhans to travel quickly and cheaply and this helped them a lot.
- Rajagaha, the first capital of Magadha, and Pataliputra, the second capital, were situated in strategic places. They offered Magadha protection from outside attacks.
- Policies of powerful rulers like Ajatasatru, Bimbisara and Mahapadma Nanda and their ministers.
Question 29.
The Mughal rule contributed very much to the cultural plurality of India. Elucidate.
Answer:
Age of cultural synthesis:- The Indian cultural tradition had synthesized with Turkish and Iranian culture. This blend can be seen in architecture, painting, language, literature, music, customs and manners. Persian influence can be seen in literature and language too. The usages and words from Arabic and Persian languages enriched various Indian languages. Many Indian texts like Ramayana and Mahabharata were translated into Persian. This synthesis, spread to other fields like dress, flood, festivals, etc.
Answer any 2 questions from 30 to 32. Each carries 8 scores. (2 × 8 = 16)
Question 30.
‘Mohenjodaro was a planned urban centre.’ Substantiate.
Hints:
♦ Citadel and lower town
♦ The Great bath
♦ Drainage system
♦ Domestic Architecture
Answer:
Mohenjo Daro is the most important site of the Harappan Culture. This was discovered after Harappa. It was from Mohenjo Daro that details regarding town planning, houses and seals of the Harappan Culture were got. This big city is situated in the Larkana District of Sind, on the shores of Sindhu River. The word Mohenjo Daro means the Mound of the Dead. The excavations made here brought to light the remains of a great city. The city was divided into two: The citadel and the Lower Town.
The Citadel (Fortress) is on a manmade platform. This is built on the western side of the city. This is the highest part of the city. There are two reasons for its height. Firstly, it is built on higher ground. Secondly, the buildings are put up on a platform made of earthen bricks. The fortress is protected with walls around it. Therefore it looks different from the Lower Town. In the fortress, there are tall buildings. They are public buildings. They were used for special public activities. The Warehouse and the Great Bath were the main structures in the fortress.
The Warehouse was the biggest building in Mohenjo Daro. The bottom part of the Warehouse is made of bricks. They still remain there. The upper part was built with wood. It got destroyed long ago. The Warehouse was used to store the left-over grain.
The most important structure in the fortress (citadel) of Mohenjo Daro is the Great Bath. It is in rectangular shape. The pond is in the yard which is surrounded by corridors on all four sides. To get into the pond there are steps on the northern and southern sides. The bottom of the pond is made watertight using bricks and lime paste. This prevents the water from seeping down and making the pond dry.
There are rooms on 3 sides of the pond. There was a big well in one of the rooms. The water for the pond was brought from this well. There were provisions for filling the pond with water and to make the dirty water flow out into drains. Historians think that the Great Bath had a religious importance. They think that this Great Bath was used for ritual baths.
The Great Bath shows the importance the Harappans gave to cleanliness. It also shows their engineering and technical skills. The plight of Harappa was really bad. Although Harappa was the first site to be discovered, thieves took away all he bricks. This sad plight was noticed by Alexander Cunningham. He pointed out that a huge amount of bricks was taken away. Thus most of the ancient buildings were lost. But Mohenjo Daro was better protected.
Most Harappan settlements had two parts – a higher western part and a lower eastern part. The western part is called the citadel or fortress. It was protected by walls. But there are some differences in some places. In Lothal, the citadel had no walls around. But it was built very high.
The Lower Town was just below the citadel. This was also protected by walls. People lived here. Here we can see good examples of domestic architecture. The houses were made of bricks. The houses were ordered in the Grid System. The houses were built along both sides of the road, with adequate space between houses. The doors and windows were opened to face the central yard. It is believed that the yard was used for cooking and also weaving.
The houses did not have doors and windows that faced the street. All the houses had bathrooms. They were paved with bricks. The drainage system was excellent. Houses were different in size. There were single room and double room houses. There were also houses with more than two storeys. To get to the top stories there were staircases.
Big houses had wells. It was dug in a room in such a way that even outsiders could draw water from it. Experts estimate that Mohenjo Daro had some 700 wells.Houses were built on raised platforms. The settlements were well planned. The bricks were made to certain specifications. The same kind of bricks were used in most constructions.
The drainage system in the Harappan cities was excellent. The drain of each house was linked to the drainage canal outside. The drainage canals were covered with bricks or sheets of rock. In some places they covered the drainage canals with limestone slabs. It was possible to clean the canals by removing the top coverings. There were manholes in the public drainage. It is believed that the drainage was made first and then came the houses. The drainage system shows the engineering skill of the Harappan people. It shows they had a town administration. It also shows how much importance they gave to hygiene and health. The drainage system was not limited to big cities. Even the settlements in places like Lothal had drainages.
Question 31.
Prepare an essay on Albiruni based on the following hints:
♦ Kitab-ul-Hind
♦ Barriers faced by Al Biruni
♦ Description of the caste system
Answer:
Al-Biruni was born at Khwariezm in Uzbekistan. Khwariezm was an important centre of knowledge and so he got the best education possible. He was a linguist – a scholar in many languages. He knew Syriac, Arabic, Persian, Hebrew and Sanskrit. He was not familiar with Greek. But he had read the books of Plato and other Geek philosophers through Arabic translations. In 1017 Sultan Mahmud Ghazni attacked Khwarezm.
He made many people prisoners and took them to Ghazni. Al-Biruni was one of them. Although he came to Ghazni as a prisoner, he began to like the place. He entered the services of Mahmud Ghazni and remained in Ghazni until he died at the age of 70. It was in Ghazni that Al- Biruni developed an interest in India. Sanskrit work on astronomy,
mathematics, and medicine, had been translated into Arabic from the eighteenth century on wards. When the Punjab became a part of the Ghaznavid empire, contact with local popu¬lation helped to create an environment of mu¬tual trust and understanding. He spent years in the company of Brahmin priests and scholars, learning Sanskrit and studying religion and philosophical texts.
Al-Biruni’s Kitab-ul-Hind, written in Arabic, is simple and lucid. It is a voluminous text, di¬vided into 80 chapters on subjects such as religion, philosophy, festivals, astronomy, al¬chemy, manners and customs, social life, weights and measures, iconography, laws and metrology. He adopted a distinctive structure in each chapter. He began the chapter with a question. Then a description was made on the basis of Sanskrit tradition. The chapter was concluded with a comparison with other cultures.
Some present-day scholars argued that this almost geometric structure, remark¬able for its precision and predictability. It re¬flects his mathematical orientation. = Al-Biruni was conscious of the problems involved in understanding strange countries. He has mentioned three things that proved difficult:
a) The first problem was language – Sanskrit was quite different from Arabic and Persian languages. It was not easy to translate the concepts from one language into another.
b) The second problem was the differences in religions and rituals.
c) The third problem was the secluded people who were interested only in their things. They looked at foreigners with suspicion and were not willing to mingle with them freely.
Al-Biruni accepted the Class distinctions as put forward by Brahmins. But he did not approve of the untouchability practised by them. He said that things that were impure would always try to get back their purity and succeed. For example, the sun purifies the air. The salt in sea-water prevents it from getting polluted. Without this natural purification, life would be impossible on this earth. He argued that untouchability is against natural laws.
The ideas of Al,-Biruni exercised powerful influence in the study of Sanskrit books. The rules regarding Varna System were formulated favouring the Brahmins. In real life Varna was not so strict. For example, the antyaja (who were born outside the Varna System) were expected to work for the agriculturists and zamindars for small wages. Although they were socially suppressed, they were included in the economic activities.
Question 32.
Analyse the following movements held under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi.
♦ Non-Cooperation Movement
♦ Salt Satyagraha
♦ Quit India Movement
Answer:
The Non-Cooperation Movement was the first strong moment of Gandhi against the British. It was part of Gandhi’s concept of non-violence. In the beginning he co-operated with the British. But some developments in 1919 made Gandhi change his attitude. The Rowlett Acts, Jalian Wala Bagh tragedy, the Khilafat Movement etc. were some of them. The Non-Cooperation Movement had three aims:
- Find a solution to the Punjab problem.
- Solve the Khilafat issue.
- Gain swaraj.
The exhortations of Gandhiji had great effect. Students boycotted government institutions. Thousands of workers in cities and towns went on strike. Official records show that in 1921 there were 396 strikes involving 6 Iakh workers. 7 lakh working days were lost. In the Non-Cooperation Movement, women and farmers took active part. Many women came out of their purdah to take part in the protests.
- The Movement spread even to villages. The forest dwellers in Andhra Pradesh broke the forest laws. Farmers of Awadh and Bihar took part in the struggle by refusing to pay taxes. The farmers of Kumaon (Uttarakhand) refused to carry the goods of the Colonial officers.
- Often these protests were done against the instructions of regional leaders. Instead of taking orders from higher authorities, they refused to cooperate with the Colonial administration.
The Chauri-Chaura incident was big jolt to the Movement. Gandhi ‘was forced to stop the Movement. Violence in Chauri-Chaura occurred when police fired at a procession of farmers. The enraged farmers attacked the Chauri-Chaura police station and burnt it. 22 policemen were killed. This shocked Gandhiji. He realized that people were not yet ready to fight using non-violence, On 22 February 1922. he decided to withdraw the Non-Cooperation Movement. He said that no provocation would justoy The killing of the 22 policemen.
The Non-Cooperation Movement was a significant milestone. In the biography of Mahatma Gandhi, Louis Fischer (American) says that the Non-Cooperation Movement was big turning point in the history of India and also the life of Gandhi. It combined denial, sacrifice and self-control. Fischer says it was some kind of training for autonomy. The Lahore session of Indian national congress decided to start the civil disobedience movement under the leadership of Gandhi. Gandhi planned a new way of struggle against the British.
This was the Civil Disobedience Movement. He said he would start it by breaking the Salt Law. Salt Law was one of the laws that Indians hated most. This law made the making and selling of salt a government monopoly. Although each household needed salt, the government did not allow anybody to make it even for personal use. People were forced to buy salt at a high price from shops. Government also doubled the salt tax. The anger of the people increased. Gandhi knew that salt tax was more harmful to people than other taxes.
Gandhi’s move to breach the salt law was a strategic one. He knew by this he could make the people fight against the government. On 12 March 1930, Gandhiji began walking from his ashram at Sabarmati towards ocean. He reached the destination three weeks later, making fistful of salt as he did and there by making himself a criminal in the eyes of the law.
Meanwhile, parallel salt marches were conducted in other parts of India. Across large parts of India peasants breached the hated colonial forest laws. In some towns, factory workers went on strike while lawyers boycotted British courts and students refuse to attend government run-education institutions. Nearly 6000 Indians including Gandhiji were arrested.
The progress of Salt March can also be traced from another source. It is ‘Time’ an American News Magazine. In its first report ‘Time’ was doubtful whether the Salt March reach its destination. It claimed that Gandhiji sank to the ground at the end of the second day’s walking. But within a week ‘Time’ was forced to change its mind. Later they looked up on Gandhiji as a saint and statement. Salt march was notable for three reasons.
- First, it was this event that brought Ma-hatma Gandhi to world attention. It was widely covered by the European and American press.
- Second it was the first national activity in which women participated in large numbers.
- Third, it was the salt march which forced up on the British the realisation that the raj would not last forever.
The British government continued a series of Round Table Conferences in London. The first Round Table Conference was held in 1930. Gandhiji or any prominent Congress leaders did not participate in the conference. Gandhiji was released from jail in 1931 and the following month had several meetings with the victory. This led to the Gandhi Irwin Pact by the terms of which Gandhiji withdrawn.
After the failure of Cripps Mission, Gandhiji decided to start his third phase of struggle against British rule. This is known as Quit India Movement. It started in August 1942. The immediate cause of this Movement was the failure of the Cripps Mission. Gandhi demanded that the British should leave India peacefully and in a timely manner.
Congress accepted that idea. On 8 August 1942, Congress met at Bombay and passed a resoluion asking the British to quit India. The resolution made it clear that to make the British go away, a struggle would be organized under Gandhi. This struggle is known as Quit India Movement. Gandhi asked the people to come into the open with the slogan ‘Do or Die’.
a) It was a popular movement. Thousands of ordinary people came with their support. Youths were ready to quit colleges and go to jail.
b) It showed the willingness of the people to suffer for freedom and to go to any extent to achieve freedom.
c) It made the British realize that their days were numbered. It forced them to negotiate the transfer of power.
d) It brought world’s attention to the Indian struggle for freedom.