Teachers recommend solving Kerala Syllabus Plus One History Previous Year Question Papers and Answers Pdf September 2021 to improve time management during exams.
Kerala Plus One History Previous Year Question Paper September 2021.
Time: 21/2 Hours
Maximum: 80 Sores
Question 1.
Match column ‘A’ with appropriate items from Column ‘B’. (4 × 1 = 4)
| A | B |
| The Mule | Richard Arkwright |
| The Powerloom | James Hargreaves |
| The Waterframe | Samuel Crompton |
| The Spinning Jenny | Edmund Cartwright |
Answer:
| A | B |
| The Mule | Samuel Crompton |
| The Powerloom | Edmund Cartwright |
| The Waterframe | Richard Arkwright |
| The Spinning Jenny | James Hargreaves |
Question 2.
Choose the correct answerfrom the alternative given below: (8 x 1 = 8)
(a) The founder of the Urnayyad dynasty:
(A) Hussain
(B) Muawiyya
(C) Abbas
(D) Ali
Answer:
(B) Muawiyya
(b) Who wrote ‘Shahnama’?
(A) Masudi
(B) Firdausi
(C) Tabari
(D) Baladhuri
Answer:
(B) Firdausi
(c) The Capital of the Abbasids:
(A) Damascus
(B) Baghdad
(C) Bukhara
(D) Samarqand
Answer:
(B) Baghdad
(d) Who was the first to dissect the human body?
(A) Donatel lo
(B) Andreas Vesalius
(C) Cicero
(D) Petrarch
Answer:
(B) Andreas Vesalius
(e) Who designed the Duomo of Florence?
(A) Michelangelo
(B) Dante Alighieri
(C) Giotto
(D) Filippo Brunelleschi
Answer:
(D) Filippo Brunelleschi
(f) The Padua university is situated in:
(A) Haly
(B) Belgium
(C) China
(d) Greece
Answer:
(A) Haly
(g) Who devoped wrought iron from pg-iron?
(A) John Wilkinson
(B) Abraham Darby-II
(C) Henry Cort
(D) John Kay
Answer:
(B) Abraham Darby-II
(h) WhoisregardedasthefounderofModemChina?
(A) Chiang Kai-shek
(B) Deng Xiaoping
(C) Sun-Yat-Sen
(D) Kemal Ataturic
Answer:
(C) Sun-Yat-Sen
Choose the correct answer from the alternative given below: (8 × 1 = 8)
Question 3.
The founder of the Urnayyad dynasty:
(A) Hussain
(B) Muawiyya
(C) Abbas
(D) Ali
Answer:
- Sun Yat Sen established a Republic in China (1911).
- Formation of the Chinese Communist Party (1921).
- The Long March (1934).
- Formation of the Peoples Republic in China (1949).
Question 4.
Mark any four among the following on the outline map of the World provided: (4 × 1 = 4)
(a) Mediterranean Sea
(b) Sahara Desert
(c) Rome
(d) Spain
(e) Medina
Answer:
a) Mediterranean sea
b) Sahara desert
c) Rome
d) Spain
e) Medina
f) Egypt
Answer any 6 questions from 5 to 15. Each carries 2 scores. (6 × 2 = 12)
Question 5.
Mention the features of Hominoids.
Answer:
Smaller brains – quadrupeds – flexible forelimbs
Question 6.
Write any two features of Hominids.
Answer:
Bigger brain – Upright posture walking on two ledgs – specialisation in the use of hands.
Question 7.
Write a brief note on Quiriltai.
Answer:
Assembly of chiefs – In 1206 Yasa was declared in Quiriltai.
Question 8.
Explain what is Yasa.
Answer:
The memories of Genghiskhan were cherished by his successors. It was his Yassa (Law) that helped him to be remembered by posterity. In the Assembly of Chiefs (Quriltai) in 1206 Genghis Khan declared his Yassa. It contained administrative controls and laws regarding the organization of hunting, army and postal system. By the middle of the 13th century the Mongols began to use the word Yassa to mean the “Laws of Genghis Khan”. Thus the Yassa of Genghis Khan helped him in keeping memory alive.
Question 9.
What is Humanism?
Answer:
Humanists gave importance to ways of good conduct. They suggested how people should talk politely and dress decently. They also pointed out the characteristics a cultured person should have. Humanism taught that people have the capacity to make a good life even without power and wealth. It taught that human nature had different aspects and some of them were against the three special aspects which the feudal society thought essential for attaining a satisfactory life.
Question 10.
Describe the term ‘Renaissance man’.
Answer:
The term Renaissance Man is used to mean a person with different interests and capabilities. It was a common term used for showing that a person is an exceptional one. Since the famous people or the geniuses of those times came from different countries, this term was used to refer to any one of them. The leaders of Renaissance were people that were simultaneously experts in scholarship, diplomacy, theology and art.
Question 11.
Write any two features of Renaissance architecture.
Answer:
In the Renaissance period, there lived some geniuses who were equally proficient in painting, sculpture and architecture. The most important among them was Michelangelo (1475-1564). The pictures he drew on the ceiling of Sistine Chapel, the sculpture of Pieta, and the dome of the St. Peter’s Basilica which he planned, etc. made him immortal. Another person who was a genius in sculpture and architecture was Filippo Brunelleschi. It was he who drew the plan for the exceptional dome of the Florence Cathedral. There was a significant change at this time. Until now, an artist was known as a member of some guild of artists. But from the Renaissance Period, they ^ were known by their personal names.
Question 12.
What istheCopernican Revolution?
Answer:
It was Copernican, from Poland, who changed the Christian concept about the Universe which was prevalent until then. He started an astronomical revolution. He presented his views about the Universe in his famous book “De Revolutionibus” which means on the revolutions. Copernicus theorized that the sun is the centre of the solar system and the earth and other planets revolve round the sun. This is known as the Heliocentric Theory. The theory of Copernicus was approved by people only after a long time. It was Galileo and Kepler, two famous scientists, who took his theory forward to its perfection.
Johannes Kepler (1571-1630), a German scientist, popularised the idea that the earth was a mere part of the solar system. He wrote this in his famous book “Cosmographic Mystery”. He also proved that the planets revolve round the sun not in a circular manner but in an elliptical course. This revolution in science reached its climax with Issac Newton’s theory of gravitation.
Question 13.
What is Luddism?
Answer:
Luddism was a Movement that was started against industrialization. Workers who thought that machines were the cause of all their troubles started this movement with the plan of destroying them. This Movement was begun under General Nell Ladd. England suppressed this moment by using the army. Luddism was not a movement that merely wanted to destroy machines. The members of this group demanded minimum wages. They also wanted to stop the exploitation of women and children in the factories and other work places. They were interested in the formation of labour organizations.
Question 14.
Write any two consequences of Industrial Revolution.
Answer:
a) The Industrial Revolution brought many changes in the life of people. Though it brought ease and comfort to one section of the people, it brought misery and pain to some others. Rich persons invested money in different industries to reap profits. Their income increased dramatically because of proper use of goods, services, knowledge and productivity. But industrialization and urbanization adversely affected common people. Families were separated, cities became crowded and dirty, and the terrible work conditions in the factories made people suffer.
In 1750, in England there were only two cities that had more than 50,000 people. By 1850, this increased to 29. The speed of this growth did not reflect in the life of people. They did not have proper places to live and sanitation facilities. Not even enough drinking water was available. Persons newly coming to the cities were forced to live in the slums in, or close to, the cities. But the rich people built their second homes in villages which were free from pollution.
Workers: A survey done in 1842 revealed that the longevity of the workers (labourers) in the city was less than those of others. The average life expectancy of workers was 15 years in Birmingham, 17 in Manchester and 21 in Derby. This was because in cities many children died at a very young age. Many died even before they reached 5. The increase in the city population was because of migration from the rural areas and not because of increased birth rates there.
Workers died prematurely mainly because of contagious diseases. Cholera and typhoid that came as the result of water pollution and tuberculosis that spread through the atmosphere killed many. In a cholera epidemic in 1832, more than 31,000 workers died. Until the end of the 19th century, the municipal authorities ignored these dangerous circumstances. There was also no medical expertise to diagnose and treat these diseases.
Women, Children and Industrialization: One of the worst outcomes of industrialization was the exploitation of women and children. Children of poor parents had to work in the fields and also at home. They worked under strict supervision from their parents or relatives. The village women had to work in the field. They grew cattle and gathered wood. They also made thread using looms.
In the factories of the city, women and children were made to work. The work here was quite different from the work in villages. They had to work in factories and mines for long periods without rest and under strict supervision. They were punished severely for any little mistakes they made. The income from the women and children were needed for meeting the expenses of the family as the men earned very little as they had low wages.
Even when the use of machines became widespread, employers preferred women and children to do the work because they had to be paid much mess than men. The women and children would not protest against bad working conditions. In the cotton industries of Lancashire and Yorkshire, plenty of women and children were employed. In silk- making, brocade making and sewing, women were the main workers. In the iron industry at Birminghm also they worked along with children.
Children were made to labour hard. Machines like the spinning jenny were made in such a way that children with small bodies and fast fingers could work them. Since children could move in between the many thickly laid machines in the factory, they were preferred in the cotton mills. Even on Sundays they had to work cleaning the machines. Thus they were denied rest and even clean air. Accidents were common in the factories. Some even died in factories as they fell on to the machines being tired and sleepy.
The work in the mneswas also dangerous. Accidents were usual there. These were caused by the upper portions of the mines crumbling or because of the explosions camed out there. Mine owners employed children to draw the carts filled with coal along the underground rails. Since entrances were narrow and small, children were preferred by the cruel owners. The children carried loads of coal. Working in the mines was looked upon as training for working in the factories. Evidences from the factory records show that there were children of even less than ten years working there.
It is true that the self-confidence and economic situation of the working women were better. But the adverse circumstances in which they worked, the children they lost at birth or infancy, and the dirty slums in which they were forced to live spoiled the little satisfaction they got from the wages they earned.
Question 15.
Point out any two features of the life of the native peoples of North America.
Answer:
As each new European settlement developed in America, the indigenes were forced to withdraw from their land. They withdrew after signing agreements showing that they had sold their lands. They were given only petty sums for ttjeir land. The Europeans often offered bigger amounts to the indigenes but actually gave them only smaller sums when the signing was done and thus they cheated the indigenes. Even the people in authority did not feel anything wrong in getting the land from the indigenes by questionable methods. The indigenes did not give up their land without a fight. Between 1865 and 1890, the US army had to suppress a series of riots. Around this time the Metis in Canada made an armed conflict. Later they gave up their armqd struggle.
Answer any 2 questions from 16 to 21. Each carries 3 scores. (2 × 3 = 6)
Question 16.
Write any three ways by which early humans obtained food.
Answer:
The early people got their food by gathering, hunting, taking the flesh from dead animals and fishing. They gathered vegetarian products like seeds, kernel of nuts, fruits and roots. Some people believe that they stored food but for this there is no clear proof. Although there are many fossils of bones, the fossils of vegetarian stuff have been rare. Remnants of plants and trees that have been burned down by sudden fire last for quite a long time, but archaeologists have not yet found such fossils.
It is natural that the early people collected the flesh of dead animals or the remnants of animals killed by carnivorous beasts. Early hominids ate mammals like rats and squirrels, birds and their eggs, crawling creatures and even insects like termites.
Question 17.
Write a short note on the life of the Arawakian Lucayos.
Answer:
In the Caribbean Sea there are hundreds of small islands. They are known as Bahamas, Greater Antilles and Lesser Antilles. On these islands the community called Arawaks or Arawakian Lucayans lived. The violent tribe called Caribs drove away the Arawaks from the Lesser Antilles. Arawaks were peace-loving people. They preferred co-operation to competition. They were experts in making boats. They travelled in the open sea in small wooden boats. They lived by hunting, fishing and farming. They cultivated corn, sweet potatoes, some other root crops and tapioca.
The Arawaks practised joint farming. Thus they tried to feed everyone in the community. This was their highest cultural value. They organized themselves under the elders in the community. Polygamy was common among them. They were animists. Animism (from Latin anima, “breath, spirit, life”1) is the view that entities in nature—such as animals, plants, and often even inanimate objects—possess a spiritual essence. The ‘shaman’ (the priest) had a big role in their lives. The shamans worked as healers and as intermediaries between this world and the supernatural world.
Arawaks used golden ornaments. But they were not aware of the value of gold. They would gladly exchange their golden ornaments with the cheap crystal chains of the Europeans. The shine and beauty of the crystal chain was more important to them! They were good weavers. The art of weaving had developed nicely among them. Their swing beds made of coir was a big attraction to the Europeans.
Question 18.
Explain the reasons for the beginning of Industrial Revolution in Britain.
Answer:
Industrial Revolution started in Britain. There are many factors that helped Britain to become the first industrial nation.
a) Political stability : As England, Wales and Scotland came together under a single king, there has been political stability in Britain since the 17th century. The country had common laws and a unified currency system. The market in the country had a national character. Since regional authorities did not impose taxes on goods, there was no price increase. This kind of political stability helped Britain.
b) Wide use of money : Since the 17th century, money had been used extensively as a means of transaction. With this, a lot of people began to get cash as wages and salaries instead of goods. By using this cash, people could buy any goods of their choice. This enlarged the market and it helped the Industrial Revolution.
c) The Influence of the Agricultural Revolution : Prior to the Industrial Revolution, there was an agricultural revolution in Britain. Big landowners bought the small pieces around them and enclosed the fields with fences. Thus there were big estates which helped in the increased production of foodstuff. The people who earned their livelihood by grazing cattle in the open fields could not continue to do so and they became jobless. They went into the big cities seeking jobs. By providing raw materials and labour, the agricultural revolution helped the Industrial Revolution.
d) Cities, trade and wealth : The growth of cities and trade and the availability of wealth helped the Industrial Revolution. From the 1891 century, cities have been growing in Europe. Out of the 19 metropolises, 11 were in Britain. London was the biggest. London became a centre of all markets in the country.
Question 19.
How did the ‘Gold Rush’ lead to the growth of industries in America?
Answer:
There was always the hope there were gold deposits in North America. In the 1840s, in California, some gold deposits were discovered. This led to the Gold Rush. In the hope of reaping fortunes, many Europeans went to America. This caused railways to be built across the American mainland. Using thousands of Chinese labourers, America completed the work of the railways in 1870. In 1885, the railway network in Canada was also completed.
Question 20.
Evaluate the economic development of Australia under European Settlement?
Answer:
Sheep farms – Mines – Labourers – Canberra
Question 21.
What are the three principles of Sun-Yat-Sen?
Answer:
Nationalism – Democracy – Socialism
Answer any four questions from 22 to 30. Each carries 4 scores.
Question 22.
Point out the differences between Australopithecus and Homo.
Answer:
| Australopithecus | Homo |
| Southern Ape | Human being |
| Small brain | Big brain |
| Jaw projecting much | Jaw projecting only |
| outward | a little outward |
| Huge teeth | Small teeth |
| Forest dwellers | Lived in the grassy plains |
Question 23.
Examine the legacy of Mesopotamians in Time reckoning and Mathematics.
Answer:
The Mesopotamians gave great contributions in the realm of science. In fact their contributions in the scientific area can be ascribed to their writing. For science, written material is necessary. Only then future generations of scholars can read it, understand it and improve it.
The Mesopotamians have made great contributions in calendar-making, to fix time of things, and mathematics.
In Mathematics they discovered multiplication, division, square, square root and compound interest. Some clay slates where these things are recorded havebeen discovered. The square root they discovered differs only very slightly from the actual one.
Based on the rotation of the moon around the earth, a year was divided into 12 months, a month was The Peace of God movement in Europe also made the circumstances rife for the Crusades. This Movement divided into 4 weeks, and a day was divided into 24 hours, and an hour was divided into 60 minutes. This was a Mesopotamian discovery. Thus the calendar which was based on the lunar movement has been approved and accepted by the whole world.
Question 24.
Elucidate the third century crisis in the Roman Empire.
Answer:
The Third century brought the first major signs of internal strain in Rome. From the 230s, th empire found itself fighting on several fronts simultaneously. The Romans were forced to abandon much of the territery while the emperors of this period were constantly fighting against ‘barbarians’. The rapid succession of emperors in the third century is an obvious symptom of the strains faced by the empire in this period.
Question 25.
Analyse the reasons and impact of the Crusades.
Answer:
The main goal of the Crusades was recapturing Jerusalem which is the holy land of the Christians. Christians believe that the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus took place here. Thus Jerusalem is their most holy land. Jerusalem was once part of the Byzantine Empire. In 638, the Arabs captured it. But the Christians were given full protection by them. There was no ban on visiting places including Jerusalem by Christian merchants, pilgrims, diplomats, and travellers. But in 1076, Seljuk Turks captured Jerusalem and from then they started persecuting the Christians there. This increased the enmity of Christians towards Muslims. Many Normans, Hungarians and Slavs became- Christians around this time. Muslims were the only rivals of Christians. recognized and encouraged the fight against the enemies of the Christian Gqpl and non¬believers in Christianity.
The Crusaders gradually lost their zeal. They gave themselves to a life of luxury. Moreover Christian rulers began to fight among themselves to get more territory. In the meantime Salah ad-din (Saladin) built an Egyptian-Syrian Empire and gave a call for Jihad (holy war) against Christians. In 1187 he defeated the Crusaders and recaptured Jerusalem. Thus one century after the first Crusade, Jerusalem again came under the Turks: Saladin treated the Christians quite humanely. They allowed them to keep the area of the sepulchre of Jesus. But, at the same time, he converted many Christian Churches into mosques. Once again Jerusalem became as Muslim city.
The 3rd Crusade took place in 1189. It was the loss of the city of Jerusalem that prompted the Pope to give a call for another battle. In this war, the Crusaders did not get much benefit. They were able to capture some cities along the shores of Palestine. Christian pilgrims were given the right to visit Jerusalem at will. But in 1291 the Mamluks of Egypt, the rulers there, drove away all the Crusaders from Palestine. Europe slowly lost its interest in the Crusades. European nations began to give emphasis to their internal political and cultural development.
Question 26.
Explain the Military organisation of Genghis Khan.
Answer:
All the healthy males among the Mongols carried arms. In times of need they served as army, in short, the Mongolian army was small and uni-tribal. But with the unification of the different Mongolian tribes and with the wars with different peoples, there were changes in the nature and structure of Genghis Khan’s army. The army became big and multi-tribal. In the army there were soldiers who accepted the authority of Genghis Khan willingly, like the Turkic Uyghurs and the defeated the people like the Keraits. Genghis Khan unified the different tribes of Mongols and made them into a confederacy. He tried to destroy the earlier tribal identities of these tribes.
Genghis Khan organized his army on the decimal basis. The units were in multiples of 10. (10, 100, 1000,10000, etc.)
Genghis Khan stopped the old tribal groupings inthe army and distributed thier members into new military units. An individual who tried to move from his allotted group without permission received harsh punishment. The largerst units of soldiers were 10,000. He altered the old steppe social order integrating different lineages and clans.
Question 27.
Illustrate the factors affecting social and economic relations during the feudal period.
Answer:
A) Agriculturists worked for their lords and in return got military protection. The nobles (lords) had extensive legal rights over the farmers. Thus feudalism was widespread not only in the economic field but also in the social and political field. From the 11th century there had been considerable growth in agriculture and people greater longevity than before. The population increased and the prosperity made cities grow richer. The farmers had surplus produce and they needed a market to sell their extra crops. Then people met and made arrangements for buying and selling things. There were provisions to buy the tools and the clothes they needed. There are evidences to show that there were changes in the technology by the 11th century.
Farmers began to use ploughs and flat boards made of iron. These ploughs could make the furrow deeper and the flat boards could level the field to suit the needs of cultivation. This helped in the better use of soil fertility.
There were changes in the manner in which the animals were connected the ploughs. Instead tying the plough to their necks, it was now connected to their shoulders. This helped the animals to use their strength in a better way.
1. The horseshoes prevented the horses from getting diseases of the hoof.
2. There was increase in the use of energy from wind and water. All over Europe there were mills that worked with water or wind power for grinding the grins and squeezing out the juice from grapes or apples.
3. There were revolutionary changes in the use of land. Instead cultivating the fields at two stages, farmers started cultivating at three stages.
4. Farmers divided their fields into 3. One field was used for cultivating wheat and such autumnal crops for their consumption. During spring the second field was used for cultivating oats and barley. The third field was left barren. Each year this field was used for cultivating the things they needed more. With these innovating methods there was increase in food production.
Rich farmers contributed a lot of money to the Church. From the 12th century huge churches known as cathedrals were built in France. They belonged to the ashrams or monasteries. Building cathedrals took many years. Even as the cathedral was being built the area around it became crowded and by the time the cathedrals were completed they became big pilgrimage spots. Small towns began to grow around them and they were known as cathedral towns.
Question 28.
Examine the crisis of the Fourteenth Century in Europe.
Answer:
Because of reduced prices of agricultural products and increased wages, the income of the landlords was seriously reduced. The landlords then wanted to cancel their agreertients with the peasants. The peasants then rose in revolt. There were revolts in Flanders (1323), France (1358) and England (1381). The peasant revolts were cruelly suppressed. Still they have their importance. The peasants showed that they were not ready to give up the benefits theyhad. The use of money had increased so much that a going back was not possible.
The biggest political change was the rise of despotic kingships. In the 15th and 16th centuries, the European kings increased their military and economic power. They built new powerful nations. Historians call these kings as “New Kings”. Louis XIV of France, Maximilian of Austria, Henry VII of England and Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain were the most prominent among them. They were the pioneers in making strong armies, a stable bureaucracy and collection of national taxes. In Europe, Spain had a big role in the trade conducted via the Sea.
Question 29.
Write a note on the features of Aztec Society.
Answer:
The Aztecs: Aztec culture is centred round Mexico. In the 12th century, the Aztecsfrom the north migrated to the main valley of Mexico. By defeating the various tribes there, they built a large empire. From the defeated people tljey also collected tributes.
The Aztec society was hierarchical. There were different classes in the society. The most important of them were the nobles or lords. Priests and other high officials belonged to this class. Hereditary nobles were a small minority. They occupied the highest posts in the government, army and priesthood. The nobles chose an able man from among themselves as their leader and he continued to be the king till he died. The king was supposed to be representative of the sun on earth.
Warriors and priests were the most respected people in the society. Merchants were given a lot of concessions. Skilled and competent workers, doctors and intelligent teachers were also respected. Since the land was limited, the Aztecs tried to make it as fertile as they could. They also built artificial islands (Chinampas) by weaving mats from bamboo and covering them with earth for cultivating plants. In between these fertile islands they built canals. In 1325, the Aztecs built their capital city Tenochtitlan in the middle of a lake. There were palaces and pyramids there. Since the Aztecs were often engaged in battle, their temples were dedicated to war gods and sun-god.
Question 30.
Give an account of the Incas of Peru.
Answer:
The Incas of Peru : Among the local civilizations of South America, the biggest and the best is the Inca culture of Peru. The Incas belong to a class called Quechua. Their language is also Quechua. Inca means the emperor who rules of the land. The capital of Inca was a city named Cuzco. In the 12th century, the first emperor Manco Capac founded that city. The expansion of the empire began during the period of the 9th Inca. The empire spread from Ecuador to Chile, some 3000 miles. The Inca Empire was highly centralized. The source of authority was the emperor.
Newly defeated tribes were successfully integrated with the empire. Each subject was to speak the language of the royal court, Quechua. The tribal administration was done by a Council or Elders. The Tribes owed their loyalty to the rulers. Regional rulers gave the emperor military help. For this cooperation they were adequately rewarded. The basis of Inca culture was agriculture. Since the soil was less fertile, they made layers on the sides of hills and developed irrigation facilities. The Incas cultivated on a large scale. In 1500 they had more cultivation than what they have today. Their main crops were corn and potatoes. Another important occupation of the Incas was animal husbandry. They grew a special kind of goats called lama goats which they used for meat as well as for work.
Answer any 2 questions from 31 to 36. Each carries 5 scores. (2 × 5 = 10)
Question 31.
Explain the replacement and regional continuity models of human origin.
Answer:
Regional Continuity Model: This model says that modern people originated in different places. The early homo sapiens in many places slowly evolved as modem people and that is why the modern people in various parts of the world look different from one another at first sight. The regional differences in the features of people are the basis for such a view.
Replacement Model: This model says that modern man originated in Africa. The spokesmen of this model say that modem people appeared in place of the old species of people everywhere. As evidence to their claim, they put forward the hereditary and anatomical similarity of modern people. This model points out that modern people are qaite similar everywhere because they originated in the same place – Africa. The first fossils of modem people were discovered from Omo in Ethiopia. This evidence substantiates the Replacement Model.
Question 32.
Evaluate the chief features of the city of Mari in Mesopotamia.
Answer:
Mari was the royal capital. The Kings of Mari were Amorites. They dressed differently from the local people. They worshipped gods of Mesopotamia. At the same time in Mari they built a temple for Bhagan who is the god pf the plains.
The kings of Mari had to be very alert. Although they allowed shepherds of different tribes to move about in their country, they were watched carefully. The correspondence between the kings and the officials frequently mentions the camps of these shepherds.
One official wrote to the king about the fire signals in the nights by which the camps were exchanged. He doubted this might be a warning about some impending attacks. Mari was situated on the bank of Euphrates between the South and mineral rich Turkey-Syria-Lebanon. Mari was a trade centre. Things brought in boats through the Euphrates River were bought and sold here. They included timber, copper, white lead, oil and wine. Mari is an example of a city that progresses well because of trade.
Question 33.
Describe the system of writing developed by the Mesopotamians.
Answer:
Mesopotamians wrote on clay slates. The writer kneads clay and makes it into a size that he can hold in one hand. The surface would be smoothened. Using a special kind of sharp stiletto he makes wedge-shaped letter marks on the smooth surface. This is called cuneiform writing. After that the clay slate is dried in the sunt This way the clay slates become permanent like clay pots. These slates couldn’t be used again for writing other things. By 2600 BCE, the letters became cuneiform and the language was Sumerian. Writing was now used not only for keeping records but also for making dictionaries, giving legal validity to land transfers, narrating the deeds of kings, etc.
Question 34.
Write an account of the Abbasid Revolution.
Answer:
The Umayyads succeeded in decentralizing the Islamic political and administrative structure. But they had to pay a heavy price forthat. In 750, a group called Dawa oysted the Umayyads from power and installed the Abbasids on the throne. The Abbasid family was a rich one in Mecca. They pictured the Umayyad rule as misrule and assured the people that they would bring back the real Islam preached by the Prophet. The Abbasid revolt caused changes not only in the ruling dynasty, but also in the political structure and Islamic culture.
Question 35.
Bring out the features of the Protestant Reformation.
Answer:
Religious reform movement was started in Germany. The leader of this movement was a young priest named Martin Luther (1433-1546). He started strong propaganda against the vices and evil practices that were rampant in the Catholic Church at that time. He argued that there was no need for an intermediary between an individual and God. He asked his followers to rely entirely on God. He taught that only good faith and would lead them to a good life and to heaven.
The religious reform movement caused a split in the Catholic Church. The Churches in Germany and Switzerland ended all their relations with the Catholic Church and the Pope. The people who went out of the Catholic Church were named “Protestants” as they protested against the Church. The ideas of Luther were propagated in Switzerland by Ulrich Zwingl (1484-1534). Later John Calvin (1509-64) gave a Strong leadership to the Protestant Movement there.
The reformers had the support of merchants. Therefore they got great support in the cities. But in the rural areas, the Catholic Church was able to maintain its supremacy. Among the German reformists there were also the Anabaptists who wanted radical changes in Christianity. They considered the concept of heaven as freedom from all kinds of social persecutions. Anabaptists argued that since all people were created equal there was no need for anybody to pay taxes. They also taught that people should have the right to elect their own priests. The farmers who were suffering under the feudal lords were deeply impressed by these new ideas and they welcomed them.
The farmers of Germany who were inspired by the ideas of Luther and Anabaptists organised strong protests against their persecutors. But Luther was not in agreement with those who wanted radical changes. So he exhorted the German rulers to suppress the peasant revolts. In 1525, with the support of Luthe br, the protests were successfully suppressed.
But Radicalism survived all these oppositions. In France the radicals joined with the Protestants. The Catholic authorities in France were cruelly persecuting the Protestants there. The Protestants argued that they have a right to remove the Persecutor and elect a new person according to the will of the people. Following this, France also, like other European countries, recognized the Protestant religion.
The Catholic Church allowed the Protestants to have their own way of worship. In England also there was a reform movement. The rulers of England ended all their relations with the Pope. The King or Queen of England became the Head of the Church there. To face the Protestant Revolt, the Catholic Church began to bring in reforms. These efforts of the Church to reform itself are collectively called Counter Reformation. The priests of Spain and Italy stressed the importance of living simple lives and serving the poor. are called Jesuits. Their goal was to serve the poor and enlarge their knowledge of other faiths.
Question 36.
Point out the consequences of the Geographical explorations.
Answer:
Geographical discoveries definitely had far-reaching impacts on Europe, the Americas and Africa. From the 15th century, some sea routes from Ocean to Ocean were known. But most of these routes were quite unknown to the Europeans. Not even a single ship had ever reached the Caribbean or the Americas. In the Southern Atlantic, nobody had done any exploration. No ship entered there or travelled toward the Pacific or Indian Ocean. But by the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th, all this became old stories. Adventurous navigators reached all these places.
The discovery of the Amen cas had big repercussions on Europe. The flow of silver and gold from the newly discovered regions helped international trade and industrialization. Between 1500 and 1600, each year hundreds of ships loaded with silver from South American mines reached Spain. But neither Spain nor Portugal made use of it for their internal development or welfare of the common people. They used it to develop trade or to build their naval power.
But England, France, Belgium and Holl,d benefited from the discoveries. Their merchants formed joint stock companies and started trade trips. They established colonies in the newly discovered regions and brought new-world products like tobacco, potato. sugar, coco, pepper and rubber into Europe. Soon the American produce became familiar to theEuropeans. The Europeans then took them to places like India. Geographical discoveries were ruinous to the indigenous people of the Americas. Many of the local people there were killed. Their.culture and life-styles were destroyed. They had to work like slaves in mines, estates and mills.
Before the coming of the Europeans there were some 70 million indigenes in the Amencas. After a century and a half, their number was reduced to 3.5 million. It was wars and diseases that destroyed them. In the duel between ancient American and European cultures the Aztec-Inca cultures were completely wined. Europeans used a war strategy which terrified the local eople psychologically and physically. This also showed the differences in their values. The local eople did not realize the depth of the greed of the Spaniards for gold and silver.
Answer any 2 questions from 37 to 40. Each carries 8 scores. (2 × 8 = 16)
Question 37.
Mention the important features of the Roman Empire: Areas to be considered:
(a) Social hierarchies
(b) Late antiquity
Answer:
In the Roman society there were different social groups. Historian Tacitus divides the main social groups into 5:
a) The Senatois(Paters)
b) The top dass cavalry men (Equites)
C) The Respectable Middle Class
e) The Lower Class people who were interested in circus and cdourful shows (Plebs sordida or humiores).
e) aves
Late antiquity means the final and fasinating period in the evolution and the breakup of the Roman emre and refers broadly to the fourth to seventh centuries. During the time of Constantine, there were revolutionary changes in the religious life of the peoe In the Empire. He made Christianity the official religion of the empire. In the 7’ century Islam came Into being. There were great changes in the structure of the nation. It was Diodetian (244-305) who brought changes here.
The large aeas created admirstrattve inconveniences and therefore Diocletian took steps to solve the problem. He reduced the size of his Empire by removing the strategically and economically unimportant regions. He protected the boundaries by building fortresses. He reorganized the provincial boundaries. He exempted citizens from military service. The Duces (amy commanders) were given autonomy.
Question 38.
Summarise the contributions of Islam in the fields of learning and culture.
Hints:
(a) Sufism
(b) Literary works
(c) Architecture
Answer:
The rise of Sufism was an important event in the history of Islam in the Middle Ages. It is a reformist movement that was influenced by the Holy Quran and the life of the Prophet. The Sufis tried to understand God through asceticism and mysticism. They denied the love of luxury shown by the society. They rejected such a world placing their faith in God. The Sufis were mystics and believed in Pantheism. They gave importance to love and prayer.
Pantheism is the belief in one God and his creations. It means man’s soul should ultimately reach the Creator. Deep love for God is the main means becoming one with God. It was a lady ascetic called Rabia in Basra who propagated this idea. She lived in the 9th century. She propagated the love of God through her poems.
It was an Iranian Sufi Bayasid Bisthami that taught the importance of man’s soul getting united with God. To get bliss and to raise emotions of love and devotion the Sufis used musical rhythms like Qawwali. Anybody, without any distinction of religion, status or gender could accept Sufism. Dhul nun al-Misri (his tomb can be seen near the Pyramid of Egypt even now) in 861, declared like this before the Abbasid.Khalifa: “I learned true Islam from an old woman, real virtues from a water carrier.” This shows there were no class differences in Sufism. Sufism made religion a personal thing and it posed a serious challenge to Islam.
Islamic philosophers and scientist came out with a parallel view about God and the universe. This was caused because of the influence of Greek vision and science. Even in the 7th century, the influence of the Greek culture was visible in the Byzantine-Nasanian empires. In the schools in Alexandria, Syria and Mesopotamia along with other subjects Greek vision, mathematics and medicines were taught. To translate books in Greek and Syriac-Aramaic into Arabic, the Umayyad-Abbasid Khalifas had employed Christian scholars. During the time of Al-Mamun, translation was an organized activity.
The works of Aristotle, Euclid’s “Elements”, Ptolemy’s “Almagest” etc. had attracted the attention of Arab scholars. Indian books on astronomy, mathematics and medicines were translated into Arabic. These books reached Europe and kindled their interest in philosophy and science.
The studies of new subjects encouraged critical research. It affected the intellectual life of the Islamic people. Scholars in groups like Mutazila used Greek rhetoric and logical reasoning to speak against some tenets of Islam. Ibn Sina who was a medical man and a philosopher did not believe in the resurrection of the body on the Day of Judgment. Although supporters of divine theology opposed his views, his medical books were widely read. The most important of his books was “Canon of Medicine”. It describes 760 types of medicines and the importance of diet. It also describes the influence of climate and environment in our health and also the contagious nature of some diseases. “Canon of Medicine” was used as a text in the medical schools of Europe. There Ibn Sina was known as Avicenna. His books were read by people like Omar Khayyam who was a great poet and scientist.
The Islamic Societies of the Middle Ages have given great contributions to the growth of language and literature. Language and creative imagination of a person were seen as the highest qualities in him. These qualities raise him to cultural sanctity. Creative s writings were often a mix of prose and poetry. The epics the poets of the Abbasid period wrote eulogizing the rulers and their achievements are famous. Poets of Persian origin often challenged the cultural dominance of the Arabs.
Abu Nawas, a poet of Persian origin, composed some classic poems praising wine and homosexuality, which are prohibited by Islam, opening up new realms of poetic enjoyment. Poets that came after Abu Nawas continued in the tradition of praising masculinity. Sufis followed the tradition by writing poems praising mystic love.
At the start of the 11,h century, Ghazni became the centre of Persian literary life. Naturally, poets were attracted to royal court there. The rulers knew the importance of encouraging art and knowledge for increasing their prestige. Around Mahmud Ghazni there was a group of poets. They wrote many epics and published anthologies. In the catalogue of Ibn Nadum, a book seller, there are the names of many books for moral education and also for entertaining people. The oldest of these is ‘Kalila wa Dimna’. This is an Arabic version of our Panchtantra in which animals are the characters. There are famous ptories in which Alexander and Sinbad are the heroes.
“One Thousand Nights” is another famous book. This is a collection of stories that Scheherazade told her husband each night. This was written in Indo-Persian and it was translated into Arabic in the 8lh century. Later more stories were added to this volume. The stories here depict different kinds of people generous, stupid, cheated, cunning – and they are good for reading and teaching many good things. In “Book of Misers”, Al Jahiz, an author from Basra, writes about misers and their interesting stories. From the 9th century the cultural dimensions began to increase.
Biographies, moral codes, books of politics, history and geography began to be included in the cultural expansion. The tradition of historiography was very much in progress in literate Muslim societies. Scholars, students and ordinary people read history books. The study of history was important as far as the rulers and bureaucrats were concerned. They depicted a good picture of the ruler and his family and his achievements.
Geography and travel was an important aspect of culture. The knowledge from Greek, Iranian and Indian books and the observations of travellers and merchants were collected together. Mathematical geography divided the inhabited earth into 7 regions. The position of each city was astronomically determined. The geographical book “The Best Divisions for the Knowledge of Regions” by Al Muqaddasi is a comparative study of the countries and peoples of the world. Al Masoodi’s “Golden Meadows” correlates history and geography. Al
Biruni’s “History of India” is an attempt to look beyond the Islamic world and to study the value of another culture. By the 10th century, an Islamic world came up. Religious buildings are the external symbols of this world. Mosques and mausoleums and tombs are the most important of them. These building which spread from Spain to Central Asia are built in the same pattern. Arcs, domes, minarets, open yards in the centre, etc. are features of this architectural style. Inns where caravans rested, hospitals and palaces were built in the same style as the mosques and mausoleums. The Umayyads had built ‘desert palaces’ in deserts. Examples are Khirbat al Mafjar of Palestine and Quseir Amra of Jordan.
They were luxurious rest houses. The palaces which were built in Roman-Sassanian architectural style were adorned by statues, coloured stones, and portraits of people. The Abbasids built a new royal city in Samara. It was built amidst gardens and streams. It is described in many stories and in the various legends and myths about Harun al Rasheed. The palace of the Abbasid Khalifas in Baghdad and the palace of the Fatimids in Cairo are no more. We can only read about them in literary works.
In the history of the Islamic nations in the Middle Ages three levels of human culture converge. In the 7th century, we can see these three – religion, community and nation converging. In the next 5- centuries, these levels separate. As we enter the modern era, we can see the influence of Islam lessening in nation and government. We can see that many subjects handled by politics are pot religiously sanctioned. The Muslim Community is one in followingthe Sharia laws in personal matters and conventions. Efforts are being made everywhere to modernise the Muslim communities. Some thinkers and the Sufism were trying to do that.
Question 39.
Analyse the features of the three orders of feudalism.
(a) The Clergy
(b) The Nobility
(c) The Peasants
Answer:
The Three Orders were: Priestly Class, Nobles and Farmers. The First Order or social class was the Priestly class. The Catholic Church had its own rules and land given by the rulers. It had the authority to collect . taxes. It was an institution that did not need to depend on the king. The head of the Catholic Church was the Pope. He stayed in Rome. The Christians in Europe were guided by bishops and priests. Most villages had their own churches.
To take part in the services and to listen to the sermons, and to pray together people went to the church on Sundays. Not everyone could become a priest. Serfs, physically or mentally handicapped people and women were denied priesthood. Men who became priests could not get married. Bishops were lords in the sphere of religion. They were, like the nobles, owners of huge estates. They stayed in palatial bungalows.
The Church was the richest institution in Europe. From the farmers the Church collected tithes. One- tenth of the yearly income was taken as tithes. The Church also received a lot of contributions from the rich lords or nobles. Many of the feudal rituals and conventions were also practised in the Church. For example, the practice of praying standing on knees, with bent heads and folded hands was borrowed from feudalism. In the feudal system, a knight declared his loyalty to his Lord in this manner. Similarly the word ‘Lord’ denoting Go is also borrowed from feudalism. Thus we can see there was much in common between the Church and Feudalism.
The Second Order was the nobles. They had a big role in the society. It was their control over the land that placed the lords in the central point. This control resulted from vassalage. In the feudal system, the entire land belonged to the king. The king distributed the land among the nobles. Thus the nobles became huge landlords. They became the vassals of the king. The nobles gave their land to the peasants for cultivation. Thus the nobles became lords or masters and the peasants became dependents or serfs.
The land was transferred to the nobles with a lot of rituals and pledges. The noble had to take a pledge in the Church keeping the Bible as the witness. During this ritual the king would give the noble a written document, a staff or a clump of earth as the symbol of the land. A noble (lord) has his own manorial house. He was the one who controlled the villages around him. Some nobles controlled hundreds of villages. Peasants lived in villages. In a small manorial estate there would be 12 families. But in big manorial estates there could be 50 or 60 families.
The manorial estate had all the things necessary for daily life. From the farms they got grain. Carpenters and ironsmiths repaired and maintained the farming implements and also arms. There were masons to repair the mansion of the lord. Women wove clothes. Children worked in the vineries of the lord. There the lords used to go for hunting. In the grasslands of the estate the herds and flocks grazed. There was a church in the estate and also a fort for defence.
The Third Order was the farmers. Farmers were of two kinds. One was independent farmers and the other was serfs, who were not independent farmers. The independent farmers had land they got from the nobles. They had to do military services for the noble for at least 40 days a year. On some fixed days of the week, they had to work in the files of the nobles without getting any payment for it. They also had to dig the land, collect firewood, make fences and repair the roads. The women and children also had to help in the field. They had to do additional work like spinning, weaving, making candles, making wine etc. The king collected a special tax called Tailed from the farmers. The priests and nobles were exempted from this tax.
Question 40.
Explain the role of Industrial Revolution in the development of Britain:
Areas to be considered:
(a) Coal and Iron
(b) Cotton spinning and Weaving
Answer:
Coal and iron ore which were essential for the manufacture of machines were plenty in England. Materials like black lead, copper and white lead which were extensively used in industries were also plenty in the country. But until the 18th century there was a shortage of “usable iron”. Iron was made by melting iron ore into a liquid state and then separating the pure iron from it. To melt iron ore charcoal was used. There were many problems with this. Since charcoal was brittle, it was difficult to transport charcoal to faraway places. Because of the impurities in it, the iron produced this way was not of high quality. Moreover charcoal could not produce high heat. Because of large scale deforestation, there was a shortage of charcoal.
The solution to this problem was found by the Darby family of Shropshire. In 50 years, three generations of this family (grandfather, father and son) brought a revolution in the refining of iron. In 1709, Abraham Darby (1677-1717) developed the first blast furnace which could maintain very high degree of heat. In it coke could be used. Coke was made by removing the sulphur and other impurities from coal. With this there was no need for charcoal. The iron that was made from the blast furnace of Darby was strong and of a higher quality.
Darby II (1711-1768) made cast iron from iron. This would not break easily. Henry Cort (1740-1823) made two important discoveries – the puddling furnace to remove impurities from pig iron and the rolling mill to produce rails. These discoveries helped in producing many different kinds of iron products
a) In 1773, John Kay invented the flying shuttle. Using this, the speed in weaving clothes was increased. One worker could now do the work of two. Since spinning (thread-making) was a slow process, enough thread was not available for weaving clothes. This problem was solved by Hargreaves.
b) In 1765 James Hargreaves had invented the spinning jenny. This jenny could produce many strands of threads at the same time. But the strands were not sufficiently strong.
c) In 1769 Richard Arkwright invented a new spinning machine called water frame. This machine could produce strong threads. The production capacity of the spinners increased 7 times.
d) In 1779, Samuel Crompton invented the machine called mule. With this a spinner could make 250 strands of thread simultaneously.
e) In 1787 Edmund Cartwright invented power loom. This machine worked with mechanical energy and it drastically indreased the speed of weaving. It was easy to work with it. If the thread broke, it would stop automatically. Anything could be woven in this loom. From the 1830s, importance was given by the cotton industry to increase the productivity of workers and not to inventions.