Prescribed Subjects
1. Military leaders
Case study 1: Genghis Khan c1200-1227
Leadership:
Rise to power; uniting of rival tribes
Motives and objectives; success in achieving those objectives
Reputation: military prowess; naming as Genghis Khan (1206)
Importance of Genghis Khan’s leadership to Mongol success
Campaigns:
Mongol invasion of China: attacks on the Jin dynasty; capture of Beijing (1215)
Mongol invasion of Central Asia and Iran; Mongol invasion of Khwarezmia (1219–1221)
Mongol military technology, organization, strategy and tactics
Impact:
Political impact: administration; overthrowing of existing ruling systems; establishment of Mongol law/Yassa; move towards meritocracy
Economic impact: establishment, enhancement and protection of trade routes
Social, cultural and religious impact: population displacement; terror, looting and murdering; raiding and destruction of settlements; religious, cultural and technological exchange; religious freedom under the Mongols
Case study 2: Richard I of England (1173-1199)
Leadership:
Rise to power: revolt of Richard I and his brothers against Henry II (1173–1174)
Reputation: military prowess; chivalry; “Richard the Lionheart”
Motives and objectives: defence and recovery of the French lands; defence of the crusader states and recovery of lost territory; success in achieving those objectives
Campaigns:
Occupation of Sicily (1190–1191); conquest of Cyprus (1191)
Involvement in the Third Crusade (1191–1192)
The course, outcome and effects of Richard I’s campaigns in France, the Mediterranean and the Middle East
Impact:
Political impact in England: absence of the king; political instability; revolt of John and Philip in Richard’s absence
Political impact in France: growth in prestige and strength of the Capetian monarchy; expansion of royal control
Economic impact: raising money for campaigns; taxation of clergy; raising of the ransom after his capture and imprisonment by Leopold V, Duke of Austria and Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor (1193)
Social, cultural and religious impact: anti-Jewish violence; treatment of Muslim prisoners during the Third Crusade
2. Conquest and its impact
Case study 1: The final stages of Muslim rule in Spain
Context and motives:
Political context in Iberia and Al-Andalus in the late 15th century; internal conflicts and alliances in Granada in the late 15th century
Social and economic context in Iberia and Al-Andalus in the late 15th century; coexistence of population; intercultural exchange; economic decline; heavy taxation
Motives: political motives; religious motives and the role of the church
Key events and actors:
The Granada War and the conquest of Granada (1482–1492)
Treaty of Granada (1491); Alhambra decree (1492)
Key actors: Fernando de Aragón and Isabel de Castilla; Abu Abdallah, last king of Granada
Impact:
Social and demographic changes; persecution, enslavement and emigration; new institutions: encomienda, fueros
Forced conversions and expulsions; Marranos, Mudéjars
The Spanish Inquisition
Case study 2: The conquest of Mexico and Peru (1519-1551)
Context and motives:
Political and economic motives for exploration and conquest
Religious arguments for the conquest
Key events and actors:
Hernán Cortés and the campaign against the Aztec Empire; alliances with indigenous populations
Francisco Pizarro and the campaign against the Incas; alliances with indigenous populations
Key actors: Diego de Almagro, Malinche, Atahualpa, Moctezuma II; Las Casas against Sepúlveda
Impact:
Social and economic impact on indigenous populations; the encomienda and Mita systems
Causes and effects of demographic change; spread of disease
Cultural interaction and exchange
3. The move to global war
Case study 1: Japanese expansion in East Asia (1931-1941)
Causes of expansion:
The impact of Japanese nationalism and militarism on foreign policy
Japanese domestic issues: political and economic issues, and their impact on foreign relations
Political instability in China
Events:
Japanese invasion of Manchuria and northern China (1931)
Sino-Japanese War (1937–1941)
The Three Power/Tripartite Pact; the outbreak of war; Pearl Harbor (1941)
Responses:
League of Nations and the Lytton report
Political developments within China—the Second United Front
International response, including US initiatives and increasing tensions between the US and Japan
Case study 2: German and Italian expansion (1933-1940)
Causes of expansion:
Impact of fascism and Nazism on the foreign policies of Italy and Germany
Impact of domestic economic issues on the foreign policies of Italy and Germany
Changing diplomatic alignments in Europe; the end of collective security; appeasement
Events:
German challenges to the post-war settlements (1933–1938)
Italian expansion: Abyssinia (1935–1936); Albania; entry into the Second World War
German expansion (1938–1939); Pact of Steel, Nazi–Soviet Pact and the outbreak of war
Responses:
International response to German aggression (1933–1938)
International response to Italian aggression (1935–1936)
International response to German and Italian aggression (1940)
4. Rights and protest
Case study 1: Civil rights movement in the United States (1954-1965)
Nature and characteristics of discrimination:
Racism and violence against African Americans; the Ku Klux Klan; disenfranchisement
Segregation and education; Brown versus Board of Education decision (1954); Little Rock (1957)
Economic and social discrimination; legacy of the Jim Crow laws; impact on individuals
Protests and action:
Non-violent protests; Montgomery bus boycott (1955–1956); Freedom Rides (1961); Freedom Summer (1964)
Legislative changes: Civil Rights Act (1964); Voting Rights Act (1965)
The role and significance of key actors/groups:
Key actors: Martin Luther King Jr; Malcolm X; Lyndon B Johnson
Key groups: National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP); Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC); the Nation of Islam (Black Muslims)
Case study 2: Apartheid South Africa (1948-1964)
Nature and characteristics of discrimination:
“Petty Apartheid” and “Grand Apartheid” legislation
Division and “classification”; segregation of populations and amenities; creation of townships/forced removals; segregation of education; Bantustan system; impact on individuals
Protests and action:
Non-violent protests: bus boycotts; defiance campaign, Freedom Charter
Increasing violence: the Sharpeville massacre (1960) and the decision to adopt the armed struggle
Official response: the Rivonia trial (1963–1964) and the imprisonment of the ANC leadership
The role and significance of key actors/groups:
Key individuals: Nelson Mandela; Albert Luthuli
Key groups: the African National Congress (ANC); the South African Communist Party (SACP) and the MK (Umkhonto we Sizwe—“Spear of the Nation”)
5. Conflict and intervention
Case study 1: Rwanda (1990-1998)
Causes of the conflict:
Ethnic tensions in Rwanda; the creation of the Hutu power movement and the Interahamwe; role of the media
Other causes: economic situation; colonial legacy
Rwandan Civil War (1990–1993); assassination of Habyarimana and Ntaryamira (1994)
Course and interventions:
Actions of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) and Rwandan government; role of the media
Nature of the genocide and other crimes against humanity; war rape
Response of the international community; the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR); reasons for inaction; role of France, Belgium and the US
Impact:
Social impact; refugee crisis; justice and reconciliation
International impact; establishment of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (1994)
Political and economic impact; RPF-led governments; continued warfare in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire)
Case study 2: Kosovo (1989-2002)
Causes of the conflict:
Ethnic tensions between Serbs and Kosovar Albanians; rising Albanian nationalism
Political causes: constitutional reforms (1989–1994); repression of the Albanian independence campaign
Role and significance of Slobodan Milosevic and Ibrahim Rugova
Course and interventions:
Actions of Kosovo Liberation Army, Serbian government police and military
Ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity; significance of the Račak massacre
Response of the international community; response of the UN; NATO bombing campaign; Kosovo Force (KFOR)
Impact:
Social and economic consequences; refugee crisis; damage to infrastructure
Political impact in Kosovo; election of Ibrahim Rugova as president (2002)
International reaction and impact; International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY); indictment of Milosevic
Last updated