HISTORY

QUESTION BANK
CLASS-11
 Contents

1. Writing and city life

2. An empire across three continents
3. Nomadic empires
4. The Three Orders
5. Changing cultural traditions
6. Displacing Indigenous Peoples
7. Paths to modernisation
 HISTORY

CLASS 11

Writing and city life

1. Where did the city life begin? Between which two rivers this region is situated?
2. What is meant by Mesopotamia?
3. Why Mesopotamian civilization is famous?
4. Write a note on the languages spoken in Mesopotamia.
5. Why Mesopotamia was important for Europeans?
6. Write the story of the flood mentioned in the Bible.
7. Iraq is a land of diverse environments. Explain with examples.
8. What was the significance of the southern region of the Mesopotamia?
9. Why do we say that it was not natural fertility and high levels of food production that
were the causes of early urbanization?
10. What is the importance of division of labour in urban life?
11. Write a note on imports and exports of Mesopotamia.
12. What is the role of efficient transport in urban economy? Give examples.
13. Write a note on the development of writing.
14. How did Mesopotamians write?
15. What changes do you notice that came in Mesomotamian writing and language from
2600 BCE to the first century CE?
16. Describe the following- a) The system of writing b) Literacy in Mesopotamia c) The uses
of writing
17. To whom was the temples of Southern Mesopotamia dedicated? Give a brief description
of its architecture.
18. What was offered to the Gods and how did the temple become main urban institution?
19. Why was there continuous warfare in the region of Mesopotamia and what were its
consequences?
20. Agriculture in South Mesopotamia was sometimes subject to hazards. Which factors were
responsible for it?
21. How did kingship emerge in Mesopotamia ?What did the king do to increase his
influence and control?
22. Write a note on the following- a) position of upper class b) nature of the family c)
marriage system
23. Describe the Ur town’s layout?
24. Describe the main characteristics of the city of Ur.
25. Write a note on animal herders of Mari.
26. What were the reasons of conflicts between animal herders and farmers of Mari?
27. How can we say that the Mesopotamian society and culture were the inter mixture of
people of various communities and cultures?
28. How did the ancient town of Mari prosper in spite of not being militarily strong?
29. Throw light on the Gilgamesh Epic.
30. What is the legacy of Mesopotamia to the world?

An empire across three continents

1. Describe the main sources of Roman history.

2. Discuss the expansion of the Roman and Iranian empires.
3. Describe the points of differences between the Roman and Iranian Empires?
4. Give a brief description of the Republican system of the Roman empire.
5. What is meant by the Principate in context of the Roman empire?
6. What do we mean by the term ‘Republic’?
7. How the succession in Roman Empire was decided?
8. What was the basic characteristic of “Augustinian period”?
9. Describe the three main players of the Roman empire?
10. Briefly describe the role of the army in the early Roman empire.
11. What was the policy of the Roman emperors towards more expansion of the
empire in the first two centuries?
12. Describe the significance of provincial and local rule of the early Roman empire.
13. The dramatic shift in power among the provinces is one of the most interesting
aspects of Roman political history. Explain.
14. How was the economic condition of the higher and middle classes of bureaucracy
in the late Roman empire?
15. What was a city in Roman sense?
16. Write some features of urban life.
17. Write a note on public baths.
18. Explain the third century crisis.
19. Describe the structure of family in the Roman Empire?
20. What was the status of women in the Roman Empire?
21. What was the marriageable age and how did it work out in favour of males?
22. Give some examples that show that there was widespread cultural diversity in the
Roman empire.
23. What was the status of literacy in the Roman Empire?
24. Discuss the economic activities of the Roman Empire.
25. How the workers were controlled in the Roman Empire?
26. Describe the social hierarchy in the late Roman Empire?
 27. What is meant by late antiquity? Which religious and administrative changes were
made during this period?
28. Discuss the economic development made in the Roman empire in the late
antiquity. What was its result?
29. The traditional religious culture of the classical world both Greek and Roman had
been polytheist. Explain.
30. Briefly describe the process of decline of the Roman empire.
31. Why did the monetary system breakdown in the late empire?
32. What were the changes made by the late Roman Emperor Diocletian in terms of
administration of the empire?
33. What were the innovations carried out by Constantine I?

Nomadic empires

1. What do you mean by the term Barberian?

2. Give a brief introduction of the Mongol dynasty.
3. Write a note on Mongols?
4. Describe the landscape of the region where Mongols lived.
5. Give any two reasons that restricted Mongols to live a settled life.
6. What was the nature of the Mongol confederacies? Also write the similarity and
dissimilarity between confederacies formed by Attila and Genghis Khan?
7. Why trade was so important for the Mongols?
8. Which were the main items of the Mongolian trade with China?
9. Who was Mongke?
10. Write two achievements of Genghis khan’s grandson Batu.
11. Why was the Great Wall of China made?
12. Write a note on the early life of Genghis Khan.
13. How did he become the Great Khan of the Mongols?
14. Into which three realms was China divided before Genghis khan’s Chinese
expedition?
15. Explain the military achievements of Genghis Khan.
16. Which factors helped in the Mongol’s military achievements under Genghis
Khan?
17. What were the main reasons for Genghis Khan not taking up his aim of
conquering India ?
18. Into which two phases can Mongol expansion be divided after Genghis Khan’s
death?
19. Why the Mongols were defeated by the Egyptian army?
 20. Genghis Khan’s army was a mixture of diverse people. Explain.
21. What were the main innovations which made Genghis Khan’s army a major
success ?
22. Write a note on the system of titles conferred by Genghis Khan to his associates?
23. What do you know about the four Ulus?
24. Discuss the communication system fashioned by Genghis Khan.
25. What was Qubcur Tax?
26. Why did the conquered people hardly feel a sense of affinity with their new
nomadic masters? What was its result?
27. What was the result of cessation in the Mongol’s military campaigns on the state?
28. How was agriculture promoted?
29. Write a note on the civil administrators from the conquered societies.
30. How did the separation of Genghis khan’s descendants into separate lineage of
groups take place?
31. What was the importance of ‘Yasa’, to the Mongols?
32. Critically examine the contribution of Genghis Khan to the Mongol empire.

The Three Orders

1. What do you understan by medieval age ?What were its features?

2. Who was Marc Bloch? What was his assumption about feudalism?

3. What is meant by the three orders?

4. Who were the people who could never become priest?

5. Who were Bishops?

6. Write about Tithe?

7. Give two examples that prove that the important ceremonies conducted by the church
copied formal customs of the feudal elite.

8. Write two sources of incomes of the Catholic church.

9. Name two of the most well known monestaries of Europe.

10. Who were called friars?

11. Who was William I?

12. What were guilds?

1. What do you understand by feudalism? Write its economic features?

2. How did Gaul become France? What was the position of France by the 11th century?

3. Describe the practice of vassalage.

4. 'The noble enjoyed a priviledged status '. Comment on this statement.

5. What do you understand by the manorial state? Describe its major characteristics.

6. Briefly describe the mutual relationship between the lords and the knights.

7. What role did ministrels play in 12th century France?

8. 'Catholic church was a very powerful institution'.How?

9. Describe the life of monks and nuns of medieval Europe.

10. Throw light on the influence of the church on medieval European society.

11. Describe the third order or life of cultivators in medieval Europe.

12. How did feudalism develop in England?

13. What was the effect of the environment of Europe on its agriculture from the 5th to the
10th century?

14. What changes were noticed in the environment from the 11th century?

15. Initially agricultural technology was very primitive. Explain.

16. What do you understand by passive resistance?

17. What were the agriculture related problems in the initial stage? What were its effects on
the lives of the people?

18. Write the technological changes that occured in Europe by the 11th century? Also discuss
the effects of these changes.

19. Write the effects of the expansion of agriculture in medieval Europe.

20. 'Town air makes free'. Comment on the statement.

21. Write a note on the emergence of the Cathedral churches of France.

22. How were Cathedrals designed?

23. Expain the factors that slowed down Europe's economic expansion by the early 14th
century. What were its consequences?
24. Who were the new monarch?

25. How did powerful new states emerge in medieval Europe?

26. Why were the new states resisted by the aristocracy?

27. Why has loyal absolutism of medieval Europe been called a modified form of feudalism?

28. How did rulers make space for non feudal elements in the state system?

1. Changing cultural traditions

1. What were the main sources of knowing European history from the 14th century?

2. How was Burckhardt 's views different from his teacher the German historian Leopold
von Ronke?

3. What is meant by Renaissance?

4. In which European country did Renaissance start first of all and why?

5. Throw light on the political and cultural conditions of Italy after the fall of the Western
Roman empire.

6. How did Italian towns come to a new life?

7. How were the Italian cities of Venice and Genoa different from other parts of Europe?

8. Why had the universities of Padua and Bologna been centres of legal studies?

9. For whom was the term Humanist used by the early 15th century?

10. What is meant by the term Renaissance Man?

11. What is meant by the counter reformation movement?

12. Who were Jesuits?

1. Which developments helped in the revival of Italian culture?

2. Discuss the contribution of the universities to the rise and growth of Humanism.

3. Explain the humanist view of history.

4. How did humanists differentiate between middle ages and modern age?
5. Descrine the Arab contribution in the field of science and philosophy.

6. Explain the concept of realism.

7. Write about the development of architecture in Rome in the Renaissance age.

8. When did printing technology develop in Europe? What was its significance?

9. Humanist culture presented a new concept of human beings. What was this concept?

10. Critically examine the condition of European women in the Renaissance age?

11. Briefly discuss the contribution of Martin Luther to the Protestant Reformation
movement.

12. Who was Copernicus? What was his views about the universe?

13. Which scientists popularised Copernicus's views on the solar system?

14. What was the scientific revolution? How did it affect the minds of the people?

15. Was there a European Renaissance in the 14th century? Explain.

Displacing Indigenous Peoples

1. What do you mean by imperialism?

2. What do you understand by settler?
3. What were significant variations in the nature of the control established by European
settlers?
4. What did European settlers imply by the word ‘native’?
5. How was the view of the Europeans towards the forests different from the natives
Americans?
6. What do you understand by ‘Gold Rush’ in terms of American history?

1. Briefly discuss the physiography and resources of North America?

2. Throw light on the different aspects of the life of the native peoples of North America.
3. When and where did the European traders reach North America first of all. Briefly
discuss their behaviour and attitude towards local peoples of the continent.
4. What were the opinions of the French philosopher Rousseau and English poet William
Wordsworth about the natives of North America?
5. Why were the original inhabitants of North America unhappy at the behaviour of the
Europeans?
6. Why did the Europeans come to settle in America after the European traders? What
policy did they follow towards the forests of the continent?
7. How did the U.S.A. reach their present size?
8. Why did some changes occur in the landscapes of America in the 19 th century? What
were these changes?
9. Throw light on the prevalence and abolition of slavery in the U.S.A..
10. Who were the Cherokees? What injustice was done to them?
11. Critically examine the problem of alienation of natives of the U.S.A. from their land?
12. What were reservations?
13. What was the role of Gold Rush in economic and political expansion of America?
14. What steps were taken for the rights and interests of the natives in North America? What
is their present position?
15. Throw some light on the human habitation in Australia.
16. What was the reaction of the natives of Australia against the advent of the Europeans in
Australia?
17. Write about the economic development of Australia under European settlement.
18. What was the Great Australian Silence? How did it help to revive culture and traditions
of the natives of Australia?

Paths to modernisation

1. Which country dominated East Asia in the 19th century?

2. Which country started developing into a powerful country of Asia in the later 19 th
century?
3. What are the different sources that throw light on Chinese and Japanese history?

4. What were the early groups of philosophy that influenced growth of China?

5. Who was the founder of the National People’s party of China?

6. What were the four modernization principles of the Communist Party of China?

7. What was the Great Proletariat Cultural Revolution?

8. When did the Long March take place in China and why?

9. What was the consequence of defeat of the Guomindang by the Communist Party in
China?

10. Which incident led Japan to establish a more democratic rule?

11. Explain the term ‘emperor system’ that was developed in Japan?

12. Why did the Japanese government launch a policy ‘fukoku kyohei’ in the 18th
Century?

1. Describe in brief China’s physiography, ethnic groups and languages.

2. Write a note on Chinese food.

3. Write a short note on the geographical and social life of the Japan.

4. Write a short note on the daimyo of Japan.

5. How long did Shoguns of the Tokugawa dynasty rule over Japan? How did they run their
rule?

6. How did cities become bigger in Japan? What was its significance?

7. Why Japan was considered as a rich country under Tokugawa rule?

8. Throw light on Commodere Perry’s arrival in Japan and also discuss its importance.

9. What arguments were given in favour and against Japan’s opening to the outer world?

10. Throw light on the ‘emperor system’ of Japan.

11. Write a note on the new school system in Japan.

12. What measures were taken by the Meiji government to integrate the nation?

13. What measures were taken by the Meiji government to modernise the economy of Japan?

14. Write a note on the industrial workers.

15. Explain the concept of aggressive nationalism.

16. What were the different views of Japanese intellectuals regarding Japan’s relation with
other countries?

17. ‘Japan’s transformation into a modern society can be seen also in the changes in everyday
life.’ Explain with the help of examples.

18. Throw some light on the imperialist policy of Japan.

19. What do you know about the ‘post-war miracle’?

20. How did China cope with the growing difficulties in the 19th century?

21. What was the Opium War? How did it affect the Chinese economy?

22. Explain the meaning of ‘open door’ policy?

23. When did the communist revolution take place in China and what was its importance?

24. Discuss the consequences and importance of Chinese Revolution of 1911.

25. Write a note on movement of 4th May in China.

26. What do you know about the examination system of China that gave entry to elite ruling
class?

27. Under the leadership of Chiang Kai-shek what were the works carried out in China?

28. Write a note on Sun Yat-sen.

29. Write a note on rise of Communist Party of China.

30. When was the People’s Republic of China set up and what was it main objectives?

31. Write a note on the Long March in China and what was it relevance?

32. Write a note on the government of Taiwan under the Guomindang.

33. Critically analyze various aspects of modernization that were adopted by China.

34. What was the great proletarian cultural revolution? What was its result?

35. Write a note on the life of Mao-Zedong.