AQA A-level History · 1J

The British Empire, c1857–1967

Exam-style questions with answers for 1J The British Empire, c1857–1967 in AQA A-level History (spec 7042). Practise with flashcards, a topic quiz, a random quiz across the course, 5 crosswords, or read every question and answer below.

All questions and answers

Question 1 · Spec 1J, Part one
What were the main consequences of the Indian Mutiny (1857–1858)? [2 marks]
Answer:
The East India Company was abolished and the Crown ruled India directly (1); the army was reorganised with more British troops and recruitment from ‘martial races’ (1).
Question 2 · Spec 1J, Part one
Who governed India after 1858? [1 mark]
Answer:
A Viceroy in India, answerable to the Secretary of State for India in London.
Question 3 · Spec 1J, Part one
Why was the Suez Canal important to Britain? [1 mark]
Answer:
It shortened the route to India; Disraeli bought shares in it in 1875.
Question 4 · Spec 1J, Part one
Why did Britain occupy Egypt in 1882? [2 marks]
Answer:
To protect the Suez Canal (1); to put down the Urabi revolt and protect investors (1).
Question 5 · Spec 1J, Part one
Define the term ‘informal empire’. [1 mark]
Answer:
Influence over areas through trade, finance and diplomacy without formal rule, eg in South America and China.
Question 6 · Spec 1J, Part one
What was the Berlin Conference (1884–1885)? [1 mark]
Answer:
A meeting of European powers that set rules for claiming African territory.
Question 7 · Spec 1J, Part one
What were chartered companies? [2 marks]
Answer:
Private companies given royal charters to govern and trade in territories (1); eg the Royal Niger Company and the British South Africa Company (1).
Question 8 · Spec 1J, Part one
Who was David Livingstone? [1 mark]
Answer:
A missionary and explorer of central Africa whose writings encouraged British interest in Africa.
Question 9 · Spec 1J, Part one
What was the First Boer War (1880–1881)? [1 mark]
Answer:
A conflict in which the Transvaal Boers defeated Britain at Majuba and regained self-government.
Question 10 · Spec 1J, Part one
What was the Zulu War (1879)? [1 mark]
Answer:
A British invasion of Zululand; the British were defeated at Isandlwana but later won.
Question 11 · Spec 1J, Part one
Who was Joseph Chamberlain? [2 marks]
Answer:
Colonial Secretary from 1895 to 1903 (1); he promoted imperial development and tariff reform (1).
Question 12 · Spec 1J, Part one
Who was Cecil Rhodes? [1 mark]
Answer:
A businessman and Cape Prime Minister whose company took over Rhodesia.
Question 13 · Spec 1J, Part one
What was the Jameson Raid (1895–1896)? [1 mark]
Answer:
A failed attempt by Rhodes’s associates to overthrow the Transvaal government.
Question 14 · Spec 1J, Part one
State two causes of the Second Boer War (1899–1902). [2 marks]
Answer:
Any two from: gold in the Transvaal (1); the rights of uitlanders (1); British ambitions for a united South Africa (1); the Jameson Raid (1).
Question 15 · Spec 1J, Part one
State two consequences of the Boer War. [2 marks]
Answer:
Any two from: concerns about national efficiency (1); criticism of concentration camps (1); the Union of South Africa (1910) (1); doubt about Splendid Isolation (1).
Question 16 · Spec 1J, Part one
What happened at Omdurman (1898)? [1 mark]
Answer:
Kitchener’s army defeated the Mahdist forces, reconquering Sudan.
Question 17 · Spec 1J, Part one
Define the term ‘National Efficiency’. [1 mark]
Answer:
The movement to make Britain stronger through better health, education and government after the Boer War exposed weaknesses.
Question 18 · Spec 1J, Part one
How was the empire represented in popular culture? [2 marks]
Answer:
Through music hall, advertising and adventure stories, eg Henty and Kipling (1); through exhibitions and Empire Day (1).
Question 19 · Spec 1J, Part one
What was the Indian National Congress? [1 mark]
Answer:
A nationalist party founded in 1885 that came to lead the campaign for Indian self-government.
Question 20 · Spec 1J, Part one
Who was Lord Cromer? [1 mark]
Answer:
The British Consul-General who effectively ruled Egypt from 1883 to 1907.
Question 21 · Spec 1J, Part one
What happened to General Gordon at Khartoum (1885)? [1 mark]
Answer:
He was killed when the Mahdi’s forces captured Khartoum.
Question 22 · Spec 1J, Part one
State two reasons for the Scramble for Africa. [2 marks]
Answer:
Any two from: rivalry between European powers (1); raw materials and markets (1); strategic routes, eg to India (1); missionary and ‘civilising’ ideas (1).
Question 23 · Spec 1J, Part one
What was the 1905 partition of Bengal? [1 mark]
Answer:
Lord Curzon divided Bengal, causing protest and the swadeshi boycott movement.
Question 24 · Spec 1J, Part one
What were the Morley-Minto Reforms (1909)? [1 mark]
Answer:
They allowed Indians to be elected to legislative councils, with separate electorates for Muslims.
Question 25 · Spec 1J, Part two
What were mandates? [1 mark]
Answer:
Former German and Ottoman territories administered by Britain under the League of Nations, eg Palestine and Iraq.
Question 26 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Statute of Westminster (1931)? [1 mark]
Answer:
It gave the Dominions full legislative independence.
Question 27 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Amritsar Massacre (1919)? [1 mark]
Answer:
British troops under General Dyer killed at least 379 unarmed Indians at Jallianwala Bagh.
Question 28 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Salt March (1930)? [1 mark]
Answer:
Gandhi’s march to the sea to make salt, breaking the British salt monopoly as civil disobedience.
Question 29 · Spec 1J, Part two
What did the Government of India Act (1935) do? [1 mark]
Answer:
It gave provinces elected self-government but kept central power with the Viceroy.
Question 30 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Quit India movement (1942)? [1 mark]
Answer:
Congress’s campaign demanding immediate British withdrawal; its leaders were imprisoned.
Question 31 · Spec 1J, Part two
Why did Britain leave India in 1947? [2 marks]
Answer:
Britain was exhausted by war and could not afford to hold India (1); communal violence grew, and Labour supported independence (1).
Question 32 · Spec 1J, Part two
State two consequences of partition (1947). [2 marks]
Answer:
Any two from: India and Pakistan created (1); massive population movement (1); hundreds of thousands killed in communal violence (1); conflict over Kashmir (1).
Question 33 · Spec 1J, Part two
Why did Britain withdraw from Palestine in 1948? [1 mark]
Answer:
Jewish and Arab violence made it ungovernable, so Britain handed the problem to the UN.
Question 34 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Balfour Declaration (1917)? [1 mark]
Answer:
Britain’s statement of support for a Jewish national home in Palestine.
Question 35 · Spec 1J, Part two
How did the Second World War affect the empire’s economy? [1 mark]
Answer:
Britain built up huge debts, including sterling balances owed to colonies such as India.
Question 36 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Suez Crisis (1956)? [2 marks]
Answer:
Britain, France and Israel invaded Egypt after Nasser nationalised the canal (1); US pressure forced a withdrawal, showing Britain’s decline (1).
Question 37 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was Macmillan’s ‘Wind of Change’ speech (1960)? [1 mark]
Answer:
A speech in Cape Town accepting that African nationalism would lead to independence.
Question 38 · Spec 1J, Part two
When did Ghana become independent? [1 mark]
Answer:
1957, led by Kwame Nkrumah.
Question 39 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Mau Mau uprising? [2 marks]
Answer:
A Kikuyu rebellion in Kenya from 1952 (1); Britain declared an emergency and detained thousands, including torture in camps such as Hola (1).
Question 40 · Spec 1J, Part two
When did Kenya become independent? [1 mark]
Answer:
1963, with Jomo Kenyatta as leader.
Question 41 · Spec 1J, Part two
What happened in Rhodesia in 1965? [1 mark]
Answer:
Ian Smith’s white minority government made a Unilateral Declaration of Independence.
Question 42 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Malayan Emergency (1948–1960)? [1 mark]
Answer:
A communist insurgency in Malaya that Britain defeated using resettlement and ‘hearts and minds’.
Question 43 · Spec 1J, Part two
Define the term ‘Commonwealth’. [1 mark]
Answer:
A voluntary association of former colonies and Britain, with the monarch as head.
Question 44 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the British Nationality Act (1948)? [1 mark]
Answer:
It gave citizenship of the UK and Colonies to colonial subjects, allowing migration to Britain.
Question 45 · Spec 1J, Part two
What did Britain announce in 1967–1968 about ‘East of Suez’? [1 mark]
Answer:
It would withdraw its forces from east of Suez, except Hong Kong.
Question 46 · Spec 1J, Part two
What were the Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms (1919)? [1 mark]
Answer:
They introduced dyarchy, giving Indians control of some provincial departments.
Question 47 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Empire Marketing Board (1926)? [1 mark]
Answer:
A body promoting the purchase of goods from the empire.
Question 48 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was imperial preference (1932)? [1 mark]
Answer:
Lower tariffs on goods from the empire, agreed at the Ottawa Conference.
Question 49 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Easter Rising’s relevance to the empire? [1 mark]
Answer:
Irish nationalism led to the Irish Free State in 1922, the first breakaway from the United Kingdom.
Question 50 · Spec 1J, Part two
What was the Commonwealth Immigrants Act (1962)? [1 mark]
Answer:
It restricted migration from Commonwealth countries to Britain through work vouchers.

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The British Empire, c1857–1967

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