Edexcel GCSE History key terms

Soldiers raised through obligations owed by landholders to their lords.

A system in which land was held from a lord in return for loyalty and service.

A title meaning ‘Defender of the Faith’, awarded to Henry VIII by Pope Leo X in 1521 for defending Catholic teaching against Lutheranism.

Land held by a vassal in return for service to a lord; also called a feud.

A mobile RAMC medical unit that treated casualties and established dressing stations; it was not an ambulance vehicle.

A tactic used in the US Senate to delay or prevent a vote on legislation through prolonged debate.

A punishment requiring an offender to pay money.

A ship deliberately set alight and sent towards an enemy fleet to spread fear, threaten fire damage and disrupt its formation.

Church payments redirected to the Crown: first fruits were the first year’s income from a newly held church position, while tenths were an annual payment of one-tenth of its income.

A government programme setting economic priorities and production targets over five years. China’s first Five-Year Plan ran from 1953 to 1957.

People who whipped themselves publicly to show repentance and seek relief from divine punishment.

The side of an army or military formation; an attack on a flank can threaten troops whose main attention is directed forwards.

The sides of an army or battlefield position; an attack on a flank threatens troops from the side rather than the front.

Migrants from Flanders in the Low Countries, many of whom brought weaving skills to sixteenth-century England.

A firearm mechanism that uses flint striking steel to produce sparks and ignite the gunpowder needed to fire the weapon.

The painful practice of tightly binding girls’ feet during childhood to restrict their growth, causing lasting deformity and limiting mobility.

Money which people were compelled to lend to the Crown, rather than lending voluntarily.

Movement in which people are compelled to leave, for example because of persecution, war or expulsion.

A ruler’s aims beyond their own country, such as gaining territory, controlling trade or increasing international influence.

Military involvement by other countries in a country's conflict.

A ruler’s or government’s approach to relations with other countries, including diplomacy, alliances and war.

The use of scientific methods to examine evidence connected with a crime, such as fingerprints, blood or DNA.

Special rules protecting royal hunting grounds and restricting activities such as hunting and cutting trees.

The loss of land held from a lord as punishment for breaking feudal obligations or committing a crime.

Old ideas, old culture, old customs and old habits: the targets of a destructive campaign during the Cultural Revolution.

An amendment to the US Constitution requiring states to provide equal protection of the laws.

The right to vote in elections.