Edexcel GCSE History key terms

A representative appointed to act with the Pope’s authority.

An organisation structured like an army but separate from the state’s regular armed forces.

Communal saving schemes in which members contributed money to a shared fund, giving them access to sums they could not easily obtain individually. Caribbean migrants used them to help afford housing.

A royal decision to forgive an offence and release those covered by it from punishment.

A local area served by a church and its clergy.

A local official responsible for maintaining order and dealing with minor offences within a parish.

The agreement signed on 27 January 1973 that provided for a ceasefire, US withdrawal and the return of American prisoners of war, but did not bring lasting peace to Vietnam.

A supporter of Parliament in its conflict with King Charles I during the English Civil War.

More than half of the seats in a parliament, giving a party or group of parties enough votes to outvote the other members if its representatives vote together.

The division of a territory into separate political units. In Palestine, the UN proposed separate Jewish and Arab states.

A local Communist Party official responsible for implementing policies and reporting results.

Refusal to cooperate with an occupying force without fighting it directly, for example by refusing to work.

A social system in which men hold most authority, including power over women within the family.

An American colonist who supported the struggle against British rule.

Pride in and loyalty to one’s country.

Financial support and protection given by a powerful person to an individual or group, such as a company of actors.

A recurring feature found across several historical examples.

Settlers from Paxton in Pennsylvania who murdered peaceful Conestoga people in December 1763 and marched towards Philadelphia in February 1764.

The idea that capitalist and communist states could exist alongside one another without going to war.

The peace settlement of 1783 ending the war; its Anglo-American treaty recognised the independence of the United States.

Nixon’s stated aim of ending American involvement in Vietnam without appearing to abandon an ally or admit defeat.

A person who lived mainly by farming. Peasants could be free or unfree; unfree peasants owed labour services and could not leave their lord without permission.

An animal’s skin with its fur still attached, traded for use in products such as hats.

Changes to the laws and institutions used to punish offenders, such as reducing death sentences or improving prisons.

An act performed to show repentance and make amends for sin, such as prayer or giving money to the Church.

An antibiotic originally obtained from Penicillium mould, developed into a treatment for bacterial infections.

A large rural organisation introduced in China from 1958 that combined collective farming with the organisation of work and services such as communal dining and childcare.