Edexcel GCSE History key terms

An attack carried out in retaliation for an earlier attack.

Retaliatory actions taken in response to an earlier attack.

A state in which the head of state is not a hereditary monarch.

The taking or compulsory use of civilian property, such as horses, wagons or buildings, for military purposes.

An area of land set aside by the US government for Indigenous peoples, where government officials restricted their movement and increasingly controlled their lives.

Trained soldiers who are not serving full-time but can be called back into military service when needed.

Trained personnel who can be called upon to support the regular armed forces when needed.

Actions taken to defy, obstruct or challenge a government or its policies.

Punishing an offender because they are considered to deserve punishment for the harm they have caused.

The slope behind a ridge, away from the enemy, which can shelter troops from observation and direct artillery fire.

A person accused by Maoists of changing or weakening revolutionary communist principles, especially by favouring policies they considered capitalist.

A preacher who seeks to renew religious commitment, often by urging listeners to repent and experience a personal conversion.

An open rebellion against the authority of a ruler or government.

A body containing representatives of the Party, workers and army that took over the running of institutions such as factories during the Cultural Revolution.

Spiral grooves inside a gun barrel that make the projectile spin, improving its accuracy.

A political label used by Mao’s government for people accused of opposing socialism and wanting to restore capitalism; it did not necessarily describe their actual beliefs.

The Palestinian refugees’ claim that they should be allowed to return to the homes and land they had left before or during the 1948–49 war.

Something that increases the likelihood of developing a disease, without necessarily making it inevitable.

A style of medieval architecture characterised by features such as thick stone walls, substantial pillars and rounded arches.

An overcrowded district of poor-quality housing, often containing a maze of narrow alleys and courts.

Gathering scattered cattle together so they could be sorted by ownership, branded or prepared for a drive.

A disorderly defeat in which soldiers flee rather than maintain their formation.

An official responsible for distributing the monarch’s charitable gifts. Wolsey became Henry VIII’s Royal Almoner in 1509, giving him access to the king.

The group of senior advisers who helped the monarch govern.

Land retained by the king for his own use, including farming, hunting and renting out.

The support and trust of a monarch, which could give a minister power but could also be withdrawn.

The management of the monarch’s income, expenditure and property.