Edexcel GCSE History key terms

A person who objects to military service or participation in war because of deeply held religious, moral or political beliefs.

Compulsory service in the armed forces, required by law rather than chosen voluntarily.

Land dedicated by the Church for religious use, including burial.

The principle that a government’s authority depends on the agreement of the people it governs.

Making control more secure by weakening opposition and strengthening the ability to enforce decisions.

A secret agreement between people to carry out an unlawful act. An accusation of conspiracy does not prove that such an agreement existed.

A local official who helped enforce the law and assisted magistrates.

An elected body intended to draw up a constitution for Russia. The Bolsheviks closed it in January 1918 after failing to win a majority.

The rules setting out how a country is governed, including the powers of its institutions and the rights of its people.

Everyday products bought for personal use, such as clothes and toiletries, rather than machinery used in production.

The US policy of preventing communism from spreading to further countries.

A source produced during the period or events being investigated.

The information a source states, describes or shows.

The army established by the Continental Congress in 1775 to fight Britain, commanded by George Washington.

An assembly of colonial delegates that coordinated resistance to Britain and increasingly acted as a central government.

Something that remains substantially unchanged across a period or event.

A York street whose name means ‘cup-makers’ street’; excavations there provide important evidence of Viking homes, crafts and trade.

The Congress of Racial Equality, a civil rights organisation that supported non-violent direct action and organised the first Freedom Ride in 1961.

The ceremony in which a monarch swears an oath, is anointed with holy oil, receives the regalia and is crowned.

An official who investigates the cause and circumstances of certain deaths, including suspicious or violent deaths.

Punishment that deliberately inflicts physical pain or injury, such as whipping or branding.

A Latin expression meaning a separate entity. The UN partition plan proposed this status for Jerusalem and its surrounding religiously significant area.

Checking evidence from one source against other evidence to see whether it is supported.

The misuse of a position of power for personal benefit, such as officials stealing public money or officers taking supplies intended for soldiers.

The governing council established in Spain in 1524 to oversee American affairs and advise the monarch.

A regional government body responsible for maintaining royal authority and law and order in northern England.

Measures intended to defeat an armed rebellion, including military action and attempts to reduce popular support for the rebels.