OCR GCSE History A key terms

A small group holding a disproportionate share of a society’s power, wealth or leading positions.

Release from slavery.

Movement out of a country to live in another country.

An official document used under the 1962 Commonwealth Immigrants Act to authorise entry into Britain for work.

The law passed on 23 March 1933 allowing the German Cabinet to make laws without Reichstag approval, including laws departing from the constitution, subject to formal restrictions.

A wartime classification for someone whose nationality connected them to a country at war with Britain; it did not necessarily indicate their political loyalties.

Government of a church by bishops.

The US federal agency established to investigate employment discrimination complaints and enforce equal employment protections.

A US federal law passed in 1963 requiring equal pay for men and women performing the same jobs under equal conditions.

The provision of the Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution requiring states to give people equal protection of the laws. It provides a basis for challenging arbitrary legal discrimination.

A proposed constitutional amendment, introduced in 1923 with the backing of the National Woman’s Party, intended to establish equal legal rights for women and men. It did not become law in the 1920s.

A proposed change to the US Constitution prohibiting denial of equal rights on account of sex. Congress approved it in 1972, but approval by the required number of states was also necessary.

An increase in the scale or intensity of a conflict, such as committing more troops or extending bombing.

Spying, especially obtaining secret information for another country.

A shared cultural background or identity, which may involve ancestry, language and traditions; it is not the same as birthplace or nationality.

The ability of citizens of European Union countries to move between member countries to live and work, subject to the applicable rules.

The attempt to control who reproduces in order to promote supposedly desirable inherited characteristics. Nazi eugenics rested on discriminatory and pseudoscientific ideas.

Moving people away from places considered dangerous to safer areas, especially civilians threatened by wartime bombing.

A royal administrative organisation established around 1194 to manage financial dealings involving Jews and many disputes between Jews and Christians.

Taxes charged on particular goods, such as salt and beer during the Civil Wars.

A presidential directive governing the work of the federal government, issued using the President's legal authority.

The authority to carry out laws and direct the day-to-day work of government.

A presidential claim that certain confidential communications within the executive branch of government should not be disclosed to Congress or the courts.

Living outside one’s country because persecution or political conditions make remaining there unsafe.

The compulsory removal of a group of people from a country by its authorities.

Political activity outside Parliament, such as petitions, demonstrations and organised campaigns, intended to influence parliamentary decisions.

A trading post where merchants stored, bought and sold goods; in this context, it did not mean a modern industrial manufacturing building.