History key terms

The line of latitude at 17° north, used in the 1954 Geneva settlement to divide Vietnam temporarily into northern and southern zones.

The agreement that ended Red Cloud's War: the US abandoned its forts on the Bozeman Trail, and a Sioux reservation was established that included the Black Hills.

The change to the US Constitution ratified in 1920 that prohibited denying voting rights on the grounds of sex.

The line of latitude at 38° north, used to divide Korea after the Second World War. The final military dividing line lay near it rather than following it exactly.

A name given to people who travelled to the Californian goldfields during the rush of 1849.

A nickname for migrants who travelled to the California goldfields during the gold rush of 1849.

The line of latitude at 49° north, used in the 1818 agreement to settle the boundary between British and US territory in the northern Great Plains.

A monastery governed by an abbot or abbess.

The head of a community of monks.

To give up the throne.

A monarch’s formal surrender of the throne.

An anti-ballistic missile: a missile designed to intercept an incoming ballistic missile.

The ending of slavery as a legal institution.

The movement to end slavery.

A person who campaigns for the ending of slavery.

The campaign to end the trade in enslaved people and slavery itself.

A plantation owner who lives away from the plantation rather than supervising it in person.

A conscientious objector who refuses all involvement in the war effort, including alternative civilian work.

The moment when a person succeeds to the throne and becomes monarch, rather than the later ceremony of coronation.

The ability to obtain medical advice, care or treatment, affected by factors such as cost, location and availability.

Adapting to life under an occupying power, often to survive or protect a family, without necessarily supporting its aims.

Records of income or expenditure, which may identify purchases, payments, dates and recipients.

The Persian royal dynasty associated with Cyrus and his successors. Darius used inscriptions at Pasargadae to present himself and Cyrus as members of the same ruling line.

Acceptance of something without actively resisting it; this does not necessarily mean enthusiastic agreement.

The elevated rocky stronghold of Athens, which contained major temples and sanctuaries.

A law passed in 1533 that prevented appeals to Rome, allowing Henry’s marriage case to be settled in England.

Something people did at a historical site, such as working, worshipping, governing or taking part in leisure.

A parliamentary measure declaring someone guilty and imposing punishment without an ordinary trial.

A law passed by Parliament and approved by the monarch; also called a statute.

The law passed by the English Parliament in 1701 that designated Sophia of Hanover and her Protestant heirs as successors to the Crown after the existing line of succession. It reinforced a Protestant monarchy and parliamentary control over succession.