History key terms

Caribbean migrants who settled in Britain after the Second World War, named after the ship Empire Windrush; the term includes people who travelled on other ships.

The left or right section of a military formation, as distinct from its centre.

Gaining the trust and support of a population, rather than relying only on military force.

A base where an army stayed during the winter, allowing it to remain in a country between campaigning seasons.

The Anglo-Saxon council of leading nobles and churchmen that advised the king.

The supposed use of supernatural powers, particularly harmful magic associated with the Devil, which early modern people could treat as a serious crime.

The deliberate search for people believed to practise witchcraft, involving accusations, investigations and prosecutions.

A recorded account of what a person saw, heard or otherwise knew about an event.

The buying and selling of sheep’s wool, which could be used to make cloth.

An institution providing accommodation and relief for people who could not support themselves.

People who generally depended on wages from manual work or domestic service, including skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled workers.

Government-funded employment intended to give unemployed people an income while they carry out useful work.

Chinese Communist Party organisers sent into villages to mobilise peasants and carry out policies such as attacks on landlords and land redistribution.

The entry and multiplication of harmful microorganisms in a wound, which can damage tissue and prevent healing.

A written royal order sent to officials to communicate and enforce the king’s instructions.

The Women’s Social and Political Union, led by Emmeline and Christabel Pankhurst, whose suffragette campaign used increasingly militant tactics.

Hostility towards people regarded as foreign.

Radiation used to produce images of structures inside the body, helping doctors locate injuries and plan treatment.

Racist ideas portraying Chinese and other East Asian people as a threat to Western societies. These were prejudiced beliefs, not reliable descriptions of migrants.

A farmer who owned and worked their own land, sometimes employing labourers.

A language historically spoken by many Jewish communities in Central and Eastern Europe.

The holiest day in the Jewish religious calendar. Egypt and Syria launched their October 1973 attack on this day, when many Israeli soldiers were off duty.

The October 1973 war in which Egypt and Syria attacked Israeli forces in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights.

A Communist children’s organisation which used group activities and political education to encourage loyalty to the new society.

The plan negotiated in 1929 that reduced Germany’s total reparations bill and extended repayment to 1988.

A local landholder with rights to collect a share of agricultural revenue.

The third of Athens’ four property classes, whose members became eligible for the archonship in 457/6 BC.

The Bolshevik women's organisation established in 1919 to improve women's rights and position in society.

A German message intercepted by British intelligence in January 1917 proposing an alliance with Mexico against the USA and assistance in recovering lost territory.

A religious tradition associated with the teachings of Zarathustra, emphasising the struggle between good and evil and human responsibility to choose rightly.