History key terms

Landless agricultural workers attached to large estates who paid part of their produce to their overlords.

The campaign associated with Senator Joseph McCarthy, especially from 1950 to 1954, in which accusations of communist involvement were used against people, often without adequate evidence.

A check of a person’s income or resources to decide whether they qualify for financial support and how much they receive.

The use of machines to carry out work previously done by people or animals, intended to improve the speed and efficiency of production.

The kingdom of the Medes, ruled by Astyages before Cyrus defeated him; its capital was Ecbatana.

A joint federal and state programme established in 1965 to provide healthcare coverage for eligible low-income Americans.

A doctor appointed to oversee public health in a local area.

A federal health insurance programme established in 1965 for Americans aged 65 and over.

An institution offering accommodation and care to people in need. Medieval hospitals often provided food, rest and religious support rather than effective medical cures.

To submit to or support Persia, particularly during the conflicts between Persia and the Greek city-states.

An Athenian measure, associated with Pericles and usually dated to about 432 BC, excluding Megarians from Athenian markets and harbours controlled by Athens.

Hitler’s book, meaning ‘My Struggle’, which set out his political aims and racist beliefs.

A written account in which someone looks back on events they experienced, usually produced after those events.

Heavily armed and armoured soldiers, including knights, who could fight mounted or on foot.

An economic approach that sought to strengthen a country by accumulating gold and silver, exporting more than it imported, and controlling trade for its own benefit.

Soldiers hired to fight for payment rather than because they were citizens of the state employing them.

A soldier hired to fight for payment.

A person who bought and sold goods, sometimes trading between towns or overseas.

Trading ships and their crews that transport goods and passengers, rather than warships belonging to a navy.

The ships and crews engaged in commercial trade rather than naval warfare; during wartime they also transport essential supplies.

Ships used to transport goods for trade rather than for naval warfare.

The large artificial lake that formed part of Kenilworth Castle’s setting.

A person of mixed European and Indigenous American ancestry; in New Spain, usually mixed Spanish and Indigenous ancestry. The plural is mestizos.

A foreign resident of Athens who did not possess Athenian citizenship.

A sculptured rectangular panel between the triglyphs in a Doric temple’s decorative band.

The professional police force established in London in 1829 through the work of Home Secretary Robert Peel.

The people who ruled from Tenochtitlan at the centre of the empire commonly called the Aztec Empire.

The Montgomery Improvement Association, formed on 5 December 1955 to coordinate the bus boycott, with Martin Luther King as president.

The belief that foul or polluted air caused disease.

The belief that disease was caused by bad or corrupted air.