History key terms

A unit of ownership in a company which can be bought and sold on a stock market.

A farmer who works land owned by someone else and pays the landowner with a share of the crop.

A farming arrangement in which a tenant works another person's land and gives the landowner an agreed share of the harvest.

A body of Islamic religious law. The Taliban enforced a particularly restrictive interpretation; its policies should not be treated as representing all Muslims.

An informal, usually unlicensed drinking and entertainment venue. In Notting Hill, Caribbean residents often held shebeens in the basements of their homes.

The wartime term for a range of psychological and physical symptoms associated with the strain and trauma of combat.

A 1921 US law providing federal funding for prenatal, maternal and infant health education through public health nurses supervised by the Children’s Bureau.

The king’s local representative in a shire, responsible for duties including collecting taxes and maintaining law and order; the office developed from the Anglo-Saxon shire-reeve.

A branch of Islam which gives particular religious authority to imams associated with Ali, Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law, and his family. The Fatimid dynasty represented a form of Shia Islam.

Followers of one of the two main branches of Islam. Shia Muslims formed the majority of Iraq’s population but were excluded from power under Saddam.

A defensive formation in which soldiers stand close together with overlapping shields, creating a barrier against enemy attacks.

A tax traditionally raised from coastal areas for naval defence, which Charles I extended inland during peacetime without parliamentary approval.

A large warship carrying many heavy guns, built to fight in the main battle line during naval battles.

A county-sized administrative district used for government, taxation and justice in Anglo-Saxon England.

The king's representative in a shire, responsible for duties including collecting taxes, rents and court fines; also called a sheriff.

A dangerous failure of circulation in which too little blood reaches the body's tissues; severe blood loss can cause it.

A team of workers encouraged to achieve particularly high output and exceed production targets.

Cotton with relatively short fibres and sticky seeds. It could grow across much of the southern United States, but removing its seeds by hand was slow.

A public trial with a predetermined outcome, used to portray the accused as guilty and justify the regime’s actions.

Small metal pieces or balls scattered by exploding shells, which could penetrate the body and cause serious wounds.

Negotiation in which a mediator travels between opposing governments to develop agreements, rather than relying on their leaders meeting directly.

An attempt to capture a fortified place by surrounding it, attacking its defences or cutting off its supplies.

A movable wooden structure that allows attackers to approach a defensive wall under cover and reach its upper level.

A country that has signed an agreement or treaty.

The historical importance of an individual, event or development, judged through its effects and lasting influence.

A period or event that matters because of the extent of activity, development or lasting change associated with it.

Nixon’s term for Americans who did not join public protests and whom he appealed to for support for his Vietnam policy.

A prison regime in which prisoners could work alongside others but were forbidden to communicate, with strict discipline and monotonous labour.

A British people in South Wales who resisted Roman conquest and were subdued during Frontinus’ governorship.

The buying or selling of positions in the Church.