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IGCSE HISTORY 0470

SYLLABUS AND SKILLS FOR EXAMINATION IN JUNE 2016

NAME: ___________________

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CONGRATULATIONS IN HAVING THE FORESIGHT TO UNDERTAKE THIS TWO-YEAR COMMITMENT TO HISTORY.
BELOW IS YOUR COURSE CURRICULUM FOR THE NEXT TWO YEARS: We will be studying Core content:

Option B. The 20th century: International Relations since 1919.


THE CORE CONTENT IN OPTION B FOCUSES ON SEVEN KEY QUESTIONS:
1. Were the peace treaties of 191923
fair?
2. To what extent was the League of
Nations a success?
3. Why had international peace collapsed
by 1939?
4. Who was to blame for the Cold War?
5. How effectively did the USA contain
the spread of Communism?
6. How secure was the USSRs control
over Eastern Europe, 1948c.1989?
7. Why did events in the Gulf matter,
c.19702000?


Students sitting IGCSE History must also study at least one of the Depth Studies A through H. We will
be studying:

A. GERMANY, 1918 1945
1. Was the Weimar Republic doomed from the start?
2. Why was Hitler able to dominate Germany by 1934?
3. The Nazi regime:
(a) How effectively did the Nazis control Germany, 193345?
(b) What was it like to live in Nazi Germany?




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During the Academic Year 2014 2015 you will understand and answer the following:

1. Were the peace treaties of 191923 fair?
Focus Points
What were the motives and aims of the Big Three at Versailles?
Why did all the victors not get everything they wanted?
What was the impact of the peace treaty on Germany up to 1923?
Could the treaties be justified at the time?
Specified Content
The peace treaties of 191923: the roles of individuals such as
Wilson, Clemenceau and Lloyd George in the peacemaking process:
the impact of the treaties on the defeated countries: contemporary
opinions about the treaties.

2. To what extent was the League of Nations a success?
Focus Points
How successful was the League in the 1920s?
How far did weaknesses in the Leagues organisation make failure
inevitable?
How far did the Depression make the work of the League more
difficult?
How successful was the League in the 1930s?
Specified Content
The League of Nations: strengths and weaknesses in its structure
and organization: successes and failures in peacekeeping during the
1920s: the impact of the World Depression on the work of the League
after 1929: the failures of the League in the 1930s, including
Manchuria and Abyssinia.

3. Why had international peace collapsed by 1939?
Focus Points
What were the long-term consequences of the peace treaties of
191923?
What were the consequences of the failures of the League in the
1930s?
How far was Hitlers foreign policy to blame for the outbreak of war in
1939?
Was the policy of appeasement justified?
How important was the Nazi-Soviet Pact?
Why did Britain and France declare war on Germany in September
1939?
Specified Content
The collapse of international order in the 1930s
The increasing militarism of Germany, Italy and Japan
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Hitlers foreign policy to 1939: the Saar: remilitarisation of the
Rhineland: involvement in the Spanish Civil War: Anschluss with Austria:
appeasement: crises over Czechoslovakia and Poland: the outbreak of
war.


Depth Study A: Germany 1918 1945
4. Was the Weimar Republic doomed from the start?
Focus Points
How did Germany emerge from defeat at the end of the First World War?
What was the impact of the Treaty of Versailles on the Republic?
To what extent did the Republic recover after 1923?
What were the achievements of the Weimar period?

5. Why was Hitler able to dominate Germany by 1934?
Focus Points

What did the Nazi Party stand for in the 1920s?
Why did the Nazis have little success before 1930?
Why was Hitler able to become Chancellor by 1933?
How did Hitler consolidate his power in 19334?

6. The Nazi regime
(a) How effectively did the Nazis control Germany, 193345?
Focus Points
How much opposition was there to the Nazi regime?
How effectively did the Nazis deal with their political
opponents?
How did the Nazis use culture and the mass media to
control the people?
Why did the Nazis persecute many groups in German
society?
Was Nazi Germany a totalitarian state?

(b) What was it like to live in Nazi Germany?
Focus Points
How did young people react to the Nazi regime?
How successful were Nazi policies towards women and
the family?
Did most people in Germany benefit from Nazi rule?
How did the coming of war change life in Nazi Germany?

Specified Content
The Revolution of 1918 and the establishment of the Republic
The Versailles Settlement and German reactions to it
The Weimar constitution, the main political divisions, the role of the army
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Political disorder, 191923:
o economic crises and hyper-inflation
o the occupation of the Ruhr
The Stresemann era
Cultural achievements of the Weimar period.
The early years of the Nazi Party:
o Nazi ideas and methods
o The Munich Putsch
o the roles of Hitler and other Nazi leaders
The impact of the Depression on Germany:
o political, economic and social crisis of 19303
o reasons for the Nazis rise to power
o Hitler takes power
o the Reichstag Fire and the election of 1933
Nazi rule in Germany:
o the Enabling Act
o the Night of the Long Knives
o the death of Hindenburg
o the removal of opposition
o methods of control and repression
o use of culture and the mass media
Economic policy including rearmament
Different experiences of Nazi rule:
o women and young people
o anti-Semitism
o persecution of minorities
o opposition to Nazi rule
Impact of the Second World War on Germany:
o the conversion to war economy
o the Final Solution

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During the Academic Year 2015 2016 you will understand and answer the following:

4. Who was to blame for the Cold War?
Focus Points
Why did the USA-USSR alliance
begin to break down in 1945?
How had the USSR gained control
of Eastern Europe by 1948?
How did the USA react to Soviet
expansionism?
What were the consequences of
the Berlin Blockade?
Who was the more to blame for
starting the Cold War: the USA or the USSR?
Specified Content
The origins of the Cold War: the 1945 summit conferences and the breakdown of the USA-
USSR alliance in 19456: Soviet expansion into Eastern Europe to 1948, and American reactions
to it: the occupation of Germany and the Berlin Blockade:

5. How effectively did the USA contain the spread of
Communism?
Focus Points
This Key Question will be explored through case studies of the
following:
America and events in Cuba, 195962
American involvement in Vietnam.
Specified Content
events of the Cold War: case studies of: American
reactions to the Cuban revolution, including the missile
crisis and its aftermath: American involvement in the
Vietnam War.

6. How secure was the USSRs control over Eastern Europe, 1948c.1989?
Focus Points
Why was there opposition to Soviet control in Hungary in 1956 and Czechoslovakia in 1968, and
how did the USSR react to this opposition?
How similar were events in Hungary in 1956 and in
Czechoslovakia in 1968?
Why was the Berlin Wall built in 1961?
What was the significance of Solidarity in Poland for
the decline of Soviet influence in Eastern Europe?
How far was Gorbachev personally responsible for the
collapse of Soviet control over Eastern Europe?
Specified Content
Soviet power in Eastern Europe: resistance to Soviet
power in Hungary (1956) and Czechoslovakia (1968):
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the Berlin Wall: Solidarity in Poland: Gorbachev and the collapse of the Soviet Empire.

7. Why did events in the Gulf matter, c.19702000?
Focus Points
Why was Saddam Hussein able to come to
power in Iraq?
What was the nature of Saddam Husseins rule
in Iraq?
Why was there a revolution in Iran in 1979?
What were the causes and consequences of the
Iran-Iraq War, 198088?
Why did the First Gulf War take place?
Specified Content
The rise to power of Saddam Hussein in Iraq
The rule of Saddam Hussein up to 2000, and
the consequences of his rule for different groups in Iraq
The nature of the Shahs rule in Iran and the Iranian Revolution of 1979
The causes and consequences of the Iran-Iraq War, 198088; Western involvement in the war
The causes, course and consequences of the Gulf War, 199091.



To obtain a grade in IGCSE History you will need to complete three exams:


Paper 1 2 hours
Section A
Candidates answer TWO questions on the Core Content

Section B
Candidates answer ONE question on a Depth Study
40% of total marks

Paper 2 2 hours
Candidates answer a series of questions on one Prescribed Topic from their 20th
century core content:
Why did events in the Gulf matter, c. 19702000?
33% of total marks

Paper 4 1 hour
Candidates answer ONE question on a Depth Study

27% of total marks