Working with evidence, Year 7: more practice

The eleventh century

HintYears 1 to 100 make the first of these periods of 100 years.

The whyThe eleventh century runs from AD 1001 to AD 1100. A year ending in 01 to 00 belongs to the century numbered one higher than its first two digits.

Magna Carta

HintOne happened in the thirteenth century and the other in the fourteenth.

The whyMagna Carta was sealed in 1215. The Black Death reached England in 1348, more than a century later.

149

HintSubtract the earlier year from the later one.

The why1215 − 1066 = 149. Subtracting works whenever both years are AD.

Queen Victoria

HintPeriod labels are often taken from the ruler of the time.

The whyVictoria reigned from 1837 to 1901, so "Victorian" describes that period. Not every period label comes from a monarch: "medieval" simply means "middle ages".

Its maker wanted to impress, so it may leave out failures

HintThink about who paid for it and why.

The whyAsking "why was this made?" is part of provenance. A monument made to boast is good evidence of what the emperor wanted people to believe, but a poor guide to what really happened.

The audience shapes what the maker says or leaves out

HintYou write differently to a friend than to a headteacher.

The whyA letter to a parent, a report to a commander and a public poster all say different things about the same events.

A primary source

HintWas it made at the time, or looking back later?

The whyA primary source comes from the time being studied. A history book written in 2020 about evacuees would be secondary.

A detail in the source

HintYou need something you can actually see or read.

The whyAn inference is a judgement from clues, so you should always name the clue. Without it, the inference is just a guess.

An observation

HintIs it something you can see, or something you worked out?

The whyAn observation says what the source shows directly. "The town needed to cross a river" would be an inference, because the map does not say it outright.

That a notable person lived or worked there

HintIt is a small round sign on the outside wall.

The whyIn England the blue plaque scheme marks buildings linked with famous people. Local clues like these show history you can walk past.