Class 9 Fundamentals Of History

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History  Chapter 4 Industrial Revolution: Colonialism And Imperialism Long Answer Question

Question 1. Why did the Industrial Revolution begin in England?
Answer:

In 1880-81, the British historian Arnold Toynbee elaborated through his lectures at Oxford on the Industrial Revolution in England which according to him started in England in 1760. Several factors contributed to the Industrial Revolution in England, which by the 19th Century came to be known as the ‘workshop of the world’.

The political stability achieved in England from the time of the Tudor and Stuart monarchs set the groundwork for the Industrial Revolution which was further hastened by its supply of natural resources like coal and iron and scientific inventions.

The innumerable rivers and canals provided cost-effective means of water transport to Britain. The commercial revolution opened up new trade routes and stimulated new business- The maritime expansion led to the accumulation of wealth, growth of the middle classes and development of entrepreneurship that encouraged the industrial revolution.

Read And Learn Also WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Long Answer Questions

Her supremacy in overseas trade also enabled her to accrue huge profits which in turn made capital investment possible. To this was added the huge earnings that were accumulated through the Agricultural Revolution and Enclosure Movement that took place in England before the Industrial Revolution.

The use of a single currency and the establishment of colonies in different parts of the world provided her with raw materials as well as a market for the finished goods. The migration of the rural people of England to the industrial or urban areas also provided her with a cheap and easy supply of labour.

Question 2. What were the characteristic features of the Industrial Revolution?
Answer: The characteristic features of the Industrial Revolution

The famous French philosopher Auguste Blanqui first coined the term Industrial Revolution in 1837. The Industrial Revolution did not occur suddenly it was the result of the combined efforts of several people since the middle of the 18th Century.

Before the Industrial Revolution, the economy was governed by the wealthy who started investing their capital in industries. The pace of industrialization in Europe also differed from one nation to another. In England, it started quite early but in the rest of Europe France, Holland, Germany, Belgium and Russia it appeared later.

As a result of the Industrial Revolution, much of the rural population moved to the cities or urban areas thereby crowding those places. Both colonialism and imperialism were the results of the Industrial Revolution. To acquire raw materials and find a market for the finished commodities produced in the factories both colonialism and imperialism became inevitable.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History  Question 3. What do you know about industrialization in France?
Answer: Industrialization in France

The Industrial Revolution in France occurred through slow and gradual advancement in technological innovations. It was the Finance Minister of Louis XVI, Charles de Calonne who first took the initiative of industrializing France and later Napoleon Bonaparte who founded the technical schools and made provisions for loans for the ’ manufacturers.

During the period between 1789 to 1848, France suffered greatly due to her internal problems which affected the socio-political and economic stability that was a pre-requisite to the Industrial Revolution. During the time of Louis Napoleon the Bank of France offered finances for industrial expansion and he also encouraged the setting up of joint-stock companies.

The attitude of the French people, the non – non-availability of coal, inadequate transport facilities, underdeveloped banking system hindered her process of industrialization. The real beginning of industrialization in France could be traced to 1830.

The Government of France provided the impetus to the expansion of industries, helped in developing the railways and started to use the Bank of France for this purpose. However, like Britain industrialization in France began in the textile industry and then spread to heavy industries like iron. Between 1890 and 1914, France made great progress in industrialization.

Question 4. Why did industrialization in Germany start at a later date?
Answer: Industrialization in Germany began in 1830, but up to 1850, it progressed at a slower pace. It was after the unification of Germany, under the leadership of Otto von Bismarck the process of industrialization picked up momentum. There was no political stability in Germany till 1870 and the numerous German states were engaged in strikes with each other.

As a result of Napoleon’s conquests in Germany, her economy was in a deplorable state and her banking system was not strong enough to support the growth of industries.

Germany being an agricultural country the German population had hardly any need for industrial products and Germany also had no colonies, which would provide her with a market for her finished goods.

The communication system both through land and water was poor in Germany which posed a challenge to industrial expansion. Lastly, neither the population of Germany was very high enough to provide an abundant supply of cheap labour nor there was any scope for large-scale capital investments to boost industrialization in Germany.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Chapter 4 Industrial Revolution Question 5. Discuss the role of Bismarck in the process of industrialization of Germany.
Answer: The role of Bismarck in the process of industrialization of Germany

The Chancellor of Germany, Otto von Bismarck took up the challenging task of making advancements in the process of industrialization of the country. Bismarck followed his dual policy of blood and iron and coal and iron to achieve the unification of Germany.

He took several measures to industrialize Germany-

1. First of all, he introduced a uniform currency called Reichsmark, regulated the tariffs and introduced standard weights and measures.
2. He also adopted protective measures to safeguard the interests of the indigenous industries and imposed import tariffs on foreign commodities.
3. He also strengthened and reorganized the banking system in Germany so that the banks could provide the necessary capital for the development of industries.
4. He also improved the communication system in Germany and implemented laws for the welfare of the workers.
5. Technicians from Britain came to Germany to build industry.

Question 6. What do you know about the inventions of the Industrial Revolution?
Answer:

The inventions of the Industrial Revolution

In the 18th Century, there was a major change in the mode of production because of the numerous scientific inventions that had taken place.

In England and France industrialization first took place in the textile industries as a result of the inventions of certain machines- In 1733 the Flying Shuttle was invented by John Kay, in 1765 the Spinning Jenny by James Hargreaves, the Water Frame in 1769 by Richard Arkwright, the Spinning Mule in 1779 by Samuel Crompton and the Power Loom by Edmund Cartwright in 1787. The yarn that was produced with the help of machines was of much superior quality.

Apart from these other inventions that followed were

1. In 1760 the Blast Furnace was invented by John Smeaton.
2. The Steam Engine was invented in 1769 by James Watt.

In 1811 the Metal Road by Telford and John McAdam, in 1815 the Rail Engine by George Stephenson and the Safety Lamp by Humphry Davy, in 1837 the Telegraph by Samuel Morse and 1876 the Telephone by Alexander Graham Bell.

Question 7. Discuss the role played by Czar Alexander II in the industrialization of Russia.
Answer: The role played by the Czar Alexander II in the industrialization of Russia

The Industrial Revolution had its impact on Russia also where the first railway line was laid in 1851 between Moscow and St.Petersburg. It was during the time of the Czar Alexander II that the real industrialization process began in Russia.

In 1861, Alexander II issued the Statute of Emancipation to abolish serfdom in Russia which provided an atmosphere for the growth of industries. Alexander II also made arrangements for taking loans from European nations like France, Germany, and Belgium to provide capital for investment in the industries.

During his time the reforms that he made also stimulated the Russian economy. The ‘Emancipation’ also resulted in the creation of the wealthy peasants or kulaks who hired landless labourers and by using efficient farming techniques produced grains in huge quantities and sold the surplus for profit.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Chapter 4 Industrial Revolution Question 8. What was the impact of the Industrial Revolution on the society?
Answer: The impact of the Industrial Revolution on the society

The term Industrial Revolution which was coined by the famous French scholar AugusteBlanqui in 1837, referred to the change that occurred in the methods of production and transportation and the replacement of human labour by power-driven machinery from the middle to the end of the 18th Century.

The immediate impact of the Industrial Revolution on society was the creation of two social classes – the capitalist masters and their exploited workers. The former reaped huge profits by making capital investments and depriving the latter through every possible means.

Before the Industrial Revolution, a vast majority of the population resided in rural areas, now the scenario changed and more and more people thronged in urban regions to earn their livelihoods. As a result, several new cities like Birmingham, Manchester, and Yorkshire became new industrial centres.

This exodus of the rural population gradually deteriorated the conditions of the villages. The emergence of the bourgeoisie capitalists like the moneylenders, the traders and the factory owners was another impact of the Industrial Revolution.

The men, women and children who were employed in the factories suffered greatly and about that they gradually became conscious and raised their protests, paving the path for the workers’ movement to take place; thus the concept of Socialism also developed as a result of the Industrial Revolution.

Question 9. Discuss the condition of women as a consequence of the Industrial Revolution.
Answer: The condition of women as a consequence of the Industrial Revolution

One of the major socio-economic impacts of the Industrial Revolution was the employment of women in the cotton textile mills, silk factories and weaving and knitting industries. In Birmingham, the women were even employed in the metal industry.

The women belonging to affluent families benefitted greatly from the Industrial Revolution for they could now afford a better way of living and indulge in purchasing industrial products. However the same was not the case for the poor working women who had to work hard but earned less than their male counterparts.

Even then the earnings of these female workers had great significance. For some, it provided the opportunity to be independent and have a better standard of living. Some of the young women earned to feed their families or save money for their marriages in future. But those working women were often badly exploited by their employers and due to erratic working hours they could not look after their children.

Question 10. What was a Ghetto?
Answer: Ghetto

The dictionary meaning of the word ‘Ghetto’ is a part of the city, a slum area occupied by minority groups. The reference to ghettos in Europe dates back to the 16th Century when in Italy the Jews who were ostracized inhabited those areas.

The expansion of industrialization resulted in the migration of a large population from the rural areas to the cities in search of their livelihood. These poor working-class people used to dwell in the remote corners of the cities which were called Ghettos.

The houses in the Ghettos were small, dingy, unhygienic and congested. Many poor labourers inhabited the Ghettos that sprang up in the industrial regions of England like Manchester and Yorkshire. Earlier the places or the areas in the American metropolises where the Africans inhabited were also called Ghettos.

Question 11. What do you know about the industrial society and its internal divisions?
Answer: The industrial society and its internal divisions

The radical transformation of the mode of production and transportation and the subsequent replacement of hand labour to the use of machinery in the 18th Century gave birth to the Industrial Revolution.

An important aspect of the Industrial Revolution was the emergence of two distinct classes in society – the rich capitalist masters and the poor exploited workers. Both the women and children were hard hit as a result of the industrialization. The women were made to work for long hours, wrongly utilized by their employers and were paid less than their male counterparts. As a result, their household and children suffered greatly.

Children below 18 years of age were deprived of their education and other basic rights and employed in the factories for want of money. The places where those workers dwelt were dingy, congested and unhygienic and deaths and diseases became a regular feature.

Such a situation eventually made the workers conscious of their deplorable condition and they started voicing their protests. Workers’ movement started to take place like the Luddite Riots and famous authors like Charles Dickens wrote about the pitiable condition of the workers in ‘Hard Times’. The leftist leader Cartwright contributed to the growth of Trade Unions and in France, the Compound Society was formed by Burdett for the poor.

 Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Chapter 4 Industrial Revolution  Question 12. What was the impact of industrialization on transport and communication?
Answer:

The impact of industrialization on transport and communication

The success of the Industrial Revolution depended largely on the development of transport and communication systems. Transportation of finished commodities to the market was a matter of singular importance and it was done through roadways, railways and waterways.

Thus attention was given towards the building of pucca or metal roads, the digging of canals for the movement of ships and the construction of railway lines for transporting both goods and passengers. The construction of the Suez Canal, the creation of metal roads and the invention of George Stephenson’s steam locomotive are worth mentioning in this respect.

The invention of the Telegraph by Samuel Morse, the Telephone by Alexander Graham Bell and Marconi’s Wireless made great contributions in the development of communication. Thus the growth of transport and communication provided great impetus to the expansion of trade and commerce and fostered a feeling of interdependence among the different nations.

Question 13. How did the construction of railways help in the Industrial Revolution?
Answer: The introduction of the railways had a great impact on the Industrial Revolution that took place in Europe from the middle to the end of the 18th Century. Countries like Britain where railways first came into operation not only benefitted by improvising the transport system but also helped in expanding the industries.

Other countries like Belgium in 1835, France in 1837, Germany in 1835 and Russia in 1838 made rapid progress in setting up their railway lines which not only helped them with a cheaper and faster mode of transport but also unified different areas.
The construction of railways helped in the development of the ancillary industries and aided in the growth of trade and commerce.

But as a result of the construction of the railway system, many of the natural resources like wood were used, thus creating a disturbance in the ecosystem. The imperialist nations like Britain also used the railways to exploit their colonies like Africa and India.

Question 14. What do you know about Karl Marx?
Answer: Karl Marx

Karl Heinrich Marx was born on 5th May 1818 in a middle-class family in the city of Trier, Germany. He was an extraordinary student, studied Law, History and Philosophy, and was highly motivated by the teachings of Hegel. Marx’s views on Socialism were different and he provided the basis on which Communism is observed in the present day.

He went to Paris and in 1845 was banished from France and moved to Brussels along with his closest associate Friedrich Engels propounded the Socialist Theory from a scientific angle. In Brussels, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels established the Communist League for the Workers.

In 1848, Marx along with his friend and associate published the booklet, Communist Manifesto and in 1867 wrote Das Kapital, in 1847 he wrote The Poverty of Philosophy and in 1859 he wrote A Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy.

Through his powerful writings, he insisted the working class join hands, usurp state powers and establish the ‘Dictatorship of the Proletariat’. Karl Marx who is regarded as the father of modern scientific Socialism died on 14th March 1883. The theory that was propounded by him is known as Scientific Socialism or Marxism.

Question 15. Why was the construction of the Suez Canal a significant event?
Answer: One of the most significant developments that took place due to the Industrial Revolution was the improvement in the transportation and communication system.

The Suez Canal was constructed in 1869 by the Suez Canal Company to connect Europe and Asia by linking the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea through a canal. Long before in 1798-99, Napoleon tried to build such a canal but he failed and it was only in 1854 that the French diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps managed to secure the permission of Said Pasha of Egypt to undertake this task.

It took about 10 years (1859 to 1869) to construct this canal and in 1869 it became commercially usable to the European nations like England, France, Germany, Portugal, Spain, Belgium, Denmark and others.

The opening of the Suez Canal helped to reduce the distance between the East and the West and Europe now further developed trading relations with India and Africa. In the closing years of the 19th Century, the Suez Canal helped the European countries to fulfil their dream of imperialism and colonial expansion.

Question 16. Why did the industrial powers of Europe follow a policy of colonial expansion?
Answer: The Industrial Revolution led to large-scale production of commodities which exceeded their actual demand in the European markets. So the only option left to the industrial nations of Europe was to search for a market to sell their surplus products. This naturally encouraged them to establish colonies in Asia and Africa where they could form their monopolistic markets.

Political control over the colonies became the need of the hour and the companies like English East India Company had to fight for this both with the natives and the French and Dutch East India Company. In India, these areas were demarcated and while the French settled with Pondicherry and Chandannagore, the Portuguese had Goa and the English enjoyed the rest of India. All these factors were responsible for the colonial expansion of the industrial nations of Europe.

Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Chapter 4 Industrial Revolution Question 17. Write a note on the Treaty of Berlin. (1885)
Answer: Treaty of Berlin. (1885)

The Treaty of Berlin (1885) was largely the outcome of the ambition of Germany to create colonies in Africa through a peaceful settlement. Accordingly, 14 European nations met in Berlin and signed the Treaty of Berlin in 1885. At this meeting, the European members decided upon an international prohibition of the slave trade in their respective areas.

According to the terms of the treaty

1. A vast region of the Congo area remained under Belgium and both the rivers Niger and Congo were used for navigation.
2. Whoever amongst the 14 members of the Berlin Congress colonised any undiscovered region of Africa would not be challenged by the rest of the members.

Britain had occupied Rhodesia, the Congo border, Zanzibar and other regions but still nurtured the hope of further acquisitions, Germany also established colonies in Cameroon, Heligoland and Tobago Land and France occupied colonies in East Africa, Portugal captured Angola and Mozambique, Belgium got Congo and parts of Somalia and Eriteria were colonized by Italy.

The Berlin Congress in reality increased the colonial activities of the European powers. These powers ignored the existing system of autonomy and self-governance of Africa.

Question 18. Discuss in short the Entente Cordiale of 1904.
Answer: Entente Cordiale of 1904

England’s apprehension about the growing power of Germany prompted both France and England to ally against their common enemy-Germany. As a result, England and France signed the Entente Cordiale in 1904. By the terms of this treaty both the countries decided to put an end to their past disagreements on Siam, Madagascar and West Africa.

France agreed to keep a vigil on the Mediterranean Sea. Further France also helped England to strengthen its naval power in the North Sea and the English Channel. Both of them also recognized their respective areas of influence like France did for Egypt and Sudan in favour of Britain.

Britain too did the same for France about Morocco. Thus it can be concluded that the Entente Cordiale of 1904 was a friendly agreement between Britain and France.

Question 19. Write what you know about the Triple Alliance of 1882 and the Triple Entente of 1907.
Answer: The Triple Alliance of 1882 and the Triple Entente of 1907

To diplomatically isolate France, Otto von Bismarck entered into an alliance with Austria-Hungary and Italy known as the Triple Alliance (1882). Along with this Bismarck also secretly signed the Reinsurance Treaty with Russia to maintain a cordial relationship.

But in 1890 when Kaiser William II came to power in Germany he dismissed Bismarck and was influenced by his ministers not only did he discontinue Bismarck’s diplomatic measures he did not even renew the Reinsurance Treaty with Russia.

Kaiser William II now embarked upon an aggressive colonial policy and expansion of the German navy. This immediately alarmed England and France who soon signed the Entente Cordiale in 1904 and England and Russia also allied in 1907; as Germany ignored Russia, she also leaned towards France and signed a military alliance in 1895- all these 3 powers together formed the Triple Entente (1907).

Europe now became divided into two camps –

1. The countries of the Triple Alliance namely Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy and
2. The countries of Triple Entente namely Britain, France and Russia.

Question 20. Write a short note on Dreikaiserbund.
Answer: Dreikaiserbund

The Union of the three emperors of Austria, Russia and Germany lasted from 1873 to 1880. This union between the heads of these three nations was neither a treaty nor an alliance. The German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck wanted to maintain peace and a balance of power in Europe.

Bismarck himself had a good relationship with Austria but the latter’s relationship with Russia was strained on the issue of the Eastern Question. Further, he also feared that a combination of France, Austria and Russia would be a serious threat to Germany.

Thus to find a solution to such a situation a compromise was made between the Kaiser of Germany, the Czar of Russia and the Emperor of Austria-Hungary- which is known as Dreikaiserbund. It is also called the ‘Three Emperors League’.

Question 21. Give an account of the Berlin Congress of 1878.
Answer: The Berlin Congress of 1878

The Berlin Congress of 1878 was presided over by the German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. At this diplomatic convention of the European nations, the Treaty of Berlin replaced the Treaty of San Stefano that was concluded after the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78.

By the terms of the Treaty of Berlin- Russia received Bessarabia and the provinces of Bars, Batum and Armenia; Serbia, Montenegro and Rumania became free and Serbia, Wallachia and Moldavia also got a semi-independent status.

The Berlin Congress attempted to.

1. Satisfy the interest of Britain who received the island of Cyprus,
2. Deny Russia of her interest in extending her naval power
3. Allow Austria-Hungary to occupy Bosnia and Herzegovina
4. Maintaining the Ottoman Empire as a European Power.

The Congress of Berlin humiliated Russia by reducing the gains that were achieved by the Treaty of San Stefano and ignoring the aspirations of the people of the Balkans. It was the Treaty of Berlin which provided the base upon which crises in the Balkans took place in future.

Question 22. How did radical nationalism give birth to colonial rivalry and led to the First World War?
Answer: The end of the 19th Century saw the rise of extreme nationalism in Europe as all the European nations wanted to uphold their superiority and engaged themselves in colonial and trade rivalries.

The rise of radical or extreme nationalism was evident mostly among the Germans who were influenced by this by their philosophers, historians and political thinkers. The strong German military force under Kaiser William II frightened France to such an extent that they also began their military fortification immediately.

As France and Germany continued with their endless military tussle other countries in Europe also started strengthening their military power. The German Naval policy and building of warships and submarines from around 1897 alarmed both England and France who soon entered into a friendly alliance known as the Entente Cordiale in 1904 to keep Germany under control.

The strained relationship between Russia and Austria was another cause of concern and by 1907 Europe was divided into two camps

1. The camp was formed by the members of the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy) and
2. The camp was formed by the Triple Entente (England, Russia, France).

All these made the atmosphere extremely volatile and resulted in the outbreak of the First World War in 1914.

Question 23. Write a short note on Friedrich Engels. Friedrich Engels was born in Germany on 28,h November, 1820.
Answer: Friedrich Engels

He was a historian, philosopher, journalist and social scientist who was closely associated with Karl Marx. His father owned large textile factories in England and Friedrich joined this family business after serving in the military for a year in 1842. During his stay in Britain, he came in touch with Karl Marx and based on personal experiences published the book, The Condition of the Working Class in England in 1845.

In 1848, together Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels published the booklet, Communist Manifesto. After the death of Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels edited the Second and Third Volume of Das Kapital which was written by Karl Marx. Friedrich Engels died at the age of 74 on 5th August 1895.

Question 24. How did the colonial powers divide Africa amongst themselves?
Answer: It was as late as the third quarter of the 19th Century that the interior of Africa remained an unknown territory to the Europeans.
Soon after, the European powers like the British, the French, the Dutch, the Portuguese, the Spanish, the Italians and the Germans pounced upon the ‘Dark Continent’ and divided it amongst themselves.

Britain occupied Egypt on the pretext of controlling the sea route to India through the Suez Canal, established colonies in Africa and brought Uganda, Rhodesia, and East Africa under her sway. Portugal gained power over Guinea, Angola and Mozambique. France established her supremacy in the Sahara region and West Africa.

Parts of West Africa came under German domination. Somaliland and Eritrea were gained by Italy and Spain maintained her power over Rio de Oro.

Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Chapter 4 Industrial Revolution Question 25. Briefly discuss the ‘Sarajevo Incident’.
Answer: Sarajevo Incident

The First World War took place in Europe on 28th July 1914. Many causes both direct and indirect contributed to this historical event. The ‘Sarajevo Incident’ is regarded as the immediate cause of the outbreak of the First World War.

The prince of Austria and his wife namely, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and Sophie visited the city of Bosnia, the capital of Sarajevo. On 28, June 1914 Gavrilo Princip a member of the Slav terrorist organization ‘Back Hand’ openly killed the visiting Austrian Prince and his wife in Sarajevo. This incident is referred to in history as the ‘Sarajevo Incident’.

As a result of this incident, Austria branded the Slavs as a ‘Race of Assassins’, condemned Serbia and sent her an ultimatum with many clauses along with a 48-hour deadline. Serbia refused to accept some of the clauses which curbed her sovereignty and proposed an international conference which Austria rejected outright and attacked the Serbian capital Belgrade on 28th July 1914- thus initiating the First World War.

Question 26. Write a note on Moroccan Crises.
Answer:  Moroccan Crises

The Moroccan crises of 1905-1906 and 1911 were two international events that revolved around France’s attempt to control Morocco and Germany’s effort to thwart French power. The German Emperor Kaiser William II wanted an open-door policy in Morocco and openly spoke in favour of Morocco’s independence and integrity.

This was a deliberate move on the part of Germany to pressurize France and isolate her from an alliance with Britain, but Germany’s attempt remained unfulfilled. The First Moroccan Crisis was resolved in 1906 at the Algeciras Conference.

The Second Moroccan Crisis was precipitated when the German gunboat Panther was sent to Agadir in July 1911 to protect German interests during a local uprising in Morocco. The ‘Agadir Incident’ led to many international negotiations and discussions and the crisis ended in 1911. In the end, France got the right to be a protector over Morocco and Germany was also given strips of territory from the French Congo.

Question 27. Compare the Industrial Revolution in England with the other countries of the European continent.
Answer:

Comparing the Industrial Revolution in England to the other countries of the European continent

The Industrial Revolution first started in England in the second half of the 18th Century and then spread to the rest of Europe France, Belgium, Germany, Holland and Russia.

In the rest of Europe, industrialization started almost 30 to 40 years later and the English model was not adopted everywhere. Being the first one in this race for industrialization England faced certain challenges along with certain privileges. As England was the forerunner she had free access to the markets in Europe and the rest of the world without incurring any competition.

The two most important pre-requisites of the Industrial Revolution

1. The supply of raw materials and
2. The markets to sell excess products were also solved due to her acquisition of colonies in India and America.

Besides the Agricultural Revolution and the Enclosure Movement in England took place before the Industrial Revolution and resulted in the migration of landless farmers to the urban areas thus providing an easy supply of workers to the factories.

The plethora of time-appropriate scientific inventions, her economic policies, political stability, overseas power and naval strength along with the availability of natural resources like coal and iron greatly helped industrialization in England.

But in the rest of the countries of Europe like France industries failed to grow due to a shortage of coal, in Germany there was political instability due to internal feuds, and in Russia, the prevalent system of serfdom and her cultural backwardness were hindrances to the process.

In Belgium, the railway construction that took place adopted the plan formed by George Stephenson and the project was executed with loans taken from England. In France, unlike England, industrialization was state-sponsored while in England it was achieved through the investments of the capitalist class.

The construction of railways in France was attained under Government initiatives. In Germany, the construction of railways took place before her industrialization but she also received capital from Britain for this purpose. The Industrial Revolution in Russia was primarily executed through foreign aid or capital which ultimately became a major cause of her weakness in the process of industrialization.

However, these countries also showed signs of success-

1. By 1870, France stood next to England in exporting industrial products
2. Though Germany had a late beginning she surpassed England in steel industries over time and became a leader in the chemical industries
3. And in the times to come Russia also proved her worth as a major industrial nation.

Question 28. Describe the process of the Industrial Revolution that took place in European countries other than England.
Answer:

The process of the Industrial Revolution that took place in European countries other than England

The Industrial Revolution had its beginning in England and then spread over countries like France, Germany, Russia, Belgium, Holland and much later in Spain, Austria, Saxony, Sweden and other regions of Europe.

France- The Industrial Revolution in France started a little late in the middle of the 19th century due to persistent political upheaval and according to Rostow, the time between 1830 to 1860 was the period of industrialization in France.

However, it can be safely stated that industrialization in France started during the reign of Louis Philippe and reached its peak at the time of Napoleon III. In France, industrialization was mainly achieved through government initiative. Thus the construction of railways, establishment of textile industries, setting up of chemical factories and other things started to take place.

Germany- The process of industrialization in Germany started in 1830 but it progressed slowly and it only picked up momentum after its unification under the initiative of Otto von Bismarck. Here railway construction started in 1835 with assistance from England.

Bismarck followed his coal and iron policy and consolidated the German economy and through the proper working of the Zollverein, implementation of welfare measures and laws, and reforming the banking system the German industrial production grew rapidly and soon she became the leader in chemical industries.

Russia Industrial Revolution in Russia began in 1860-61 and reached its pinnacle in 1917 during the Bolshevik Revolution. Her industries were established mostly with financial assistance from foreign countries. This became a cause of her weakness no doubt but ultimately Russia also emerged as a major industrial power.

Belgium also progressed well after the construction of her railways with British aid and her textile industries developed quite well by 1799. In Italy, the cotton textile industry developed greatly from 1889 to 1895. In Switzerland, watch, woollen, lace and other industries developed much from 1798 to 1830. In Spain however, we can trace the growth of industrialization from 1961 to 1971 after the Second World War.

Question 29. What were the social, political and economic impacts of the Industrial Revolution?
Answer:

The social, political and economic impact of the Industrial Revolution

18th-century Europe saw a significant change in the mode of production as a result of scientific inventions which led to the process of Industrial Revolution.

The Industrial Revolution had a great impact on the social, political and economic life of Europe. Social impact- Before industrialization a vast majority of the population lived in the villages now migrated to the urban regions to work in the factories and earn their livelihood.

A new urban society was formed and two social classes came into existence- the capitalist masters and the exploited workers. Men, women and children all who worked in the factories received meagre wages, had vexing working hours and were subject to abject exploitations. The workers had to live in small, unhealthy houses and diseases and death were rampant. The women came out from the home to work, urban bourgeois followed planned family policy. Education for children increased too.

Political impact- The Industrial Revolution led to the rise of surplus production which was to be sold at a market gaining profit. This made colonial expansion necessary. The capitalist class who now participated in politics forced the government to establish colonies in Asia and Africa. As a result, the ‘Age of Imperialism’ (1870- 1914) ensued.

The workers also gradually became conscious of their deplorable condition and started raising their voices which ultimately led to the formation of the Workers’ unions and movements. The division between the masters and the workers became so high that the concept of ‘Socialism’ was born to find a solution to this conflict.

To redress the situation the governments had to pass several ‘factory laws’ in future. The emergence of the bourgeoisie-capitalist political system was one of the most important aspects of the Industrial Revolution.

Economic Impact – The gradual decline of small-scale industries, the rise of large-scale production through big factories and mills, the exploitation of workers, the division of labour, specialization and huge productions were some of the most important features of the Industrial Revolution. The workers were completely at the mercy of their masters and due to the availability of cheap labour their job had no guarantee and unemployment soared.

The European economy had undergone such a huge change that the governments in some of the countries adopted the ‘Industrial Protection Policy’. Europe soon had to find markets for their surplus industrial products in Asia and Africa – thus paving the path for colonial expansion.

 Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Chapter 4 Industrial Revolution Question 30. Why was India called the ‘Jewel in the Crown’ of the British Empire? How did India end up as an importing nation?
Answer:

The European economy transformed greatly as a result of the Industrial Revolution and Europe now had to explore new markets in Asia and Africa to sell their surplus industrial production. England, the first industrial nation of Europe had turned India into her colony. The richness of resources in India lured the British rulers greatly and they started extracting the country to meet their selfish material interests and urge to become rich.

Apart from this India also provided Britain with raw materials at a cheaper price which aided her industries. The rich historical and cultural heritage and her scenic beauty also attracted the English people and so the British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli called India ‘the jewel in the crown of the British empire’

In the 18th Century, Indian goods were purchased by English merchants and sold in their home country and other European nations at a high rate of profit. But the scenario changed in the 19th Century when the Indian markets were flooded with British goods and India was transformed from an exporter to an importer.

Several factors contributed to this transformation –

1. Laws were also passed in Britain that prohibited and restricted the sale of Indian commodities. In 1700, prohibition was imposed on the import of silk clothes from Bengal and in 1720 an act was passed that prohibited the import of coloured cotton cloths.
2. High rates of taxes were also imposed on Indian goods like cotton that were imported to England.
3. On the other hand, various relaxations were made so that the English East India Company could sell the industrial products of Britain in India on a very large scale.
4. The Charter Act of 1813 abolished the East India Company’s monopoly to trade with India. A policy of free trade was adopted by the British Government, as a result of which more English merchants arrived in India and flooded her markets with their industrial products.

So, while India just imported 9% of commodities in 1850 it increased to 12% within twenty years.

Question 31. Give an account of Henry de Saint Simon and Charles Fourier the two famous Utopian Socialists.
Answer:

Henry de Saint Simon and Charles Fourier the two famous Utopian Socialists

Born on 17th October 1760, in a respectable French family, Henry de Saint Simon is considered as the ‘Pioneer of European Socialism’.

He is also regarded as the ‘Father of French Socialism’ and his ideas are expressed in the book, Neo- Neo-Christianism. He opposed the idea of unequal distribution of wealth and wanted the abolition of the law of inheritance. He felt the Christian religion would be able to prevent exploitation and eradicate social inequalities.

He wanted the establishment of industrial states based on the cooperation and understanding between the owners and the workers.
He wanted individuals to work according to their abilities and urged the States to fulfil his needs. He emphasized education for according to him educated people will help in the development of the poor.

Henry de Saint Simon died on 19th May 1825. Charles Fourier was born on 7th April 1772 in France and was a great follower of Henry de Saint Simon. He was against the concept of personal property which led to capitalism.

He wanted to form a society based on a ‘commune’ According to him a commune would comprise 1500 to 2000 men and women who would be capable of producing their food and clothes and sharing them among each other. There would be a total absence of ideas like wages, profits and competition.

As a result, the commune will be a place for happy and satisfied people where there would be no need for the machinery of suppressions of the State like police and prisons. The views of Charles Fourier became popular in Europe and America. On 10th October 1837, Charles Fourier died.

Question 32. Briefly discuss the theories propounded by Hobson and Lenin.
Answer:

The theories propounded by Hobson and Lenin

J.A. Hobson the British economic historian explained through his books, ‘Imperialism-A Study’ and ‘Economic Taproot of Imperialism’ that the main motive behind imperialism was strictly economic. He argued that the capitalists of Britain, France, and Germany coaxed their respective governments to establish colonies in Asia and Africa to sell their surplus production and acquire an abundant supply of raw materials.

As the number of colonies was limited this naturally created rivalry among the different countries. This situation ultimately led to war. Hobson provided a remedy or alternative to avoid such a situation. Since excess capital was the main reason behind imperialism he opined that if the said amount be distributed in welfare measures or to the poor then a fair solution could be achieved.

V. I. Lenin was a famous Communist Leader of Russia who explained his views on imperialism through his booklet, ‘Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism’. According to him in the capitalist countries, the foreign policies were determined by the industrialists.

The capitalists wanted a market to invest their capital, capture the market for their surplus commodities and need an abundant supply of raw materials. So the industrialists or the capitalists pressured their governments to capture colonies where they would enjoy their monopoly in business.

This naturally led to rivalries among the nations in establishing their colonies which finally culminated in wars. Lenin believed that imperialism had its birth in the womb of capitalism.

Question 33. How did imperialism affect China?
Answer:

China from the very beginning maintained its distance from foreign traders and remained in isolation. However, the Western powers were very interested in setting up trade relations with her.

Foreign traders were only allowed to do business in China through the port of Canton. When the Chinese government saw that Britain was importing large quantities of opium to China and that was affecting the Chinese population they imposed a ban on its import. This led to the First Opium War from 1839 to 1842 between the Manchu rulers of China and the British in which China was badly defeated and signed the Treaty of Nanking.

By this treaty, China had to cede Hong Kong to the British, legalize the opium trade, open five other ports of China along with Canton, pay war indemnities and agree to the humiliating term that the British subjects in China would not abide by the Chinese law.

All these prompted countries like France, Sweden, Norway and the USA to sign trade pacts with China. Encouraged by the weakness of China the French and the English declared the Second Opium War (1856) which ended with China’s defeat and the signing of the Treaty of Tientsin.

By the terms of this treaty, another 11 ports of China were now opened for foreign trade, Christianity could be preached in China, foreign missions to be set up in Beijing, war indemnities to be paid and the foreign traders would be exempted from the Chinese law.

By this time the foreign powers like Japan, Russia, the USA, Germany, and France all started their aggression upon China in such a manner that it can be compared to the ‘ cutting of a water melon’. Japan also declared war against China (1894¬95) and forced her to surrender.

Different parts of China were occupied like the ‘slices of a melon’ by the imperial powers- Fukien was occupied by Japan, Kiao Chow harbour and 5hantung by Germany, and Liao-Tung and Port Arthur was occupied by Russia. France was to construct a railway from Annam to the interiors of China and carry minerals from the Yunnan and Kwanshi regions.

All these alarmed the American traders and following their appeal the US Foreign Secretary John Hay declared the famous ‘Open Door Policy’ which provided everyone with the same opportunities in China, every country enjoying equal trading rights in China must pay an equal amount of port and trade duties. It also guaranteed the sovereignty of China. However, all these were meant to preserve the territorial interests of the foreign countries in China.

Question 34. Write a note on the development of the telegraph system.
Answer:

The development of the telegraph system

The Industrial Revolution started in Europe in the second half of the 18th Century. This event brought about changes in the mode of transportation and production and replaced hand labour with power-driven machinery. The change in the way of production and transportation inevitably led to the development of the transport and communication system.

The construction of railways and the use of steam power for navigation hastened the process of communication greatly. But the more significant advancement in this connection was achieved through instantaneous communication by electricity- the invention of Morse’s Telegraph in 1837. This was a ‘key invention’ that helped to send messages to distant places with the help of electrical connections.

Naturally, this device became very popular in the middle of the 19th Century. By the 30s of the 19th Century, countries like Britain, the USA and the Central European nations had developed their network through this device. 1849 Warmer Siemens laid telegraph lines between Berlin and Frankfurt and also laid lines to connect Moscow with St. Petersburg in 1849.

Siemens formed a company in England too and he successfully connected via sub-marine cable London with Calcutta and Russia with Iran. The telegram system also helped in the expansion of colonies. The electric telegram wires between Calcutta and Diamond Harbour were first started on an experimental basis in 1850 in India. Later it was more widely used by the English East India Company in 1851 and by 1854 many regions of India like Bombay, and Madras got connected through the system of telegram.

The imperial rule of England over America was also made possible due to the establishment of the Atlantic Cable in 1866. Gradually the telegram lines were set up in China (1871), Australia (1872) and also in the colonies of Africa. The invention of the telegraph system was the forerunner to the subsequent inventions of Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone (1876) and Marconi’s wireless device (1896).

The invention of the telegraph not only helped in strengthening the power of the imperialist nations on their colonies and the development of trade and commerce it also provided an impetus to the print media.

Question 35. What were the causes of the First World War?
Answer:

The causes of the First World War

One of the most significant events in history was the outbreak of the First World War. It started on 28th July 1914 and ended on 11th November 1918. Various factors contributed to the outbreak of this global phenomenon.

1. By 1907, Europe was divided into two camps

1. The members of the Triple Alliance like Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy
2. The members of Triple Entente like England, France, Russia and both camps were afraid of each other and tried to secure their strength.

The ambition of both Germany and Italy to expand their colonial strength also disturbed the peace in Europe. The military attitude and the foreign policy of the German Kaiser even prompted Britain to come out of her diplomatic decision of maintaining a neutral stance.

The growth of radical or extreme nationalism and patriotism in some of the European countries especially Germany also provided the backdrop of the war.

The feeling of mutual distrust among the imperialist nations, and their urge to acquire armaments. The incessant political tension made the outbreak of the war inevitable.

Slav People’s demand for self-determination. All these factors were considered as the indirect causes of the outbreak of the First World War. The immediate or direct cause was provided by the ‘Sarajevo Incident’.

The murder of the Austrian Prince, Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie during her visit to Sarajevo by Princip a member of a Slav terrorist organization, ‘Black Hand’, is known as the ‘Sarajevo Incident’. Austria sharply responded to this incident and attacked Belgrade, the capital of Serbia on 28th July 1914 thus leading to the eruption of the First World War.

Question 36. Make a brief overview of the First World War.
Answer: A brief overview of the First World War

A war-like atmosphere was created in Europe towards the end of the 19th Century when Europe was divided into two camps by signing two of the most important treaties. They were the Triple Alliance of 1882 and the Triple Entente of 1907.

The two contesting powers of the First World War were Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey or the Central Powers and the Entente Powers formed by Britain, France, Belgium, USA, Russia and others.

To check the westward advance of Russia, Germany made her armies follow the Schlieffen Plan. Germany wanted to have an upper hand over any Franco-Russian alliance. At the time of the war, the Germans made efforts to protect the Western Front and directed an attack on Russia in the east.

Prussia and Austria in 1914, the war on the Eastern Front started. In the beginning, the Russians were successful: but later the German troops overpowered the First World War is also well known for trench warfare fought between the German and the Allied powers.

Both sides tried to gain an advantage over one another and chemi weapons were also used during the war. ‘The most noticeable Trench warfare was fought the 1st Battle of Marne ( September 191. Second Battle of Ypres ( April 1915 ) and the Battle of Verdun ( December 1916 ). The most famous Battle in the Western Front was the Battle of Somme (1916 ) which is often termed as the bloodiest of the entire war.

However, the First World War ended with the defeat of the Central Powers and as a result of this war, there was a huge loss of both men and materials of the two warring sides. Around 8.5 million soldiers and 13 million civilians died in the war. Germany had to surrender finally and an armistice was signed on November 1918.

At the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, the victorious Allied Powers set the terms of peace for the Central Powers. The Central Powers had to accept the harsh terms that were imposed upon them.

Question 37. What do you know about the First and the Second Balkan Wars?
Answer:

The Balkan Wars that took place in the Balkan peninsula consisted of two wars-

1. The First Balkan War 1912
2. The Second Balkan War 1913.

The rise of the feeling of nationalism and patriotism and the expansionist policy of Austria-Hungary initiated the Balkan crisis. In 1908 the Slav-inhabited regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina were occupied by Austria.

The Balkan states tried to build up a strong resistance against Turkish domination and the Balkan League was formed by Montenegro, Greece, Serbia and Bulgaria. When the Ottoman ruler refused to accept the demands of the Balkan League a war ensued
between the two, which is known as the First Balkan War (1912).

The Ottoman Empire was badly defeated by these four Balkan states. Britain was alarmed by this growing strength of the Balkan States and arranged for a conference in London in 1913. The Treaty of London was made and except for Constantinople and a few adjacent regions the Turkish domination was removed.

The Second Balkan War began in June 1913 when unhappy with her loss of Macedonia, Bulgaria launched an attack on her former Balkan League allies. Serbia, Greece, Romania and the Ottoman Empire together formed a resistance against Bulgaria and as a result, Bulgaria was badly defeated.

By the Treaty of Bucharest 1913, Bulgaria had to cede most of Macedonia to Greece and Serbia and Romania also received certain parts of Bulgaria. As a result of the Balkan wars, the power of the Ottoman Empire was reduced totally and Russia adopted the role of a guardian over the Balkan region.

The growing power of Serbia was not liked by Austria who was bent on destroying her. This attitude of Austria received German encouragement. Germany decided that in case of an Austrian invasion of Serbia, if Russia helped Serbia, Germany would render her support to Austria. The political consequence of the Balkan Wars was considerable and it paved the path for the outbreak of the First World War.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Chapter 5 Europe In The 20th Century Analytical Long Answer Questions

Question 1. Briefly discuss the Czarist rule in Russia during the second half of the 19th Century.
Answer:

The Czarist rule in Russia during the second half of the 19th Century

Ivan 4 was the first to assume the title of Czar in Russia in 1547 but it was the regime of the Romanov rulers (1613 to 1917) which is regarded as the period of Czarist rule in Russia.

The rule of Czar Nicholas I lasted from 1825 to 1855 and he was succeeded by Alexander II who ruled from 1855 to 1881 till his assassination by one of the members of the terrorist group Narodnaya Volya.

The most significant measure adopted by Alexander II was the declaration of the Emancipation Statute of 1861 and he brought about reforms in the system of education, judiciary, and land.

On his death his son Alexander 3 ascended the throne in 1881 and ruled till 1894 reversed all the reforms of his father and declared that there would be one Czar, one Church, and one Russia and his other autocratic measures were

1. Russification of the minorities
2. Imposition of censorship and restrictions on publications, meetings, private correspondences, etc.
3. State control over the education system
4. Keeping the control of the Mirs on the government-appointed landed proprietors
5. Imprisonment or exile of political offenders.

However, he did not act as a barrier when Count Witte introduced the railways or encouraged industrialization with cheap labor and also on his revenue policy.

In 1894, Nicholas II became the Czar after his father’s death and continued the same autocratic rule as his predecessor. His reign witnessed the collapse of imperial Russia and because of his anti -Semitic programs and violent suppression of the Revolution of 1905, he was called Nicholas the Bloody.

The rule of Nicholas II saw the discontent and protest of the workers, the defeat of Russia in the Russo-Japanese War of 1905, and the revolutions of 1905 and 1917 in Russia. Nicholas II was the last ruler of the Romanov Dynasty who was dethroned in 1917 as a result of the Russian Revolution.

Read And Learn Also WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Long Answer Questions

Question 2. Discuss the social background of the Russian Revolution.
Answer:

The social background of the Russian Revolution

The Russian society suffered due to the autocratic, feudal structure of her society which was created through the corrupt, unjust, and tyrannical Czarist regime.

The society was divided into two groups-

1. The handful of aristocrats and the innumerable
2. Poor peasants and even the Emancipation Statute of 1861 by Czar Alexander 2 failed to improve the plights of the peasantry.

The increase in the peasant population during the close of the 19th Century created a shortage of land for cultivation and when the law and order system collapsed in Russia these people started attacking the Crown, the Church, and the nobles. The unhappy middle-class population though less in number also resented the policies of the government.

The rise of industries in Russia led to the growth of the working class along with their problems. The exploitation of the workers, the harsh and undignified treatment of them, and the denial to form Trade Unions and the right to ‘Strike’ agitated them very much.

The people of Russia like the people of France were also influenced by the writings of the intellectuals like Leo Tolstoy, Maxim Gorky, Turgenev, and others.

Question 3. Discuss the economic background of the Russian Revolution.
Answer:

The economic background of the Russian Revolution

The three hundred years rule of the Romanov Dynasty systematically weakened the backbone of the Russian economy and this economic backwardness was one of the major causes of the Russian Revolution.

80% of the population of Russia was comprised of the peasantry whose plights did not improve much even after the declaration of the Emancipation Statute or laws passed by Prime Minister Stolypin. Russia continued to be a backward agrarian nation even at a time when the rest of the European nations developed modern industries.

The end of the 19th Century saw a rise in Russian industries and around 15% of the Russian population who formed the industrial workers were in miserable economic conditions. They had low salaries, dwelt in slums, denied the right to form a Union or organize a ‘Strike’.

The merchants and the factory owners wanted to establish constitutional governments so that they could place their demands. The Russian economy further suffered a terrible setback due to her participation in the First World War.

There was a shortage of food and essential commodities and even the Russian soldiers grew hostile under such circumstances.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Question 4. Discuss the political background of the Russian Revolution.
Answer:

The political background of the Russian Revolution

The Russian Revolution of 1917 was one of the most significant events in the history of the world. The autocratic and reactionary rule of the Czars in Russia led the Russian people toward the Dark Ages and hence a rebellion became inevitable.

The Russification of the minority, the various repressive measures of the Czars, the censorship of the press, control of the education system, the imprisonment, and the policy of sending on an exile to Siberia made the atmosphere extremely volatile.

As a result, both the peasantry and the workers took recourse to revolts and strikes which were ruthlessly suppressed by the Czarist Government. Russia’s failure in the Crimean War, her little accomplishment at the Berlin Conference, and the defeat of Russia in the Russo-Japanese War of 1905 affected the pride and honor of Russia.

Last but not least was the failure of Russia in the First World War, which prepared the ground for the revolution.

Question 5. What were the causes of the success of the Bolshevik Revolution?
Answer:

The causes of the success of the Bolshevik Revolution

Several factors contributed to the success of the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. The weakness of the government formed by Alexander Kerensky led to the shortage of food and essential commodities which made all sections of the population —the peasants, the workers, and the soldiers unhappy and hostile.

The void that was created in the minds of the people during the time of the war together with their feeling of hopelessness made them lean more toward the Bolsheviks.

The participation and subsequent withdrawal of Russia from the First World War not only demoralized the people it also shook their trust in the Czarist rule and it was the soldiers who started shifting their allegiance towards the Bolsheviks.

The able leadership of V. I. Lenin and the proper execution of the program by the Bolshevik Party also motivated the people. The absence of proper opposition and the inability of the Czar to curb the rebellion was yet another factor.

Finally, the April Theses of Lenin that promised bread to the workers, peace to the army, and land to the peasants largely contributed to the success of the Bolshevik Revolution.

Question 6. What were the causes of the First World War?
Answer:

The causes of the First World War

The First World War began in 1914 and ended in 1918 with the defeat of the Central Powers at the hands of the Allied Powers.

The immediate cause of the war was the assassination of the Austrian Prince Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie by a Slav nationalist named Gavrilo Princip on June 28th, 1914 at Sarajevo.

The imperialist policies of the powerful European nations and their attempt to establish colonies in Asia and Africa led to rivalries among them. The Industrial Revolution, the labor movements, and aggressive nationalism also contributed to the cause of the war.

The conflict between Great Britain and the German Empire on the high seas was inevitable as a result of the naval arms race between the two countries.

A belief developed about the superior strength of Prussian militarism as a result of Germany’s success in the Franco-German War. After the annexation of Alsace and Lorraine by Germany severe bitterness grew between France and Germany and the former was desperately longing for revenge.

The Balkan Wars led to the eradication of the presence of the Ottoman Empire in Europe which gave way to strife among the victor powers.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Question 7. Why did the Allied Powers win victory in the First World War?
Answer: The First World War ended with an armistice in which both the Allied Powers and the Central Powers agreed to stop fighting. Since it was the Germans who requested an armistice the Allied Powers were in a winning position.

The reason for the victory of the Allied Powers was

1. Compared to Germany the Allied Powers were better equipped and had more resources and manpower
2. England and France being democratic nations drew more support from their people than Germany which was under dictatorial rule
3. The naval strength of the Allied Powers was far superior to the Central Powers
4. The sinking of the American merchant ships by Germany led to the entry of the United States into the First World War on the side of the Allies. This strengthened the power and resources of the Allied Powers.
5. Moreover, Germany was fighting the war on both fronts for the major part of the war but she did not have enough money, men, and war equipment to carry on like this for long.
6. Truly speaking it was nothing more than a war of attrition that Germany or the Central Powers could not hope to win.

Question 8. Discuss Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points.
Answer:

Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points

The United States of America joined the First World War without any intention of territorial gains but to establish peace end the war and make the world ‘safe for democracy’.

Woodrow Wilson the then President of the USA proposed his Fourteen Points in January 1918 to achieve the protection of democracy and world peace.

The Fourteen Points of Woodrow Wilson stated-

1. Abandonment of secret agreements and negotiations
2. Freedom of the seas
3. End of all economic barriers
4. Countries were asked to bring about a reduction in their number of armaments
5. Impartial adjustments of all colonial claims
6. The evacuation of all Russian territory
7. Restoration of Belgium
8. The liberation of France and restoration of Alsace-Lorraine to France
9. Readjustments of the frontiers of Italy to comply with clearly recognizable lines of nationality
10. Acceptance of the principle of self -determination and this should be allowed to all who were living in Austria-Hungary,
11. Evacuation of the Balkans by the Central Powers
12. Autonomous or independent development for the non-Turkish people of the Ottoman Empire; free passage of the Dardanelles to the ships and commerce of all nations
13. Creation of an independent Poland
14. A general association of nations is to be formed to guarantee political independence and territorial integrity to its members.

Question 9. Write a note on the League of Nations.
Answer:

League of Nations

The memories of the First World War had a devastating impact on the minds of people and naturally the word ‘peace’ became the call of the hour.

Keeping in account the last chapter of the Fourteen Points announced by Woodrow Wilson an international organization was formed to solve the international problems peacefully through discussions and mutual negotiations instead of going into a war.

Following the instruction of Woodrow Wilson the proposal of the formation of the League of Nations was the first thing that was dealt with at the Paris Peace Conference. A Commission was also formed to draft a constitution for this organization.

France tried to turn the League of Nations into a military alliance but failed and it was decided that all the enemy states had to give enough proof of their allegiance to the international agreements before becoming a member of the League.

Though a large number of nations became members of the League, the USA and Russia stayed out of it and this made the League weak. Germany was also not included initially.

The League of Nations was established on 20th April 1919 with its headquarters at Geneva, Switzerland. However, due to the unstable condition of Europe in 1919, the League of Nations failed to create a significant political impact.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Question 10. What were the reasons behind the Great Depression of 1929?
Answer:

The reasons behind the Great Depression of 1929

The Great Economic Depression of 1929 was a worldwide phenomenon that affected most of the developed nations of the world barring the Soviet Union.

Several factors were responsible for this severe economic crisis-

1. The problem of excessive production of industrial commodities in the USA after the First World War created a ‘surplus’ that could not be sold at the domestic market or overseas markets.
2. After the First World War, the demand for American products in the European countries dropped remarkably which affected the foreign trade of the USA.
3. Payment of Reparations made Germany weak and her currency lost all exchange value and the ‘Young Plan’ also failed. After 1918, there was no proper exchange rate among different currencies and the rate of unemployment was high.
4. At one point there was unprecedented growth in the American economy but the signs of weakness also lay beneath that economic boom. Soon the crisis became apparent and the economic situation in the US moved toward a depression.
5. The food prices collapsed, the farmers were affected and fell into debt for survival, the industrial go-downs were overloaded with stocks, there was a total absence of import or export by the USA and there was large-scale unemployment.
6. Finally on 24th October 1929, when the American share market crashed the American economy also crashed.
7. The shareholders panicked and sold millions of shares, the banks and the companies incurred huge losses, and the lands of the farmers who failed to repay their mortgages were taken over by the banks.

Question 11. Write a note on Hoover Moratorium.
Answer:

Hoover Moratorium

Herbert C. Hoover was the President of the USA when the Great Economic Depression (1929) hit the world.

This ominous financial situation had a disastrous impact not only on the American economy but also outside America in Central Europe where the economy collapsed. By the summer of 1931, it became evident that there was no easy solution to get out of this economic crisis.

It was under such circumstances Herbert Hoover the President of the USA on 20th June 1931 proposed a one-year international postponement of all payments on intergovernmental debts, reparations, relief debts, etc. He persuaded the European nations to accept his proposal.

He expected that this measure which was known as the ‘Hoover Moratorium’ would bring about economic stability across the world. By July 6th all fifteen of the nations involved had accepted this proposal. The moratorium was supposed to be for a year but actually, the payments were never made in the future.

Question 12. How did the Great Depression (1929) affect America and Europe?
Answer: The Great Depression (1929) had greatly affected America and Europe. The American economy broke down on 24th October 1929 as a result of the Wall Street Crash. The shareholders of the companies were panicked and frantically sold their shares at a very low price.

The banks and companies who had made big investments in the share were hard hit. The property of the farmers who failed to repay their mortgage installments was taken over by the banks. The USA supported the European countries with financial help for their post-war reconstruction.

This was no longer possible and as a result, these countries suffered greatly. The political impact was also immense – many European Governments were overthrown as they failed to wade through this crisis, and many leaders and political parties rose and fell.

The democratic governments failed to adopt any such measures that could solve the problem of unemployment and poverty.

Question 13. How did the Treaty of Versailles give rise to aggressive nationalism?
Answer: The Versailles Treaty was signed between Germany and the Allied Powers in 1919 to establish peace but in reality, it was a ‘dictated treaty’ done to make Germany acknowledge her responsibilities for the loss and damages during the First World War.

The Germans had no voice in the drafting of this treaty but the clause related to the ‘war guilt’ created a strong feeling of resentment and betrayal which in the course of time found its expression in the Nazi ideology of aggressive nationalism.

The leaders of the Conference were extremely harsh and unjust to Germany by designating her as the sole country responsible for causing the war while most of the countries were more or less to be blamed.

Huge economic sanctions were imposed on Germany and she had to pay an amount as high as 6600 million pounds as reparation amount to the Allied parties. German colonies were confiscated in the name of good government while England and France continued to expand their colonies.

One of the points of the Fourteen Points of Woodrow Wilson that stated ‘reduction of armaments’ -applied to Germany only and even a small country like Belgium had a bigger army than Germany.

Woodrow Wilson’s suggestions for the right to self-rule and nationalism were also ignored in the case of Germany and many German-dominated regions were separated from Germany and merged with the non-German neighboring States. All these created a feeling of aggressive nationalism among the Germans which the Nazis exploited to strengthen themselves.

Question 14. Write a note on The Weimar Republic.
Answer:

The Weimar Republic

Kaiser William II was dethroned in 1918 and in the following year in 1919, the Weimar Republic, the government of Germany was formed which lasted till 1933.

As the assembly that adopted its constitution met at Weimar a place near Berlin it was named the Weimar Republic and Friedrich Ebert became its first President. Right from its inception the Weimar Republic was heavily burdened with the economic sanctions and payment of war guilt as imposed by the Treaty of Versailles.

There was an economic crisis of 1923 in Germany and the situation aggravated further with the Great Depression of 1929. The revolutionary uprisings of the Spartacus League and the growing movements of the aggressive Nationalists were becoming a cause of great concern for this infant Republic.

The President of the Weimar Republic liberally used Article 48 to impose emergency, suspend civil rights, and rule by decree. The Weimar Republic which was weak from its beginning saw nineteen different cabinets lasting on an average of about 239 days.

Finally, the rise of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party brought about the fall of the Weimar Republic.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Question 15. What were the reasons behind the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany?
Answer:

The reasons behind the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany

The rise of the National Socialist German Workers’ Party or the Nazi Party under Adolf Hitler in Germany was an event of singular importance in the history of the world.

The humiliating Treaty of Versailles and the weakness of the Weimer Republic created widespread resentment among the Germans. Post World War I, Germany suffered from multiple problems due to inflation, shortage of food and essential commodities, industrial strikes, and unemployment which turned her into a hotbed of grievances.

A sizeable proportion of the German population lost their faith in ‘Democracy’ which was used advantageously by Adolf Hitler. Hitler’s impressive oratory and his propagation of the ‘Herrenvolk Theory’ restored the lost confidence of the common German people and made them lean more towards Nazi ideologies.

The Nazis provided an opportunity to gain military training to the German youths and gained their confidence and also those who opposed the idea of a Communist revolution in Germany lent their support to this dictatorial movement of the Nazis.

Thus in 1933, Adolf Hitler formed the government in Germany, and in 1934 when Hindenburg the President of the German Republic expired he assumed the twin posts of the Prime Minister and the President and declared himself the ‘Fuhrer’.

Question 16. Write a note on the Organization of the Nazi Party.
Answer:

Organization of the Nazi Party

The National Socialist German Workers’ Party or the Nazi Party had several branches and it was through the proper running of these branches or organizations that Adolf Hitler was able to achieve complete Nazi domination over Germany.

The unemployed German youths were enrolled to form a paramilitary squad known as ‘Storm Troopers’ who were entrusted with the task of guarding Nazi rallies and meetings and manhandling opposition leaders and disrupting their meetings. The ‘Storm Troopers’ wore a brown dress and were known as Brown Shirts also.

Higher in position to the Brown Shirts belonged the Elite Group who had the duty of protecting the leader if required by courting death and other important responsibilities.

There were also other sections like the Young Wings, Women’s Wings, People’s Courts, and Civil Prisons which silenced any criticism against Hitler. The ‘Secret Police’ or ‘Gestapo’ was headed by Himmler and it arrested people whom they found doubtful or against Nazism.

Restrictions were imposed on press, speech, and parliamentary discussions, and ‘People’s Observer’ became the mouthpiece of the Nazi Party. The Nazi flag was red and had a black Swastika symbol that stood for pure Aryan blood and the national anthem ‘Awakened German/ was a great source of inspiration to them.

Question 17. State the economic clauses of the Treaty of Versailles.
Answer:

The economic clauses of the Treaty of Versailles

1. The First World War ended with the surrender of Germany in 1918 and on 28th June 1919, the Treaty of Versailles was imposed upon her.
2. The Allied powers imposed strong economic conditions upon Germany with a deep feeling of vengeance and their primary motivation was to cripple Germany in such a manner so that she could never raise her head in the future.

With this aim

1. They made Germany accept the war guilt and agree to pay a compensation of 6600 million pounds in cash, kind, and through service.
2. Germany had to surrender the majority of its merchant vessels to England and important ports to France.
3. Alsace and Lorraine were taken over by France for 15 years after which the fate of those places would be decided by a plebiscite.
4. The Saar region of Germany which was rich in coal was also brought under international control for 15 years.
5. Germany lost its colonies in Africa and the Pacific and was forced to supply a special kind of coal, iron, rubber, timber, and other minerals to France, Belgium, Italy, and Luxembourg.
   Historians have regarded this economic sanction on Germany as totally impractical as it broke down the backbone of the German economic structure.

According to J.L. Colvin instead of finding solutions the Versailles Treaty paved the path for newer problems.

Question 18. How did the Great Depression of 1929 affect Germany?
Answer: The Wall Street Crash or the Great Depression of 1929 affected Germany greatly and this incident was largely responsible for the rise of Nazism.(in Germany).

Without financial support from America, Germany plunged into a deep economic crisis and her diminished export market resulted in the fall of both prices and wages and rampant bankruptcies.

Inflation and mass unemployment became another feature and the number of unemployed in Germany was as high as 6 million. This created other socio-economic problems as the young jobless men started to sit in the corners of the streets or flocked to the employment exchange or else resorted to criminal activities.

Due to the fall in demand across the world, the agricultural depression also increased leading to further impoverishment of the rural economy. The economic crisis destroyed the middle class and the working class population of Germany.

In such a situation the Germans lost their faith in the Weimar Republic (Republican Government Of Germany) which failed to handle this crisis.

The people now leaned towards political extremism to find a solution to their problem and the Nazis exploited the situation by promising them to nationalize business, provide employment and implement land reforms.

Question 19. How was the Fascist Party founded in Italy?
Answer: Italy had not reaped much benefit from the First World War(1914 to 1918) and they were also unhappy with the way they were treated at the Paris Peace Conference (1919). Post-war Italy was the land of lawlessness and anarchy due to poverty, inflation, peasant revolts, and labor unrest.

The Parliamentary government was weak and unworthy and the common people got frustrated with the democrats. Taking advantage of such circumstances Benito Mussolini formed his Fascist Party with 118 unemployed soldiers and patriots in March 1919.

Through the symbol of the Fascist Party, ‘a bound bundle of rods’, Mussolini paid his respect to the ancient Roman royalty or heritage. The Fascist Party soon started attracting members and by 1921 it had about 3 million members and 35 seats in the election.

In 1922 Mussolini and his followers who were known as Black Shirts invaded Rome took hold of the government and established Fascist rule in Italy.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Question 20. How was Italy affected by the Great Depression of 1929?
Answer: The Wall Street Crash of 1929 and the consequent Great Depression had affected most of the countries of the world and Italy also had felt its impact. As a result of this economic crisis, many large companies in Italy were crumpled leading to a high number of unemployment.

The Fascist Government in Italy did not expect any financial assistance from the USA or the European countries and wanted to solve the problem on its strength. The government even adopted various measures to prevent the banks from collapsing.

The government also introduced public work schemes and the development of infrastructures to generate employment. As a result of these measures of the Fascist government, the tax-payers were heavily burdened but that helped the country to handle the situation in a little better way than her democratic neighbors.

The Italian economy was not strong enough even at the time when it joined the Second World War in 1940.

Question 21. How did the First World War help the USA to emerge as a world power?
Answer: The USA joined the First World War on the side of the Allies in 1917, which strengthened the Allied Powers and made the Central Powers surrender in 1918, marking the end of the war, The First World War helped the USA to emerge as a world power that had at its disposal -military strength, economic growth, and international respect.

The great powers or the empires of the pre-war period became weak after the First World War. The power of France became negligible and Russia became the USSR so it was only Great Britain who still had some power but that was not much compared with the strength of the USA.

Rather the European countries started depending on the USA for financial support. The Great Depression of 1929 struck a blow to the US economy no doubt but it soon revived under the ‘New Deal’ policy of F.D. Roosevelt.

Prosperity was regained by the USA over a while, unlike the European nations who were exhausted both economically and militarily. Thus the First World War helped the USA to become a world power.

Question 22. What were the causes behind the Spanish Civil War (1936 to 1939)?
Answer:

The causes behind the Spanish Civil War (1936 to 1939)

The Spanish Civil War took place between General Franco the dictatorial Nationalist leader and the Republican government of Spain.

Spain was under monarchical rule for a long and when the Republican Government was formed it wanted to improve the condition of the common people but the monarchists, the communists, and the fascists opposed those measures which resulted in revolts and internal disturbances.

In the election of 1933 in Spain the Rightist parties assumed power but due to their unpopular policies the country once again plunged into chaos and disorder.

To end the crisis election was again held in 1936 in which the Popular Front government won the majority; but when the Popular Front tried to undertake some welfare measures it was opposed by right-winger Falange and the Spanish Fascist Party.

It was under such a chaotic situation that the military General Franco organized a revolt to oust the Republicans and establish his dictatorial rule in Spain. Thus a civil war began in Spain in July 1936 between the (right-wing group) Nationalists on the side of General Franco and the Republicans (the left wing).

The Nationalists received the support of Hitler and Mussolini and the Republicans received the support of the Soviet Union while Britain and France remained neutral. General Franco emerged victorious in the Spanish Civil War. (1936-1939)

Question 23. How did the Spanish Civil War create a struggle between the supporters and opponents of Fascism?
Answer: The Spanish Civil War took place in July 1936, when a part of the Spanish army under the leadership of General Franco revolted against the Popular Front government. It had a far-reaching impact that extended beyond the geographical limits of Spain.

This war witnessed two fundamental divides- the right-wing followers or the Nationalists and the left-wing followers or the Republicans. The Nationalists under General Franco received help from the Fascist leaders of Italy and Germany namely Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler.

These leaders provided the Nationalists with war equipment and soldiers with the ulterior motive of strengthening Fascist power in the world. Soviet Union on the other hand strongly resented the growth of Fascism, propagated the ideas of Socialism, and naturally rendered their support to the Republicans.

It may be mentioned here that Indian leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru being aware of the dangers of the possible growth of Fascism also extended their support to the Republicans.

Britain and France stayed away from the entire event and maintained a neutral stance for they viewed the Spanish civil war as the Fight between autocratic ideas and emerging communism. Finally, with the help of Italy and Germany, General Franco got the victory in the Spanish Civil War(1936 to 1939).

Question 24. Discuss the causes of the Russian Revolution.
Answer:

The causes of the Russian Revolution

The Russian Revolution of 1917 which overthrew the Czarist regime in Russia was a significant event in the history of mankind.

Several factors contributed to the outbreak of this revolt-

1. The reactionary, autocratic rule of the Czars oppressed the people so much that they became thirsty for a revolution.
2. The majority of the Russian population was formed with peasants who lived in abject poverty and deplorable conditions during the Czarist rule.
3. Even the Emancipation Statute of Alexander II and the laws made by Stolypin could not help the farmers much. The majority of the freed serfs could not buy land or own property.
4. The condition of the industrial workers who formed about 15% of the population was equally miserable-they had low salaries, lived in slums, had vexing working hours, and were even denied the right to form Trade Union or organize a protest. Slow industrialization failed to provide employment.
5. Russian philosophers and writers like Gorky, Gogol, Tolstoy, and others also inspired the people through their writings. The writings of Karl Marx on Scientific Socialism greatly motivated the people of Russia.
6. The Russianisation or Russification policy of the Czar agitated the minority population very much.
7. The defeat of Russia in the Crimean War, the Russo-Japanese War, and the First World War exposed the weakness of the Czarist rule and the inefficiency of the Russian soldiers who were now shifting their allegiance to the Bolsheviks.
8. The able leadership of Lenin, his April Theses, and the role of the Bolsheviks in improving the condition of the peasants earned them great popularity among the masses.
9. The Revolt of 1905 failed but it provided the groundwork for the Russian Revolution. It is said that the Revolution of 1905 was the dress rehearsal without which the Revolution of 1917 would have been impossible.
10. Finally, Russia’s participation and subsequent withdrawal from the First World War led to economic crises like a shortage of food and essential commodities.

All these factors together led the peasants, workers, soldiers, and the common people to unite under Lenin and his Bolshevik Party and bring about a complete change in the system of administration.

Hence there was the revolution of 1917 which ended Czarist rule in Russia with the dethronement of Czar Nicholas II.

Question 25. What was the political impact of the Russian Revolution on Russia and the other countries?
Answer:

The political impact of the Russian Revolution on Russia and the other countries

The Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 was an epoch-making event comparable only to the French Revolution of 1789.

But unlike the French Revolution which to a large extent was limited within Europe, the Bolshevik Revolution had crossed the borders of Russia and initiated a world revolution. The Russian Revolution changed the social, political, and economic life of Russia radically.

It ended the tyrannical rule of the Czar, abolished the privileges of the aristocrats, curbed the power of the Church, and successfully enforced the sovereign power of the proletariat.

Russia was renamed as ‘The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics’ and the peasants, workers, and common citizens got the chance to set up their government for the first time. The non-Russians who formed 20% of Russia’s population (Poles, Armenians, Turks, Finns, etc) who faced severe oppression during the Czarist rule also earned equal status after the Revolution.

Thus the Marxian philosophy of the establishment of the rule of the proletariat left its mark for the first time all over the world. As a result of its global impact – the Bolshevik Revolution ended the Hohenzollern dynasty and the Hapsburg dynasty in Germany and Austria respectively.

The German soldiers were highly inspired by the November Revolution. The Russian Revolution became an inspiration to the anti-colonial, freedom movements in the countries of Asia and Africa.

The revolution had an immense impact on the Indian revolutionaries too. In many countries of the world Communist Parties were formed and Socialist movements started taking place.

Seeing this rising popularity of Socialism and Communist ideologies Lenin set up the Third International or Comintern in Moscow in 1920. It was attended by M. N. Roy as the representative of India.

Communism thus spread to the European countries like Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, Albania, Hungary, and East Germany(old). In Asia the Communist rule was established in China and South America, and Cuba became a Communist country.

Question 26. Briefly discuss the timeline of the Russian Revolution.
Answer:

The Timeline of the Russian Revolution

• The Russian Revolution of 1917 was an event of singular importance in the history of mankind.
• It ended the Czarist regime and established the socialist rule in Russia. However, the movement had its roots in the Revolution of 1905 which exposed the true nature and weakness of the Czarist autocracy.
• In 1914, Russia joined the First World War on the side of the Allies. But Russia at that time was not ready to take part in such a venture which ultimately shook her economy severely. This along with other socio-political and economic factors determined the Russians to take the path of a revolution.
• On 25th February 1917, there were strikes in Petrograd which involved more than 200,000 workers.
• On 1st March 1917, a Provisional Government was formed.
• On 12th March 1917, Czar Nicholas II abdicated and Russia was declared a Republic by the Provisional Government. Program of democratic reform and civil liberties were announced. But there was chaos and violence everywhere.
• On April 3rd, 1917, Lenin returned from exile, and with that things started taking a turn.
• On April 7th, 1917, Lenin Declared his April Theses and decided to transform the democratic movement into a socialist one.
• On April 24th, 1917 the Russians protested against her participation in the First World War and this aggravated the situation leading to the fall of the Provisional Government.
• On May 5th, 1917, the new Provisional Government was formed by Alexander Kerensky but this also lost its popularity within a short time.
• In July 1917 the Bolsheviks attempted an uprising.
• In September 1917, the Bolsheviks obtained a majority at the Petrograd and Moscow Soviets, and as the influence of Lenin increased more people particularly the working class leaned towards the Bolshevik Party.
• In October 1917, the Bolsheviks made up their minds to seize power.
• On November 6th, 1917, the military committee of the Petrograd Soviet asked the armed workers to occupy the capital On November 7th, 1917.
• The Red Guards under the leadership of Trotsky captured government offices, banks, telephone exchanges, and rail stations and Alexander Kerensky the leader of the Menshevik Party and the Prime Minister of the Second Provisional Government fled.
• The Bolsheviks seized the power of the State thus making the Russian Revolution a success.

Question 27. Write a note on the New Economic Policy of Lenin.
Answer:

The New Economic Policy of Lenin

The Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 was a significant event in the history of mankind. It brought about extensive changes in the socio-political and economic life of Russia and successfully established the sovereign power of the Proletariat.

But soon after coming to power, the Bolshevik Party had to face the twin challenges of the Civil War (1918) and foreign invasion which affected her economy. Lenin realized that his previous economic system called War Communism failed to fulfill the need of the hour so in 1921, he introduced the New Economic Policy.

It was a shift from the concept of pure Communism and Lenin had to face resistance from his colleagues which he completely rejected. An astute statesman as he was he did not limit himself to a ‘Textbook Communist’

The primary features of his New Economic Policy were

• The surplus crops of the farmers were not taken from them and they could sell them in the open market after payment of taxes
• State control over small and medium-sized industries was withdrawn and nationalization was applied only to big industries
• Private ownership was allowed for small and medium-sized enterprises
• Workers were given the right to enjoy suitable wages
• The industries like coal, iron, and railways were under the State
• Except for foreign trade, all other trades were brought under individual control
• Private investment of capital could be made in internal trade.

All these measures were a deviation from Marxism no doubt but it was realistic and it saved the Russian economy from a disaster. This New Economic Policy led to the re-establishment of capitalism in Russia but it provided an impetus to production and improved the condition of both, industries and agriculture.

Question 28. Write a note on April Theses of Lenin.
Answer:

April Theses of Lenin

1. Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov popularly known as Lenin, the great communist revolutionary of Russia was the main architect of the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917.
2. The Provisional Government that was formed after the revolution in March 1917, under the leader of the Menshevik Party, Alexander Kerensky, failed to achieve any success and soon lost its popularity.
3. The people gradually leaned more towards the Bolshevik Party which demanded that all powers were to be given to the “Soviets”, the true representatives of the nation.
4. Amid all these tensions, Lenin returned to Russia from his exile in Switzerland on 16th April 1917. He also presented his famous ‘April Theses’ titled ‘What is to be done’ to the workers.
5. In the thesis, Lenin said by coming to power the Bolshevik Party would immediately end the war with Germany that was started by the Provisional Government and establish peace in the country.
6. As it was possibly the most opportune moment for the Bolsheviks Lenin advocated the idea of ‘Now or Never’ for them. He wanted the Bolsheviks to hold a government lawfully.
7. The Bolsheviks would establish control of the State over the production and distribution system and the banks too. He further insisted to seize the property of the landlords and distribute it among the poor peasants.
8. He advocated for the nationalization of industries. Along with that, he wanted the establishment of the workers’ authority over them. He urged the workers, peasants, soldiers, and common people to unite and establish the ‘Dictatorship of the Proletariat’.
9. He promised that by coming to power the Bolsheviks would ensure bread to the workers, land to the peasants, and peace to the army. This slogan of ‘Peace, Land, and Bread’ heightened the popularity of the Bolshevik Party.

Question 29. Discuss the social and economic impact of the Russian Revolution.
Answer:

The social and economic impact of the Russian Revolution

The Russian Revolution of 1917 was a significant event in the history of mankind. This revolution can be compared with the French Revolution of 1789 and to a certain extent with the Industrial Revolution of the 18th Century.

But the magnanimity of this Revolution surpassed all other revolutions and brought about a world revolution and global renaissance.

As a result of the Russian Revolution, the social system underwent great changes—

1. Socialism was established in Russia which posed a threat to the traditional Capitalist Social order,
2. Communism gathered strength in countries like China, India, East European countries, Cuba, and the Middle East
3. Welfare measures for the workers were adopted by countries like England and France to stall the growth of Communism
4. To curb the growing strength of Communism these countries even adhered to a compromising stance on Fascism
5. The rise of Fascism in the 1930s can be the indirect result of the Russian Revolution.

In the economic sphere also changes could be viewed. Russia being the first Communist State in the world abolished private property as a factor for production and the motive to earn profit was eliminated.

The Bolshevik Government under Lenin introduced the system called War Communism which led to state control of every economic activity. These concepts of State control over private property and nationalization of industries struck fear in the hearts of the capitalists.

Question 30. Briefly describe the events of the First World War.
Answer:

The events of the First World War

The First World War (1914 to 1918) was a total war that was fought on land, water, and air, destroyed innumerable lives and properties across the globe, and left a lasting impact on the minds of both the people and the leaders of the world.

The two contestants of this war were the Allied Powers comprising Britain, France, Russia, and Serbia, and the Central Powers comprising of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Turkey.

The immediate cause of the war was the assassination of the Austrian Prince Ferdinand and his wife Sophie by a Slav terrorist named Gavrilo Princip, in Sarajevo. As soon as Austria attacked Serbia, Russia sent her help to Serbia, and Austria was aided by Germany who sent ultimatums to both Russia and France.

But neither France nor Russia paid any heed to the German threat and the latter eventually declared war on them in August 1914. Germany’s demand to invade France through Belgium was not liked by England and she also declared war against Germany on August 4th, 1914.

While Turkey sided with the Central Powers, Japan supported England and France and Italy also joined them in 1915. In 1917, the USA also joined the war on the side of the Allied Powers due to the naval aggression of Germany.

The First World War was fought on both the Western Front and the Eastern Front- in the Western Front at first, the French army retreated before the German attack but ultimately France succeeded against Germany in the Battle of Marne.

Some of the famous battles fought in the war were the Battle of Gallipoli( 1915 ), the Naval Battle of Jutland (1916), the Battle of Verdun ( 1916 ), and the Battle of the Somme ( 1916 ). The trench warfare continued for quite a few years with tenacity between the warring powers and took a heavy toll on both men and machines.

On the eastern front, Germany defeated the Russians in the Battle of Tannenberg and captured Ukraine and some other regions but soon the Russian Revolution (1917) broke out and the new government of Russia signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany and withdrew from the war.

USA’s entry into the war on the side of the Allied Powers had a decisive impact as it redoubled the strength of the Allies and exposed the hopeless situation of the Central Powers.

Question 31. Briefly narrate the effects of the First World War.
Answer:

The effects of the First World War

The First World War that took place between 1914 to 1918 was a phenomenal event in the history of mankind and its impact on the world was immense.

It was a destructive event that involved the killing of about one crore of thirty lakh soldiers and spending of around twenty-eight thousand crore dollars. Thousands and thousands were injured and mutilated, and shortage of food, the spread of diseases, pandemics, and financial crises prevailed.

In a situation like this when men being affected by the war were relegated to the background women in most countries came up and took the responsibility of business and other financial burdens thereby bringing a great transformation in the society.

In many countries as a result of this war monarchy came to an end, democracy was championed and the rights of the people were recognized. Almost all the countries who participated in the war faced great hardships and their progress was deterred.

While Germany was heavily burdened by the economic sanctions imposed upon her by the Treaty of Versailles and existed amid great uncertainty the Ottoman Kingdom and Austria-Flungary collapsed completely.

In the post-war period, nationalist fervor rose in the British colonies outside Europe, who put forward their demand for Independence. The growth of capitalism and scientific advancements were the important consequences of the First World War.

The Russian Revolution started in 1917 in the middle of the First World War and a Civil War also broke out that continued for almost three years after the war. Improvement in technologies, transport, and communication, and development in armaments were some of the features of the post-war period.

The center of power in the world now shifted from Europe to the USA as her participation in the First World War enabled the Allied Powers to achieve victory. Her economic prosperity and technological advancement also enabled her to become the power center of the world.

The League of Nations was also established in 1919 on President Woodrow Wilson’s insistence to prevent the world from future armed conflicts and promote international peace.

Question 32. Write a note on the Paris Peace Conference.
Answer:

Paris Peace Conference

On 11th November 1918, an armistice was signed and Germany surrendered marking the end of the First World War. On January 18th 1919 (the Allied Powers and representatives of 32 friendly nations met at a conference in Paris which is known as the Paris Peace Conference.

England, France, the  USA, Italy, Greece, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, and others were the main countries present at the conference and George Clemenceau the French Prime Minister assumed the leading role.

The primary aims of this conference were to reconstruct the map of Europe, establish peace and security and determine the clauses of truces to be signed with the defeated nations. Although representatives from 32 nations were present at the Paris Peace Conference it was the ‘Big Four’ whose representations were of immense importance.

The ‘Big Four’ were Woodrow Wilson, the U.S. President, Lloyd George the British Prime Minister, George Clemenceau the French Prime Minister and Vittorio Orlando the Italian Premier, who represented the interests of the Allies.

After prolonged discussions and considerations, the Allies decided to sign five treaties with the defeated nations.

They were-

1. The Treaty of Versailles between Germany and the Allied Powers (1919)
2. The Treaty of Saint Germain between Austria and the Allied Powers (1919)
3. The Treaty Of Neuilly between Bulgaria and the Allied Powers (1919)
4. The Treaty of Trianon between Hungary and the Allied Powers (1920)
5. The Treaty of Sevres between Turkey and the Allied Powers (1920).

US President Woodrow Wilson also suggested setting up an organization that would prevent war among the nations in the future and promote peace. In short, we can say that Woodrow Wilson expressed his desire to form the League of Nations, at the Paris Peace Conference.

Question 33. Critically estimate the Treaty of Versailles
Answer:

The Treaty of Versailles

The Treaty of Versailles was signed between Germany and the Allied  Powers on 28th June 1919. The primary objective of the treaty was to weaken Germany in such a way that it could never raise its head again in Europe.

The Treaty provided Germany with a new boundary. Alsace-Lorraine was given to France, Eupen-Malmedy to Belgium, Memelland was under French supervision, and Saarland was placed under the administration of the League of Nations but France had control of its coal.

In the east Poland was resurrected, given most of formerly German West Prussia and Posen, given a ‘corridor’ to the Baltic Sea, and also given part of Upper Silesia after a plebiscite.

All the overseas colonies of Germany in China, in the Pacific, and in Africa were taken over by Britain, France, Japan, and allied nations. The Allied Powers made Germany accept the war guilt and a compensation of 6600 million pounds were demanded which was practically impossible for Germany to pay without upsetting the international finances.

According to historian Langsam, the Treaty ensured that Germany lost 25,000 square miles of land, 7 million people, 12% of livestock, and 10% of heavy industries. The Board of Staffs or Generals of the German army was dissolved.

The German fleet was surrendered to the Allies. The compulsory military training was banned and her army was reduced to 1 million. The Treaty ignored the principle of self-determination.

The clause stating the reduction of armaments ( Fourteen Points of Woodrow Wilson) was applied only to Germany. Hence the Treaty of Versailles is regarded as ‘a dictated treaty’ that humiliated the Germans greatly who started looking for an opportunity to retaliate against this.

According to E. H. Carr- The Treaty of Versailles sowed the seeds of the Second World War.

Question 34. What were the aims of the League of Nations? Why did the League of Nations fail?
Answer:

The aims of the League of Nations

The League of Nations was an international organization that was established in 1920 with its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. The founders of the League of Nations desperately considered ways to establish peace in the world and tried to avoid the repetition of the horrors of the First World War.

Keeping this in mind the League tried to prevent war through collective security. It wanted to promote honorable and just relationships among the nations and international disarmament.

It also aimed at settling disputes between the nations through negotiation and diplomacy. The League also undertook measures of global welfare like protecting the women and children and just treatment to the working class people.

The League also adopted measures to improve the health of the human race. In spite of all the good intentions of the League of Nations, the organization failed.

Many reasons contributed to the cause of the failure of the League of Nations-

1. The absence of some of the great powers like the USA, Russia, Japan, and Italy failed to make the League a true representative of the world. Especially the absence of the USA the most powerful nation reduced the effectiveness of the League.
2. The selfishness and the narrow mentality of the Superpowers hindered the development of friendship and cooperation between the nations,
3. The dictator of Germany, Adolf Hitler paid no heed to the League of Nations and executed his aggressive policies ( conquered Czechoslovakia, and Austria).
4. The League which possessed no military power failed to check such aggressive policies by mere protests,
5. The League could not even impose economic sanctions without the cooperation of the great powers who were only guided by their selfish interests,
6. The peace-making efforts of the League failed all the more with the rise of dictatorship in the different countries of Europe in the 1930s. Finally, with the fall of Poland, the League of Nations collapsed.

Question 35. Discuss the features of Nazism and Fascism.
Answer:

The features of Nazism and Fascism

The National Socialist German Workers’ Party was first formed by Drexlar and later when Adolf Hitler joined the party together they changed its name to Nazi Party.

Nazism was an anti-intellectual movement which derived its inspiration from its dictator. Nazism attempted to reconcile conservative, nationalist ideology with a socially radical doctrine.

It rejected the theories of rationalism, democracy, and liberalism and emphasized on complete subordination of the individual to the state which was again subservient to the Party or the leader of the Party.

It also stresses the inequality of men and races and the right of the strong to dominate the weak and suppress competing political, religious, or social institutions.

It propagated the theory of harshness and ferocity and partly destroyed class distinctions by drawing into the movement the misfits and failures from all the social classes. Hatred for the Jews, anti-Semitism, and racialism were the ideals of the Nazis.

Fascism was a form of far-right dictatorial form of political system that was developed by Benito Mussolini of Italy. The characteristic features of Fascism may be described as

It adhered to an extreme militaristic nationalism that was associated with the worship of the nation and the leader.

It had no faith in electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism Fascism advocated for natural social hierarchy and the rule of the elites.

It also wanted to create a ‘people’s community’ where individual interests would be subservient to the good of the nation. The Fascists who glorified the nation were therefore Communists as the communists were internationalists.

War, according to this theory was an integral part of the political system and the concept of peace in politics was a distant concept. Both ideologies seemed to be friendly to the common people but in reality, their actual agendas were all hidden.

They provided a huge boost to nationalism no doubt but their interpretation of nationalism was very partisan.

Question 36. What was the Great Depression of 1929? How far was it responsible for the rise of Nazism?
Answer:

The Great Depression of 1929

The US economy showed a steady rise after the First World War and it appeared that America would be the land of endless prosperity and permanent abundance.

This economic boom even prompted US President H. C. Hoover to declare about the bright future of his motherland. But within this unprecedented economic growth lay the signs of weakness that had not surfaced during that time.

Signs of economic stress that were evident by 1929 like the artificial increase in the value of companies, speculation in shares, and borrowing from the bank for speculative investments were ignored.

Amid the economic boom, the experienced dealers started to sell their shares in September 1929 which created panic and the sale of shares dipped. People now grew desperate to dispose of their shares before the market prices went down any further.

On 24th October 1929 which is referred to as ‘Black Thursday’ the American share market crashed and the USA was plunged into a great economic crisis.

The Great Depression led to the fall in the price of food grains, borrowing by farmers or flocking to towns for survival, and stock pilling of goods for the want of a market, neither import nor export of American goods was possible and as the industries were hard hit there rose the problem of large scale unemployment.

The Great Depression spread from the USA to other countries of the world like a devastating earthquake and the situation was termed as ‘World Economic Depression’.

The Great Depression struck a blow at the base of the global economy and the ordinary people lost their faith in a capitalist economy and liberal democratic ideas as a result.

The German economy was particularly hard hit due to the Great Depression and the Germans being disillusioned with democracy were drawn towards Nazism.

There was mass unemployment in Germany and the withdrawal of loans by American investors. shook her economy. Even one of the banks of the joint stock in Germany collapsed in 1931.

The Republican Government failed to steer the country out of this miserable economic condition and the people too lost their faith in them.

The German middle class and working class population were ruined. The Nazis exploited this situation and promised to provide employment to the workers, implement land reforms for the peasants and nationalize the big business.

Historian, Hobsbawm rightly said that the Great Depression was responsible for turning Adolf Hitler (Leader of the Nazi Party) into a German hero.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History  Chapter 6 The Second World War And Its Aftermath Long Answer Questions

Question 1. Why was a democracy under strain before the outbreak of the Second World War?
Answer: Most of the European countries had established democratic governments after the end of the First World War but this success of democracy was short-lived and soon there were severe constraints on democracy.

Many factors contributed to this situation –

1. The socio-economic crisis that took place in Europe after the First World War destabilized the democratic governments as they failed to steer their nations from the financial stress.
2. The democratic governments that were established in different countries lacked experience suffered from inherent weakness and naturally failed to gain the confidence of the people.
3. There existed certain demerits within the constitution of the democratic governments.
4. The emergency power that was vested upon the Presidents to safeguard the constitution was wrongly used by the representatives of the Government (the Weimar Republic misused this power) and thus paved the path for the rise of an alternate authoritarian government.
5. The Great Economic Depression of 1929 affected the European economy to a large extent and gave rise to problems like shortage of food and essential commodities, inflation, and unemployment problem which the democratic government failed to resolve.
6. Taking advantage of this situation both the Nazis and the Fascists of Germany and Italy tried to draw the support of the common people.
7. The failure of the League of Nations and the aggressive attitude of Germany under Adolf Hitler was another important cause that led to the rise of dictatorship and relegated democracy to the background.
8. Lastly, one cannot ignore the fact that there was a complete absence of any popular democratic ruler during this time; on the contrary, the ‘European Dictators’ like Adolf Hitler were extremely popular and charismatic which allured the masses.

Read And Learn Also WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History Long Answer Questions

Question 2. What were the main causes of conflict between Fascism and Nazism with Democracy?
Answer:

The main causes of conflict between Fascism and Nazism with Democracy

The Second World War witnessed the conflict of two contradictory political ideologies – Fascism and Nazism versus Democracy. The characteristic feature of democracy was an open-minded critical approach that recognized individual liberty, unlike the totalitarian or dictatorial form of government.

1. The Treaty of Versailles crippled Germany and Italy failed to reap many advantages from the settlements that were made after the First World War. This resulted in an economic, social and political crisis which developed Nazism and Fascism in Germany and Italy.
2. England, France, and America were staunch supporters of the principles of democracy while Germany and Italy upheld the principles of autocracy in the form of Nazism and Fascism. the supporters of Democracy from the very beginning tried to establish the supremacy of this principle.
3. The leaders like Hitler and Mussolini wanted to establish their dictatorial rule based on the principle of a new and unified national or racial community.
4. Both Fascism and Nazism mocked bourgeoisie values and put forward the Spartan ethics of self-denial, austerity and subordination to the nation or the leader of the nation.
5. Even the Soviet Union was against the dictatorial rule of Germany and Italy and joined hands with the democratic nations. In a situation like this, the war became inevitable.

Question 3. State the similarities between Fascism and Nazism.
Answer:

The similarities between Fascism and Nazism

One of the most significant events after the First World War was the establishment of dictatorial governments in some of the countries of Europe.

• Challenged by poverty, inflation and other economic factors along with political instability Italy saw the rise of Fascism under the leadership of Benito Mussolini in 1919.
• The inefficiency of the Weimar Republic, the economic crisis and allied factors allowed Adolf Hitler to exploit the situation to his favour and consequently, there was the rise of Nazism in Germany.
• Both Fascism and Nazism were against the ideologies of Communism and drew support from every section of the society. Fascism and Nazism were anti-democratic and wanted to establish a totalitarian state controlling every machinery of the state.
• Both Fascism and Nazism limited the freedom of people and emphasized aggressive nationalism and racism. Fascism and Nazism both wanted to establish a self-sufficient country and both ideologies wanted to establish themselves as a formidable military power in Europe.
• Despite the criticisms that are attached to both these concepts of Fascism and Nazism, they were able to motivate the people of Italy and Germany for a brief period.

Question 4. How far was the League of Nations responsible for the outbreak of the Second World War?
Answer: The League of Nations was established in 1920 with the primary aim of preventing any armed conflict and promoting international peace and cooperation.

• But within a few years, it became evident that the League was not efficient enough to resolve international disputes through peaceful discussions and negotiations and it is argued that the failure of the League of Nations was one of the factors that contributed to the outbreak of the Second World War.
• The League of Nations failed to play any role in many of the conflicts that led to the Second World War— like the Italian invasion of Abyssinia, the Spanish Civil War, the Sino- Japanese War of 1931, and the German aggressions.
• When Germany disregarded the clauses of the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Pact the League failed to render any strong opposition.
• Other general weaknesses of the League were the League had no army, navy or airforce of its own and military sanctions were left to the discretion of the members without military punishment, the aggressors could not be controlled; economic sanctions too the League needed the support of the great powers.
• The League even failed to take any step when the dispute arose between France and Germany at the Disarmament Conference. The power of the League was also limited by the refusal of the USA to join it.
• Finally, the Policy of Appeasement that was followed by Britain and France towards Hitler led to the failure of the League of Nations and fanned the imperialist aspirations of Hitler.

Question 5. Write a note on the Anglo-French policy of appeasement.
Answer:

Anglo-French policy of appeasement

The term ‘Appeasement’, is a foreign policy of pacifying an aggrieved country through negotiation to prevent war.

• Britain and France followed this policy of appeasement towards Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany in the 1930s which was one of the causes of the outbreak of the Second World War.
• The first instance of Anglo-French appeasement was the Anschluss union of Austria with Germany, which violated the Treaty of Versailles (1919).
• The British Prime Minister Chamberlain and the French Prime Minister Daladier felt that Hitler’s aspirations were limited and by acceding to few of his demands they could avert a big confrontation; with this view in mind, they kept silent when the German-Italian-Japanese Axis disregarded the clauses of the Versailles Treaty, German militarization and seizing of Rhineland.
• As a result of the Policy of Appeasement the Allies even signed the Munich Agreement in 1938 which compelled Czechoslovakia to cede Sudetenland to Germany. A similar attitude was displayed when Japan occupied Manchuria and Italy annexed Abyssinia.
• It is believed that if Hitler and Mussolini were thwarted rightfully at the beginning the situation would have been different for the entire world.

Question 6. Write a note on The Munich Pact (1938)
Answer:

The Munich Pact (1938)

The Munich Pact or Munich Agreement was signed on 30th September 1938 between Adolf Hitler the Nazi leader of Germany, Benito Mussolini the Fascist leader of Italy and the British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and French Prime Minister Daladier.

• This agreement permitted Germany’s annexation of the Sudetenland in western Czechoslovakia, where about three million people were of German origin.
• By the terms of the agreement, Germany occupied four border provinces of Czechoslovakia and even compelled the Czech Government to release all the political prisoners of Sudetenland.
• Most of Europe celebrated this agreement because it prevented the outbreak of a war. Hitler announced that it was his last territorial claim in Europe, and the choice seemed to be between war and appeasement.
• But this agreement encouraged Hitler to make more territorial demands and finally, when Hitler invaded Poland on 1st September 1939, Britain and France could no longer follow the Policy of Appeasement and declared war against Germany. Hence the Second World War commenced.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History  Question 7. What do you mean by the term “Anschluss “?
Answer:

Anschluss

The annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany on 12 March 1938 is known as the “Anschluss ” or the ” Anschluss Osterreichs”. Austria was excluded from the unification of Germany by the Prussian-dominated German Empire in 1871.

• Following the end of the First World War, the newly formed Republic of German-Austria tried to form a union with Germany but The Treaty of Saint-Germain and the Treaty of Versailles forbade the union of Germany with Austria.
• There had been strong support from people of all backgrounds in both Austria and Germany for the unification before “Anschluss ” The idea of unification was attractive to both the political Left and Centre in Austria as they were deprived of territories it had ruled and facing a severe economic crisis after the dissolution of the Habsburg Monarchy.
• After 1933 the idea of unification found favour with the Nazis who sought to incorporate as many ethnic German ( Volksdeutsch } as possible into Greater Germany.
• In early 1938 under pressure from the unification activists Austrian Chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg announced a referendum for unification but Hitler threatened an invasion and forced him to resign.
• On 12th March the Wehrmacht (German Army) crossed the border unopposed to great cheer and a plebiscite held on 10th April officially ratified the annexation of Austria by the Reich.

Question 8. How was the Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis formed?
Answer: Rome, Berlin, and Tokyo represented Italy, Germany and Japan and these nations fought against the Allies in the Second World War. The origin of this Axis had its source in the aggressive policies that were implemented by Germany and Italy.

• The support of Hitler to Mussolini during his annexation of Abyssinia and their joint assistance to General Franco during the Spanish Civil War marked the friendly relations between the two dictators of the period.
• The opposition to the League of Nations by Italy and Germany and the Anglo-French attitude were other factors responsible for the growth of the Axis Powers.
• A bilateral agreement was concluded between Japan and Germany in 1936 known as the Anti-Comintern Pact in which they promised to help each other if attacked by the Soviet Union.
• Italy also joined Germany and Japan on 6 November 1937 and agreed to help each other in case of an attack by any Fourth power. Thus the Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis was formed which was supposed to last for ten years.

Question 9. Briefly describe the Battle of Britain.
Answer:

Battle of Britain

The Battle of Britain was the first major military campaign during the Second World War that was fought entirely by the air forces- the Royal Air Force (RAF) of Britain and the Luftwaffe of Germany.

• The Battle of Britain lasted from 10th July 1940 to 31st October 1940. The main objective of the German force was to force Britain to agree to a negotiated peace settlement.
• Initially, the Luftwaffe targeted the coastal shipping convoys, ports and shipping centres but later it shifted the attacks to the RAF airfields and radar installations.
• As the war advanced Luftwaffe not only targeted the factories that produced aircraft and strategic infrastructure it also used terror bombing in London and port cities and on the civilians.
• In September, the RAF night raids disrupted the German preparation of converted barges and Luftwaffe failed to succeed against the RAF which compelled Hitler to postpone and cancel his Operation Sea Lion- the code name he used for the invasion of Britain.
• The continued night bombing of Britain by the Luftwaffe was known as the Blitz and Germany’s failure to destroy the British air force was a major German defeat and a significant event in the Second World War.

Question 10. what is known as the “Blitz”?
Answer:

Blitz

The German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in the years 1940 and 1940 is known as “The Blitz”. The term was used by the British Press and the meaning of “The Blitz ” in German is “lightning”.

• Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, the Germans conducted mass air raids on towns and cities, Industrial targets beginning with raids on London.
• The Luftwaffe ( German Air Force ) wanted to draw the Royal Air Force( RAF ) into a battle of annihilation by attacking London as per the policy adopted by Hermann Goering, the Reichsmarschall and Adolf Hitler.
• From 7th September 1940, London was bombed by the Luftwaffe systematically for 56 days of the following 57 days and nights. Industrial Centres like Birmingham, Manchester and the port cities of Bristol, Cardiff, Portsmouth, and Plymouth were also targeted.
• However, the bombing failed to demoralise the British or do much damage to the war economy, the eight months of bombing failed to do any harm to the British War production which continued to increase.
• The German Air Offensive failed as it failed to develop a methodical strategy for destroying the British war industry.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History  Question 11. Give an account of the Battle of France.
Answer:

Battle of France

The German Invasion of France and the Low Countries and the subsequent defeat of France and the Allied forces is known as the Battle of France.

• Following the declaration of war in September 1939 by France the French had started a limited offensive in Saar Region but were soon back in their starting lines.
• The Germans started their “Blitzkrieg” or “Lighting War ” in May 1940 on the Western Front by a surprise push through the Ardennes and then along the Somme Valley and surrounded the Allied Units.
• British, Belgian and French forces were pushed back to the sea by the German forces where the Allied units were evacuated from the beaches of Dunkirk in Operation Dynamo.
• The remaining sixty French Divisions and the two British Divisions tried to stop the German attack on the Somme but failed in front of the German combination of air superiority and armoured mobility.
• Paris was occupied on 14 June after the German tanks outflanked the “Maginot Line ” and pushed deep into France. The Second Armistice of Compiegne was signed on 22nd June and the neutral Vichy government led by Marshall Petain was established.
• Germany occupied the North Sea and Atlantic Coasts of France and its hinterlands while the Vichy Government retained the territory in the South till the time France was liberated by the Allies in 1944.

Question 12. How far was Hitler responsible for the outbreak of the Second World War?
Answer: In 1933, Adolf Hitler the leader of the Nazi Party was appointed as the Chancellor of Germany and the first six years of his rule resulted in rapid economic recovery from the Great Depression, the abrogation of restrictions imposed on Germany after the First World War and annexation of territories inhabited by millions of ethnic Germans.

• All these earned Hitler great popular support who now began to reorganize the German army with the view of violating the humiliating Versailles Treaty and the Locarno Pact and seizing the Rhineland and recovering the Saar region.
• He sought ‘Lebensraum’ or living space for the German people in Eastern Europe which was considered as one of the primary causes of the Second World War. He entered into a Non-Aggression Treaty with Poland in 1934 with the sole purpose of alienating Poland’s relationship with the anti-German nations of Europe.
• In 1937 the Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis was formed which disturbed the balance of power in Europe. Prompted by the need of the hour Hitler even entered into a Non -non-aggression treaty with the Soviet Union in 1939.
• Hitler violated the treaties and promises on purpose and not only did he annex Austria taking advantage of the Anglo-French Appeasement Policy he even dishonoured the Munich Agreement of 1938 and annexed Czechoslovakia.
• Finally, his attack on Poland on 1st September 1939 disregarding the Anglo-French warning provided the immediate cause of the outbreak of the Second World War.

Question 13. Write a note on D-Day
Answer:

D-Day

The Normandy landings and associated airborne invasions by the Allied forces against Nazi-occupied Europe that took place on 6th June 1944 is known as D-Day.

• The amphibious assault involved around 5000 vessels and nearly 1,60,000 troops crossed the English Channel which was preceded by a 1200-plane assault. It was the biggest seaborne invasion in history under the leadership of General Dwight D. Eisenhower the Supreme Allied Commander.
• The Normandy sector was divided into 5 sectors with Americans landing on the Omaha and Utah beaches, the British at the Sword and. Gold beaches and Canadians at Juno Beach.
• The Allied forces came under heavy fire from the gun emplacements and the shore was mined and covered with obstacles like wooden stakes and metals. On the first day the Allies failed to achieve their objectives but held on to a foothold on the beaches.
• They expanded their foothold and captured the port of Cherbourg on 26th June and the city of Caen on 21st July repulsed a counterattack by the Germans and trapped them in the Falaise pocket.
• The liberation of Paris followed on 25th August which marked the close of Operation Overlord or D-Day.

Question 14. What do you know about the Potsdam Conference?
Answer:

Potsdam Conference

The Potsdam Conference that was held in the city of Potsdam in Germany took place from 16th July 1945 to 2nd August 1945 and was divided into two parts; the first part was attended by Truman, Stalin and Churchill.

• After his defeat in the election, Churchill was replaced by Atlee in the second part. The decision to drop the atomic bomb was also taken in the first part of the conference.
• This conference witnessed the rise of Russian authority in international politics. Harry S. Truman understood this but continued to gang up against Russia at that time.

The primary aims of the conference were

1. The establishment of the post-war order
2. The issues related to peace treaties
3. How to counter the effects of the war.

The Allies issued a statement stating that ‘ Germany would undergo ‘Five Ds’- demilitarization, denazification, democratization, decentralization, dismantling and decapitalization.

• It was decided to abolish all the Nazi Laws as they were unacceptable in a democratic country. Both Germany and Austria along with their capitals Berlin and Vienna would be divided into four zones.
• The Nazi war criminals were to be put on trial at Nuremberg and all the annexations that Germany made in Europe were decided to be reversed. (Sudeterland, Austria, Alsace-Lorraine, Westernmost regions of Poland).
• The judicial system was reorganized, and the freedom of speech, press, religions, and the formation of trade unions were permitted by the Allies.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History  Question 15. Why did the USA join the Second World War?
Answer: At the outbreak of the Second World War USA adopted the policy of neutrality following the Neutrality Act of 1937. But later the circumstances changed as taking advantage of the war, Japan became a dominant power over the Pacific Ocean regions and the Far East.

• The aggressive foreign policy of Japan was not liked by the USA who wanted to arrive at an understanding of the imbroglio and took the initiative to meet the Japanese representatives at Washington.
• While the conference was in progress, on 7th December 1941, Japan attacked the U.S. naval base in Pearl Harbour in the Hawaii Islands.
• In this surprise attack by the fighters, dive bombers and torpedo bombers launched from the aircraft carriers Japan sought to deal a severe blow to the US Naval fleet and succeeded in destroying several battleships, destroyers and light cruisers along with a large number of aircraft.
• The number of U.S. casualties that amounted to death was 2,335 and 1,143 were wounded. On 8th December 1941, the U.S. Congress declared war against Japan and thus marked the entry of the USA in the Second World War.

Question 16. What do you know about the bombing by the USA on Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
Answer:

The bombing by the USA on Hiroshima and Nagasaki

The Second World War in Europe ended after Germany signed the instrument of surrender on 8th May 1945 and the Allies now focused on the Pacific Theatre and demanded the unconditional surrender of the Imperial Japanese armed forces. (Potsdam Declaration July 1945).

• Japan ignored the ultimatum and it was decided by the Allies to drop atomic bombs on four Japanese cities. On 6th August 1945, the USA dropped a uranium gun-type bomb code-named Little Boy on the industrial Japanese city of Hiroshima.
• Three days later on 9th August 1945, the USA again dropped a more powerful plutonium implosion bomb code-named Fat Man on Nagasaki. The bombs had a devastating impact—killing 78000 civilians in Hiroshima and 40000 civilians in Nagasaki.
• A large population continued to die in the months to follow due to the effects of burns, radiation and other injuries. Ultimately on 2nd September 1945, Japan signed the instrument of surrender which officially ended the Second World War.

Question 17. What was ‘NATO’ and ‘WARSAW PACT’?
Answer:

‘NATO’ and ‘WARSAW PACT’

An ideological conflict arose between the capitalist USA and the communist Soviet Union towards the end of the Second World War which is termed the ‘Cold War’.

• A rivalry developed between the USA and the Soviet Union on the question of assuming leadership of the world giving birth to ‘NATO’ and ‘The Warsaw Pact’.
• The North Atlantic Treaty Organization or NATO formed an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 North American and European countries in 1949.
• NATO had a collective defence system which allowed its independent member states to agree to mutual defence in case of an attack by any external party.( For example The Red Army)
• The Warsaw Treaty Organization (WTO) which was commonly known as the Warsaw Pact was signed between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republics of Central and Eastern Europe in May 1955.
• It was created in reaction to the integration of West Germany into NATO and also by the desire of the Soviet Union to maintain control over the military forces in Central and Eastern Europe.

Question 18. What was the result of Germany’s invasion of Russia?
Answer:

The result of Germany’s invasion of Russia

Adolf Hitler of Germany violated the Russo-German Non-Agression Pact of 1939 and launched Operation Barbarossa or the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, during the Second World War.

• At the initial stages, the Nazis had great success capturing about 800,000 square kilometres of the Russian territory but this success was short-lived due to the wrong strategy of the German forces.
• The Soviet counter-offensives under the leadership of Marshal Zhukov and his Red Army, the severe Russian winter and the unpreparedness of the German military force for such a huge enterprise turned the course of events, leading to the failure of Hitler’s army.
• This disastrous Russian campaign marked the ‘Beginning of the end’ for Nazi Germany. This incident inspired the Allied Powers and the countries which were occupied by Hitler rose in new vigour in their fight against Germany.
• On 6th June 1944, USA, Britain and France launched Operation Overlord which led to the establishment of a strong foothold of the Allies on the French coastline and the decline of Nazi Germany. Faced by the twin attacks of the Red Army and the Anglo-French forces Germany ultimately signed the instrument of surrender on 8th May 1945.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History  Question 19. Write a note on the Abyssinian Crisis.
Answer:

Abyssinian Crisis

Italy under their ruler Benito Mussolini adopted a policy of aggression against Abyssinia in the period between 1934 and 1937 giving rise to the diplomatic crisis which was known as the Abyssinian Crisis.

• It started with the Walwal Incident of 1934, which led Mussolini to attack Abyssinia in October 1935.
• Italy’s attack on Abyssinia was prompted by her desire to take revenge for her defeat in the Battle of Adowa in 1896, the ‘lebensraum’ or creation of living space for the increasing Italian population and to procure raw materials as well as a market for her industrial production.
• Haile Selassie the Emperor of Abyssinia fled due to Italy’s aggression and internal problems. This second Italy-Abyssinian war marked Italy’s withdrawal from the League of Nations and developing strategic political relationship with Nazi Germany.
• As a result of Mussolini’s annexation of Abyssinia, his popularity among his countrymen increased. However, the League of Nations was discredited in its purpose of promoting international cooperation and peace.
• Further, Mussolini’s annexation of Abyssinia provided Hitler with the courage to violate the clauses of the Treaty of Versailles and later in 1937, Germany, Italy and Japan formed the Axis Powers in Europe.

Question 20. What were the most destructive weapons used in the Second World War?
Answer:

The most destructive weapons used in the Second World War

The Second World War saw much technological advancement in the weapons used by both the Allied and the Axis powers.

• During the Second World War, the world’s first Jet Fighter ME-262 was developed by Nazi Germany which was more heavily armed than any other Allied fighter of that day. The Avro Lancaster Bomber used by the Royal Air Force became the most important heavy.
• British bombers during the war and Lancaster made a total of 156,000 sorties and dropped over 608,000 tonnes of high explosive bombs and 51 million incendiary bombs during the war.
• The Katyusha Rocket Launcher was developed by the Soviet Union that launched multiple rockets at the same time from the back of a vehicle and was able to wreak havoc on the enemy troops in a matter of seconds and also caused psychological terror, thus giving it the name of “Stalin’s Organs”
• The VI Flying Bomb developed by Nazi Germany was the earliest Cruise Missile in the world, which was used in the terror bombing of London during the war, later the V2 Flying Bomb was also developed creating the two most powerful weapons of mass destruction.
• The T-34 Tank developed by the Soviet Union during the Second World War was the most effective, efficient and influential tank and had an unprecedented combination of firepower, mobility, protection and ruggedness.
• The 88 mm Gun developed by the Nazis was an anti-aircraft and anti-tank artillery gun which was used to devastating effect and was known as the “Flak “, the very name caused terror in the hearts of its enemies.
• The most important and destructive weapon used in the Second World War was the Atomic Bomb dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki which caused destruction that the world had not seen before and marked the beginning of the Nuclear Age.

Question 21. What were the main Theatres of war in the Second World War?
Answer:

The main Theatres of war in the Second World War

The main Theatres of war in the Second World War were as follows European Theatre, Mediterranean, African and Middle Eastern theatre, Pacific Asian Theatre, Other Theatres, Naval War and Air War.

• The European Theatre comprised the Nordic Front, Western Front and Russian Front and some of the main wars fought in this Theatre were the Invasion of Denmark and Norway, the Battle of France, the Battle of Normandy, the Central Europe campaign, the Battle of Poland, Eastern Front and the Battle of Berlin.
• The Mediterranean, Africa and Middle East Theatre was characterised by the East Africa campaign, and North Africa campaign. Battle of Greece, Battle of Crete and the Italy campaign. The Pacific Asian Theatre comprised the Pacific War, the Burma campaign, China Burma and India Theatre, Japan and the Soviet-Japanese War.
• The other Theatres of war were the Arctic, Antarctic, Madagascar and West Africa. The Naval war was fought in the Battle of the Atlantic, Battle of the Indian Ocean and Arctic Convoys were a very crucial part.
• The Air Wars were fought over the Battle of Britain, The Strategic Bombing Campaign and the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Question 22. Why was the Second World War known as the global war?
Answer: The Second World War that took place in the years between 1939 to 1945 was fought on most of the inhabited parts of the world covering land, water and air.

• It was widespread covering most of the nations—starting with the invasion of Poland by Germany it involved Britain and France, and engulfed Greece, Yugoslavia, Soviet Union in the war by 1941; the war even spread to Japan (Asia) and the USA because of the Pearl Harbour incident, involved Southeast Asia and Pacific, and by 1942 the war even reached Africa; this war reached even the remotest parts of the world Like the Arctic and Antarctica.
• The Second World War was extremely destructive and devastating— the major participants of the war used all their resources- economic, industrial and scientific behind the war effort and even crossed the distinctions between the civilian and military resources.
• It was one of the deadliest events in the history of mankind that led to about 70 to 85 million fatalities; thousands were killed in genocides, starvation, massacres and diseases.
• The use of aircraft, atomic bombs and nuclear weapons played a significant role in the war destroying lives and properties across the world. The Second World War changed the political alignment and the social structure of the globe.
• It rendered nearly 20 million people homeless, destroyed around 50% of the resources of France, caused 30% destruction of Southern Italy and a disastrous situation for Japan which suffered from the attack of atomic bombs; other countries like Russia also suffered greatly.
• The Second World War led to the establishment of the United Nations, this war freed the world from the Fascists and the Nazis no doubt but at a very high price.

Question 23. How did the Second World War give rise to sovereign States?
Answer: The Second World War had far-reaching impacts on the contemporary history of the world. It witnessed the decolonisation process of dismantlement of the colonial empires that were established before the First World War.

• During the Second World War, Britain, France, USA used their colonies for the supply of raw materials, manpower and other reasons with the assurance of granting their freedom at the end of the war.
• But as they tried to move away from their promise after the end of the war, nationalist movements gained momentum in various countries of Asia and Africa. India won her independence in 1947, Burma in 1948, and Sri Lanka in 1947. Indonesia, Morocco, Kenya and others also gained their independence after the Second World War.
• After the Second World War, the newly independent countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America came to be known as the ‘Third World’ and they formed the ‘Non-Alignment-Movement’ under the leadership of India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru.

Question 24. Why is aggressive nationalism regarded as harmful?
Answer: The term Aggressive Nationalism came into vogue in the late 19th Century and early 20th Century. This narrow-minded and self-centred nationalism emerged in Europe after the fall of multiracial nations and the creation of single unified nations.

• When nationalism becomes competitive and aggressive it takes such a horrifying form as was seen in Germany and Italy during the leadership of Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.
• Both these leaders used their race and nation as instruments of aggressive nationalism. Aggressive nationalism leads to imperialism, racial discrimination, antagonism towards other nations and many such evils.
• It deters the development of internationalism and prevents the nation from going beyond its limits. Rabindranath Tagore, the great poet and philosopher of India, stated that one must get rid of the narrow self-interests of aggressive nationalism and help to promote internationalism.

Question 25. Discuss the causes of the Second World War.
Answer:

The causes of the Second World War

Considerable discussions were made by historians regarding the causes of the outbreak of the Second World War on 1st September 1939 due to Germany’s attack on Poland and subsequent joining in the war on the side of Poland by Britain and France.

• This war which was one of the deadliest events in the history of mankind continued for six years and ended on 2nd September 1945. If Germany’s attack on Poland on 1st September 1939 provided the immediate cause of the war other prior, events had also paved the path of this outbreak.
• The rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazism in Germany, Sino-Japanese conflicts, Benito Mussolini’s annexation of Abyssinia and Germany’s success in achieving a neutrality pact with the Soviet Union to divide territories of Eastern Europe between them were major incidents that had to be taken into account.
• The unjust and humiliating terms of the Treaty of Versailles which crippled Germany both economically and militarily provoked strong feelings of retaliation among the Germans.
• The gradual decline of Democracy or democratic form of Government in Europe from the 1930s and the subsequent rise of the dictatorial regimes of Hitler and Mussolini was a significant cause behind the outbreak of the Second World War.
• The Policy of Appeasement followed by the two world powers Britain and France only fanned the imperialist ambitions of Germany, Italy and Japan. If Chamberlain and Daladier thwarted Hitler and Mussolini right from the beginning then, such a huge confrontation could have been avoided.
• The weakness and failure of the League of Nations which was formed to promote international cooperation and peace was yet another cause. The rise of dictatorship in Europe frustrated the peace-making role of the League as it was unable to control aggressive nations like Germany, Italy and Japan.
• The lack of coordination and unity of thought between England and France also allowed Hitler to strengthen himself. Britain and France also failed to adopt a strong diplomatic stance to form a military alliance with the Soviet Union.
• Hitler taking advantage of the situation struck a better deal with Stalin and concluded the Molotov- Ribbentrop Pact in August 1939. Finally, the formation of the Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis in 1937 and the signing of the Munich Agreement in 1938 set the stage for the outbreak of the war.

Question 26. Briefly state the timeline of the Second World War.
Answer:

The Timeline of the Second World War

• Twenty years after the First World War (1914 to 1918) the Second World War broke out on 1st September 1939.
• 1st September 1939- Germany attacked Poland and the Second World War commenced with the capturing of Warsaw within 15 days.
• 3rd September 1939- In favour of Poland England and France declared war against Germany.
• 17th September 1939- Invading from the East, Russia captured the whole of Poland within 30 days and soon there was a division of Poland into East and West which were occupied by Russia and Germany respectively.
• 30th November 1939- Russia occupied East Finland and was expelled from the League of Nations.
• 9th April 1940- Germany attacked and captured Norway and Denmark.
• 10th May 1940- Germany attacked Belgium, Holland and Luxemburg.
• In June 1940 the Baltic states of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia were annexed by Russia; Italy also joined by declaring war against France
• The combined armies of Germany and Italy attacked France defeated her and the Germans entered Paris on 14th June 1940.
• 10th July 1940- The Battle of Britain began.
• 8th August 1940- Germany started bombing in England
• 25th August 1940- British air raids on Berlin started
• 21st November 1940- France surrendered to Germany.
• 22nd June 1941- Germany attacked Russia
• 30th July 1941- Russia joined the Allied forces
• 7th December 1941- Attack of the U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbour in Hawaii by Japan
• 8th December 1941- USA joins the Second World War.
• 13th June 1943- Germany began the U-boat offensive against the USA.
• 3rd July 1942- Germany took Sebastopol.
• 13th September 1942- The Battle of Stalingrad began
• 11th November 1942- Germany and Italy invaded unoccupied Vichy France.
• 9th January 1943 – Von Paulus surrendered to the Russians at Stalingrad
• 10th July 1943- Under the leadership of Genera! Montgomery of Britain and General Patton of USA Sicily was occupied.
• 25th July 1943- The Fascist leader Benito Mussolini was arrested by Marshal Badoglio ending Fascist rule in Italy.
• 3rd September 1943- Italy surrendered unconditionally to the Allied forces.
• 4th June 1944- Rome was captured by the Allied forces.
• 6th June 1944- Operation Overlord; D-Day or Deliverance Day celebrated
• 25th August 1944- The Allied Army freed Paris
• 4th to 7th February 1945- Yalta Conference.
• 2nd May 1945 – The Red Army of the Soviet Union occupied Berlin
• 7th May 1945- Unconditional surrender of all the German forces to the Allies
• 8th May 1945- VE Day
• 17th July to 2nd August-Potsdam Conference
• 6th August 1945 – Atom bomb dropped at Hiroshima
• 9th August 1945- Atom bomb dropped at Nagasaki
• 2nd September 1945- Japan signed the instrument of surrender and the Second World War ended.

Question 27. What were the causes of the defeat of the Axis powers in the Second World War?
Answer:

The causes of the defeat of the Axis powers in the Second World War

The Second World War (1939 to 1945) was fought between the Allied Powers comprising England, France, Soviet Union, USA and China and the Axis Powers comprising Italy, Germany and Japan.

• Some causes ranging from the tactical errors of the individual Axis powers to the economic disadvantage of the Axis powers contributed to their defeat in the Second World War.
• Each of the three major Axis powers made certain tactical mistakes which weakened them— Operation Barbarossa the invasion of Hitler on the Soviet Union spelt disaster for him.
• Hitler underestimated the strength of the Soviet Union and the combined forces of Russia’s Red Army, the severe Russian winter against the ill-equipped German army signalled the ‘Beginning of the end’ for Nazi Germany or the Axis Powers.
• Mussolini’s invasion of Greece was successful but it resulted in the diversion of troops and caused delay in the invasion of Russia. The third tactical error was the Japanese attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbour.
• The attack yielded limited success but made the Americans amass their military power and join on the side of the Allies targeting Japan. The Axis Powers were no match to withstand the combined attacks of powerful nations like Britain, the USA and the Soviet Union.
• The leaders of the Axis Powers like Hitler and Mussolini were gradually losing their popularity in their own countries. The people living in the territories conquered by the German army could no longer tolerate the harsh treatment of the Nazis and opposed them.
• The intrigues among the German Generals, the suspicious nature of Hitler who not even trusted his lieutenants like Himmler and Goering and his overpowering nature also contributed to the fall of the Axis Powers.

The Axis Powers also suffered from inherent weaknesses. Italy was more a burden to Hitler than a strength and Spain under General Franco was a member of the Axis Powers no doubt but it refused to take part in the war. Thus Germany was left alone to take the entire challenge.

• Moreover, the Allied Powers who were staunch supporters of Democracy and wanted to rid the world from the evils of the authoritarian rule of Fascism and Nazism received great support and sympathy from a large majority of the world population.
• Another reason for the defeat of the Axis Powers was due to Germany’s fixation on what Hitler referred to as ‘wonder weapons’; Germany produced several powerful weapons but its nuclear project was disjointed and unsuccessful.
• The final attack that ended the Second World War was the USA’s dropping of atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It can therefore be argued that the unavailability of atomic bombs at their disposal brought about the defeat of the Axis Powers in the Second World War.

Question 28. What was the impact of the Second World War on contemporary history?
Answer:

The impact of the Second World War on contemporary history

The Second World War which lasted from 1939 to 1945 was one of the deadliest military conflicts in the world. This war had a far-reaching impact on the whole world.

• The end of the war witnessed a global tragedy as millions of people died and millions became homeless. It brought about the downfall of the European economy and much of the European industrial infrastructure was also destroyed.
• The end of the Second World War ushered in a new era which saw the decline of the European colonial empires on one hand and the rise of two superpowers the Soviet Union and the United States of America on the other hand.
• The end of the Second World War saw the emergence of ideological conflicts between the two superpowers the capitalist USA and the communist Soviet Union. This was known as the Cold War.
• Europe was divided into two blocs under such a situation- the US-led Western Bloc and the Soviet-led Eastern Bloc. In the period after the Second World War Russia spread its influence on Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and Albania.
• The USA also spread its influence on Western Europe through the Truman Policy and Marshall Plan. Some of the nations stayed out of the Cold War through the Non-Aligned Movement.
• The war also led to the nuclear arms race between the two superpowers which made them adopt the policy of a ‘mutually assured destruction’ standoff. The end of the war also increased the rate of decolonization, freedom movements gathered momentum in various countries of Asia and Africa.
• Between 1945 and 1960 around 40 countries including India fought against colonialism and gained independence. After the Second World War, the leaders of the world formed the United Nations Organization or U.N.O on 24th October 1945 to solve global problems through peaceful negotiations.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History  Question 29. Make a comparative study between the First World War and the Second World War
Answer:

Question 30. Write a note on the Yalta Conference.
Answer:

Yalta Conference

The Yalta Conference which was code-named Argonaut and Magneto was also known as the Crimea Conference. It was held between the 4th and 11th of February 1945 and was the second of the three major conferences among the Big Three.

• The leaders of political heads of the United Kingdom, the United States of America and the Soviet Union met at the conference to discuss matters related to the postwar reorganization of Germany and Europe.
• At the conference, the UK was represented by Winston Churchill, the USA by Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Soviet Union by Joseph Stalin. The Yalta Conference was preceded by the Tehran Conference in 1943 and followed by the Potsdam Conference In 1945.
• It was also preceded by the conference in October 1944 where only Churchill and Stalin discussed Western Europe and Soviet spheres of influence. This conference was not attended by the US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In the Yalta Conference of 1945, certain important decisions were made.
• Britain, the USA and the Soviet Union decided that after the surrender of Germany, she would be divided into four sectors and each of the powers would occupy one sector.

Similarly, the capital city of Berlin too would be divided into four parts.

The conference aimed to construct a post-war peace that represented not just a collective security order but a plan to give self¬determination to the people who earned liberation in post-Nazi Europe.

However, within a very short period and the rise of the Cold War that divided the continent ideologically, the Yalta Conference became a subject of great controversy.

WBBSE Class 9 Fundamentals Of History  Question 31. What do you know about the qualitative and quantitative changes that were brought about by the destructiveness of the Second World War?
Answer:

The qualitative and quantitative changes that were brought about by the destructiveness of the Second World War

The Second World War one of the deadliest events in the history of mankind involved virtually every part of the world during the six years between 1939 and 1945.

• Around 70-85 million people lost their lives in this war making it the bloodiest conflict as well as the largest war in history. There is no real statistical measurement of the human and material cost of the Second World War.
• It is estimated that around $ 1,000, 000, 000,000 was spent by the governments of the nations who participated in the war. But this figure appeared nothing when compared to the human misery that the war had inflicted.
• The physical suffering, the dislocation of people and their economic losses or the physical destruction of property was enormous. The national property of many of the countries was destroyed. The highest destruction was in Russia where many cities and industrial areas were also ruined.
• Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the hardest hit in Japan and a large number of Japanese people became homeless. Britain and France too suffered from the destruction of thousands of houses and roads.
• The scientists on both sides spent hours inventing more and more powerful and destructive weapons during the Second World War. But it was the invention of nuclear weapons that changed the nature of the war making it fatal and destructive.
• The Second World War ended with the dropping of atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the USA in August 1945—marking the beginning of the nuclear age in International Politics.
• It was for the first time in the history of the world that human beings found the means to destroy the whole world.

Question 32. What was the role played by the USA during the Second World War?
Answer:

The role played by the USA during the Second World War

A large majority of Americans felt after the First World War that participating in international politics was a mistake and advocated a policy of isolation. Accordingly, the USA maintained a policy of neutrality during the Second World War when it broke out on 1st September 1939.

But as Fascism and Nazism raised their heads USA was alarmed and when Japan attacked the US naval base at Pearl Harbour on 7th December 1941, the USA broke its neutral position and invaded Japan on the following day 8th December 1941.

• The US President Roosevelt had the desire to give up the Policy of Neutrality and play an active role in world politics. The fall of France in 1940, the German air raids on England and the spreading of the war alerted the USA who feared a possible attack by Hitler of Germany.
• This led the USA to deviate from her original stance on Neutrality. A system of conscription was introduced and all American youths between the ages of 21 to 31 were to take military training and join the army.
• To prevent the activities of the Nazis or a possible invasion the Good Neighbour Policy was adopted by the USA to receive the cooperation of the Latin American countries.
• A treaty was signed with Canada also for defence and the USA also built military garrisons on Bermuda and Newfoundland.
• Before these in 1939, the USA amended the Neutrality Act and decided to sell weapons and other military equipment to the Western Democratic Countries to help the Allied Powers and this was known as the ‘Cash and Carry’ policy.
• 1941, the U.S. Senate passed the ‘Lend-Lease Act’ that permitted the USA to supply fighter aircraft, weapons and warships to the Allied forces and earned her the title ‘Arsenal of Democracy’.
• The USA also adopted ‘Shoot -at sight orders on German submarines and warships that were passed by the USA angered by the frequent attack on the US merchant navy by the German submarines.
• As the American military relationship with the Allied Powers strengthened her relationship with the Axis Powers deteriorated. Finally, the incident of Pearl Harbour led the USA to join the war on the side of the Allies.
• The Second World War ended with the dropping of the atomic bombs by the USA on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki; the nuclear attack on Japan left her with no other option but to sign the instrument of surrender on 2nd September 1945.

Question 33. Write a note on the “Pearl Harbour” Incident –
Answer:

“Pearl Harbour” Incident

The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service conducted a surprise military attack on the United States ( a neutral country at the time ) against the Naval Base at Pearl Harbour in Hawaii on Sunday morning December 7,h 1941.

This attack came to be known as the “Pearl Harbour “incident. Tensions between the two nations started with the Japanese Invasion of Manchuria in 1931, and events such as the attacks on USS Panay, the Allison incident and the Nanking Massacre led to further tensions.

• US President Franklin D Roosevelt sought to increase the military presence by moving the Naval Bases from San Diego to Hawaii and ordered a military build-up in the Philippines keeping in mind the aggressive nature of Japan during that time.
• The Pearl Harbour attack was intended to be a preventive strike to keep the United States Pacific Fleet from interfering with Japanese military actions against the overseas territories of the United Kingdom, USA and Netherlands in Southeast Asia.
• Japan hoped that the attack would undermine American morale so that the US Government would be forced to compromise peace with them. The attack took place before any formal declaration of war by Japan and the formal declaration was not delivered to the US until a day after the attack.
• The Japanese Task Force of six aircraft carriers under the leadership of Isoroku Yamamoto – Akagi, Kaga, Soryu, Hiryu, Shokaku and Zuikaku set sail from the Hittokapu Bayen route to Pearl Harbour on November 26th 1941.
• The first attack waves of 183 planes comprising Nakajima Kate Bombers, torpedo bombers, dive bombers and Mitsubishi A6M ” Zero” fighters targeted the battleships, and aircraft carriers.
• US forces in Pearl Harbour were on a state of low alert and rose to the sounds of bombs, and torpedoes falling around them and several of the battleships got hit, however, some heroic resistance was put on by the US Naval forces resulting in some loss of the Japanese aircraft.
• The second wave consisted of 117 planes including dive bombers and Zero fighters targeting the air crafts and hangars at Ford Island, Hickam Field, Wheeler Field and Barber’s Point. After the attack was over after 90 minutes, eight US Navy Battleships were damaged with four sunk.
• The Japanese also destroyed three cruisers and three destroyers along with a total of 188 aircraft on the ground. 2403 US personnel were killed and 1178 were wounded in the attack. A possible third wave of attacks never took off which General Yamamoto later regretted.
• Despite the heavy losses incurred by the US, the attacks failed to destroy the most important aircraft carriers of the Naval force as they were not present in Pearl Harbour and played an important role in the Battle of Midway which was soon to come.
• As a result of the Pearl Harbour attack the public opinion in the USA which was against participation in the war turned in its favour and America declared war on Japan and Germany thus turning the tide in favour of the Allies.
• The Pearl Harbour incident is most aptly described by the words of General Yamamoto ” I fear that we have awakened a sleeping giant and filled him with terrible resolve ” concerning the declaration of war by the US.

Question 34. Briefly state the technological changes that evolved during the Second World War-
Answer:

The technological changes that evolved during the Second World Wa

The Second World War saw some major technological changes in weaponry and other allied fields.

Aircraft –

• The world’s first jet-powered aircraft, the ME-262 built by the Nazis took to the skies and the British jet Gloster Meteor was also developed.
• Heavy bombers like the Lancaster Bomber of the RAF and the B29 Superfortress played a major role in the war.

Tanks –

• The development of the fearsome Tiger Tank by Nazi Germany and the highly effective T-34 Tank developed by the Soviets created a game changer in the Tank warfare.
• The American M10 tank destroyer developed during the war also played a crucial role in the war.

Small Arms –

• The Second World War saw the development of small arms like PPSh-41, PPS-42, Sten, Beretta Model 38, MP 40, M3 Grease Gun, Gewehr 43, Thompson submachine gun and the Ml Garand rifle.
• The development in machine gun technology saw the emergence of Maschinengewehr 42 (MG42) which was of an advanced design unmatched at the time.
• Submarines – The type XXI “Elekroboot” U Boat or German submarine which had a greater capacity to stay underwater came into the war and this technology changed the submarine designs for years to come.
• The Germans also used snorkel technology which allowed the submarine to operate underwater while taking in air from the surface.

Rockets –

• The world’s first ballistic missiles took to the skies in the form of the V-l and V-2 rockets fired by the Germans on London.
• Electronics, Communication and Intelligence- The code breakers at Bletchley Park in the UK developed electronic computers to break open the German “Enigma ” codes or ciphered codes. The development of radar technology was also made during this period along with ASDIC or Sonar.
• Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect objects on or under the surface of the water, such as other vessels The airborne radar was also invented which led to the use of night fighters.

Bombs – Various new types of bombs like Cluster Bombs, Blockbuster Bombs, Bouncing Bombs, Tallboy Bombs and Bunker Buster Bombs were also introduced in the Second World War.

Vessels –

• The vastly improved Aircraft Carriers were a major factor in deciding the outcome of a Naval War in the Second World War along with superior Destroyers and Cruisers.
• The Atom Bomb-The singular most important technological advancement came in the form of the creation and the use of the Atom Bomb. US used the atomic bomb against Japan which ultimately ended the Second World War. The Atom Bomb was discovered by Robert Oppenheimer in the USA under the “Manhattan Project”

Other innovative inventions like the Leigh Light fitted in an anti-submarine aircraft, the amphibious Tank, the Higgins Boat, the Proximity fuze for shells etc were also introduced in wartime.

Medicines –  Penicillin, the world’s first anti¬biotic was produced in mass during the Second World War.

Question 35. Write a note of the “Eastern Front”.
Answer:

Eastern Front

The theatre of conflict between Nazi Germany and its allies the Finnish against the Soviet Union and Poland which encompassed Central Europe, Eastern Europe, the Baltics and the Balkans from 22nd June 1941 to 9th May 1945 is known as the “Eastern Front”.

• In Russia, it was also known as the “Great Patriotic War”. It was the largest military confrontation in the history of mankind. The confrontation was marked by the unprecedented ferocity in fighting, mass deportations of Jews, and great loss of life due to combat, starvation, massacre, disease and exposure to severe cold weather.
• Around 30 million casualties occurred on the Eastern Front as a whole. The outcome of the Eastern Front was decisive in determining the outcome of the operations in the Western Front, ultimately leading to the defeat of Nazi Germany.

Background –Both Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union were not pleased with the outcome of the First World War, with Russia having to accede to substantial territory in Eastern Europe and Germany having to agree to humiliating terms in the Treaty of Versailles.

The Molotov-

• Ribbentrop Pact of Nonaggression was signed between Germany and Russia in 1939 for 10 years as Hitler wanted to turn his attention to the occupation of Poland and France and the British Expeditionary Force.
• Germany attacked Poland on 1 September 1939 marking the beginning of the war and the Soviets invaded Eastern Poland thereby partitioning Poland between Germany and the Soviets.
• Hitler from his early days had despised the Russians referring to them as inferior and believed that the Bolshevik Revolution had put the Jews in power over the mass of Slavs.
• He saw the aggression as a war between the ideologies of Nazism and Jewish Bolshevism and wanted to ensure “lebensraum” or living space for the superior “Ubermensch” German race over the “Untermenschen” the subhumans.
• He also saw the opportunity to wipe out the Jewish population in Central and Eastern Europe as a part of his ” Final Solution” for the Jews. Soviet Union on the other hand had undergone massive industrialisation under the tenet of “Socialism in one Country ” and was led by Joseph Stalin.

Operation Barbarossa –

• The Nazi onslaught on Russia began on 22nd June 1941 with panzer divisions and motorised divisions deployed from the Baltic to the Black Sea.
• Luftwaffe, the German Air Force began conducting air raids on the Soviet airfields. In front of the attack, the unprepared Soviet Army began to fall back and the Germans advanced to Ukraine, Odesa with the city of Kiev being captured.
• To derive the Germans, Stalin ordered a “Scorched Earth Policy ” and denied them the resources for the advance eastwards.

Leningrad, Moscow and Rostov-1941 :

• Hitler wanted to take on Moscow and the German forces began their attack on the capital city. The Germans began their advance to Leningrad and led siege to the city which lasted for 900 days. They also advanced to Kharkiv, Kursk, and Sevastopol and took the city of Rostov.
• The Germans got within 19 miles of the Kremlin but the advance there was halted by Russian counter-attacks and the Germans failed to take Moscow. The Germans were severely impeded by the onset of the harsh winter that had set in by that time.

Soviet counter-offensive Winter 1941: The Soviet Counter-offensive in the winter of 1941 led by Marshall Zukhov removed the immediate threat to the capital city. By April 1942 the Soviet Supreme Command agreed to hold on to a defensive position to consolidate the captured grounds.

Don, Volga and the Caucasus 1942: The 6th Army of the Germans now moved towards Stalingrad. However, the advance into the Caucasus Region came to a halt and the German offensive into Russia was over.

Stalingrad 1942 :

• The Battle of Stalingrad was one of the most bitterly fought battles on the Eastern Front. The city was laid under siege by the Germans and bitter fighting took place amongst the forces in the form of hand-to-hand fighting and house-to-house fighting.
• At one point in time, the Germans almost overran the Soviet defences and reached the river Volga. The counter-attack launched by the Soviets defeated the Germans and General Paulus surrendered to the Soviets with 90,000 of his men.

Kursk -Summer 1943 :

• One of the greatest Tank Battles of the Second World War was fought in the Battle of Kursk and although no one came out as a winner, the German forces were dealt a very heavy blow.
• The German strategic offensive ended with their defence against a major Soviet counter-offensive.

Autumn and Winter 1943-44 :

• The Soviet counter-offensive started with the advance to Orel and the Germans began to fall back having inadequate defences.
• The Germans found It impossible to hold the Dnieper Line and in one move by the Soviets during the 1943¬44 campaign they captured 800 km encircling the German forces.
• The Soviets also made a lightning campaign and pushed back the Germans from Leningrad Novgorod was captured.

Summer and Autumn 1944 :

• The Belorussian Offensive or Operation Bagration, the massive Soviet attack consisting of four Soviet Army Groups totalling over 120 divisions smashed into the thinly held German lines.
• The Germans retreated on all fronts and the Soviet Army reached Poland at the time of the Warsaw uprising but did not intervene. The Soviets entered Warsaw on 17’h January 1945 after the city was destroyed by the Germans.

End of the War :

• The Soviets now entered Germany and were poised to take on the capital city of Berlin.
• The offensive to capture Berlin and Central Germany began on 16th April with an assault on the Oder and Neisee rivers. On the 29th and 30th of April, the Soviets entered Berlin.
• Adolf Hitler married Eva Braun and committed suicide along with her in his underground bunker as the Soviets completed the final steps of the Battle of Berlin.
• On 7th May 1945 German Chief of Staff, General Alfred Jodi signed the instrument of unconditional surrender for the Germans to the Allies marking the end of the war in Europe.
• In Russia, the end of the war is considered to be 9th May as per Moscow time and the day is known as Victory Day.

Effects of the War: The combined damage consisted of complete or partial destruction of 1,710 cities and towns,70,000 villages/hamlets, 2,508 church buildings, 31,850 industrial establishments, 64,000 kilometres (40,000 mi) of railroad, 4,100 railroad stations, 40,000 hospitals, 84,000 schools, and 43,000 public libraries; leaving 25 million homeless and around 30 million human casualties Seven million horses, 17 million cattle, 20 million pigs, 27 million sheep were also slaughtered or driven off.

Foreign Support and Measures:

• A strategic air offensive by the United States Air Force and the Royal Air Force played a significant part in reducing German industry and tying up German forces which helped the Soviets in the war on the Eastern Front.
• The Arctic convoys of supplies and the training of Red Army pilots by the Allies also helped the Soviets. The Land Lease agreement by the USA supported the Soviet Union by providing military hardware, foodstuff, chemical substances, petroleum and factory equipment.

• Chapter 1 Some Aspects Of The French Revolution MCQs
• Chapter 2 Revolutionary Ideals, Napoleonic Empire And Idea Of Nationalism MCQs
• Chapter 3 Europe In The 19th Century : Conflict Of Monarchical And Nationalist Ideas MCQs
• Chapter 4 Industrial Revolution: Colonialism And Imperialism MCQs
• Chapter 5 Europe In The 20th Century MCQs
• Chapter 6 The Second World War And Its Aftermath MCQs
• Chapter 7 The League Of Nations And The United Nations Organization MCQs

Chapter 2 Revolutionary Ideals, Napoleonic Empire, And Idea Of Nationalism Multiple Choice Questions

Question 1. When was Napoleon Bonaparte born?

1. 15th May 1769
2. 15th June 1769
3. 15th July 1769
4. 15th August 1769

Answer: 1. 15th August 1769

Question 2. Name the island where Napoleon was born.

1. Naples
2. Milan
3. Corsica
4. Elbe

Answer: 3. Corsica

Read and Learn More WBBSE Class 9 History MCQs

Question 3. At what age, Napoleon Bonaparte became an officer in the French army?

1. 15
2. 18
3. 21
4. 25

Answer: 1. 15

Question 4. In which year was Napoleon Bonaparte appointed as the Second Lieutenant?

1. 1781
2. 1783
3. 1785
4. 1789

Answer: 3. 1785

Question 5. Name the administrative body that appointed Napoleon Bonaparte as the commander of the French army during the Italian Campaign.

1. Constituent Assembly
2. Directory
3. National Convention
4. Consulate

Answer: 2. Directory

Question 6. When was Corsica annexed by France?

1. 1766
2. 1767
3. 1768
4. 1789

Answer: 3. 1768

MCQs On Revolutionary Ideals And Napoleonic Empire For Class 9 WBBSE

Question 7. Name one of the Directors who helped Napoleon to overthrow the Directory and assume power.

1. Abbe Sieyes
2. Raubel
3. Carnot
4. Marat

Answer: 1. Abbe Sieyes

Question 8. When did Napoleon first become the Consul of France?

1. 1789
2. 1797
3. 1798
4. 1799

Answer: 4. 1799

Question 9. What was the name of Napoleon’s father?

1. Carlo Charles Bonaparte
2. Carlo Rio Bonaparte
3. Carlo Maximilian Bonaparte
4. Ricardo Bonaparte

Answer: 1. Carlo Charles Bonaparte

Question 10. Who was the mother of Napoleon Bonaparte?

1. Liza Bonaparte
2. Letizia Ramolino Bonaparte
3. Marie Claire
4. Mariam Liza Bonaparte

Answer: 2. Letizia Ramolino Bonaparte

Question 11. How many Consuls were comprised to form the rule of the Consulate?

1. 4
2. 6
3. 5
4. 3

Answer: 4. 3

Multiple Choice Questions On Napoleonic Empire And Nationalism

Question 12. Who wrote the book, War and Peace?

1. Leo Tolstoy
2. Alexander Dumas
3. Charles Dickens
4. Trotsky

Answer: 1. Leo Tolstoy

Question 13. Name the Czar who inspired Russia to become a nation-state.

1. Alexander I
2. Alexander II
3. Alexander III
4. Alexander IV

Answer: 1. Alexander I

Question 14. When was the Treaty of Tolentino signed?

1. February 1793
2. February 1794
3. February 1797
4. February 1799

Answer: 3. February 1797

Question 15. Between whom was the Treaty of Campo-Formio signed?

1. Czar Alexander and Napoleon
2. King Francis II and Napoleon
3. Mazzini and Napoleon
4. Leopold and Napoleon

Answer: 2. King Francis II and Napoleon

Question 16. How many articles were there in Code Napoleon?

1. 2187
2. 2387
3. 2487
4. 2287

Answer: 4. 2287

Question 17. Which European country issued, an ‘Order in Council’ against France?

1. Austria
2. Prussia
3. Britain
4. Italy

Answer: 3. Britain

Revolutionary Ideals MCQs For Class 9 WBBSE Chapter 2 Solutions

Question 18. Name the Decree that banned the import of any British goods to Europe.

1. Milan Decree
2. Orders in Council
3. Treaty Concordot
4. Treaty of Campo- Formio

Answer: 1. Milan Decree

Question 19. In which year was the Bank of France formed?

1. 1799
2. 1800
3. 1802
4. 1807

Answer: 2. 1800

Question 20. In which year was the Berlin Decree signed?

1. 1801
2. 1803
3. 1805
4. 1806

Answer: 4. 1806

Question 21. Whom did Napoleon establish on the throne of Spain?

1. Charles IV
2. Ferdinand
3. Joseph Bonaparte
4. Minister Godoy

Answer: 3. Joseph Bonaparte

Question 22. In which year the Duke of Wellington defeated the French General Marshal Jourdan?

1. 1807
2. 1810
3. 1812
4. 1814

Answer: 4. 1814

Question 23. How many French soldiers died in the Peninsular War?

1. 3,00,000
2. 4,00,000
3. 5,00,000
4. 6,00,000

Answer: 1. 3,00,000

Question 24. Which country was defeated at the Battles of Salamanca and Vitoria?

1. Britain
2. France
3. Prussia
4. Russia

Answer: 2. France

Question 25. Name the country with whom France signed the Treaty of Tilsit.

1. Russia
2. Prussia
3. Italy
4. Spain

Answer: 1. Russia

WBBSE Class 9 History Chapter 2 MCQs For Exam Preparation

Question 26. When did the Battle of Pyramids take place?

1. 1796
2. 1797
3. 1798
4. 1799

Answer: 3. 1798

Question 27. In which year did Napoleon undertake his Egyptian campaign?

1. 1798
2. 1800
3. 1802
4. 1806

Answer: 1. 1798

Question 28. When did the Nationalisation of the Church take place?

1. 1800
2. 1801
3. 1804
4. 1809

Answer: 2. 1801

Question 29. In which year Napoleon started the Continental Blockade against England?

1. 1806
2. 1808
3. 1810
4. 1812

Answer: 1. 1806

Class 9 WBBSE Chapter 2 Multiple Choice Questions PDF

Question 30. When did the Battle of Leipzig take place?

1. 1813
2. 1814
3. 1815
4. 1816

Answer: 1. 1813

Question 31. In which year Napoleon became the emperor of France?

1. 1803
2. 1804
3. 1806
4. 1807

Answer: 2. 1804

Question 32. Into how many departments were France divided by Napoleon?

1. 80
2. 81
3. 82
4. 83

Answer: 3. 83

Question 33. Who was known as the “Child of the Revolution”?

1. Napoleon Bonaparte
2. Napoleon 3
3. Louis XV
4. Charles IV

Answer: 1. Napoleon Bonaparte

Question 34. Name the philosopher by whom Napoleon was influenced.

1. Voltaire
2. John Locke
3. Rousseau
4. Karl Marx

Answer: 3. Rousseau

Question 35. Which of the ideals of the French Revolution was truncated by Napoleon?

1. Liberty
2. Equality
3. Fraternity
4. Monarchism

Answer: 1. Liberty

Question 36. When did Napoleon invade Milan?

1. 1793
2. 1794
3. 1796
4. 1799

Answer: 3. 1796

Question 37. Napoleon’s Moscow campaign began in –

1. 1810
2. 1812
3. 1815
4. 1820

Answer: 2. 1812

Question 38. Which battle is also known as the ” Battle of the Nations”?

1. Leipzig
2. Victoria
3. Waterloo
4. Peninsula

Answer: 1. Leipzig

Question 39. For how many years did Napoleon rule as the First Consul?

1. 5
2. 10
3. 15
4. 20

Answer: 2. 10

Question 40. Which one of the following was considered a major reform achievement of Napoleon?

1. Economic Reforms
2. Legal Reforms
3. Educational Reforms
4. Religious Reforms

Answer: 2. Legal reforms

Multiple Choice Questions On Napoleonic Reforms And Nationalism

Question 41. Who ordered the Berlin Decree?

1. Napoleon
2. Abbe Sieyes
3. Brunswick
4. Montezellard

Answer: 1. Napoleon

Question 42. Who was the Commander of the British forces at the Battle of Waterloo?

1. Nelson
2. York
3. Blucher
4. Duke of Wellington

Answer: 4. Duke of Wellington

Question 43. Napoleon recaptured the Toulon Portfrom-

1. Russia
2. Austria
3. Spain
4. England

Answer: 4. England

Question 44. Which country was called the ‘workshop of the world’?

1. France
2. USA
3. Germany
4. England

Answer: 4. England

Question 45. Who was known as the sick man of Europe?

1. Turkey
2. France
3. Italy
4. Greece

Answer: 1. Turkey

Class 9 Napoleonic Empire MCQs For WBBSE History Exam Preparation

Question 46. After the Battle of Waterloo Napoleon was exiled to

1. Elba Island
2. Saint Helena
3. Austria
4. Russia

Answer: 2. Saint Helena

Question 47. Where did Napoleon’s coronation take place?

1. Leipzig
2. Elba Island
3. Saint Helena
4. Notre-Dame

Answer: 4. Notre-Dame

Question 48. When did the Battle of Waterloo take place?

1. 1813
2. 1815
3. 1817
4. 1819

Answer: 2. 1815

Question 49. When did Napoleon expel the British army from Toulon?

1. 1793
2. 1794
3. 1795
4. 1796

Answer: 1. 1793

Question 50. When did Napoleon Bonaparte die?

1. David Thomson
2. Grant and Temperly
3. G.Rude
4. Soral

Answer: 3. G.Rude

Question 51. Which Battle Exposed the weakness of the French Navy?

1. Battle of Genoa
2. Battle of Leipzig
3. Battle of the Nile
4. Peninsular War

Answer: 3. Battle of the Nile

Revolutionary Ideals And Nationalism MCQs WBBSE Class 9 Syllabus

Question 52. Where did Napoleon enthrone his brother Louis?

1. Holland
2. Egypt
3. Italy
4. Naples

Answer: 1. Holland

Question 53. Whom did Napoleon appoint as the Viceroy of Italy?

1. Murat
2. Jerome
3. Eugene
4. Joseph

Answer: 3. Eugene

Question 54. Who founded the Bank of France’?

1. Charlemagne
2. King Ferdinand II
3. Dahlman
4. Napoleon Bonaparte

Answer: 4. Napoleon Bonaparte

Question 55. Whom did Napoleon make the king of Naples?

1. Louis
2. Jerome
3. Joseph
4. Godoy

Answer: 3. Joseph

Question 56. Who has called the Spanish wars an ‘ulcer’?

1. David Thomson
2. Grant and Temperly
3. G.Rude
4. Soral

Answer: 2. Grant and Temperly

Question 57. Who adopted the ‘Scorched Earth ‘policy?

1. Charles IV
2. Admiral Nelson
3. Stein
4. Kutuzov

Answer: 4. Kutuzov

Question 58. Which expedition is often considered the ‘swan song’ of Napoleon’s imperialism?

1. Italy
2. Germany
3. Prussia
4. Moscow

Answer: 4. Moscow

Question 59. To which of the following countries did Napoleon sell the entire Louisiana territory in 1803?

1. Great Britain
2. Russia
3. USA
4. Prussia

Answer: 3. USA

Question 60. Name the Historian who has called ‘The Code of Napoleon ‘the Bible of the French Society’?

1. David Thomson
2. Lefebvre
3. G.Rude
4. Grant and Temperly

Answer: 2. Lefebvre

Chapter 1 Some Aspects Of The French Revolution Multiple Choice Questions

Question 1. Who said that the church was ‘a privileged nuisance’?

1. Voltaire
2. Adam Smith
3. Rousseau
4. Montesquieu

Answer: 1. Voltaire

Question 2. For how many years did Louis XIV rule in France?

1. 70
2. 72
3. 74
4. 76

Answer: 2. 72

Read and Learn More WBBSE Class 9 History MCQs

Question 3. Who had boasted once, ‘I am the state’?

1. Henry IV
2. Louis XV
3. Louis XIV
4. Louis XVI

Answer: 3. Louis XIV

Question 4. Who pointed out that the ordinary citizens of France were not familiar with the writings of Voltaire or Rousseau?

1. Mornet
2. Mounier
3. Roustan
4. Taine

Answer: 2. Mounier

Question 5. The French Revolution began in

1. 1789 A.D
2. 1790 A.D
3. 1790 A.D
4. 1792 A.D

Answer: 1. 1789 A.D

Question 6. Louis XVI was a

1. Bourbon dynasty king
2. Czar
3. Gupta king
4. Roman king

Answer: 1. Bourbon dynasty king

Question 7. ‘On the Social Contract is written by

1. Montesquieu
2. Diderot
3. Rousseau
4. Voltaire

Answer: 3. Rousseau

Question 8. France was called the ‘Museum of Economic Errors’, by

1. Voltaire
2. Adam Smith
3. Rousseau
4. Montesquieu

Answer: 2. Adam Smith

Question 9. Taille was a-

1. Religious Tax
2. Land Tax
3. Marriage Tax
4. Salt Tax

Answer: 2. Land Tax

Question 10. The Persian Letters ‘was written by

1. Rousseau
2. Voltaire
3. Montesquieu
4. Diderot

Answer: 3. Montesquieu

French Revolution MCQs for WBBSE Class 9 Chapter 1 History

Question 11. The third estate declared itself as the National Assembly in

1. 20th June 1789
2. 25th June 1789
3. 22nd June 1789
4. 29th June 1789

Answer: 1. 20th June 1789

Question 12. The Spirit of Laws’, was written by

1. Montesquieu
2. Voltaire
3. Rousseau
4. Adam Smith

Answer: 1. Montesquieu

Question 13. Who was known as the ‘Butterfly Monarch ‘?

1. Napoleon
2. Louis XV
3. Charlemagne
4. Louis XVI

Answer: 2. Louis XV

Question 14. In which year was the book ‘The Spirit of Laws’ published?

1. 1748 A.D
2. 1783 A.D
3. 1789 A.D
4. 1791 A.D

Answer: 1. 1748 A.D

Question 15. In French, the ‘salt tax’ was called-

1. Taille
2. Gabelle
3. Corvee
4. Valium

Answer: 2. Gabelle

Question 16. The War of Valmy happened in

1. 1790 A.D
2. 1792 A.D
3. 1791 A.D
4. 1794 A.D

Answer: 2. 1792 A.D

Question 17. The currency that was introduced after seizing the church properties-

1. Assignats
2. Taka
3. Yen
4. Euro

Answer: 1. Assignats

Class 9 WBBSE French Revolution Chapter 1 solved MCQs

Question 18. The leader of the Jacobin party was –

1. Robespierre
2. Marabou
3. Herbert
4. Danto

Answer: 1. Robespierre

Question 19. ‘Candide’ was written by

1. Rousseau
2. Voltaire
3. Marabou
4. Montesquieu

Answer: 2. Voltaire

Question 20. The French clergy were

1. Opportunists
2. Powerless
3. Weak
4. Unfortunately class

Answer: 1. opportunists

Question 21. Who wrote, ‘What is the Third Estate’?

1. Voltaire
2. Lenin
3. Abbe Sieyes
4. Hobsbawm

Answer: 3. Abbe Sieyes

Question 22. The word ‘bourgeois’ came from-

1. Burgers
2. Bureau
3. Marker
4. Beggar

Answer: 1. Burgeis

Question 23. ‘Corvee’ was a kind of-

1. Play
2. Forced labor
3. A church
4. Marriage tax

Answer: 2. Forced labor

Question 24. Which incident marked the end of absolute monarchy and the beginning of the sovereignty of the people?

1. Aristocratic Revolt
2. Fall of Directory
3. Municipal Revolt
4. Tennis Court oath

Answer: 4. Tennis Court oath

Question 25. The author of the ‘Wealth of Nations was –

1. Rousseau
2. Robespierre
3. Keene
4. Adam Smith

Answer: 4. Adam Smith

Question 26. Who was known as the ‘Father of the French Revolution’?

1. Adam Smith
2. Montesquieu
3. Voltaire
4. Rousseau

Answer: 4. Rousseau

WBBSE Class 9 History Chapter 1 French Revolution Objective Questions

Question 27. The French Government was said to be ‘The Political Prison’ by

1. Georges Lefebvre
2. Rousseau
3. Voltaire
4. Robespierre

Answer: 1. Georges Lefebvre

Question 28. In which of the following wars was France defeated?

1. World War 1
2. World War 2
3. War of American Independence
4. War of Austrian succession

Answer: 3. War of Austrian succession

Question 29. Upon whom was vested the work of making the laws in the Constitution of 1791?

1. House of Lords
2. House of Commons
3. National Assembly
4. Provincial Assembly

Answer: 3. National Assembly

Question 30. The French king opened the French parliament or the ‘States-General’ after-

1. 127 years
2. 150 years
3. 175 years
4. 186 years

Answer: 3. 175 years

Question 31. Who first used the term, ‘Ancien Regime’?

1. William Doyle
2. Voltaire
3. George Lefebvre
4. Montesquieu

Answer: 1. William Doyle

Question 32. The Constitution of 1789 began with a Declaration of the Rights of –

1. Man
2. Man and Citizen
3. Clergy
4. Woman

Answer: 2. Man and Citizen

Question 33. Which of the following came to be known as the ‘National Convention’?

1. Constituent Assembly
2. General Assembly
3. New Assembly
4. Legislative Assembly

Answer: 4. Legislative Assembly

Question 34. Which among the following was an indirect tax in France?

1. Gabelle
2. Capitation
3. Vingtieme
4. Corvee

Answer: 1. Gabelle

Question 35. Who was not included in the Third Estate?

1. Labourers
2. Workers
3. Clergies
4. Peasants

Answer: 3. Clergies

Question 36. Who formed the European coalition against France?

1. Austria, Italy, America, Holland
2. Russia, America, Britain, Italy
3. Holland, Prussia, Austria, Britain
4. America, Prussia, Italy, Austria

Answer: 3. Holland, Prussia, Austria, Britain

Question 37. ‘Aides’ was the tax imposed on-

1. Wine
2. Land
3. Wealth
4. Salt

Answer: 1. Wine

Question 38. ‘Contract of Poissey’ made them pay taxes voluntarily –

1. Farmers
2. Laborers
3. Bishops
4. Workers

Answer: 3. Bishops

Question 39. Who said, ’18th-century farmers of France were the most oppressed class of people’?

1. Taine
2. Labruje
3. Roustan
4. Voltaire

Answer: 2. Labruje

Question 40. Who authored the book, ‘General Will’?

1. Rousseau
2. Voltaire
3. Diderot
4. Quesnay

Answer: 1. Rousseau

Question 41. Who authored the book, ‘Theory of Taxation’?

1. Mirabeau
2. Quesnay
3. Montesquieu
4. Rousseau

Answer: 2. Quesnay

Question 42. Who authored the book, ‘Friend of Mankind”?

1. Voltaire
2. Labruje
3. Mirabeau
4. Adam Smith

Answer: 3. Mirabeau

Question 43. When was the Physiocratic School formed by Quesnay and Turgot?

1. 1780 A.D
2. 1770 A.D
3. 1790 A.D
4. 1798 A.D

Answer: 2. 1770 A.D

Question 44. When was Turgot appointed as the Finance Minister?

1. 1774 A.D
2. 1778 A.D
3. 1783 A.D
4. 1789 A.D

Answer: 1. 1774 A.D

Question 45. Who wanted to abolish the Corvee System?

1. Neckar
2. Calonne
3. Turgot
4. Brienne

Answer: 3. Turgot

Question 46. The National Guard was formed by

1. Necker
2. Bailly
3. Brienne
4. Calonne

Answer: 2. Bailly

Question 47. Couthan, Carnot, and Shavot led the –

1. Jacobins
2. Girondists
3. Paris Commune
4. National Assembly

Answer: 2. Girondists

Question 48. Brissot, Petiye and Bharganiyad led the-

1. Girondists
2. Jacobins
3. National Assembly
4. Patricians

Answer: 2. Jacobins

Question 49. Who said, ‘to save the nation the King must die’?

1. Robespierre
2. Carnot
3. Shavot
4. Brissot

Answer: 1. Robespierre

Question 50. When did the Jacobins banish all the Girondists from the National Assembly?

1. 3rd May 1793
2. 2nd June 1793
3. 4th July 1793
4. 6th August 1793

Answer: 2. 2nd June 1793

Question 51. In which year did the Aristocratic Revolt take place?

1. 1788 A.D
2. 1789 A.D
3. 1791
4. 1793 A.D

Answer: 1. 1788 A.D

Question 52. When was the States-General formally summoned?

1. January 25th, 1789
2. January 24th, 1789
3. January 26th, 1789
4. January 27th, 1789

Answer: 1. January 24th, 1789

Question 53. When did the Tennis Court Oath take place?

1. June 20th, 1789
2. July 20th, 1789
3. 20th August 1789
4. 20th September 1789

Answer: 1. June 20th, 1789

Question 54. When did the session of the New Legislative Assembly begin?

1. July 1st, 1791
2. October 1st, 1791
3. May 1st 1791
4. December 1st1791

Answer: 2. October 1st, 1791

Question 55. When did the ‘Storming of Tuilleries’ take place?

1. April 1792
2. May 1792
3. June 1792
4. August 1792

Answer: 4. August 1792

Question 56. When did the execution of Louis XVI take place?

1. January 21st, 1793
2. June 2nd, 1793
3. July 2nd, 1793
4. November 2nd, 1793

Answer: 1. January 21st, 1793

Question 57. When did the Reign of Terror begin in France?

1. 1st September 1793
2. 5th September 1793
3. 20th September 1793
4. 25th September 1793

Answer: 2. 5th September 1793

French Revolution Class 9 WBBSE MCQs For Practice

Question 58. When did the Fall of Bastille take place?

1. 4th July 1789
2. 10th July 1789
3. 14th July 1789
4. 16th July 1789

Answer: 3. 14th July 1789

Question 59. Leopold 2 was the emperor of-

1. Prussia
2. Austria
3. France
4. Italy

Answer: 2. Austria

Question 60. Louis XVI was sentenced to death for

1. Theft
2. Murder
3. Looting
4. Treason

Answer: 4. Treason

Question 61. Olympe de Gouges who wrote the book, The Rights Women was the daughter of a

1. Barber
2. Carpenter
3. Grocer
4. Butcher

Answer: 4. Butcher

Question 62. Who had given the status of a second-class citizen to women in France?

1. Louis XV
2. Napoleon
3. Louis XVI
4. Marie Antoinette

Answer: 2. Napoleon

Question 63. Who wrote the ‘Declaration of the Rights of Women and Female Citizens’?

1. Olympe de Gouges
2. Pauline Leone
3. Barnev
4. Petite

Answer: 1. Olympe de Gouges

Question 64. Who was the author of the French Encyclopaedia?

1. Turgot
2. Diderot
3. Quesnay
4. Alembert

Answer: 2. Diderot

Question 65. Who is known as the “Son of Revolution”?

1. Napoleon
2. Robespierre
3. Mirabeau
4. Rousseau

Answer: 1. Napoleon

Question 66. Who propounded the idea of ‘despotism of liberty’?

1. Girondins
2. Patricians
3. Jacobins
4. Royalists

Answer: 3. Jacobins

Question 67. Name the poet who came to Paris in search of understanding the concept of liberty.

1. Lord Byron
2. Thomas Hardy
3. P.B. Shelly
4. William Wordsworth

Answer: 4. William Wordsworth

Question 68. What was the greatest achievement of the Constituent Assembly?

1. Rights of equality
2. End of feudalism and serfdom
3. Rights of property
4. Women’s liberation

Answer: 3. End of feudalism and serfdom

Question 69. When did the first French Republic come into existence?

1. 1790 A.D
2. 1791 A.D
3. 1792 A.D
4. 1793 A.D

Answer: 3. 1792 A.D

Question 70. Tipu Sultan of Mysore was associated with-

1. Royalists
2. Girondins
3. Aristocrats
4. Jacobins

Answer: 4. Jacobins

Question 71. Which of the following ordered the guillotine of the French Monarch Louis XVI?

1. Constituent Assembly
2. The Directory
3. The National Convention
4. Legislative Assembly

Answer: 3. The National Convention

Question 72. When did the rule of The Directory begin in France?

1. 1795 A.D
2. 1796 A.D
3. 1797 A.D
4. 1798 A.D

Answer: 1. 1795 A.D

Question 73. How many people from the ‘third estate’ were represented at the States-General?

1. 600
2. 612
3. 617
4. 621

Answer: 4. 621

Question 74. Who wrote the book, ‘The Sans-culottes”?

1. Edmund Burke
2. Albert Soboul
3. Thomas More
4. Adam Smith

Answer: 2. Albert Soboul

Question 75. Which among the following was completely deprived of any wealth?

1. Aristocrats
2. Clergies
3. Monarchs
4. Sans-culottes

Answer: 4. Sans-culottes

WBBSE Chapter 3 Europe In The 19th Century: Conflict Of Monarchical And Nationalist Ideas Multiple Choice Questions

Question 1. When was the Congress of Vienna held?

1. 1815
2. 1816
3. 1817
4. 1818

Answer: 1. 1815

Question 2. Prince Klemens von Metternich was the Chancellor of-

1. Russia
2. Austria
3. Prussia
4. Sweden

Answer: 2. Austria

Read and Learn More WBBSE Class 9 History MCQs

Question 3. Name the place where Napoleon Bonaparte was exiled for the first time:

1. Elba
2. St. Helena
3. Russia
4. Waterloo

Answer: 1. Elba

Question 4. Who was called the “Sick man of Europe“?

1. England
2. Turkey
3. Russia
4. France

Answer: 2. Turkey

Question 5. Name the Revolution that ended the Bourbon Monarchy in France.

1. February Revolution
2. Bolshevik Revolution
3. July Revolution
4. French Revolution

Answer: 3. July Revolution

Question 6. Who issued the July Ordinance in France on the eve of the Revolution of 1830?

1. Prince Metternich
2. Charles Martel
3. Napoleon III
4. Polignac

Answer: 4. Polignac

Question 7. Under whom did the Concert of Europe become a Police System?

1. Metternich
2. Napoleon III
3. Charles X
4. Louis XVI

Answer: 1. Metternich

Question 8. Who founded the July Monarchy in France?

1. Charles X
2. Louis Philippe
3. Alexander I
4. Louis XVIII

Answer: 2. Louis Philippe

Question 9. When did Napoleon Bonaparte abdicate the throne of France?

1. 1810
2. 1812
3. 1814
4. 1816

Answer: 3. 1814

Question 10. Who considered himself as the “Vanquisher of Napoleon “?

1. Czar Nicholas
2. Count Cavour
3. Frederick William III
4. Prince Metternich

Answer: 1. Prince Metternich

Question 11. Which of the following was responsible for the weakening of the power of the kings in the Middle Ages in Europe?

1. The Clergy
2. The nobility
3. The serfs
4. The feudal lords

Answer: 4. The feudal lords

Question 12. Who invited Raja Rammohan Roy for dinner?

1. Napoleon Bonaparte
2. Napoleon 3
3. Louis Philippe
4. Charles 10

Answer: 3. Louis Philippe

Question 13. Which of the following provided an impetus toward the growth of nationalism?

1. Balance of power
2. The French Revolution
3. The Concert of Europe
4. Restoration.

Answer: 1. The French Revolution

Question 14. When did the July Revolution in France take place?

1. 1830
2. 1831
3. 1832
4. 1834

Answer: 1. 1830

Question 15. When did the February Revolution in France take place?

1. 1830
2. 1848
3. 1859
4. 1890

Answer: 2. 1848

Question 16. How many countries of Europe played a dominant role in bringing about the fall of Napoleon?

1. 8
2. 6
3. 4
4. 2

Answer: 3. 4

Question 17. How many principles were adopted by the leaders of the Vienna Conference?

1. 6
2. 5
3. 4
4. 3

Answer: 4. 3

Question 18. Which of the following was one of the principles adopted by the Vienna Conference?

1. Legitimacy
2. Democracy
3. Fraternity
4. Equality

Answer: 1. Legitimacy

Question 19. Who represented Russia in the Vienna Conference?

1. Nicholas 1
2. Alexander 1
3. Castlereagh
4. Talleyrand

Answer: 2. Alexander 1

Question 20. Who represented France in the Vienna Conference?

1. Louis Philippe
2. Charles 10
3. Talleyrand
4. Napoleon 3

Answer: 3. Talleyrand

Question 21. Who represented Prussia in the Vienna Conference?

1. Castlereagh
2. Alexander 1
3. Talleyrand
4. Frederick William 2

Answer: 4. Frederick William 2

Question 22. Where did the Vienna Conference take place?

1. Austria
2. Prussia
3. Russia
4. France

Answer: 1. Austria

Question 23. When has France declared a “Republic” for the second time?

1. 1830
2. 1848
3. 1850
4. 1870

Answer: 2. 1848

Question 24. To which dynasty did Louis Philippe belong?

1. Bourbon dynasty
2. Habsburg dynasty
3. Orleans dynasty
4. Carolingian dynasty

Answer: 3. Orleans dynasty

Question 25. When was the Carlsbad Decrees introduced in Germany?

1. 1815
2. 1816
3. 1817
4. 1819

Answer: 4. 1819

Question 26. In which year was the Metternich System brought down?

1. 1848
2. 1850
3. 1854
4. 1870

Answer: 1. 1848

Question 27. When did Charles X ascend the throne of France?

1. 1820
2. 1824
3. 1828
4. 1830

Answer: 2. 1824

Question 28. When did Louis XVIII die?

1. 1815
2. 1820
3. 1824
4. 1830

Answer: 3. 1824

Question 29. Which principle was adopted to restore the kings and dynasties by the Congress of Vienna?

1. Restoration
2. Balance of Power
3. Democracy
4. Legitimacy

Answer: 4. Legitimacy

Question 30. Name the European country that adopted major reform measures in 1832, following the July Revolution of France.

1. Austria
2. Prussia
3. Spain
4. England

Answer: 2. Prussia

Question 31. The “Chartist Movement “took place in:

1. Spain
2. Portugal
3. England
4. Switzerland

Answer: 3. England

Question 32. Which Monarchy is also referred to as the “Bourgeois Monarchy”?

1. July Monarchy
2. Bourbon Monarchy
3. Orleans Monarchy
4. Carolingian Monarchy

Answer: 1. July Monarchy

Question 33. Who took the title of Napoleon 3?

1. Louis Philippe
2. Charles X
3. Louis Napoleon
4. Lamartine

Answer: 1. Louis Napoleon

Question 34. Who amongst the following inculcated nationalist feelings in the minds of the Italian citizens?

1. Lamartine
2. Leopardi
3. Guizot
4. Adolphe Thiers

Answer: 1. Leopardi

Question 35. Who provided leadership to the demand for “self-rule” in Hungary?

1. Louis Kossuth
2. Mazzini
3. Adolphe Thiers
4. Capponi

Answer: 1. Louis Kossuth

Question 36. ” Risorgimen to Movement” took place in:

1. Hungary
2. Spain
3. Italy
4. Portugal

Answer: 3. Italy

Question 37. Who founded the patriotic organization called, “Young Italy’?

1. Giuseppe Mazzini
2. Giuseppe Garibaldi
3. Troya
4. Cantu

Answer: 1. Giuseppe Mazzini

Question 38. One of the most important secret societies of Italy in the 19th Century was:

1. Carbonari
2. Blackshirts
3. Orange shirts
4. Risorgimento

Answer: 1. Carbonari

Question 39. Which year was termed as the year of the Revolution in the 19th Century?

1. 1830
2. 1848
3. 1854
4. 1870

Answer: 2. 1848

Question 40. Which place was referred to as the “Mother of Revolutions”by A.J.P. Taylor?

1. Naples
2. Sicily
3. Vienna
4. Paris

Answer: 3. Paris

Question 41. When did the Battle of Sadowa take place?

1. 1863
2. 1865
3. 1866
4. 1870

Answer: 3. 1866

Question 42. Which country defeated France in the Battle of Sedan?

1. Germany
2. Russia
3. Turkey
4. Austria

Answer: 1. Germany

Question 43. When did the Battle of Sedan take place?

1. 1854
2. 1866
3. 1870
4. 1890

Answer: 3. 1870

Question 44. When did the Crimean War begin?

1. 1854
2. 1866
3. 1870
4. 1871

Answer: 1. 1854

Question 45. When was the Peace of Paris signed?

1. 1854
2. 1856
3. 1866
4. 1870

Answer: 2. 1856

Question 46. Which country ceded Lombardy to Piedmont by the Peace of Villafranca?

1. Prussia
2. Spain
3. Austria
4. France

Answer: 3. Austria

Question 47. Which country invaded Moldavia and Wallachia?

1. Russia
2. Germany
3. Austria
4. Italy

Answer: 1. Russia

Question 48. Who wrote the book “Organisation of Labour”?

1. C.J.H. Hayes
2. Hans Kohn
3. Louis Blanc
4. A.J.P.Taylor

Answer: 3. Louis Blanc

Question 49. When was Philike Hetairia established?

1. 1814
2. 1815
3. 1816
4. 1820

Answer: 1. 1814

Question 50. The Frankfurt Parliament framed a Constitution for which of the following countries?

1. Italy
2. France
3. Germany
4. Belgium

Answer: 3. Germany

Chapter 4 Industrial Revolution: Colonialism And Imperialism Multiple Choice Questions

Question 1. Who first used the term “Industrial Revolution”?

1. Auguste Blanqui
2. C. Beard
3. Karl Marx
4. Arnold Toynbee

Answer: 1. Auguste Blanqui

Question 2. When did the “Industrial Revolution” begin in England according to Arnold Toynbee?

1. 1758
2. 1760
3. 1765
4. 1770

Answer: 2. 1760

Read and Learn More WBBSE Class 9 History MCQs

Question 3. Where did “The Industrial Revolution” first begin in Europe?

1. France
2. Germany
3. England
4. Italy

Answer: 3. England

Question 4. Who wrote the book, “The First Industrial Revolution”?

1. J.U.Nef
2. Rostow
3. Karl Marx
4. Phyllis Deane

Answer: 4. Phyllis Deane

Question 5. When did industrialization start in France?

1. 1789
2. 1792
3. 1806
4. 1830

Answer: 4. 1830

Question 6. When did “The Industrial Revolution” start in Germany?

1. 1830
2. 1848
3. 1870
4. 1891

Answer: 3. l870

Question 7. Name the Russian Czar during whose reign “Industrial Revolution” started in Russia

1. Alexander 1
2. Alexander 2
3. Nicholas 1
4. Nicholas 2

Answer: 2. Alexander 2

Question 8. Who invented the Safety Lamp?

1. Humphry Davy
2. James Watt
3. John Kay
4. Crompton

Answer: 1. Humphry Davy

Question 9. Who invented the Flying Shuttle?

1. John Kay
2. Humphry Davy
3. Stephenson
4. Crompton

Answer: 1. John Kay

Question 10. Who invented the Spinning Jenny?

1. Crompton
2. James Hargreaves
3. James Watt
4. John Kay

Answer: 2. James Hargreaves

Question 11. Who invented the Water Frame?

1. James Watt
2. Humphry Davy
3. Richard Arkwright
4. George Stephenson

Answer: 3. Richard Arkwright

Question 12. Who invented the Steam Engine?

1. George Stephenson
2. John Kay
3. Samuel Crompton
4. James Watt

Answer: 4. James Watt

Question 13. Who invented the Power Loom?

1. Edmund Cartwright
2. Richard Arkwright
3. John Kay
4. James Watt

Answer: 1. Edmund Cartwright

Question 14. who invented the Steam Locomotive?

1. Edmund Cartwright
2. George Stephenson
3. James Watt
4. James Hargreaves

Answer: 2. George Stephenson

Question 15. Name the French ruler who took the greatest initiative in introducing railways.

1. Louis XVI
2. Louis Napoleon
3. Louis Philippe
4. Napoleon Bonaparte

Answer: 2. Louis Napoleon

Question 16. In which of the following industries did invention first start?

1. Jute
2. Steel
3. Printing
4. Cotton

Answer: 4. Cotton

Question 17. Abraham Darby III was a famous

1. Ironmaster
2. Doctor
3. Footballer
4. Activist

Answer: 1. Ironmaster

Question 18. In which year railway was constructed in France?

1. 1831
2. 1832
3. 1833
4. 1834

Answer: 2. 1832

Question 19. Which European nation became the ‘workshop of the world’ in the nineteenth century?

1. Germany
2. France
3. England
4. Belgium

Answer: 3. England

Question 20. The construction of railway lines in Russia was completed by the year?

1. 1860
2. 1861
3. 1862
4. 1864

Answer: 3. 1862

Question 21. Birmingham was a city in which of the following countries?

1. Russia
2. Germany
3. Italy
4. Britain

Answer: 4. Britain

Question 22. Which industrial sector became extremely important in the early 19th Century in the European continent?

1. Iron
2. Steel
3. Coal
4. Jute

Answer: 3. Coal

Question 23. How much of the population remained in agriculture after the Industrial Revolution?

1. 20%
2. 30%
3. 40%
4. 50%

Answer: 1. 20%

Question 24. Who inhabited the Ghetto?

1. Soldiers
2. Women
3. Children
4. Minority group

Answer: 4. Minority group

Question 25. The concept of Socialism challenged

1. Revolution
2. Capitalism
3. Communism
4. Nationalism

Answer: 2. Capitalism

Question 26. Name the country that started digging the Suez Canal.

1. Egypt
2. Russia
3. France
4. Britain

Answer: 3. France

Question 27. Who issued the Open Door Policy?

1. Bismarck
2. Fourier
3. Mac Arthur
4. Sir John Hay

Answer: 4. Sir John Hay

Question 28. Which country provided capital support to Germany in building her railways?

1. France
2. Spain
3. England
4. Russia

Answer: 3. England

Question 29. Who established the International Working Men’s Association?

1. Karl Marks
2. Clement Atlee
3. v.l Lenin
4. Proudhon

Answer: 1. Karl Marks

Question 30. In which continent is Ethiopia situated?

1. America
2. Asia
3. Africa
4. Europe

Answer: 3. Africa

Question 31. Who first introduced the term ‘Socialism’?

1. Louis Blanc
2. Robert Owen
3. Karl Marks
4. F. Engels

Answer: 2. Robert Owen

Question 32. What is the primary motive of a capitalist economic system?

1. Colonialism
2. Profit earning
3. Imperialism
4. Labour unrest

Answer: 2. Profit earning

Question 33. when was the International Working Men’s Association formed?

1. 1864
2. 1865
3. 1866
4. 1867

Answer: 1. 1864

Question 34. Who wrote the book, ‘Hard Times?

1. Robert Owen
2. Wilfred Owen
3. Charles Dickens
4. Leo Tolstoy

Answer: 3. Charles Dickens

Question 35. Who used the term, ‘the dark satanic mills’?

1. William Blake
2. Charles Dickens
3. Karl Marx
4. Leo Tolstoy

Answer: 4. Leo Tolstoy

Question 36. Who is known as the ‘Pioneer of European Socialism’?

1. Robert Owen
2. Karl Marx
3. F. Engels
4. Henri de Saint Simon.

Answer: 1. Robert Owen

Question 37. Who founded the theory of Scientific Socialism?

1. Charles Fourier
2. Karl Marx
3. V.l. Lenin
4. Henry de Saint Simon

Answer: 2. Karl Marx

Question 38. Who was the ‘Father of British Socialism’?

1. Louis Blanc
2. Proudhon
3. Robert Owen
4. Charles Fourier

Answer: 3. Robert Owen

Question 39. Who amongst the four first came to India?

1. Portuguese
2. British
3. French
4. Dutch

Answer: 1. Portuguese

Question 40. Who wrote the book, ‘Imperialism -A Study’?

1. David Thomson
2. J.A Hobson
3. Arnold Toynbee
4. E.J. Hobsbawm

Answer: 2. J. A Hobson

Question 41. Who was Homer Lee?

1. Scientist
2. Industrialist
3. Capitalist
4. Author

Answer: 4. Author

Question 42. Between whom were the First and Second Opium Wars fought?

1. Britain and China
2. France and China
3. China and Japan
4. France and Holland

Answer: 1. Britain and China

Question 43. Who occupied the Cape of Good Hope in 1652?

1. Portuguese
2. Dutch
3. French
4. British

Answer: 1. Dutch

Question 44. In which of the following places, the Taiping Rebellion took place?

1. Russia
2. Japan
3. China
4. Turkey

Answer: 3. China

Question 45. When was the Triple Alliance signed?

1. 1882
2. 1886
3. 1890
4. 1894

Answer: 1. l882

Question 46. When was the Triple Entente signed?

1. 1900
2. 1902
3. 1904
4. 1907

Answer: 4. 1907

Question 47. When was the Dual Alliance signed?

1. 1882
2. 1886
3. 1873
4. 1879

Answer: 4. 1879

Question 48. When did the Second Balkan War take place?

1. 1913
2. 1922
3. 1923
4. 1925

Answer: 1. 1913

Question 49. What was the immediate cause of the First World War?

1. Anglo-French rivalry
2. Anglo-German rivalry
3. Franco -Russian rivalry
4. Sarajevo Murder

Answer: 3. Sarajevo Murder

Question 50. In which year did the First World War begin?

1. 1912
2. 1914
3. 1918
4. 1920

Answer: 2. 1914

Chapter 5 Europe In The 20th Century Multiple Choice Questions

Question 1. Who was the founder of the Romanov Dynasty that ruled Russia?

1. Mikhail Romanov
2. Peter the Great
3. Nicholas II
4. Ivan IV

Answer: 1. Mikhail Romanov

Question 2. Who first adopted the title ‘Czar’ in Russia?

1. Nicholas 1
2. Ivan 4
3. Alexander 2
4. Alexander 3

Answer: 2. Ivan 4

Read and Learn More WBBSE Class 9 History MCQs

Question 3. When did the Romanov Dynasty come to an end?

1. 1915
2. 1916
3. 1917
4. 1918

Answer: 3. 1917

Question 4. When was Socialist Russia born?

1. 1914
2. 1915
3. 1916
4. 1917

Answer: 4. 1917

Question 5. Who was the last Czar of the Romanov Dynasty?

1. Nicholas 1
2. Nicholas 2
3. Alexander 2
4. Alexander 3

Answer: 2. Nicholas 2

Question 6. When did Nicholas II abdicate the throne of Russia?

1. 1917
2. 1918
3. 1919
4. 1920

Answer: 1. 1917

Question 7. When did the Bolshevik Revolution take place in Russia?

1. 1915
2. 1916
3. 1917
4. 1918

Answer: 3. 1917

Question 8. Who was known as the ‘Father of Modern Russia’?

1. Peter the Great
2. Mikhail Romanov
3. Ivan 4
4. Nicholas1

Answer: 1. Peter the Great

Question 9. Who were the Narodniks?

1. Republicans
2. Democrats
3. Aristocrats
4. Populists

Answer: 4. Populists

Question 10. What does the Russian word ‘narod’ mean?

1. The ruler
2. The leader
3. Peasantry
4. Clergy

Answer: 3. Peasantry

Question 11. In which year Ivan IV took the title, ‘Czar’?

1. 1547
2. 1548
3. 1549
4. 1550

Answer: 1. 1547

Question 12. Who propounded the concept of ‘One Czar, One Church, One Russia’?

1. Nicholas 1
2. Nicholas 2
3. Alexander 2
4. Alexander 3

Answer: 4. Alexander 3

Question 13. When did the Decembrist revolt or the Decembrist uprising take place in Russia?

1. December 1820
2. December 1825
3. December 1860
4. December 1870

Answer: 2. December 1825

Question 14. When did Japan defeat Russia?

1. 1901
2. 1903
3. 1905
4. 1907

Answer: 3. 1905

Question 15. When did Bloody Sunday or Red Sunday take place in Russia?

1. 1903
2. 1905
3. 1907
4. 1909

Answer: 2. 1905

Question 16. When did the Paris Peace Conference take place?

1. 1917
2. 1918
3. 1919
4. 1920

Answer: 3. 1919

Question 17. Name the monk who exercised much influence on Czarina Alexandra.

1. Saint Olga
2. Vladimir
3. Rasputin
4. Fyodor Ushakov.

Answer: 3. Rasputin

Question 18. The Bolshevik Revolution is also known as the

1. July Revolution
2. September Revolution
3. December Revolution
4. November revolution.

Answer: 4. November revolution.

Question 19. When did Alexander Kerensky become the Prime Minister of Russia?

1. 1915
2. 1917
3. 1919
4. 1921

Answer: 2. 1917

Question 20 When did Lenin declare his April Theses?

1. 13th April 1917
2. 14th April 1917
3. 15th April 1917
4. 16th April 1917

Answer: 4. 16th April 1917

Question 21. When did the Bolsheviks seize power?

1. 7th November 1917
2. 10th November 1917
3. 15tfl November 1917
4. 21st November 1917

Answer: 1. 7th November 1917

Question 22. When did Lenin adopt the ‘New Economic Policy’?

1. 1920
2. 1921
3. 1922
4. 1923

Answer: 2. 1921

Question 23. By what name was Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov better known?

1. Trotsky
2. Stalin
3. Kerensky
4. Lenin

Answer: 4. Lenin

Question 24. In which year was Lenin born?

1. 1861
2. 1870
3. 1871
4. 1879

Answer: 2. 1870

Question 25. In which year Lenin died?

1. 1924
2. 1925
3. 1929
4. 1930.

Answer: 1. 1924

Question 26. When did Russia become the USSR?

1. 1921
2. 1924
3. 1926
4. 1929

Answer: 2. 1924

Question 27. Who was the person who raised the slogan ‘all powers to the Soviets’?

1. Trotsky
2. Stalin
3. Nicholas 2
4. Lenin

Answer: 4. Lenin

Question 28. Who ruled Russia before the Communist Party of the Soviet Union came to power?

1. The Decembrists
2. The Czars
3. The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party
4. The Russian Marxist Party

Answer: 3. The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party

Question 29. When did the First World War start?

1. 1914
2. 1915
3. 1916
4. 1917

Answer: 1. 1914

Question 30. When did the USA join the Allied powers in the First World War?

1. 1914
2. 1915
3. 1916
4. 1917

Answer: 4. 1917

Question 31. Name the country that strengthened the power of the Allies in the First World War.

1. Japan
2. Belgium
3. USA
4. Russia

Answer: 1. Japan

Question 32. With whom did the Russians sign the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk?

1. France
2. England
3. Belgium
4. Germany

Answer: 4. Germany

Question 33. Who was the President of America during the First World War?

1. Theodore Roosevelt
2. Woodrow Wilson
3. Grover Cleveland
4. Andrew Johnson

Answer: 2. Woodrow Wilson

Question 34. When did Italy join the Allied Powers in the First World War?

1. 1914
2. 1915
3. 1916
4. 1917

Answer: 2. 1915

Question 35. Who defeated Russia in the Battle of Tannenberg?

1. Serbia
2. Turkey
3. Canada
4. Germany

Answer: 4. Germany

Question 36. In which year Woodrow Wilson announced his famous ‘Fourteen Points’?

1. 1917
2. 1918
3. 1919
4. 1921

Answer: 2. 1918

Question 37. When was the Treaty of Versailles signed?

1. 21st June 1919
2. 23rd June 1919
3. 28th June 1919
4. 30th June 1919

Answer: 3. 28th June 1919

Question 38. Who termed the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles as meaningless and impractical?

1. Stalin
2. Lenin
3. Clemenceau
4. Winston Churchill

Answer: 4. Winston Churchill

Question 39. When was the League Covenant officially adopted?

1. 28th June 1919
2. 28th April 1919
3. 21st February 1919
4. 10th January 1919

Answer: 2. 28th April 1919

Question 40. Which day is known as the infamous ‘ Black Thursday’?

1. 24th October 1929
2. 31st October 1929
3. 24th October 1930
4. 31st October 1930

Answer: 1. 24th October 1929

Question 41. Who was the President of the USA during the ‘Great Depression’?

1. F.D Roosevelt
2. Woodrow Wilson
3. H.C Hoover
4. Abraham Lincoln

Answer: 3. H.C Hoover

Question 42. Name the Democratic Party candidate who won the USA presidential election in 1932.

1. Woodrow Wilson
2. John Kennedy
3. H.C Hoover
4. F.D Roosevelt

Answer: 4. F.D Roosevelt

Question 43. When did Kaiser William II abdicate the throne of Germany?

1. 1917
2. 1918
3. 1919
4. 1920

Answer: 2. 1918

Question 44. In which year H. C. Hoover became the President of the USA?

1. 1928
2. 1929
3. 1930
4. 1931

Answer: 1. 1928

Question 45. When was the Hoover Moratorium declared?

1. 1929
2. 1930
3. 1931
4. 1932

Answer: 3. 1931

Question 46. When was the first session of the ‘League of Nations held?

1. 10th January 1920
2. 14th January 1920
3. 23rd January 1920
4. 26th January 1920.

Answer: 1. 10th January 1920

Question 47. Name the German city where the republican constitution and the republic were established after the First World War.

1. Munich
2. Berlin
3. Weimar
4. Bonn

Answer: 3. Weimar

Question 48. Which country formed the ‘ Reconstruction Finance Corporation’?

1. USA
2. UK
3. USSR
4. UAE

Answer: 1. USA

Question 49. Under whose leadership was the Weimar Republic established?

1. Kaiser William 2
2. Bismarck
3. Hindenburg
4. Friedrich Ebert.

Answer: 4. Friedrich Ebert.

Question 50. Which country was not a member of the ‘League of Nations’?

1. England
2. France
3. USA
4. Belgium

Answer: 3. USA

Question 51. Who captured power in Germany soon after the Great Depression?

1. Hitler
2. Mussolini
3. Clemenceau
4. Franco

Answer: 1. Hitler

Question 52. Who was in power in Italy during the Great Depression?

1. Hitler
2. Mussolini
3. Clemenceau
4. Franco

Answer: 2. Mussolini

Question 53. In which year was Benito Mussolini born?

1. 1881
2. 1882
3. 1883
4. 1884

Answer: 3. 1883

Question 54. Name the political party formed by Benito Mussolini.

1. The Communist Party
2. The Nazi Party
3. The Socialist Party
4. The Fascist Party.

Answer: 4. The Fascist Party.

Question 55. The paramilitary force of Benito Mussolini was known as

1. Black Shirts
2. Red Shirts
3. Brown Shirts
4. White Shirts

Answer: 1. Black Shirts

Question 56. Who was Victor Emmanuel?

1. French King
2. Italian King
3. German King
4. Austrian King

Answer: 2. Italian King

Question 57. In which year the Fascists became the most powerful party in Italy?

1. 1921
2. 1923
3. 1926
4. 1929

Answer: 3. 1926

Question 58. Who assumed the title ‘II Duce’ or ‘one leader’?

1. Kaiser William 2
2. Victor Emmanuel 3
3. Frederick Ebert
4. Benito Mussolini

Answer: 4. Benito Mussolini

Question 59. Friedrich Ebert belonged to which of the following parties?

1. Nazi Party
2. Socialist Democratic Party
3. Communist Party
4. Fascist Party

Answer: 2. Socialist Democratic Party

Question 60. When did Adolf Hitler join the ‘German Workers’ Party’?

1. 1917
2. 1918
3. 1919
4. 1921

Answer: 3. 1919

Question 61. Name the autobiography of Hitler.

1. Mein Kampf
2. War and Peace
3. Fathers and Sons
4. Resurrection

Answer: 1. Mein Kampf

Question 62. In which year was Mein Kampf published?

1. 1924
2. 1925
3. 1926
4. 1927

Answer: 2. 1925

Question 63. Who took the title of Fuehrer in Germany?

1. Kaiser William II
2. Fridrich Ebert
3. Adolf Hitler
4. Goebbels.

Answer: 3. Adolf Hitler

Question 64. Who called Adolf Hitler a ‘great orator’?

1. Alan Bullock
2. Eric Hobsbawm
3. A.J. P. Taylor
4. E. H. Carr

Answer: 1. Alan Bullock

Question 65. By what name was the paramilitary force of the Nazi Party known as?

1. Red Shirts
2. Black Shirts
3. Brown Shirts
4. White Shirts

Answer: 3. Brown Shirts

Question 66. By what name was the Nazi ‘Secret Police’ known as?

1. Storm- Troopers
2. Gestapo
3. Abwehr
4. Hitler-Jugend

Answer: 2. Gestapo

Question 67. Who headed the Gestapo?

1. Heinrich Himmler
2. Joseph Goebbels
3. Hermann Goering
4. Martin Bormann

Answer: 1. Heinrich Himmler

Question 68. When did the Spanish Civil War take place?

1. 1936
2. 1937
3. 1938
4. 1939

Answer: 1. 1936

Question 69. Where was General Franco exiled?

1. Morocco
2. Canary Islands
3. St. Helena
4. British Isles

Answer: 2. Canary Islands

Question 70. Who termed the Spanish Civil War a ‘ miniature World War’?

1. David Thomson
2. Eric Hobsbawm
3. Langsam
4. E.H. Carr

Answer: 3. Langsam

Question 71. When was the ‘Popular Front ’ formed in Spain?

1. 1934
2. 1936
3. 1937
4. 1938

Answer: 2. 1936

Question 72. Who was the organizing secretary of an ‘ Indian Committee’ of the India League?

1. Jawaharlal Nehru
2. M. K. Gandhi
3. Feroze Gandhi
4. Krishna Menon

Answer: 3. Feroze Gandhi

Question 73. Who established a military dictatorship in Spain?

1. Alfonso III
2. Primo de Rivera
3. President Jamora
4. General Franco

Answer: 2. Primo de Rivera

Question 74. To which dynasty did Alfonso III belong?

1. Savoy
2. Habsburg
3. Bourbon
4. Orange

Answer: 3. Bourbon

Question 75. Which country supported the Republican Government of Spain after her Civil War in 1936?

1. France
2. Belgium
3. Canada
4. Russia

Answer: 4. Russia

Chapter 6 The Second World War And Its Aftermath Multiple Choice Questions

Question 1. When did the Second World War begin?

1. 1st September 1939
2. 2nd September 1939
3. 3rd September 1939
4. 4th September 1939

Answer: 1. 1st September 1939

Question 2. Who called the Treaty of Versailles a ‘dictated peace’?

1. David Thomson
2. E. H.Carr
3. Eric Hobsbawm
4. Michael Fisher.

Answer: 3. E. H.Carr

Read and Learn More WBBSE Class 9 History MCQs

Question 3. Which country regarded the Treaty of Versailles as humiliating and unjust?

1. India
2. France
3. Germany
4. Poland

Answer: 3. Germany

Question 4. Which European country first saw the rise of Fascism?

1. Belgium
2. England
3. France
4. Italy

Answer: 4. Italy

Question 5. Who introduced Fascism in Italy?

1. Kaiser William II
2. Alexander II
3. Benito Mussolini
4. Victor Emmanuel III

Answer: 3. Benito Mussolini

Question 6. Which country believed in the political ideology of Socialism?

1. Russia
2. Germany
3. Italy
4. England

Answer: 1. Russia

Question 7. Who introduced Nazism in Germany?

1. Lenin
2. Adolf Hitler
3. Stalin
4. Trotsky

Answer: 2. Adolf Hitler

Question 8. Who was Neville Chamberlin?

1. Prime Minister of Austria
2. Prime Minister of France
3. Prime Minister of Italy
4. Prime Minister of England

Answer: 4. Prime Minister of England

Question 9. Who was Edouard Daladier?

1. Prime Minister of Italy
2. Prime Minister of Austria
3. Prime Minister of Belgium
4. Prime Minister of France

Answer: 4. Prime Minister of France

Question 10. In which year did Germany and Japan conclude the Anti-Comintern Pact?

1. 1935
2. 1936
3. 1937
4. 1938

Answer: 2. 1936

Question 11. In which year did Hitler occupy the whole of Czechoslovakia?

1. 1938
2. 1939
3. 1940
4. 1941

Answer: 2. 1939

Question 12. In which year Italy left the League of Nations?

1. 1935
2. 1936
3. 1937
4. 1939

Answer: 3. 1937

Question 13. In which year Germany left the League of Nations?

1. 1933
2. 1934
3. 1935
4. 1936

Answer: 1. 1933

Question 14. Who supported Mussolini’s annexation of Abyssinia?

1. F.D. Roosevelt
2. General Franco
3. Adolf Hitler
4. Winston Churchill

Answer: 3. Adolf Hitler

Question 15. In which year Italy annexed Abyssinia?

1. 1936
2. 1937
3. 1938
4. 1939

Answer: 1. 1936

Question 16. Who supported General Franco in the Spanish Civil War?

1. Chamberlain
2. Roosevelt
3. Daladier
4. Hitler

Answer: 4. Hitler

Question 17. In which year was the ‘Rome-Berlin-Tokyo axis’ formed?

1. 1936
2. 1937
3. 1938
4. 1939

Answer: 2. 1937

Question 18. With whom did Hitler sign the ‘Ten Years’ Non-Aggression Pact’?

1. Lenin
2. Kerensky
3. Stalin
4. Trotsky

Answer: 3. Stalin

Question 19. Which invasion of Hitler was called ‘Operation Sea Lion’?

1. England
2. Poland
3. Russia
4. France

Answer: 1. England

Question 20. Which invasion of Hitler was called ‘Operation Barbarossa’?

1. England
2. France
3. Russia
4. Poland

Answer: 3. Russia

Question 21. Which Pact forced Czechoslovakia to cede Sudetenland to Germany?

1. Munich Pact
2. Anti-Comintern Pact
3. Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
4. Locarno Pact

Answer: 1. Munich Pact

Question 22. Who initiated the policy of appeasement?

1. England and Belgium
2. France and Belgium
3. England and France
4. England and Italy

Answer: 3. England and France

Question 23. What was Anschluss?

1. Annexation of Austria by Italy
2. Annexation of Austria by Germany
3. Annexation of Austria by France
4. Annexation of Austria by England

Answer: 2. Annexation of Austria by Germany

Question 24. When did Anschluss take place?

1. 12th March 1938
2. 14th March 1938
3. 20th March 1938
4. 31st March 1938

Answer: 1. 12th March 1938

Question 25. Who occupied Czechoslovakia in 1939?

1. Italy
2. England
3. Germany
4. France

Answer: 3. Germany

Question 26. In which year was the Munich Pact signed?

1. 1937
2. 1938
3. 1939
4. 1940

Answer: 2. 1938

Question 27. How many clauses were there in the Treaty of Versailles?

1. 425
2. 435
3. 440
4. 450

Answer: 3. 440

Question 28. Who played the role of a mediator at the time of the Munich Pact?

1. Chamberlain
2. Paul Reynaud
3. Daladier
4. Mussolini

Answer: 4. Mussolini

Question 29. In which year did Japan attack Manchuria?

1. 1929
2. 1931
3. 1933
4. 1935

Answer: 2. 1931

Question 30. When was the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact signed?

1. 1937
2. 1938
3. 1939
4. 1940

Answer: 3. 1939

Question 31. In which year was Benito Mussolini killed?

1. 1942
2. 1943
3. 1944
4. 1945

Answer: 4. 1945

Question 32. For how many years Russia and Germany decided to take no military action against each other by signing the German-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact?

1. 5
2. 10
3. 15
4. 20

Answer: 2. 10

Question 33. What name was given to the name of the alliance that was formed by England, France, Russia and the USA?

1. Allied Powers
2. Central Powers
3. Axis Powers
4. Democratic Alliance

Answer: 1. Allied Powers

Question 34. Who formulated the ‘cash and carry’ policy?

1. Winston Churchill
2. Woodrow Wilson
3. H.C. Hoover
4. F.D. Roosevelt

Answer: 4. F.D. Roosevelt

Question 35. Which country adopted the policy of ‘cash and carry’?

1. USA
2. USSR
3. Germany
4. Italy

Answer: 1. USA

Question 36. Who was Paul Reynaud?

1. Prime Minister of Italy
2. Prime Minister of Austria
3. Prime Minister of France
4. Prime Minister of Germany

Answer: 3. Prime Minister of France

Question 37. Who led the puppet French government?

1. Daladier
2. Marshall Petain
3. Paul Reynaud
4. Charles de Gaulle

Answer: 2. Marshall Petain

Question 38. Who used the slogan ‘Arsenal of Democracy’?

1. Franklin D Roosevelt
2. Adolf Hitler
3. Benito Mussolini
4. General Franco

Answer: 1. Franklin D Roosevelt

Question 39. Who was Charles de Gaulle?

1. President of USSR
2. President of Austria
3. President of France
4. President of Hungary

Answer: 3. President of France

Question 40. In which year USA joined the Second World War?

1. 1941
2. 1942
3. 1943
4. 1944

Answer: 1. 1941

Question 41. Pearl Harbour was the naval base of which country?

1. USSR
2. USA
3. Britain
4. France

Answer: 2. USA

Question 42. Who was the President of the USA during the time of the Pearl Harbour incident?

1. Woodrow Wilson
2. H.C Hoover
3. F.D Roosevelt
4. George Bush

Answer: 2. F.D Roosevelt

Question 43. When did the Pearl Harbour incident take place?

1. 1940
2. 1941
3. 1942
4. 1943

Answer: 2. 1941

Question 44. When did the Russian Red Army occupy Berlin?

1. 2nd May 1942
2. 2nd May 1943
3. 2nd May 1944
4. 2nd May 1945

Answer: 4. 2nd May 1945

Question 45. Which country undertook the ‘Lend- Lease Act’?

1. USA
2. USSR
3. Germany
4. Italy

Answer: 1. USA

Question 46. Which country adopted a ‘Good Neighbour Policy’?

1. England
2. France
3. Poland
4. USA

Answer: 1. USA

Question 47. Who attacked the US naval base in Pearl Harbour?

1. Italy
2. Japan
3. Germany
4. Romania

Answer: 2. Japan

Question 48. Who dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki?

1. USA
2. England
3. France
4. USSR

Answer: 1. USA

Question 49. In which year Italy surrendered in the Second World War?

1. 1942
2. 1943
3. 1944
4. 1945

Answer: 2. 1943

Question 50. In which year was the Potsdam Conference held?

1. 1943
2. 1944
3. 1945
4. 1946

Answer: 3. 1945

Question 51. Which two nations emerged as extremely powerful after the Second World War?

1. England and France
2. USA and USSR
3. Italy and Germany
4. China and Japan

Answer: 2. USA and USSR

Question 52. Which organization was established to maintain peace and security of the world after the Second World War?

1. W.H.O
2. UNESCO
3. UNO
4. CRY

Answer: 3. UNO

Question 53. When was the United Nations Organization or UNO formed?

1. 1944
2. 1945
3. 1946
4. 1947

Answer: 2. 1945

Question 54. Name the Indian Prime Minister who was a pioneer of the ‘Non-Alignment Movement

1. Jawaharlal Nehru
2. Lai Bahadur Shastri
3. Indira Gandhi
4. Manmohan Singh

Answer: 1. Jawaharlal Nehru

Question 55. Which of the following is known as D-Day?

1. 5th June
2. 6th June
3. 10th June
4. 21st June

Answer: 2. 6th June