GCE O/L History flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Mahavamsa

Pali chronicle compiled by Buddhist monks, mainly from the 5th-6th century CE, narrating Sri Lankan history from legendary origins; a key literary source that must be checked against inscriptions and archaeology.

Vijaya

Legendary prince whose arrival in Sri Lanka is traditionally dated 543 BCE; the chronicles present him as the founder of the island's ruling dynasty, though the story is mythical rather than documented history.

Anuradhapura

Ancient Sri Lankan capital from about the 4th century BCE to the 11th century CE, famous for vast irrigation reservoirs and Buddhist stupas such as Ruwanwelisaya and Jetavanaramaya.

Kandyan Convention 1815

Agreement between Kandyan chiefs and the British that ceded the Kandyan kingdom to Britain while promising to protect Buddhism and Kandyan law; it ended independent Sri Lankan rule.

Donoughmore Commission

British commission of 1927-28 whose recommendations introduced universal adult suffrage in 1931 and replaced communal representation with a State Council of territorial constituencies.

Soulbury Constitution

Constitution based on the 1944-45 Soulbury Commission that created a Westminster-style system with a bicameral legislature; it governed Ceylon at independence in 1948.

Ceylon National Congress

Political organisation formed in 1919 that brought together reform-minded elites to demand constitutional change; a landmark in the organised independence movement in Ceylon.

Independence 1948

Ceylon became a Dominion within the Commonwealth on 4 February 1948, with D. S. Senanayake as first Prime Minister; full republican status came only with the 1972 constitution.

Sinhala Only Act 1956

Law making Sinhala the sole official language of Ceylon; it provoked Tamil protests and became a major turning point in the country's ethnic politics.

1978 Constitution

Sri Lankan constitution that created an executive presidency and introduced proportional representation, replacing the 1972 republican constitution; it remains the basis of government with later amendments.

Black July 1983

Anti-Tamil riots that followed the killing of 13 soldiers in Jaffna; the violence deepened the ethnic conflict and helped the LTTE become the dominant Tamil militant group.

Indo-Lanka Accord 1987

Agreement between India and Sri Lanka that led to the Indian Peace Keeping Force and the 13th Amendment, which created Provincial Councils as a devolution measure.

Code of Hammurabi

Babylonian law collection of about 1750 BCE inscribed on a stele; it set out penalties graded by social status and is a key source for early Mesopotamian society.

Indus Valley Civilisation

Bronze Age civilisation centred on Harappa and Mohenjo-daro, known for grid-planned cities, drainage systems, standardised weights and an undeciphered script; it declined around 1900 BCE.

Athenian democracy

System of citizen rule in classical Athens, developed through reforms associated with Cleisthenes and Pericles; it excluded women, slaves and foreigners from political participation.

Pax Romana

Long period of relative peace and stability across the Roman Empire from the reign of Augustus (27 BCE) to the 2nd century CE, which encouraged trade and urban growth.

Printing press

Johannes Gutenberg's movable-type printing innovation of about 1450, which made books cheaper and spread Renaissance and Reformation ideas rapidly across Europe.

Ninety-five Theses

Martin Luther's 1517 list of arguments against indulgences and papal authority; it is conventionally treated as the start of the Protestant Reformation.

Council of Trent

Catholic Church council held 1545-1563 that clarified doctrine and reformed abuses; a central part of the Counter-Reformation response to Protestantism.

Treaty of Tordesillas

1494 agreement between Spain and Portugal dividing newly discovered non-European lands along a meridian; it shaped the pattern of Iberian colonial claims.

Columbian Exchange

Transfer of crops, animals, people and diseases between the Americas and Eurasia after 1492; smallpox devastated indigenous populations while maize and potatoes spread east.

Bastille

Paris fortress and prison stormed on 14 July 1789; the event became the symbol of the French Revolution's challenge to royal authority.

Industrial Revolution

Transformation of production beginning in Britain around 1750-1800 through coal, iron, steam power and factories; it reshaped cities, work and social class.

October Revolution

Bolshevik seizure of power in Russia in 1917 under Lenin, which ended the provisional government and led to the creation of the Soviet state.

Treaty of Versailles

1919 settlement ending World War I with Germany; it imposed reparations, territorial losses and a war-guilt clause, and created the League of Nations.

Pearl Harbor

Japanese attack on the US naval base in Hawaii on 7 December 1941, which brought the United States into World War II on the Allied side.

Marshall Plan

US programme of economic aid to Western Europe from 1948, intended to rebuild economies and resist communist influence; a central instrument of Cold War containment.

Non-Aligned Movement

Grouping of newly independent states, building on the 1955 Bandung Conference and formalised at Belgrade in 1961, that sought a path between the US and Soviet blocs.

Primary source

Evidence produced at the time of an event by a participant or eyewitness, such as a letter, inscription or photograph; it still requires evaluation for purpose and bias.

Corroboration

Historical method of comparing two or more independent sources to check agreement and identify conflict; it strengthens or weakens a claim about what happened.

Anachronism

Placing an object, idea or term outside its proper historical period, such as a clock in an ancient scene; spotting it is a standard test of a source's reliability.

BCE and CE

Dating conventions: BCE counts backwards so 300 BCE is later than 500 BCE, CE counts forwards, and there is no year zero between them.