The British Experience of Warfare, c1790-1918 | Edexcel A-Level History (9HI0)

The British Experience of Warfare, c1790-1918

187 questions
19 subtopics
Paper 3: themes in breadth with aspects in depth, one option of sixteen
Paper 3

A Paper 3 option combining aspects in breadth on the changing army and navy, recruitment, weaponry and the civilian war effort with aspects in depth on four conflicts: the French Wars, the Crimea, the Boer War and the Western Front..

It covers the military and reasons for changes 1790-1918, the recruitment of the fighting forces 1790-1918, changing weaponry 1790-1918, the populace and the war effort 1790-1918, facing the French threat on land, facing the French threat at sea, the economic impact of the French Wars, facing the Russian threat in the Crimea, the problems of medical care, public attitudes to the conduct of the Crimean War, facing the Boers in southern Africa, roberts, Kitchener and Buller in the Boer War, public attitudes to the Boer War, from a war of movement to attrition, public perception of the Western Front, haig's major offensives, the impact of aerial reconnaissance, the Royal Flying Corps and air power and zeppelin and Gotha bombing of British towns.

Sample questions from The British Experience of Warfare, c1790-1918

Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.

The military and reasons for changes 1790-1918

How did the navy change in size after 1815?

Show the answer
With peace, many ships were decommissioned and the navy was greatly reduced from its wartime strength.
Changing weaponry 1790-1918

What role did the Vickers machine gun play in 1914–18?

Show the answer
It was a reliable, rapid-firing weapon that gave defenders devastating firepower on the Western Front.
Facing the French threat on land

What tactics did Wellington use against the French column?

Show the answer
The two-deep line on a reverse slope, which brought every musket to bear and broke the attacking column with volleys before a bayonet charge.
The economic impact of the French Wars

How long did the French Wars last?

Show the answer
From 1793 to 1815 with only the brief Peace of Amiens in 1802-03, some twenty-two years of almost continuous conflict.
The problems of medical care

What did the Sanitary Commission sent to the Crimea in 1855 achieve?

Show the answer
Led by John Sutherland with the engineer Robert Rawlinson, it repaired the sewers and improved ventilation at Scutari, and death rates in the base hospitals fell sharply within weeks.
Facing the Boers in southern Africa

Why did the Second Boer War break out?

Show the answer
Disputes over the political rights of uitlanders in the Transvaal, British designs on its goldfields, and Kruger's ultimatum of October 1899.
Public attitudes to the Boer War

How did Churchill feature in the war?

Show the answer
As a correspondent for the Morning Post who was captured, escaped from Pretoria, and used the resulting fame to enter parliament in 1900.
Public perception of the Western Front

What was the Battle of the Somme film?

Show the answer
The 1916 documentary seen by around twenty million people in Britain, which showed the front more vividly than anything before, including staged sequences.

The 19 subtopics

One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.

Subtopic	What it covers	Questions
The military and reasons for changes 1790-1918	Recall questions on the Duke of York's reforms, the McNeill-Tulloch Report, the Cardwell and Haldane reforms, the Esher Report, and Fisher at the Admiralty.	10
The recruitment of the fighting forces 1790-1918	Recall questions on impressment, why men enlisted, long and short service, the militia, Kitchener's volunteers and the Pals battalions, and conscription from 1916.	9
Changing weaponry 1790-1918	Recall questions on carronades and Congreve's rockets, rifling and the Minie rifle, Armstrong's artillery, the machine gun, gas, and the development of the tank.	10
The populace and the war effort 1790-1918	Recall questions on how wars were financed through taxes, consols and war loans, the changing role of civilians, and the Defence of the Realm Act.	10
Facing the French threat on land	Recall questions on the Peninsular War, the Lines of Torres Vedras, Wellington's tactics against the column, the Spanish guerrillas, and Waterloo.	10
Facing the French threat at sea	Recall questions on the blockade of the French ports, the Nile, Nelson's tactics at Trafalgar, the Continental System, and what naval supremacy meant for the empire.	10
The economic impact of the French Wars	Recall questions on the length of the conflict, the stimulus to industry, high grain prices and enclosure, the slump after 1815, and the social costs.	10
Facing the Russian threat in the Crimea	Recall questions on why Britain fought, the Alma and Balaclava, the Charge of the Light Brigade, Inkerman, the siege of Sebastopol, and the winter of 1854.	10
The problems of medical care	Recall questions on the state of army medicine, conditions at Scutari, what Nightingale actually changed, her use of statistics, and Mary Seacole's contribution.	10
Public attitudes to the conduct of the Crimean War	Recall questions on the telegraph and Russell's despatches, the fall of Aberdeen's government, Fenton's photographs and their limits, and the reforms that followed.	10
Facing the Boers in southern Africa	Recall questions on why war broke out, the nature of the Boer commandos, why the British army struggled, Black Week, the sieges, and the turn to guerrilla warfare.	10
Roberts, Kitchener and Buller in the Boer War	Recall questions on Roberts's reorganisation, Kitchener's blockhouses and farm burning, the concentration camps and their mortality, Buller's reputation, and the peace terms.	10
Public attitudes to the Boer War	Recall questions on the early jingoism and the khaki election, Churchill's reporting, Emily Hobhouse and the Fawcett Commission, the pro-Boers, and national efficiency.	10
From a war of movement to attrition	Recall questions on why the front stalemated, the trench system, why defence was stronger than attack, the military adjustments needed, and the creeping barrage.	9
Public perception of the Western Front	Recall questions on how reporting was controlled, war artists and photographers, the Battle of the Somme film, atrocity propaganda, the war poets, and the futility debate.	10
Haig's major offensives	Recall questions on why the Somme was fought and its first day, what it achieved, the conditions at Passchendaele, the Hundred Days, and how Haig is assessed.	10
The impact of aerial reconnaissance	Recall questions on the first military use of aircraft, aerial photography, artillery spotting and wireless, observation balloons, and why air superiority mattered.	10
The Royal Flying Corps and air power	Recall questions on the growth of the air services, the development of fighters, Bloody April, ground attack in 1918, and the formation of the RAF.	9
Zeppelin and Gotha bombing of British towns	Recall questions on when the raids began, the casualty figures, the Gotha raid of June 1917, the defences developed, and the long-term significance.	10

The British Experience of Warfare, c1790-1918 is 187 of the 6,832 questions in the guide.Get the guide, £9

How the guide is worked

Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.

Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.

Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.