Y201: the Rise of Islam C.550-750 | OCR A-Level History A (H505)

Y201: the Rise of Islam C.550-750

78 questions
6 subtopics
Non-British period study, one of twenty-four
Y201 to Y224

The Rise of Islam C.550–750 is unit Y201 of OCR History A, one of the twenty-four options in unit group 2, the non-British period study; a student sits one of them.

Its four key topics are the Middle East c.550–620, the establishment of Islam c.620–632, the beginning of the Empire and the rule of the Rightly Guided Caliphs, the establishment and expansion of the Umayyad Empire. 78 recall questions across 6 subtopics.

Sample questions from Y201: the Rise of Islam C.550-750

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

The Middle East c.550–620: structure of pre-Islamic Arabia and commercial importance of Mecca

Describe the religious beliefs of most Arabs before Islam.

Show the answer
Most were polytheists who worshipped tribal gods and spirits housed in local shrines, recognising a distant high god, Allah, alongside goddesses such as al-Lat, al-Uzza and Manat.
The Middle East c.550–620: structure of pre-Islamic Arabia and commercial importance of Mecca

How did the sacred months help Meccan commerce?

Show the answer
Fighting was forbidden during them, so tribes who were otherwise enemies could travel safely to the pilgrimage and to the great trade fairs, allowing exchange to happen on a scale that constant feuding would have prevented.
The Middle East c.550–620: the rival empires, Arab military strengths and Muhammad’s Meccan years

How did the two empires' treatment of their Arab client kingdoms affect the frontier?

Show the answer
Both abandoned the buffer states that had policed the desert edge for them, so the frontier was left unguarded and the client tribes were left resentful and available to a new leader.
The Middle East c.550–620: the rival empires, Arab military strengths and Muhammad’s Meccan years

What was Muhammad's occupation before his call to prophecy?

Show the answer
He was a merchant, trading on behalf of and then in partnership with Khadija, the widow whom he married.
The establishment of Islam c.620–632: impact of Revelation and the hijra

What names were given to the Meccan emigrants and their Medinan hosts?

Show the answer
The emigrants were the Muhajirun and their hosts were the Ansar, the helpers.
The establishment of Islam c.620–632: impact of Revelation and the hijra

Describe how Mecca came under Muslim control in 630.

Show the answer
Muhammad advanced with a large army and the city submitted with almost no fighting, after which the idols in the Ka'ba were destroyed and the sanctuary was rededicated to the worship of one God.
The beginning of the Empire and the rule of the ‘Rightly Guided Caliphs’

Which battle broke Byzantine power in Syria, and in what year?

Show the answer
The battle of Yarmuk in 636 broke Byzantine power in Syria.
The beginning of the Empire and the rule of the ‘Rightly Guided Caliphs’

Why did opposition to Uthman grow in the provinces?

Show the answer
He appointed his own Umayyad kinsmen to the richest governorships, the pace of conquest and therefore of plunder slowed, and the garrison troops of Kufa, Basra and Egypt believed the wealth of their conquests was being diverted to Medina and to his relatives.

The 6 subtopics

One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.

Subtopic	What it covers	Questions
The Middle East c.550–620: structure of pre-Islamic Arabia and commercial importance of Mecca	Recall questions on the structure of pre-Islamic Arabia in the mid 6th Century, economic and social issues, religious beliefs in pre-Islamic Arabia, the commercial importance of Mecca.	9
The Middle East c.550–620: the rival empires, Arab military strengths and Muhammad’s Meccan years	Recall questions on the Byzantine and Sassanian empires and their wars, plague and the Arab client kingdoms, Arab military strengths and raiding, and Muhammad’s early life, first revelation and Meccan opposition.	11
The establishment of Islam c.620–632: impact of Revelation and the hijra	Recall questions on the impact of Revelation and the hijra, the Medinan period c.622–632, challenges to the Prophet Muhammad, the flight of the Prophet Muhammad, the Constitution of Medina and its significance, the early growth of Islam and reasons for its appeal.	18
The beginning of the Empire and the rule of the ‘Rightly Guided Caliphs’	Recall questions on Disagreements about the succession, the succession of Abu Bakr, the Ridda Wars of Wars of Apostasy, the beginnings of the Empire and expansion into Persia, reasons for success, the rule of Abu Bakr.	20
The establishment and expansion of the Umayyad Empire: rule of Mu’awiya and Second Fitna of 680	Recall questions on the rule of Mu’awiya, problems and achievements, succession crisis, the Second Fitna of 680.	8
The establishment and expansion of the Umayyad Empire: ‘Abd al-Malik’s reforms, expansion and the fall of the Umayyads	Recall questions on Abd al-Malik’s Arabic administration, coinage and Dome of the Rock, Umayyad expansion into Spain and beyond, Christian subjects, the mawali, the Third Fitna and the end and decline of Umayyad rule.	12

Y201: the Rise of Islam C.550-750 is 78 of the 6,240 questions in the guide.Get the guide, £8

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.