Paper 1

Paper 1 Syllabus:
Core content: Option B
The 20th century: International Relations since 1919
The Core Content in Option B focuses on seven Key Questions:

1 Were the peace treaties of 1919–23 fair?
2 To what extent was the League of Nations a success?
3 Why had international peace collapsed by 1939?
4 Who was to blame for the Cold War?
5 How effectively did the USA contain the spread of Communism?
6 How secure was the USSR’s control over Eastern Europe, 1948–c.1989?
7 How effective has the United Nations Organisation been?


1 Were the peace treaties of 1919–23 fair?
Focus Points
• What were the motives and aims of the Big Three at Versailles?
• Why did all the victors not get everything they wanted?
• What was the impact of the peace treaty on Germany up to 1923?
• Could the treaties be justified at the time?
Specified Content
• The peace treaties of 1919–23:
o the roles of individuals such as Wilson, Clemenceau and Lloyd George in the peacemaking
process
o the impact of the treaties on the defeated countries
o contemporary opinions about the treaties.

2 To what extent was the League of Nations a success?
Focus Points
• How successful was the League in the 1920s?
• How far did weaknesses in the League’s organisation make failure inevitable?
• How far did the Depression make the work of the League more difficult?
• How successful was the League in the 1930s?
Specified Content
• The League of Nations:
o strengths and weaknesses in its structure and organisation
o successes and failures in peacekeeping during the 1920s
o the impact of the World Depression on the work of the League after 1929
o the failures of the League in the 1930s, including Manchuria and Abyssinia.

3 Why had international peace collapsed by 1939?
Focus Points
• What were the long-term consequences of the peace treaties of 1919–23?
• What were the consequences of the failures of the League in the 1930s?
• How far was Hitler’s foreign policy to blame for the outbreak of war in 1939?
• Was the policy of appeasement justified?
• How important was the Nazi-Soviet Pact?
• Why did Britain and France declare war on Germany in September 1939?
Specified Content
• The collapse of international order in the 1930s
• The increasing militarism of Germany, Italy and Japan
• Hitler’s foreign policy to 1939:
o the Saar
o remilitarisation of the Rhineland
o involvement in the Spanish Civil War
o Anschluss with Austria
o appeasement
o crises over Czechoslovakia and Poland
o the outbreak of war.
4 Who was to blame for the Cold War?
Focus Points
• Why did the USA-USSR alliance begin to break down in 1945?
• How had the USSR gained control of Eastern Europe by 1948?
• How did the USA react to Soviet expansionism?
• What were the consequences of the Berlin Blockade?
• Who was the more to blame for starting the Cold War: the USA or the USSR?
Specified Content
• The origins of the Cold War:
o the 1945 summit conferences and the breakdown of the USA-USSR alliance in 1945–6
o Soviet expansion into Eastern Europe to 1948, and American reactions to it
o the occupation of Germany and the Berlin Blockade.
5 How effectively did the USA contain the spread of Communism?
Focus Points
This Key Question will be explored through case studies of the following:
• America and events in Cuba, 1959–62
• American involvement in Vietnam.
Specified Content
• events of the Cold War:
o case studies of:
o American reactions to the Cuban revolution, including the missile crisis and its aftermath
o American involvement in the Vietnam War.
6 How secure was the USSR’s control over Eastern Europe,
1948–c.1989?
Focus Points
• Why was there opposition to Soviet control in Hungary in 1956 and Czechoslovakia in 1968, and how
did the USSR react to this opposition?
• How similar were events in Hungary in 1956 and in Czechoslovakia in 1968?
• Why was the Berlin Wall built in 1961?
• What was the significance of ‘Solidarity’ in Poland for the decline of Soviet influence in Eastern
Europe?
• How far was Gorbachev personally responsible for the collapse of Soviet control over Eastern
Europe?
Specified Content
• Soviet power in Eastern Europe:
o resistance to Soviet power in Hungary (1956) and Czechoslovakia (1968)
o the Berlin Wall
o ‘Solidarity’ in Poland
o Gorbachev and the collapse of the Soviet Empire.
7 How effective has the United Nations Organisation been?
Focus Points
• What are the functions of the UNO?
• How far has the organisation of the UNO hindered its effectiveness?
• Case studies of the UNO in action: the Korean War and the Congo.
Specified Content
• The aims of the UNO, the organisation of the UNO, its agencies and their work
• The implications of the growth of membership: admission of developing nations and China
• Case studies of the work of the UNO in Korea (1950–3) and in the Congo (1960–3).

IGCSE History
Syllabus code 0470
Candidates must take Paper 1 and Paper 2 and either Paper 3 (Coursework) or Paper 4 (Alternative to Coursework).
At Indus International School,Bangalore Paper 4 (Alternative to Coursework) is offered.

Paper 1: Duration:2 hours Total marks:60

Section A
Candidates answer two questions on the Core
Content (selected from 20th century Core topics .)

Section B
Candidates answer one question on a Depth
Study (selected from questions on all eight Depth Studies)
At Indus International School,Bangalore
Germany, 1918–45 is the topic offered for Depth Studies

40% of total marks come from this paper

Paper 2: Duration:2 hours Total marks:50
Candidates answer a series of questions on one Prescribed Topic.
The Prescribed Topics include one 19th century topic and one 20th century topic, taken from the Core Content .
For the examination in 2011, 20th century core topics will be:
20th century core: The Cold War, 1945–9 (May/June examination)
or The Treaty of Versailles (November examination)
20th century core: The Cold War, 1945–9,is the topic for Indus International School students for the (May/June examination) .
33% of total marks come from this paper

Paper 4 Duration:1 hour Total marks:40
Alternative to Coursework
Candidates answer one question on a Depth Study (from a choice of eight Depth Studies –
one question will be set on each Depth
Study).
The questions will be source-based and structured into several parts.
27% of total marks come from this paper

Welcome

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