Intermediate History

The Intermediate course is divided into three topics:

Wallace, Bruce and the Wars of Independence

Pupils study how the death of Alexander III led to troubled times in Scotland. With no clear heir to the throne, then the death of his closest living relative, Margaret Maid of Norway, Scotland was on the brink of civil war. The Scots turned to King Edward I of England for help. Edward chose John Balliol as he was weak and easy to manipulate. All of these events spark off the wars of independence, led first by William Wallace, then by Robert Bruce, culminating in the Declaration of Arbroath 1320 and the Treaty of Edinburgh in 1328.

From the Cradle to the Grave

This unit investigates the set up of a welfare state in Britain. Pupils begin by looking at poverty in the late nineteenth century and the causes of poverty. They then see a move away from the idea of laissez-faire due to many factors including the Boer War, the surveys of Booth and Rowntree and the advances made by other nations like Germany. Pupils will then study the changes in legislation in Britain through the Liberal Government 1906-1914 and the Labour Governemnt 1945-51 to decide whether a welfare state had been created in Britain.

The Road to War

This unit looks at the inter-war period with the rise of Hitler and Britain’s adoption of a policy of appeasement towards Hitler. They will look at the remilitarisation of the Rhineland, the Anschluss, and the annexation of Czechoslovakia and why Britain and France choose to appease Hitler during this time. This culminates in the takeover of Poland, which proves to be the final straw for Britain and World War II begins.