The 8 Mark "Explain the Importance" Question: Restoration England (Q2) (AQA GCSE History)
Revision Note
Written by: Natasha Smith
Reviewed by: Bridgette Barrett
Summary of Question Two
Question Two requires you to explain the importance of an event, group, individual or development from the Restoration period
You will need to explain the question using
Second-order concepts
Relevant knowledge and understanding
Amount of marks | 8 |
|---|---|
The time that you should spend on the question | No more than 10 minutes |
An example of the type of question you may encounter can be seen below:
In previous years, this question has focused on the following topics on Restoration England:
Year | Question Topic |
|---|---|
2018 | |
2019 | |
2020 | |
2021 | |
2022 | |
Sample 1 | Navigation Acts for Restoration England |
Sample 2 | Theatre and Restoration England |
How to Answer an “Explain the Importance” Question
In history, the word "importance" refers to a historical event or person which stands out from other events, individuals and groups
When considering the importance of a historical event or person you should consider:
Causes and consequences
Change and continuity
Cause & Consequences
Causes and consequences are like falling dominos
The causes are what push the dominos over
For the example question, a cause of Charles II's court was the influence of the Court of Louis XIV
The consequences are the other dominos that fall
For the example question. a consequence of Charles II's court was the political influence that its members had
Cause and consequence can be directly linked and can be used to help explain the relationship between events, issues or developments
Change & Continuity
Change and continuity can also be viewed as falling dominos
An important event, development or person is a domino which changes the direction of all of the dominos that come after it
Explaining Importance
The question will provide an event or group in which it will want you to explain the importance of
You will need to write about two ways in which it was important
For the example question, Charles II's court was important because it gave the nobility access to the King and led to accusations that Charles II was a Catholic sympathiser
Show the importance of the event or group through a second-order concept
“Explain the Importance” Question Structure
Your answer should consist of:
Specific and relevant knowledge
Cause and consequence or change and continuity
An explanation of how the event or issue mentioned in the question impacted the wider development of the topic
Your answers could be written in PEE paragraphs:
P- Make a point about the question
This point could focus on the importance of the issue or group mentioned in the question
E- Include knowledge to support the point you have made
Focused on the event or group in the question
Show knowledge to demonstrate a cause or change
E- Explain the question
Focus on the key event or group of the question
Include an explanation showing your understanding of the consequence or continuity of the event or group mentioned in the question
To achieve full marks, you need to repeat this structure twice
It is tempting in this question to write your answer like a story, do not do this
The question asks you to explain the causes and consequences or change and continuity of the event or group mentioned in the question
Worked Example of the “Explain the Importance” Question
Worked Example
Explain what was important about Charles II’s court.
[8 marks]
Answer:
Charles II’s court was extremely important because of the access it provided to the king and the resulting influence on political decisions. Charles’ court was considerably large and was made up of groups with certain roles. For example, during his reign, there was an average of 60 men in the Privy Council at once. The Privy Council was very important to the Lords because it provided access to the king and Charles used the Lords in the council when he needed political assistance. In addition, there were senior positions within the court such as Lord Chancellor (adopted by Lord Clarendon until 1667) and Lord Treasurer (adopted by Lord Ashley). These roles were important as they provided guidance to the king and were therefore important as they were a key part of Charles’ political campaign.
Charles II’s court was also important because it reflected Charles’ influence from France. During Charles's exile in France, he half resided at the Court of Louis XIV and wished to adopt a similar style. Charles knew that he could not rule as an absolute monarch because he needed money from parliament. However, the French influence was seen throughout his court in other ways. Charles used French-themed decoration at court and through his mistresses. Louise de Kerouaille had 40 rooms and decorated them in the Baroque style, which was used in Charles’ court. These French influences show why Charles’ court was important because it provided further political influence. In addition, this French influence was also important because it placed a strain on his relations with parliament. The French influences of the court led to accusations of Catholic sympathies and parliament refused to fund some of Charles’ requests.
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