Example National 5 History questions - Comparison

1. Comparison questions
Era of the Great War
Source A
Source B
1. Compare the views of Sources B and C about conditions in the trenches.
I sincerely hope it will not freeze. It is so hard on the poor men in trenches
standing in very deep mud. Water is often up to their waists. A frost will mean so
many frozen feet. I spent my New Year’s Eve in a dugout lying on a stretcher on
the floor with a wounded man over me. Rats were playing about all over. Shells
burst all round and shook the place.
If anyone had to go to the company on our right he had to walk through thirty
yards of waterlogged trench, which was chest-deep in water in some places. The
duckboard track was constantly shelled, and in places a hundred yards of it had
been blown to smithereens. It was better to keep off the track when walking
back and forth. Soldiers had to make their way sometimes through very heavy
mud.

2. @mrmarrhistory Page 2 of 9
Source A
Source B
2. Compare the views in Sources A and B about reasons for the failure of
traditional industries after the First World War
Source A
Source B
3. Compare the views of Sources A and B about the impact of the First World
War on employment opportunities for women
The Scottish economy was very dependent on the traditional industries.
However, the decline of shipbuilding had a knock-on effect on the iron and steel
industries. Many of the companies had depended on shipbuilding for their
orders. Scotland’s share of Britain’s steel production fell to 15% by 1937. Despite
increased competition from abroad, Scotland’s manufacturers failed to invest in
new technology. Not surprisingly, overseas buyers lost to Scotland during the war
often preferred to stay with their new suppliers.
Scotland had always depended more than England on the export market but
during the war her industry had to concentrate on the war effort, so customers
overseas were lost. The fall in world trade in the 20s and 30s, with its disastrous
effect on shipbuilding, hurt Scotland’s coal, iron and steel production. Scottish
industry continued to suffer because new technology made foreign goods
cheaper, making them more attractive to customers.
Women wanted to be involved in the First World War from the start. From the
outbreak of war there was a steady increase in the female workforce as men
enlisted. Glasgow was the first city in Britain to employ women tram drivers. The
vital role they played in the war helped change many people’s attitude to
women. When the war ended, many women voluntarily gave up their jobs to
men returning from the fighting.
For women in particular, the First World War brought about many changes. At
the beginning of the war, thousands of women were unemployed. Despite
women’s contribution to the war effort, it didn’t change deep-seated beliefs
many people had about the role of women. At the end of the war many
newspapers became critical of women workers. Many women wanted to keep
their jobs but when the fighting ended, large numbers of women were sacked.

3. @mrmarrhistory Page 3 of 9
The Atlantic Slave Trade
Source A
Source B
4. Compare the views in Sources A and B about the reasons that the slave
trade continued in Britain throughout the 1700s.
There were many reasons it took so long to abolish the slave trade. One reason
was that the slave trade had many powerful supporters. Plantation owners and
merchants in British ports which relied on the slave trade were well organised
and had political influence. They had enough wealth to bribe MPs to support
them. They also had the support of King George III. Many people believed that
the trade had helped them to make Britain wealthy and prosperous.
The Abolitionists faced powerful opposition. The plantation owners allied
themselves with important groups to promote the case for slavery and the slave
trade. Their case seemed overwhelming. Dozens of British ports and surrounding
areas relied on the slave trade. British consumers had become addicted to the
products of the slave trade, most notably sugar. The Atlantic slave trade
represented a large amount of British trade and seemed vital to the continuing
prosperity of Britain and the Caribbean Islands.

4. @mrmarrhistory Page 4 of 9
Source C
Source D
5. Compare the views in Sources C and D about the effect of slavery on Africa.
Source E
Source F
6. Compare the views in Sources E and F about what happened during slave
auctions.
The ships which had arrived on the African coast from Europe landed armed
raiders who attacked African villages and seized as many men, women and
children as possible. As soon as they saw a ship the Africans left their villages and
took to the forests to hide. Another way Europeans obtained slaves was simply to
buy them from their African masters. As the trade increased, Europeans built
forts on the coast and established factories to hold captured slaves.
The slave trade across the Atlantic Ocean changed the whole course of African
history. The kings and chiefs of the African tribes became trading partners with
European merchants. They swapped their people for European goods such as
horses, guns and alcohol. As the demand for slaves grew, raiding and kidnapping
spread terror deep into Africa. Frightened villagers, trying to escape the raiders,
moved into remote areas which often had poor soil and produced few crops.
Slaves were treated in most cases like cattle. A man went about the country
buying up slaves and he was called a “speculator”. Then he would sell them to
the highest bidder. Oh! It was pitiful to see children taken from their mothers’
breasts, mothers sold, husbands sold to a different owner than their wives. One
woman had a baby and he wouldn’t buy the baby.
The slave master made us hold up our heads while customers felt our hands and
arms and looked at our teeth, precisely as someone examines a horse which he is
about to purchase. All the time the auction was going on one mother was crying
aloud. She begged the man not to buy her son unless he also bought her; but the
boy was sold on his own to the man who offered the most money.

5. @mrmarrhistory Page 5 of 9
Source G
Source H
7. Compare the views in Sources G and H about the effects of the slave trade
on Africa and its peoples.
Source A
Source B
8. Compare the views of Sources A and B about the methods used by the
abolitionists
Nowhere in history have a people experienced such a terrible ordeal as Africans
during the Atlantic slave trade. Over nearly four centuries of the trade, millions of
healthy men, women and children were savagely torn from their homeland,
herded into ships, and dispersed all over the so called New World. Although
there is no way to work out exactly how many people perished, it has been
estimated that about 10 million Africans survived the Middle Passage.
The Atlantic slave trade spelled disaster for Africa and its peoples. For four
hundred years, millions of the healthiest young people of the region were stolen
from their homeland. No-one is sure exactly how many were sold into slavery but
probably about 11 million African people arrived in the New World between
1450 and 1850. Add to that the number who died in war or on the journey and
you can begin to see the devastating effect on families at that time.
The abolitionists used a variety of methods to put a stop to the slave trade.
Personal accounts changed public opinion, as the dreadful experiences of the
slaves during the Middle Passage were told by survivors. Many slavers backed
these up, giving similar accounts about the horrors of the trade. Abolitionists
such as Clarkson toured the country with equipment used on slaves to show the
public how badly they were treated.
The Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade was set up by Thomas
Clarkson and Granville Sharp. Clarkson travelled around Britain with instruments
such as manacles and thumbscrews to gain support for the cause. John Newton,
former slaver, published a pamphlet outlining the horrific conditions of the slave
trade and confirming slave accounts. Some slaves, such as Olaudah Equiano,
published autobiographies sharing their experiences and changing the views of
the public.

6. @mrmarrhistory Page 6 of 9
Hitler and Nazi Germany
Source A
Source B
9. Compare the views in Sources A and B about attitudes towards youth
organisations for girls in Nazi Germany.
Source A
Source B
10. Compare the views in Sources A and B about the events of the Night of
the Long Knives.
There were separate organisations for boys and girls. For girls, the organisation
prepared them for motherhood which most accepted. Girls, at the age of 10,
joined the League of Young Maidens. Girls had to run 60 metres in 14 seconds,
throw a ball 12 metres, know how to somersault and they enjoyed the
competitiveness. When they turned 14, they had lessons on sewing and cooking
which most found very useful.
Girls aged 10-14 years joined the Young Maidens where they were taught how to
become good mothers but many resented this. Compulsory route marches and
swimming contests were disliked by many girls. Between the ages of 14 and 21,
they joined the League of German Maidens where they were further prepared
for their roles as the mothers of future Germans. There were also classes on
needlework and housework which many considered unnecessary.
On the night of 29–30 June, units of the SS arrested the leaders of the SA as well
as political opponents. The arrests carried on for two more nights. In total 77
men were executed on charges of treason. Röhm was shot and others were
beaten to death. The SA was placed under the command of the army. Hitler
received an oath of allegiance from all those who served in the army.
Members of the SS stormed a hotel where the SA had gathered, pulled Röhm and
his henchmen from their beds and had them arrested. Some were promptly
executed. Röhm was taken to a Munich prison, along with other SA leaders, and
there awaited his fate. He was given a chance to shoot himself, but did not take
it. An SS officer entered his cell and shot Röhm at point blank range.

7. @mrmarrhistory Page 3 of 9
The Atlantic Slave Trade
Source A
Source B
4. Compare the views in Sources A and B about the reasons that the slave
trade continued in Britain throughout the 1700s.
There were many reasons it took so long to abolish the slave trade. One reason
was that the slave trade had many powerful supporters. Plantation owners and
merchants in British ports which relied on the slave trade were well organised
and had political influence. They had enough wealth to bribe MPs to support
them. They also had the support of King George III. Many people believed that
the trade had helped them to make Britain wealthy and prosperous.
The Abolitionists faced powerful opposition. The plantation owners allied
themselves with important groups to promote the case for slavery and the slave
trade. Their case seemed overwhelming. Dozens of British ports and surrounding
areas relied on the slave trade. British consumers had become addicted to the
products of the slave trade, most notably sugar. The Atlantic slave trade
represented a large amount of British trade and seemed vital to the continuing
prosperity of Britain and the Caribbean Islands.

8. @mrmarrhistory Page 8 of 9
Source A
Source B
13. Compare the views in Sources A and B about German Anschluss with
Austria.
Source A
Source B
14. Compare the views of Sources B and C about the Nazis’ consolidation of
power.
It is clear that Anschluss is popular among the Austrian people who are, after all,
German in language and culture. Keeping Germany and Austria apart had been
one of the more spiteful terms of Versailles and this wrong is now made right.
Therefore Europe is likely to benefit from a period of peace and prosperity as
Germany moves into a brighter future.
Germany has taken over Austria. Any intelligent person can see that an even
more powerful Germany is a threat to the peace and stability of Europe. The
decision in 1919 to forbid Anschluss had been a very sensible one for limiting the
war-like ambitions of Germany. We have permitted Hitler to brutally invade an
independent country whose population has no love for Nazism.
By August 1934, Hitler had become the Führer. On that same day, the last
safeguard against dictatorship—the Army—swore a personal oath of loyalty to
Hitler. The events leading up to this event began with the conveniently-timed
Reichstag Fire which gave the Nazis the excuse they needed to arrest their
political enemies, the Communists. The March election didn’t give Hitler the
majority he needed but with the support of the DNVP, Hitler was able to win
enough votes to pass the Enabling Act. Hitler used this power to ban all political
opposition.
Hitler wasted no time in consolidating his position as Chancellor. The Reichstag
Fire had given Hitler the opportunity he needed to discredit his opposition, the
Communists, before the March election. Despite this, the Nazis failed to win a
majority, instead, forming a coalition with the DNVP to pass the Enabling Act.
This effectively ended political opposition in Germany. The final nail in the coffin
was the Army’s oath of allegiance to Hitler.

9. @mrmarrhistory Page 9 of 9
Source A
Source B
15. Compare the views of Sources B and C about the attitude of Germans to
the Night of the Long Knives.
Hitler’s courage in taking firm action has made him a hero in the eyes of many
Germans. He has won approval and sympathy for the steps he took. People think
his action is proof that he wants order and decency in Germany. Reports from
different parts of the country are all agreed that people are expressing
satisfaction that Hitler has acted against the serious threat posed by Rohm and
the SA to Germany and her people.
On the morning of 30 June 1934, Rohm and other SA leaders were arrested and
eventually shot. Hitler’s personal popularity soared as a result of the Night of the
Long Knives. Most Germans disliked the corruption of the SA and welcomed the
strong action against it. President Hindenburg’s telegram to Hitler read: “By your
determined action and brave leadership, you have saved the German nation from
serious danger.”