Pupils begin the year with a study of the complex causes of World War I including imperialism, the alliance system and militarism. These are considered alongside more short-term causes such as the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and the ensuing Balkan Crisis.
This leads to a study of conditions in the trenches on the Western Front and finally the terms and consequences of the Treaty of Versailles signed in 1919. Pupils will then consider the fight for suffrage in Britain during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, considering the role of the NUWSS, the WSPU and the impact of WWI. We then look at the rise of extremist ideologies in Europe in the interwar years and how this led to WWII.
Pupils will then study the horrors of the Holocaust, looking at how Jewish communities were persecuted in Nazi Germany and considering who is ultimately responsible for the Final Solution. Following this, pupils will get an introduction to the Cold War, looking at the rising tension between East and West in the years 1945 – 1990.
Finally, pupils study civil rights campaigns in Britain and America when they will study events such as the implementation of the Jim Crow Laws, bus boycotts and the murder of Stephen Lawrence.