Unit AS 1
Historical Investigations and Interpretations
- ENGLAND 1509–58
- ENGLAND 1603–49
- BRITAIN IN THE AGE OF REFORM 1830–80
- ITALY AND GERMANY 1815–71
- GERMANY 1919–45
CCEA A-Level History, memorised fast.
Long notes are boring. Brain-hack the whole 4010 specification with active recall and actually remember it.
- Spec 4010
- 20 topics
- 311 subtopics
CCEA A-Level History 4010
England 1509–58AS Unit 1
Topic overviewThe Church in England on the eve of the ReformationCriticism of the Church and the early reformersHenry VIII, Catherine of Aragon and the case for annulmentThe struggle for the divorce and the men who shaped itThe Reformation Parliament and the break with RomeOpposition to religious changeThe dissolution of the monasteriesThe Pilgrimage of GraceGovernment under Somerset and NorthumberlandRebellion in 1549: the Western Rising and Kett's rebellionMary I, female monarchy and the succession crisesWyatt's rebellionThe Edwardian religious reforms 1547–53The Marian restoration and the persecutionsEconomic and social problems of the period
England 1603–49AS Unit 1
Topic overviewJames I's Elizabethan inheritanceJames I, the Church of England and the PuritansJames I, the Catholics and the Gunpowder PlotThe financial problems of James IThe foreign policy of James IRoyal favourites and the politics of the courtCharles I, war and Parliament 1625–29The decision to rule without ParliamentFinancing the Personal RuleLaudianism and religious reform in the 1630sThe court culture of Charles IScotland, Ireland and the collapse of the Personal RuleThe Long Parliament and the outbreak of war 1640–42The campaigns and battles of the Civil WarWhy Parliament won the Civil WarThe search for a settlement 1646–49Radicalism, the Levellers and the ArmyThe regicide and the birth of the Commonwealth
Britain in the Age of Reform 1830–80AS Unit 1
Topic overviewThe case for and against parliamentary reformThe passing of the Reform Act 1830–32The terms and consequences of the Reform ActThe Whig reforms of the 1830s and the impulse behind themThe New Poor Law of 1834The rise of ChartismThe People's Charter, Lovett and O'ConnorChartist methods and the reasons for failureThe Anti-Corn Law LeaguePeel and the making of the Conservative PartyPeel's ministry 1841–46The repeal of the Corn Laws and the split of 1846Disraeli and Tory DemocracyThe Second Reform Act of 1867Disraeli's ministry 1874–80Gladstone from Peelite to LiberalGladstone's first ministry 1868–74Gladstone and Disraeli as leaders
Italy and Germany 1815–71AS Unit 1
Topic overviewGerman nationalism, liberalism and cultural revival 1815–48Economic change, the Zollverein and Prussian prosperityThe 1848 revolutions in the German statesThe Frankfurt Parliament and the reasons for its failureOlmütz, army reform and the Prussian constitutional crisisBismarck's aims, methods and the debate about his roleSchleswig-Holstein and the Austro-Prussian WarThe North German Confederation and the southern German statesThe Franco-Prussian War and the proclamation of the German EmpireThe international climate and why Germany was unifiedItalian nationalism, culture and the ideas of the RisorgimentoThe 1848–49 revolutions in Italy and their failurePiedmont, Cavour's reforms and the war of 1859Garibaldi, the Thousand and his relations with CavourThe Papal States, Rome and why Italy was unified
Germany 1919–45AS Unit 1
Topic overviewThe Weimar Constitution and the Treaty of VersaillesPolitical threats from left and right 1919–23Reparations, the Ruhr and the hyperinflation of 1923The Weimar economy 1924–29Stresemann's foreign policy and the 'golden years'The Nazi Party from the Munich putsch to 1929The Wall Street Crash and the end of parliamentary governmentThe Nazi electoral breakthrough and Hitler's appointment as ChancellorThe creation of the Nazi dictatorship 1933–34Anti-Semitism and persecution 1933–39Youth, women and the churches 1933–39Schacht, Göring and the Nazi economy 1933–39Culture, the arts and the media in the Third ReichThe war economy: Todt, Speer and total warThe home front: rationing, bombing, labour and moraleOpposition and resistance in wartimeThe Holocaust: ghettos, Barbarossa, Wannsee and genocide
Spain and Europe 1556–98AS Unit 2
Topic overviewSpain in 1556 and the legacy of Charles VPhilip II's kingship and working methodsConciliar government, faction and the Pérez affairThe revolts of the Moriscos and of AragonThe Spanish economy in 1556 and the king's revenuesAgriculture, industry and commerce 1556–98Bullion, debt, inflation and the royal bankruptciesThe Spanish Church, Tridentine reform and the papacyThe Inquisition, Conversos, Jews and ProtestantsThe Spanish Empire and the aims of Philip II's foreign policyFrance, from Cateau-Cambrésis to VervinsThe Mediterranean war with the Turks and the annexation of PortugalThe Netherlands and the Dutch RevoltEngland, the sea dogs and the ArmadaPhilip II's Spain in 1598
The Ascendancy of France in Europe 1660–1714AS Unit 2
Topic overviewThe foundations of French power under Louis XIVThe War of Devolution 1667–68The Dutch War 1672–78 and the Treaties of NijmegenThe Reunions and the Truce of RatisbonThe League of Augsburg and the alarm of EuropeThe Revocation of the Edict of Nantes and the quarrel with RomeThe Cologne incident and the outbreak of the Nine Years' WarFrench successes in the Nine Years' WarAllied successes and the stalemate of the Nine Years' WarThe Peace of Ryswick 1697The Partition Treaties and the Spanish succession problemLouis XIV's acceptance of the will and the road to warMarlborough and the great battles of the warWhy the Grand Alliance won and France failedUtrecht, Rastatt and Europe after 1714
Ireland 1823–67AS Unit 2
Topic overviewO'Connell and the Catholic AssociationThe Clare election and Catholic EmancipationThe impact of Emancipation and the Tithe WarThe Lichfield House CompactThe Repeal Association and the monster meetingsClontarf and the failure of RepealPeel's Irish reformsYoung Ireland and the split with O'ConnellThe rising of 1848The long-term causes of the FamineThe course and extent of the FaminePeel, Russell and famine relief 1845–49The consequences of the Famine to 1867The origins, leadership and aims of the FeniansThe Fenian Rising of 1867
France 1815–70AS Unit 2
Topic overviewThe restoration of the Bourbons and the Charter of 1814Louis XVIII: the White Terror, moderation and the turn to the rightCharles X, the ultras and the ChurchEconomy, society and culture in France 1815–48The July revolution of 1830 and the fall of Charles XLouis Philippe, Guizot and the bourgeois monarchyOpposition to Louis PhilippeLouis Philippe's foreign policyThe banquet campaign and the February revolution of 1848The Second Republic: the National Workshops and the June DaysThe presidency of Louis Napoleon 1848–51The coup of 1851 and the making of the Second EmpireThe authoritarian Empire and its liberalisationEconomic modernisation, Haussmann's Paris and social changeNapoleon III's foreign policy and the collapse of 1870
Russia 1914–41AS Unit 2
Topic overviewThe impact of the First World War on RussiaNicholas II, the Tsarina and RasputinThe February Revolution and the abdication of the TsarThe Provisional Government, the Petrograd Soviet and dual authorityLenin, the April Theses and the road to OctoberThe October Revolution and the consolidation of Bolshevik powerThe Civil War and the Bolshevik victory 1918–21Lenin's economic policies 1917–24Society and culture under LeninThe struggle to succeed Lenin 1924–29Collectivisation and the peasantryIndustrialisation and the Five Year PlansThe social impact of Stalin's economic policiesTerror and the purges 1934–39Culture, propaganda and the cult of personality
Italy's Quest for Great Power Status 1871–1943AS Unit 2
Topic overviewThe aims and challenges of Italian foreign policy after 1871Colonisation in Africa: Tunisia, Eritrea, Abyssinia and LibyaThe Triple Alliance and relations with the Great PowersGiolitti and Italy's internal divisionsFrom neutrality to intervention 1914–15Italy's war 1915–18 and its impact at homeThe mutilated victory, the peace settlement and FiumeThe crisis of the Liberal state and the Biennio RossoThe rise of the Fascist movement 1919–22The March on Rome and Mussolini's appointmentThe consolidation of Fascist power 1922–26The aims of Fascist foreign policy and the years 1922–34Abyssinia and the Spanish Civil WarItaly, Germany and the road to war 1935–40Defeat and the fall of Mussolini 1940–43
Crown and Parliament in England 1625–1714A2 Unit 1
Topic overviewThe powers of Crown and Parliament in 1625The breakdown under Charles I 1625–40The Constitutional Revolution 1640–42Civil war, regicide and the republican interludeThe Restoration Settlement 1660–62The Clarendon Code and religion after 1660Charles II, finance and dependence on FranceThe Exclusion Crisis and the emergence of partiesCharles II's personal rule 1681–85James II's assault on Parliament and the corporationsCatholicising policies and the fear of absolutismThe causes of the Glorious RevolutionThe Revolution Settlement of 1689War, the financial revolution and the power of the purseThe Triennial Act, the Act of Settlement and the independence of the judgesParty, the Crown and Parliament under AnneFinance, religion and foreign policy across the periodHow far had a constitutional monarchy been created by 1714?
Ireland Under the Union 1800–1900A2 Unit 1
Topic overviewThe Protestant ascendancy and the supporters of the UnionThe power of the Irish landlordThe decline of the landlords and the land legislation from 1870Industrialisation in Ulster across the centuryUlster and Southern unionism from 1885The Protestant Churches and support for the UnionThe Catholic Church and the growth of nationalismConstitutional nationalism from Grattan to EmancipationO'Connell after 1829: reform, repeal and the limits of moral forceButt, Parnell and the Irish Parliamentary PartyDavitt, the Land League and the New DepartureRevolutionary nationalism 1803–67 comparedCultural nationalism from Davis to the Gaelic RevivalThe British government's response 1800–1900Ireland's social and economic transformation across the century
The Causes and Consequences of Great Power Conflict 1848–1945A2 Unit 1
Topic overviewThe legacy of 1848 and German unification by forceBismarck's alliance system and Germany's relations with its neighboursThe Eastern Question and the decline of the Ottoman EmpireBosnia, the Balkan Wars and Serbian ambitionKaiser William II, Weltpolitik and the naval race with BritainThe armed camps: the Dual Alliance and the Franco-Russian allianceImperial, economic and nationalist rivalry by 1914Austria-Hungary, Serbia and the July crisis of 1914The Paris peace settlement and its consequencesThe League of Nations, American isolationism and the challenge from JapanThe isolation of the USSR and its consequencesThe Depression and the rise of the dictatorsHitler's aggressive foreign policy 1933–39Appeasement and its failureEurope in 1945
The American Presidency 1901–2000A2 Unit 1
Topic overviewTheodore Roosevelt and the revival of the presidencyWoodrow Wilson: reform at home and war abroadLaissez-faire, the boom and the Wall Street CrashThe Hundred Days and the New Deal agenciesOpposition to the New Deal and the court-packing planThe New Deal, the Second World War and American recoveryTruman, containment and the national security stateEisenhower, Kennedy and the imperial presidencyJohnson, civil rights and the Great SocietyVietnam and the limits of presidential powerNixon, détente and the opening to ChinaWatergate and the fall of NixonFord, Carter and the weakened presidencyReagan: recovery, rearmament and Iran-ContraBush, Clinton and the changing power of the presidency
Clash of Ideologies in Europe 1900–2000A2 Unit 1
Topic overviewTsarist foreign policy 1900–17Lenin's foreign policy and the western response 1917–24Soviet foreign policy and the West 1924–33Collective security and the failure of the West 1933–39The Nazi-Soviet Pact and its consequencesThe Grand Alliance and the impact of the war on the USSRYalta, Potsdam and the post-war settlementThe breakdown of the Grand Alliance and Soviet control in Eastern EuropeContainment, the Berlin blockade and NATO 1947–55Khrushchev, peaceful coexistence and control in Eastern Europe 1956–64Brezhnev, Czechoslovakia and the Brezhnev DoctrineDétente, SALT and the western response 1964–79Afghanistan and the second Cold War 1979–85Gorbachev, the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet blocSuccess and failure in Soviet foreign policy 1917–91
England 1558–1603A2 Unit 2
Topic overviewElizabeth I's character, inheritance and the succession questionThe Elizabethan myth: Gloriana and the Virgin QueenThe Court, the Privy Council and the royal favouritesPatronage, faction and Elizabeth I's leading ministersElizabeth I and her ParliamentsThe religious settlement of 1559The Puritan challenge and Elizabeth I's responseThe Catholic threat, the missionary priests and recusancyMary, Queen of Scots in EnglandThe Northern Earls and the Catholic plotsRelations with France, Scotland and the NetherlandsIreland and the Nine Years' WarSpain, the Armada and the war at seaPopulation, prices and the Elizabethan economySocial structure, social mobility and the problem of poverty
Ireland 1685–1714A2 Unit 2
Topic overviewIreland in 1685: land, church and the two communitiesJames II, Tyrconnell and the Catholicisation of IrelandThe remodelling of the army, the judiciary and the corporationsThe land settlement and Protestant fears in IrelandJames II's first year in England: support, opposition and rebellionJames II's pro-Catholic policies in EnglandOpposition in England and the causes of the Glorious RevolutionThe outbreak of war and the Siege of DerryThe Patriot Parliament and the campaign of 1689The Battle of the BoyneFrom the Boyne to Aughrim: Limerick, Cork and AthloneThe Battle of AughrimThe second siege of Limerick and the TreatyThe penal lawsThe Protestant Ascendancy, Molyneux and the Union of 1707
Ireland 1778–1803A2 Unit 2
Topic overviewMolyneux, Swift and the Patriot traditionThe American War and the rise of the VolunteersThe Free Trade campaign and the Constitution of 1782The decline of the Volunteers by 1789Grattan's Parliament and the Castle executiveHenry Grattan and Henry FloodIreland's economy and commerce 1782–1800The Catholic Relief Acts and the Fitzwilliam episodeThe French Revolution and the United IrishmenWolfe Tone and the alliance with FranceThe Defenders, the Orange Order and sectarianism in UlsterGovernment repression in the 1790sThe 1798 RebellionThe making of the Act of UnionEmmet's rebellion of 1803
Partition of Ireland 1900–25A2 Unit 2
Topic overviewIrish politics and the Liberal victory of 1906The elections of 1910 and the parliamentary balanceThe Third Home Rule Bill and Ulster's responseSouthern Unionism and the Conservative allianceThe Home Rule Act and the crisis of September 1914Ireland and the First World War 1914–16The causes of the Easter RisingThe Rising and its aftermathThe rise of Sinn Féin and the election of 1918The Anglo-Irish War 1919–21The Government of Ireland Act 1920 and partitionThe Truce and the Anglo-Irish TreatyThe Treaty debates and the Irish Civil WarThe new state of Northern Ireland 1921–25Craig's government and the Boundary Commission
What CCEA A-Level History covers
CCEA A-Level History (subject code 4010, qualification number 601/8552/1) is the Northern Ireland board's specification, first taught from September 2019. It is four units, two at AS and two at A2, and every one of them is optional content: a student chooses one option from five at AS 1, one from six at AS 2, one from five at A2 1 and one from four at A2 2, so no two centres need study the same past. The AS units are depth studies: AS 1 is examined with short responses, source work and a question on how historians have interpreted the period, and AS 2 by two questions each pairing a short response with an extended essay. A2 1 is synoptic — a single essay on change across a long span — while A2 2 returns to depth with source work, interpretations and an extended essay. Irish history runs through the specification more strongly than in any other board's, with five options covering Ireland from the Jacobite war to partition.
CCEA GCE History, subject code 4010, qualification number 601/8552/1 (A level), first teaching September 2019. Read the CCEA specification ↗
How it is assessed
Unit AS 2
Historical Conflict and Change
- SPAIN AND EUROPE 1556–98
- THE ASCENDANCY OF FRANCE IN EUROPE 1660–1714
- IRELAND 1823–67
- FRANCE 1815–70
- RUSSIA 1914–41
- ITALY'S QUEST FOR GREAT POWER STATUS 1871–1943
A2 1
Change Over Time
- CROWN AND PARLIAMENT IN ENGLAND 1625–1714
- IRELAND UNDER THE UNION 1800–1900
- THE CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF GREAT POWER CONFLICT 1848–1945
- THE AMERICAN PRESIDENCY 1901–2000
- CLASH OF IDEOLOGIES IN EUROPE 1900–2000
A2 2
Historical Investigations and Interpretations
- ENGLAND 1558–1603
- IRELAND 1685–1714
- IRELAND 1778–1803
- PARTITION OF IRELAND 1900–25
The full specification
20 topics, 311 subtopics. Open any topic to see what is inside it.
01England 1509–58AS Unit 115 subtopicsOpen topic
- The Church in England on the eve of the Reformation
- Criticism of the Church and the early reformers
- Henry VIII, Catherine of Aragon and the case for annulment
- The struggle for the divorce and the men who shaped it
- The Reformation Parliament and the break with Rome
- Opposition to religious change
- The dissolution of the monasteries
- The Pilgrimage of Grace
- Government under Somerset and Northumberland
- Rebellion in 1549: the Western Rising and Kett's rebellion
- Mary I, female monarchy and the succession crises
- Wyatt's rebellion
- The Edwardian religious reforms 1547–53
- The Marian restoration and the persecutions
- Economic and social problems of the period
02England 1603–49AS Unit 118 subtopicsOpen topic
- James I's Elizabethan inheritance
- James I, the Church of England and the Puritans
- James I, the Catholics and the Gunpowder Plot
- The financial problems of James I
- The foreign policy of James I
- Royal favourites and the politics of the court
- Charles I, war and Parliament 1625–29
- The decision to rule without Parliament
- Financing the Personal Rule
- Laudianism and religious reform in the 1630s
- The court culture of Charles I
- Scotland, Ireland and the collapse of the Personal Rule
- The Long Parliament and the outbreak of war 1640–42
- The campaigns and battles of the Civil War
- Why Parliament won the Civil War
- The search for a settlement 1646–49
- Radicalism, the Levellers and the Army
- The regicide and the birth of the Commonwealth
03Britain in the Age of Reform 1830–80AS Unit 118 subtopicsOpen topic
- The case for and against parliamentary reform
- The passing of the Reform Act 1830–32
- The terms and consequences of the Reform Act
- The Whig reforms of the 1830s and the impulse behind them
- The New Poor Law of 1834
- The rise of Chartism
- The People's Charter, Lovett and O'Connor
- Chartist methods and the reasons for failure
- The Anti-Corn Law League
- Peel and the making of the Conservative Party
- Peel's ministry 1841–46
- The repeal of the Corn Laws and the split of 1846
- Disraeli and Tory Democracy
- The Second Reform Act of 1867
- Disraeli's ministry 1874–80
- Gladstone from Peelite to Liberal
- Gladstone's first ministry 1868–74
- Gladstone and Disraeli as leaders
04Italy and Germany 1815–71AS Unit 115 subtopicsOpen topic
- German nationalism, liberalism and cultural revival 1815–48
- Economic change, the Zollverein and Prussian prosperity
- The 1848 revolutions in the German states
- The Frankfurt Parliament and the reasons for its failure
- Olmütz, army reform and the Prussian constitutional crisis
- Bismarck's aims, methods and the debate about his role
- Schleswig-Holstein and the Austro-Prussian War
- The North German Confederation and the southern German states
- The Franco-Prussian War and the proclamation of the German Empire
- The international climate and why Germany was unified
- Italian nationalism, culture and the ideas of the Risorgimento
- The 1848–49 revolutions in Italy and their failure
- Piedmont, Cavour's reforms and the war of 1859
- Garibaldi, the Thousand and his relations with Cavour
- The Papal States, Rome and why Italy was unified
05Germany 1919–45AS Unit 117 subtopicsOpen topic
- The Weimar Constitution and the Treaty of Versailles
- Political threats from left and right 1919–23
- Reparations, the Ruhr and the hyperinflation of 1923
- The Weimar economy 1924–29
- Stresemann's foreign policy and the 'golden years'
- The Nazi Party from the Munich putsch to 1929
- The Wall Street Crash and the end of parliamentary government
- The Nazi electoral breakthrough and Hitler's appointment as Chancellor
- The creation of the Nazi dictatorship 1933–34
- Anti-Semitism and persecution 1933–39
- Youth, women and the churches 1933–39
- Schacht, Göring and the Nazi economy 1933–39
- Culture, the arts and the media in the Third Reich
- The war economy: Todt, Speer and total war
- The home front: rationing, bombing, labour and morale
- Opposition and resistance in wartime
- The Holocaust: ghettos, Barbarossa, Wannsee and genocide
06Spain and Europe 1556–98AS Unit 215 subtopicsOpen topic
- Spain in 1556 and the legacy of Charles V
- Philip II's kingship and working methods
- Conciliar government, faction and the Pérez affair
- The revolts of the Moriscos and of Aragon
- The Spanish economy in 1556 and the king's revenues
- Agriculture, industry and commerce 1556–98
- Bullion, debt, inflation and the royal bankruptcies
- The Spanish Church, Tridentine reform and the papacy
- The Inquisition, Conversos, Jews and Protestants
- The Spanish Empire and the aims of Philip II's foreign policy
- France, from Cateau-Cambrésis to Vervins
- The Mediterranean war with the Turks and the annexation of Portugal
- The Netherlands and the Dutch Revolt
- England, the sea dogs and the Armada
- Philip II's Spain in 1598
07The Ascendancy of France in Europe 1660–1714AS Unit 215 subtopicsOpen topic
- The foundations of French power under Louis XIV
- The War of Devolution 1667–68
- The Dutch War 1672–78 and the Treaties of Nijmegen
- The Reunions and the Truce of Ratisbon
- The League of Augsburg and the alarm of Europe
- The Revocation of the Edict of Nantes and the quarrel with Rome
- The Cologne incident and the outbreak of the Nine Years' War
- French successes in the Nine Years' War
- Allied successes and the stalemate of the Nine Years' War
- The Peace of Ryswick 1697
- The Partition Treaties and the Spanish succession problem
- Louis XIV's acceptance of the will and the road to war
- Marlborough and the great battles of the war
- Why the Grand Alliance won and France failed
- Utrecht, Rastatt and Europe after 1714
08Ireland 1823–67AS Unit 215 subtopicsOpen topic
- O'Connell and the Catholic Association
- The Clare election and Catholic Emancipation
- The impact of Emancipation and the Tithe War
- The Lichfield House Compact
- The Repeal Association and the monster meetings
- Clontarf and the failure of Repeal
- Peel's Irish reforms
- Young Ireland and the split with O'Connell
- The rising of 1848
- The long-term causes of the Famine
- The course and extent of the Famine
- Peel, Russell and famine relief 1845–49
- The consequences of the Famine to 1867
- The origins, leadership and aims of the Fenians
- The Fenian Rising of 1867
09France 1815–70AS Unit 215 subtopicsOpen topic
- The restoration of the Bourbons and the Charter of 1814
- Louis XVIII: the White Terror, moderation and the turn to the right
- Charles X, the ultras and the Church
- Economy, society and culture in France 1815–48
- The July revolution of 1830 and the fall of Charles X
- Louis Philippe, Guizot and the bourgeois monarchy
- Opposition to Louis Philippe
- Louis Philippe's foreign policy
- The banquet campaign and the February revolution of 1848
- The Second Republic: the National Workshops and the June Days
- The presidency of Louis Napoleon 1848–51
- The coup of 1851 and the making of the Second Empire
- The authoritarian Empire and its liberalisation
- Economic modernisation, Haussmann's Paris and social change
- Napoleon III's foreign policy and the collapse of 1870
10Russia 1914–41AS Unit 215 subtopicsOpen topic
- The impact of the First World War on Russia
- Nicholas II, the Tsarina and Rasputin
- The February Revolution and the abdication of the Tsar
- The Provisional Government, the Petrograd Soviet and dual authority
- Lenin, the April Theses and the road to October
- The October Revolution and the consolidation of Bolshevik power
- The Civil War and the Bolshevik victory 1918–21
- Lenin's economic policies 1917–24
- Society and culture under Lenin
- The struggle to succeed Lenin 1924–29
- Collectivisation and the peasantry
- Industrialisation and the Five Year Plans
- The social impact of Stalin's economic policies
- Terror and the purges 1934–39
- Culture, propaganda and the cult of personality
11Italy's Quest for Great Power Status 1871–1943AS Unit 215 subtopicsOpen topic
- The aims and challenges of Italian foreign policy after 1871
- Colonisation in Africa: Tunisia, Eritrea, Abyssinia and Libya
- The Triple Alliance and relations with the Great Powers
- Giolitti and Italy's internal divisions
- From neutrality to intervention 1914–15
- Italy's war 1915–18 and its impact at home
- The mutilated victory, the peace settlement and Fiume
- The crisis of the Liberal state and the Biennio Rosso
- The rise of the Fascist movement 1919–22
- The March on Rome and Mussolini's appointment
- The consolidation of Fascist power 1922–26
- The aims of Fascist foreign policy and the years 1922–34
- Abyssinia and the Spanish Civil War
- Italy, Germany and the road to war 1935–40
- Defeat and the fall of Mussolini 1940–43
12Crown and Parliament in England 1625–1714A2 Unit 118 subtopicsOpen topic
- The powers of Crown and Parliament in 1625
- The breakdown under Charles I 1625–40
- The Constitutional Revolution 1640–42
- Civil war, regicide and the republican interlude
- The Restoration Settlement 1660–62
- The Clarendon Code and religion after 1660
- Charles II, finance and dependence on France
- The Exclusion Crisis and the emergence of parties
- Charles II's personal rule 1681–85
- James II's assault on Parliament and the corporations
- Catholicising policies and the fear of absolutism
- The causes of the Glorious Revolution
- The Revolution Settlement of 1689
- War, the financial revolution and the power of the purse
- The Triennial Act, the Act of Settlement and the independence of the judges
- Party, the Crown and Parliament under Anne
- Finance, religion and foreign policy across the period
- How far had a constitutional monarchy been created by 1714?
13Ireland Under the Union 1800–1900A2 Unit 115 subtopicsOpen topic
- The Protestant ascendancy and the supporters of the Union
- The power of the Irish landlord
- The decline of the landlords and the land legislation from 1870
- Industrialisation in Ulster across the century
- Ulster and Southern unionism from 1885
- The Protestant Churches and support for the Union
- The Catholic Church and the growth of nationalism
- Constitutional nationalism from Grattan to Emancipation
- O'Connell after 1829: reform, repeal and the limits of moral force
- Butt, Parnell and the Irish Parliamentary Party
- Davitt, the Land League and the New Departure
- Revolutionary nationalism 1803–67 compared
- Cultural nationalism from Davis to the Gaelic Revival
- The British government's response 1800–1900
- Ireland's social and economic transformation across the century
14The Causes and Consequences of Great Power Conflict 1848–1945A2 Unit 115 subtopicsOpen topic
- The legacy of 1848 and German unification by force
- Bismarck's alliance system and Germany's relations with its neighbours
- The Eastern Question and the decline of the Ottoman Empire
- Bosnia, the Balkan Wars and Serbian ambition
- Kaiser William II, Weltpolitik and the naval race with Britain
- The armed camps: the Dual Alliance and the Franco-Russian alliance
- Imperial, economic and nationalist rivalry by 1914
- Austria-Hungary, Serbia and the July crisis of 1914
- The Paris peace settlement and its consequences
- The League of Nations, American isolationism and the challenge from Japan
- The isolation of the USSR and its consequences
- The Depression and the rise of the dictators
- Hitler's aggressive foreign policy 1933–39
- Appeasement and its failure
- Europe in 1945
15The American Presidency 1901–2000A2 Unit 115 subtopicsOpen topic
- Theodore Roosevelt and the revival of the presidency
- Woodrow Wilson: reform at home and war abroad
- Laissez-faire, the boom and the Wall Street Crash
- The Hundred Days and the New Deal agencies
- Opposition to the New Deal and the court-packing plan
- The New Deal, the Second World War and American recovery
- Truman, containment and the national security state
- Eisenhower, Kennedy and the imperial presidency
- Johnson, civil rights and the Great Society
- Vietnam and the limits of presidential power
- Nixon, détente and the opening to China
- Watergate and the fall of Nixon
- Ford, Carter and the weakened presidency
- Reagan: recovery, rearmament and Iran-Contra
- Bush, Clinton and the changing power of the presidency
16Clash of Ideologies in Europe 1900–2000A2 Unit 115 subtopicsOpen topic
- Tsarist foreign policy 1900–17
- Lenin's foreign policy and the western response 1917–24
- Soviet foreign policy and the West 1924–33
- Collective security and the failure of the West 1933–39
- The Nazi-Soviet Pact and its consequences
- The Grand Alliance and the impact of the war on the USSR
- Yalta, Potsdam and the post-war settlement
- The breakdown of the Grand Alliance and Soviet control in Eastern Europe
- Containment, the Berlin blockade and NATO 1947–55
- Khrushchev, peaceful coexistence and control in Eastern Europe 1956–64
- Brezhnev, Czechoslovakia and the Brezhnev Doctrine
- Détente, SALT and the western response 1964–79
- Afghanistan and the second Cold War 1979–85
- Gorbachev, the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet bloc
- Success and failure in Soviet foreign policy 1917–91
17England 1558–1603A2 Unit 215 subtopicsOpen topic
- Elizabeth I's character, inheritance and the succession question
- The Elizabethan myth: Gloriana and the Virgin Queen
- The Court, the Privy Council and the royal favourites
- Patronage, faction and Elizabeth I's leading ministers
- Elizabeth I and her Parliaments
- The religious settlement of 1559
- The Puritan challenge and Elizabeth I's response
- The Catholic threat, the missionary priests and recusancy
- Mary, Queen of Scots in England
- The Northern Earls and the Catholic plots
- Relations with France, Scotland and the Netherlands
- Ireland and the Nine Years' War
- Spain, the Armada and the war at sea
- Population, prices and the Elizabethan economy
- Social structure, social mobility and the problem of poverty
18Ireland 1685–1714A2 Unit 215 subtopicsOpen topic
- Ireland in 1685: land, church and the two communities
- James II, Tyrconnell and the Catholicisation of Ireland
- The remodelling of the army, the judiciary and the corporations
- The land settlement and Protestant fears in Ireland
- James II's first year in England: support, opposition and rebellion
- James II's pro-Catholic policies in England
- Opposition in England and the causes of the Glorious Revolution
- The outbreak of war and the Siege of Derry
- The Patriot Parliament and the campaign of 1689
- The Battle of the Boyne
- From the Boyne to Aughrim: Limerick, Cork and Athlone
- The Battle of Aughrim
- The second siege of Limerick and the Treaty
- The penal laws
- The Protestant Ascendancy, Molyneux and the Union of 1707
19Ireland 1778–1803A2 Unit 215 subtopicsOpen topic
- Molyneux, Swift and the Patriot tradition
- The American War and the rise of the Volunteers
- The Free Trade campaign and the Constitution of 1782
- The decline of the Volunteers by 1789
- Grattan's Parliament and the Castle executive
- Henry Grattan and Henry Flood
- Ireland's economy and commerce 1782–1800
- The Catholic Relief Acts and the Fitzwilliam episode
- The French Revolution and the United Irishmen
- Wolfe Tone and the alliance with France
- The Defenders, the Orange Order and sectarianism in Ulster
- Government repression in the 1790s
- The 1798 Rebellion
- The making of the Act of Union
- Emmet's rebellion of 1803
20Partition of Ireland 1900–25A2 Unit 215 subtopicsOpen topic
- Irish politics and the Liberal victory of 1906
- The elections of 1910 and the parliamentary balance
- The Third Home Rule Bill and Ulster's response
- Southern Unionism and the Conservative alliance
- The Home Rule Act and the crisis of September 1914
- Ireland and the First World War 1914–16
- The causes of the Easter Rising
- The Rising and its aftermath
- The rise of Sinn Féin and the election of 1918
- The Anglo-Irish War 1919–21
- The Government of Ireland Act 1920 and partition
- The Truce and the Anglo-Irish Treaty
- The Treaty debates and the Irish Civil War
- The new state of Northern Ireland 1921–25
- Craig's government and the Boundary Commission
How you work through it
Pick the mode that fits the time you have.
Try three questions
No account needed. Answer from memory first.
Your recallNot started
Key term
Explain the connection between the Church and royal government under Henry VIII.
Key term
What was the significance of the Hunne case of 1514?
Key term
Why did the risings of 1549 alarm the political nation so deeply?
Spaced Repetition Schedule
How reviews are timed
Levo will automatically distribute all of your progress into a spaced repetition calendar. Once you’ve answered, it’s scheduled for you on the next day in the spaced repetition schedule. Over time, the gaps between your recall get bigger, from a day to three years, reinforcing memorisation over a long period of time.
Interval sequence
- 1 day
- 3 days
- 7 days
- 14 days
- 30 days
- 60 days
- 4 months
- 8 months
- 1 year
- 2 years
- 3 years
What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material
History revision questions
Common questions about revising CCEA A-Level History. Tap any to open it.
How do you memorise CCEA A-Level History?
By testing yourself, not rereading. Active recall, pulling each answer from memory then checking it, builds far stronger memory than highlighting notes. Levo runs the method for you across all 20 History topics and brings each one back on a spaced schedule so it stays memorised.
What is the fastest way to revise History for CCEA?
Skip the long notes and go straight to retrieval. Levo turns the 4010 specification into short questions you drill with rapid recall, cram whole papers in one sitting, and a readiness score tells you exactly what is left to learn.
What topics are on CCEA A-Level History (4010)?
There are 20 topics, split across 311 subtopics, from England 1509–58, England 1603–49, Britain in the Age of Reform 1830–80 and more. Every topic is listed above, and each one opens to the subtopics inside it.
What do you get inside Levo for History?
Six ways to work the same material. The 3-step method for learning a set, Cram for sorting a whole paper into what you know and what you do not, Blank Blitz for making key facts automatic, Build It for assembling full-mark answers, Test It for catching misconceptions, and Brain Breaks between sessions. A readiness score tracks how much of the subject you have memorised.
Is active recall better than rereading your notes for History?
Consistently, yes. Rereading feels productive but fades quickly. Retrieving an answer from memory, the way Levo tests you, is what actually forms durable memory, and it shows you honestly what you do and do not know.
Does Levo cover the whole CCEA History specification?
Every topic on the 4010 specification is covered, written from the published subject content. The full list is above, and each topic opens to its subtopics so you can see exactly what is there before you subscribe.
How can you encourage your teenager to revise?
Make it short, structured and low-pressure. Levo gives a clear daily plan, quick sessions rather than marathon ones, streaks that reward showing up, and an honest readiness score, so revision feels like progress instead of a chore. Parents can add an account and follow along.
Can you revise History the night before an exam?
Yes. Cram mode is built for exactly that: fly through a whole paper, sort every topic into red, amber and green, then drill just the reds and ambers you do not know yet. It is the honest version of a last-minute session.
Every question in History, on a schedule.
Attempt a question from memory, write the correct version, then attempt it again. Levo records the jump between your first attempt and your last, and brings each question back on the day you are due to forget it.
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