Source G blames the early settlers for the problems of lawlessness in early western towns. Use all the sources and your own knowledge to explain whether you think this is a fair comment.

Study all the sources Source G blames the early settlers for the problems of lawlessness in early western towns. Use all the sources and your own knowledge to explain whether you think this is a fair comment. I think the above comment is unfair, my reasons for thinking this is because I don't think all of the problems can be blamed on the early settlers, there were other people who lived in the west that caused many problems that contributed to the lawlessness that was still around when source G was wrote. Source G is a speech spoken by William J McConnell a later governor of the western state of Idaho, in the speech he criticises the first settlers of the mining towns and says how they should have 'directed their energies not only to making money but also to public affairs' looking at this statement it indicates to me that the early settlers were very selfish and only cared about money, but when I asked myself if the source was reliable I answered no, the reason for this is because McConnell could be criticising the early settlers so that he has someone to blame for the mess he has made out of managing the state of Idaho, and this is why think that the above comment is unfair, the sources are not very reliable and he doesn't have any evidence to back up what he is saying in the speech. Source A shows an engraving of Salt Lake City which was the city the Mormons had

  • Word count: 623
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Was there any truth in the Southern claim that slavery was both a benign and profitable institution in Mid-19th Century America?

Was there any truth in the Southern claim that slavery was both a benign and profitable institution in Mid-19th Century America? Despite the abolition of slavery in the Northern states by 1820, it continued to grow in the South. By 1860 over 50% of all American slaves were employed on Southern cotton plantations, and there were nearly 4,000,000 slaves in the Southern slave states. The majority of White Southerners had no conflict of confidence in slavery; they only became more determined to maintain it as an institution after the rise of militant abolitionism in the North in the 1830s, claiming that slavery was an effective method of controlling the slave population. Throughout the last century, and before, historians have been disputing the merits of slavery as an institution; its success as an economic tool and the treatment of those it utilised. It is easier to judge the economic success of slavery than its effects on the slaves themselves for several reasons. Any comment about the treatment of slaves can only be a generalisation - there were fair slave owners, cruel slave owners and slave owners who fell somewhere in the middle. Most records are only from large plantations; there are very few from families who owned only a handful of slaves. Even the accounts of former slaves are unreliable since by the time they were taken any freed slaves still living would have

  • Word count: 1704
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Does Abraham Lincoln deserve his reputation as one of the greatest of American presidents?

Does Abraham Lincoln deserve his reputation as one of the greatest of American presidents? Abraham Lincoln was born in the most modest of circumstances in a log cabin near Kentucky on February 12, 1809. His family was poor and had no education. His entire childhood and young manhood were spent on the brink of poverty as his pioneering family made repeated fresh starts in the West. Opportunities for education, cultural activities, and even socializing were meager. Abraham Lincoln taught himself what he needed to know. He became a lawyer and served in the Illinois state legislature and in the United States Congress. In 1860, he was elected to the country's highest office. Abraham Lincoln was the sixteenth American president and many consider him, to be one of the greatest leaders of all time. One of the major events that led to the election of Abraham Lincoln was the Lincoln-Douglas debates. These debates were a series of formal political debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas in a campaign for one of Illinois two United States Senate seats. There were a series of seven debates ranging from topics such as the Dred Scott Case to domestic slavery, and even the candidates personal lives. At the end of the seven debates, each candidate summoned their parties' ideals and platforms. "These debates revealed that, while Douglas had rebelled against his own party on the

  • Word count: 1855
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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To what extent were Malcolm X and the subsequent Black Power Movement the 'Evil Twin' of the Civil Rights Movement in the late twentieth century in the United States of America?

To what extent were Malcolm X and the subsequent Black Power Movement the 'Evil Twin'1 of the Civil Rights Movement in the late twentieth century in the United States of America? Malcolm X2 and the subsequent Black Power3 Movement (BPM) stemmed from the nationalist African American population and so took a different stance in their fight for Civil Rights than other leaders such as Martin Luther King4 (King). With this distinction, has come a historical debate into whether Malcolm X and the BPM aided or hindered the Civil Rights Movement (CRM); something that has been debated between historians such as Sitkoff and Cook. The purpose of this study is to decide whether Malcolm X and the BPM are indeed the 'evil twin' of the CRM or whether this title is unjust. Malcolm X was a black nationalist5 and a member of the Nation of Islam6. Malcolm X, through his father, garnered the beliefs of Marcus Garvey7 and his 'Back to Africa' campaign. He also believed in militancy as a method to attain black independence through the notion; 'fight violence with violence'. He believed that rather than allowing the continual persecution of African Americans by whites, it was rational for African Americans to defend themselves with as much force as was necessary as advocated in his 'by any means necessary'8 speech. This caused much tension between the two distinct civil rights movements because it

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  • Word count: 5947
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Was Roosevelt's foreign policy a success or failure

Was Roosevelt's foreign policy a success or failure? Roosevelt did many things in his foreign policy including: the building of the Panama Canal, the Spanish - American war. In this essay I will explain the failures and successes and then come up with a conclusion as to whether or not Roosevelt's foreign policy was a success or failure. After Japan showed its strength against Russia the US became distrusting of them; as they were worried about the threat in which Japan showed to the Philippines. However the distrust was mutual and was widened by racial ammonites on the west coast of America. A San Francisco school board ordered that students of oriental descent were to attend a separate school. This 'yellow peril' as it was known in 1906 caused relations between US and Japan to become sour. Japanese government protested and eventually Roosevelt managed to change the school boards mind. However this was only after ensuring that Japanese would not issue passports for its labourers. The gentlemen's agreement between Roosevelt and the Japanese government halted the influx of Japanese immigrants. "Yellow Peril" is another situation which Roosevelt demonstrated his ability to protect foreign relations and at the same time get what he wanted in terms of what was best for America and himself. However even though Roosevelt dealt with the problem it was still an extremely

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  • Word count: 966
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Prohibition Laws in the United States. n the 1800s, the dry movement began in the United States. The dry movement was the first step in the process of Prohibition.

Prohibition Laws in the United States Prohibition was a stage in the United States legal system that prohibited manufacturing, selling and shipment of alcoholic substances between 1919 and 1933. It became part of the United States Constitution through the Eighteenth Amendment. The abuse of alcohol was seen as gluttony. Therefore it was considered one of the seven deadly sins. In the 1800's, the dry movement began in the United States. The dry movement was the first step in the process of Prohibition. The number of bars had decreased. The only bars that were left charged mass amounts of money on beverages and only sold liquor by the glass and beer by the mug. This period is believed to have been the strongest step in Prohibition. Because of the excessive abuse of alcohol, when the sources decreased, so did the abusers. Kansas was the first state to put the ban of alcohol in effect. Protestant Christians made sure that the ban's strength was getting stronger. Gluttony, one of the seven deadly sins was their main motivation in their stand for the ban of alcohol. An amendment was introduced in 1917 to prohibit alcohol nationwide. This amendment became ratified in thirty eight states. The amendment states that: "After one year from the ratification of this article the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the

  • Word count: 847
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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To what extent was WW2 the most significant turning point for civil rights

To what extent was WW2 the biggest turning point for African Americans? World war 2 was a period of great change for the African American civil rights movement. Labour shortages and black and whites fighting alongside each other essentially forced change onto the USA. Blacks found a new sense of identity and willingness to stand up while many whites found their views of blacks to be untrue and respected those whom they fought alongside. Perhaps the best figure to quote here would be the results of a poll which showed that before the war only 34% of white soldiers had "favourable" feeling about serving with blacks, yet by the climax of the war years this had increased to 77%. At the beginning of the war the army accepted blacks but only into separate segregated regiments, for example into the "369th Harlem Hellfighters". Training bases, barracks and even troop movement was strictly segregated. Equipment was by and large poor compared to their white counterparts, with initial training often being with sticks rather than rifles. However as the war drew on black soldiers proved their worth to the war effort time and time again. Stories of black sailors being the last to give up at Pear Harbour started to emerge. Black airmen successfully flew 200 missions with minimum losses and were some of the first to encounter the new German Me 262 jet fighters. Black regiments proved to be

  • Word count: 1819
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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How far do you agree with the view that the Wall Street crash was responsible for the depression of the early 1930s?

How far do you agree with the view that the Wall Street crash was responsible for the depression of the early 1930s? The Wall Street Crash was certainly a major factor in the depression of the early 1930s, as said in source 3, 'setting off a devastating economic collapse'. However, it was not the sole reason for the depression but only a segment. The economy was rotten well before the Crash in areas such as agriculture, industry and the banking system which had far more significant consequences. The Wall Street crash was certainly responsible, to a certain degree, for the economic downturn which brought USA to its knees through the 1930s. The frenzy of unregulated speculation which had fuelled the huge stock market bubble, with stock prices far outrunning economic growth, had burst. When panic selling began investor anxious to minimize losses sold as fast as possible. This quickened the fall in share prices. As stock values plummeted with industrial stock falling by 50 per cent between September and November 1929, 'business confidence evaporated'. The lenders, often including large banks, which had been fuelling the boom, called in their money and the market collapsed. When people weren't able to repay loans to fragile banks, which lacked sufficient reserves, 'bankruptcies and bank failures multiplied'. However, as the accredited Historian David Reynolds states; 'In itself

  • Word count: 971
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Who Killed Philip

In 336BC, Philip II of Macedonia was assassinated, and his son, Alexander, assumed the throne. Discuss: - Philip's assassination, including where it took place, who was present, and the possible motivation of his killer - The reasons for debate over the involvement of Olympias and/or Alexander As the new king, what leadership qualities did Alexander show as he secured his hold on Macedonia and Greece during the first two years of his reign? Philip II of Macedon was King from 359BC until his assassination in 336BC. He was father of Alexander III, Philip III and possibly Ptolemy I Soter, the founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty. Olympias was the mother of his two children Alexander the Great and Cleopatra but at the time of the assassination King Philip was having relations with Cleopatra, daughter of Hippostratus and niece of general Attalus of Macedonia. After his assassination Philip's son Alexander took up the throne and control of the Macedonian army, showing his greatness as a leader. The assassination of Philip happened in October of 336 BC, at Aegae, the ancient capital of the kingdom of Macedon. The court had gathered there for the celebration of the marriage between Alexander of Epirus and Philip's daughter Cleopatra. It was a lavish event and elaborate games had been arranged. Philip entered the theatre escorted by his son Alexander ad son-in-law, Alexander. The

  • Word count: 1134
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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History essay on the boom in america in the 1920s

Was the availability of credit the most important factor in explaining the economic boom of the 1920s? There were many factors that were important and helped to cause the boom in America in the 1920s. These were factors like the car industry, availability of credit, policies of republican presidents and advances in technology. The boom started after the brief depression of 1919-1920 where unemployment and strikes were common. This started to change when America started getting repaid by the European countries and they started to get a lot more trade because a lot of Europe's crops had been destroyed. During the boom unemployment was low, supply and demand were high so the economy was very healthy. One of the main factors of the boom was the availability of credit to almost everyone. People found it so easy to get credit for almost any purchase like mortgages and loans for houses and holidays. This meant that people were always able to buy things which meant that companies would have more customers and in affect make more money. Also if companies make more money, then they will pay more money in tax which the government can use to improve society and improve people's standard of living. Furthermore, if more people are buying goods and services then more people will need to provide the goods and services which will provide more jobs and decrease level of unemployment.

  • Word count: 965
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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