World History MCQs

Notes:
At the end of 19th century, the British Empire was the biggest in the world, both in terms of the number of people over whom it rules and the area under its rule. The population of her colonial possessions extending over an area of 23 million square kilometer was about 400 millions. France ruled over an empire of over 10 million square kilometer inhabited by over 50 million people. So, statement 1 is incorrect. Within a short period of time after the beginning of  ‘Scramble for Africa’, European imperial powers had carved it out among themselves. In the Berlin Congress, entire Africa was divided between different European powers. At the end of WWI, only Liberia and Ethiopia were free from any sort of colonial control. So, statement 2 is incorrect.

Notes:
The Great Depression, which had its origin in USA, affected the whole world. It was basically a deep economic recession that chipped away a significant portion of GDP of the European states and USA. But, in USA, some of the worst effects of the economic recession began to be remedied after 1933. This happened during the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was first elected in 1932 and won three subsequent elections. The programme of reform which he started is known as the ‘New Deal’. A large program of welfare was initiated which alleviated the misery of many sections of the population. The New Deal was inspired from the Keynesian economic model, in which expansionary fiscal and monetary policies were used to spur the demand in the economy. This increased demand could boost production and employment. So, both the statements are correct.

Notes:
In June 1940, France surrendered in the WWII. While the northern France was occupied by the German troops, a French government was allowed to retain control over about half of France. This government moved to Vichy, hence it was called the Vichy government and the area under its control was called the ‘Vichy France’. The Vichy France collaborated with the Nazi Germany and in turn, it was allowed to maintain control over its colonies. So, statement 1 is correct. Charles de Gaulle, who had been a colonel in the French army at the time of the German invasion of France, had escaped to Britain after the surrender by the French government. Under the leadership of de Gaulle, now General de Gaulle, the Free France movement was started and a French army was organised in Britain to fight against the Nazi Germany. Charles de Gaulle later went on to become the President of France. So, statement 2 is correct.

Notes:
After the Japanese occupation of Korea ended as a result of the defeat of Japan, Korea had been divided into two occupation zones- the northern zone under the Soviet Union and the southern zone under the USA. The division was along the 38th parallel. Both these powers set up friendly regimes within their occupation zones in the North and South Korea respectively. The Korean War could also not change this boundary. So, the correct answer is option ‘b’.

Notes:
‘What Is the Third Estate?’ is a political pamphlet written by French thinker and clergyman Abbe Emmanuel Joseph Sieyes in January 1789, shortly before the outbreak of the French Revolution. In the pamphlet, Sieyes argued that the Third Estate – the common people of France – constituted a complete nation.

Notes:
The policy of racial discrimination followed in South Africa was called Apartheid.

Notes:
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which dismantled the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the communist government. The Emperor was forced to abdicate and replaced by a provisional government during the first revolution of February 1917. In the second revolution, during October, the Provisional Government was replaced with a Bolshevik (Communist) government.

Notes:
The French Revolution was a period of far-reaching social and political upheaval in France that lasted from 1789 until 1799, and was partially carried forward by Napoleon during the later expansion of the French Empire. The Revolution overthrew the monarchy, established a republic, and finally culminated in a dictatorship under Napoleon.

Notes:
The Marshall Plan was an American initiative passed in 1948 to aid Western Europe, in which the United States gave over $12 billion in economic assistance to help rebuild Western European economies after the end of World War II. Thus, b is the correct answer.

Notes:
The fleet of Ferdinand Magellan in 1519 crossed an arduous 373-mile long passage on the southern end of South America. This strait is now named the Strait of Magellan. Then he entered an ocean which was calmer than the Atlantic. Therefore, he named it the Pacific Ocean.