AQA GCSE History · BB

Medieval England - the reign of Edward I, 1272–1307

50 exam-style questions with answers for BB Medieval England - the reign of Edward I, 1272–1307 in AQA GCSE History (spec 8145). Practise with flashcards, a topic quiz, a random quiz across the course, 5 crosswords, or read every question and answer below. Not official AQA material.

All 50 questions and answers

Question 1 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
State two problems Edward I faced on his accession in 1272. [2 marks]
Answer:
Any two from: royal debts (1); lost royal lands and rights (1); weak royal authority after the Barons’ War (1); disorder in the localities (1).
Question 2 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
Describe Edward’s relationship with his father Henry III. [2 marks]
Answer:
Edward was briefly allied with de Montfort before returning to his father’s side (1); he defeated de Montfort at Evesham in 1265 and restored royal power (1).
Question 3 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
Explain why Edward was able to rule with the nobility’s support. [2 marks]
Answer:
He consulted the nobles in parliaments (1); he was a strong military leader and shared the rewards of war (1).
Question 4 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
State two features of Edward I’s character. [2 marks]
Answer:
Any two from: a skilled soldier (1); determined and ruthless (1); concerned with law and royal rights (1); pious, he went on crusade (1).
Question 5 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
What were the Hundred Rolls (1274–1275)? [1 mark]
Answer:
An inquiry into the rights and lands held by the king and abuses by royal officials.
Question 6 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
Who was Robert Burnell? [1 mark]
Answer:
Edward’s Chancellor and chief adviser, who helped draft his statutes.
Question 7 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
What was the Statute of Westminster (1275)? [2 marks]
Answer:
A wide-ranging law code (1); it dealt with abuses by officials and set standards for the courts (1).
Question 8 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
What was the Statute of Mortmain (1279)? [1 mark]
Answer:
It banned giving land to the Church without royal permission, to stop the Crown losing feudal dues.
Question 9 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
What were the Quo Warranto inquiries? [1 mark]
Answer:
Inquiries asking nobles ‘by what warrant’ they held rights and privileges, to recover royal rights.
Question 10 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
Explain why Edward called parliaments frequently. [2 marks]
Answer:
He needed taxes for war (1); he used them to consult and pass statutes (1).
Question 11 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
What was the Model Parliament (1295)? [2 marks]
Answer:
A parliament that included barons, clergy, knights from each shire and burgesses from towns (1); it became the model for later parliaments (1).
Question 12 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
Explain why the Statutes of Westminster were significant. [2 marks]
Answer:
They set out the law in written statutes passed through Parliament (1); this strengthened royal justice and the role of Parliament (1).
Question 13 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
Explain why Edward I clashed with the barons in 1297. [2 marks]
Answer:
He demanded heavy taxes and military service overseas (1); the barons forced him to confirm Magna Carta in the Confirmation of the Charters (1).
Question 14 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part one
What was the Confirmation of the Charters (1297)? [1 mark]
Answer:
Edward’s agreement to confirm Magna Carta and the Forest Charter, and not to raise taxes without consent.
Question 15 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
What was England’s most important export under Edward I? [1 mark]
Answer:
Wool.
Question 16 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
What was the ‘Great and Ancient Custom’ (1275)? [1 mark]
Answer:
A permanent tax on exported wool.
Question 17 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
What was the maltolt? [1 mark]
Answer:
A high tax on wool introduced in 1294 to fund war, which was very unpopular.
Question 18 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
What was the Statute of Merchants (1285)? [1 mark]
Answer:
A law that helped merchants recover debts quickly.
Question 19 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
Explain why Edward used Italian bankers. [2 marks]
Answer:
He needed large loans for wars (1); bankers such as the Riccardi of Lucca lent money in return for wool customs (1).
Question 20 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
What was the re-coinage of 1279? [1 mark]
Answer:
New, better-quality coins were introduced to replace clipped and damaged ones.
Question 21 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
Why did Edward I expel the Jews in 1290? [2 marks]
Answer:
Jews had been heavily taxed and had less money to give (1); expulsion was popular and helped Edward gain a tax grant from Parliament (1).
Question 22 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
Name two medieval universities in England. [2 marks]
Answer:
Oxford (1); Cambridge (1).
Question 23 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
Who was Roger Bacon? [1 mark]
Answer:
A Franciscan scholar at Oxford who stressed observation and experiment.
Question 24 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
Who was Duns Scotus? [1 mark]
Answer:
A Franciscan philosopher and theologian who taught at Oxford.
Question 25 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
What was the Statute of Gloucester (1278)? [1 mark]
Answer:
It began the Quo Warranto inquiries, making lords prove their rights to the king’s judges.
Question 26 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
What was the Statute of Winchester (1285)? [2 marks]
Answer:
It made local communities responsible for keeping order (1); it required hue and cry, night watches and cleared roadsides to stop ambushes (1).
Question 27 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
Define the term ‘hue and cry’. [1 mark]
Answer:
A duty for everyone to chase a criminal when the alarm was raised.
Question 28 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
State two punishments in Edward I’s England. [2 marks]
Answer:
Any two from: hanging (1); fines (1); the stocks (1); outlawry (1); hanging, drawing and quartering for treason (1).
Question 29 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
Explain how the Church dominated medieval education. [2 marks]
Answer:
Most schools were run by the Church and taught Latin (1); universities trained clergy, and most scholars were churchmen (1).
Question 30 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
State two types of court in Edward I’s England. [2 marks]
Answer:
Any two from: royal courts, eg King’s Bench (1); manor courts (1); Church courts (1); travelling justices (eyre) (1).
Question 31 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
Describe the open field system. [2 marks]
Answer:
Villages had large fields divided into strips farmed by different families (1); crops were rotated and one field was left fallow (1).
Question 32 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part two
Explain why towns grew under Edward I. [2 marks]
Answer:
Trade, especially in wool, increased (1); new towns were founded, eg alongside castles in Wales (1).
Question 33 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
Describe siege warfare in Edward I’s time. [2 marks]
Answer:
Attackers used siege engines such as trebuchets and mining (1); defenders relied on strong walls and supplies (1).
Question 34 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
What was the Warwolf? [1 mark]
Answer:
A huge trebuchet Edward used at the siege of Stirling Castle in 1304.
Question 35 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
Describe how the longbow changed warfare. [2 marks]
Answer:
It could fire rapidly over long distances (1); it was effective against cavalry and was recruited from Wales (1).
Question 36 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
Why did Edward invade Wales in 1277? [2 marks]
Answer:
Llywelyn ap Gruffudd refused to pay homage to Edward (1); he had not paid money owed under the 1267 treaty (1).
Question 37 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
What was the outcome of the 1277 war? [1 mark]
Answer:
The Treaty of Aberconwy confined Llywelyn to Gwynedd.
Question 38 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
What happened in the war of 1282–1283? [2 marks]
Answer:
Dafydd and Llywelyn rebelled, and Llywelyn was killed in December 1282 (1); Dafydd was captured and executed, ending Welsh independence (1).
Question 39 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
What was the Statute of Rhuddlan (1284)? [2 marks]
Answer:
It placed Wales under English rule (1); it introduced English shires and law (1).
Question 40 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
Name two castles Edward built in Wales. [2 marks]
Answer:
Any two from: Caernarfon (1); Conwy (1); Harlech (1); Beaumaris (1).
Question 41 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
Who designed Edward’s Welsh castles? [1 mark]
Answer:
Master James of St George.
Question 42 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
What was the ‘Great Cause’? [2 marks]
Answer:
The dispute over the Scottish succession after the death of the Maid of Norway in 1290 (1); Edward was asked to judge and chose John Balliol in 1292 (1).
Question 43 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
Why did Edward invade Scotland in 1296? [2 marks]
Answer:
Balliol allied with France against England (1); Edward sacked Berwick and took the Stone of Scone (1).
Question 44 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
What happened at Stirling Bridge (1297)? [1 mark]
Answer:
William Wallace and Andrew Murray defeated the English army.
Question 45 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
What happened at Falkirk (1298)? [1 mark]
Answer:
Edward defeated Wallace, using longbowmen against the schiltrons.
Question 46 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
What happened to William Wallace? [1 mark]
Answer:
He was captured and executed in London in 1305.
Question 47 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
Why was Edward I called the ‘Hammer of the Scots’? [1 mark]
Answer:
For his campaigns to conquer Scotland; the phrase was later carved on his tomb.
Question 48 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
Describe the role of cavalry in medieval battles. [2 marks]
Answer:
Heavily armoured knights on horseback charged to break enemy lines (1); they were vulnerable to longbows and schiltrons (1).
Question 49 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
What was a schiltron? [1 mark]
Answer:
A tightly packed Scottish formation of spearmen used against cavalry.
Question 50 · Spec 3.3.2 BB, Part three
State two consequences of Edward’s Welsh wars. [2 marks]
Answer:
Any two from: Wales came under English rule (1); huge costs of castle building (1); English settlers in new towns (1); Edward’s son was made Prince of Wales (1301) (1).

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Medieval England - the reign of Edward I, 1272–1307

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