Revolutions of the World

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk was linked with the creation of modern Turkish Republic. For exams connect Ataturk with Turkish reforms.

Simon Bolivar was linked with independence of several Latin American countries. For exams connect Bolivar with South America.

Simon Bolivar was associated with Latin American independence movements. For exams remember him as a liberator.

San Martin was a major leader of South American independence movements. For exams remember him with Bolivar.

The direct answer is B: Portugal. Brazil was a Portuguese colony, so its independence meant separation from Portuguese colonial rule. Portuguese explorers reached Brazil in 1500, and Portugal controlled the territory for centuries. In 1822, Pedro declared Brazil independent, and Brazil separated politically from Portugal. Option B is correct because Portugal was the European colonial power that ruled Brazil. Option A, Spain, ruled many parts of Central and South America, but Brazil was the major Portuguese-speaking exception. Option C, France, had colonies in places such as parts of North America, the Caribbean and Africa, but it did not rule Brazil. Option D, the Netherlands, also had colonial possessions, but Brazil’s long-term colonial ruler was Portugal. The language clue is also helpful: Brazil mainly speaks Portuguese, while most of its neighbouring Latin American countries mainly speak Spanish. Do not confuse the wider Spanish colonisation of South America with Brazil’s specific colonial history. Memory cue: Brazil begins with Portuguese colonial rule and became independent from Portugal.

The revolutions of 1848 spread across many parts of Europe. For exams connect them with liberalism and nationalism.

Nationalism and liberalism were major ideas in the revolutions of 1848. For exams remember demands for political rights in Europe.

The First World War increased Russia's economic and social problems. For exams understand the link between war and revolution.

The Russian Revolution ended the Romanov dynasty and Tsardom. For exams connect Romanov with the last Tsar.

Ancien Regime was the old order in France before the revolution. For exams connect it with three estates and privileges.

The direct answer is D: the clergy. Before the French Revolution, French society was traditionally divided into three Estates. The First Estate consisted of the clergy, such as bishops, priests and other church officials. The Second Estate consisted mainly of nobles, while the Third Estate included the common people, including peasants, workers and the rising middle class. A, the king's army, is not the definition of the First Estate; soldiers could come from different social groups. B, peasants, belonged mainly to the Third Estate. C, merchants were also part of the Third Estate, although wealthy merchants could be influential. D is correct because it names the religious order of society. Exam cue: First means clergy, Second means nobility, Third means everyone else in the old social division.

The Second Estate was linked with nobility. For exams connect privileged groups with the First and Second Estates.

Lexington and Concord were among the early clashes of the American War of Independence. For exams connect them with the beginning of the American Revolution.

During the American Revolution the British king was George III. For exams connect George III with the Thirteen Colonies.

In the Industrial Revolution workers began working in factories. For exams study the working class and factory system together.

During the Industrial Revolution, factories were mainly established in towns and cities. Many rural people moved to cities in search of work, increasing urbanization and changing village life based on agriculture and cottage industries. Option C is a close distractor because factory and machine competition weakened many cottage industries rather than expanding them. Exam tip: Remember the factory system, urbanization, and rural-to-urban migration as linked effects of the Industrial Revolution.

Correct answer: A, the French Revolution. The French Revolution began in 1789 and challenged the old political and social order in France. Its widely remembered ideals included liberty, equality, and fraternity, expressed in French as Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite. These ideas opposed inherited privilege and supported the belief that citizens should have rights and a role in public life. A is correct because this slogan and combination of ideals are most strongly associated with the French Revolution. B is wrong because the Industrial Revolution mainly refers to changes in production, machines, factories, and urban society. C is wrong because the Meiji Restoration was the nineteenth-century political transformation that strengthened and modernised Japan. D is wrong because the Glorious Revolution of 1688 in England concerned a change of rulers and limits on royal power, not this famous three-part slogan. Memory cue: liberty, equality, fraternity points directly to the French Revolution.

This idea was linked with colonial opposition to taxes. For exams treat it as a key slogan of the American Revolution.

This slogan expressed people's demands in the Russian Revolution. For exams connect it with Lenin and Bolsheviks.

Land and Liberty was linked with Zapata and the Mexican Revolution. For exams connect it with peasant land rights.

A timeline makes year event and result easier to understand in order. For exams always make a short timeline.

Causes of revolution often begin with dissatisfaction. For exams look for economic social and political dissatisfaction.

Results show what changed in power society or economy after the revolution. For exams write results in separate points.

Connecting a leader with country and revolution reduces confusion. For exams make a short leader country year list.

Year cause leader and result make comparison of revolutions simple. For exams prepare these four points for every revolution.