Free GCSE history practice for Year 11, nine months out from the May/June 2027 exams. Every question below comes from GradeNinja's own bank - 2,318 History questions across 61 topics.
History marks come from specific evidence deployed to answer the actual question, not from narrative. Dates and names matter, but only as ammunition for an argument.
Revise in chronological chunks, then test yourself by writing a two-line answer to a past question from memory. If you can only retell the story, you are not ready yet.
Our History questions follow the Edexcel specification. If your school uses a different board most of the content still overlaps, but check your own spec.
Answer before you open the explanation. The moment of not-quite-knowing is the part that does the work, and skipping to the answer skips the learning.
Anything you get wrong, come back to tomorrow rather than immediately. Getting it right straight after seeing the answer proves nothing.
Real questions from GradeNinja's own bank, with the answer and the explanation the app gives. Tap to reveal.
He imposed a naval blockade ("quarantine") around Cuba
Kennedy chose a naval blockade to prevent further missiles reaching Cuba. He called it a "quarantine" to avoid the legal implications of "blockade" (an act of war). Soviet ships heading to Cuba turned back.
Bad smells and polluted air from rotting matter caused disease
Miasma theory held that disease arose from 'bad air' generated by rotting organic matter. It was the dominant explanation for epidemic disease until germ theory in the 1860s-80s. Ironically, miasma-motivated sanitation reform (clean water, drains) improved public health before germ theory was proved.
The USSR had the right to intervene militarily in any socialist country where socialism was threatened — any socialist state could not reverse its communist system
The Brezhnev Doctrine (articulated in Pravda, September 1968) stated that socialist gains were irreversible — if socialism was threatened in any country, the entire socialist bloc had an obligation to defend it. This meant the USSR reserved the right to intervene militarily in any Warsaw Pact state that moved away from communism. It was the justification for the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia. Gorbachev later repudiated it — his "Sinatra Doctrine" allowed Eastern European states to choose their own path, leading to 1989 revolutions.
Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, Nationalism
MAIN = Militarism (European powers building up arms), Alliances (Triple Entente vs Triple Alliance), Imperialism (competition for colonies), Nationalism (pride in nation and desire for independence). These long-term causes created a powder keg — the assassination of Franz Ferdinand was the spark.
1936
Germany remilitarised the Rhineland in March 1936. France and Britain protested but took no action, emboldening Hitler and demonstrating the weakness of collective security.
Britain announced it could no longer afford to support Greece and Turkey against communist pressure
In February 1947, Britain told the US it could no longer fund military support for Greece (fighting a civil war against communists) and Turkey. Truman stepped in, establishing the principle of containment.
1580
Drake set out in 1577 and returned to Plymouth in September 1580, completing the second circumnavigation of the globe (after Magellan/Elcano). Elizabeth knighted him aboard the Golden Hind.
Blood and air (canal theory)
Ancient Egyptians developed the 'canal theory' — they observed that irrigation canals became blocked, and believed similar channels in the body could be blocked, causing illness. They used herbal remedies, surgery, and religious rituals. The Edwin Smith Papyrus (c.1600 BC) shows sophisticated surgical knowledge.
55,718 questions across 28 subjects, XP, boss battles and friend challenges. No card needed.
Start revising free →Short, frequent sessions of active recall beat long sessions of re-reading. Test yourself, check, and revisit anything you got wrong a day or two later rather than immediately.
Edexcel. Content overlaps heavily between boards, so they are still useful on another spec, but check your own specification for anything board-specific.
GCSEs are sat across May and June, so for the current Year 11 that means May/June 2027. Exact paper dates come from the exam boards and your school.
2,318 in History alone, and 55,718 across 28 subjects. Signing up is free.