Daily problem practise for History Optional Mains and GS Paper I (History Portion): 2018

For all those appearing for Civil Services Examination in 2018, we are starting Daily Problem Practise for History Optional and GS Paper I (History Part).

Important features:

• Daily at least one question will be posted. No question will be posted on Saturday and Sunday.
• In case any question is important only for History Optional or only for GS Paper I or for both History Optional and GS Paper I, it will be specifically mentioned
• This will be around 4 Months program. Each part of history (Modern India, World History, Ancient India and Medieval India)  will be covered in around one month each.
• We will try to cover all important topics and important questions from examination point of view.
• You can send your answers on email ID selfstudyhistory@gmail.com or post answers in comment section. You can use camscanner to email answers in PDF Format for evaluation.
• Those appearing in 2018 History Online Test Series will get assured evaluation of their answers on priority basis. 
• Generally evaluated Answers will be sent back within two days but in rare cases it might take upto a week sometimes if there is rush.
• Evaluation will be done by team of highly experienced people who are either in service or have got excellent marks in history optional in UPSC main exam.
• The program will start from 6th December and complete schedule will be posted before 6th December on this page. Link for daily practice questions will be available on this page.

Note: We will also be launching Essay Evaluation Program by team of top scorers in UPSC Essay Paper. You can send email on selfstudyhistory@gmail.com to show your interest. Click here for more details about Essay Evaluation Program

Schedule for Daily problem practise for History Optional Mains and GS Paper I (History Portion): 2018

Modern India: 6 December to 6 January

World History: 7 January to 6 February

Ancient India: 8 February to 7 March

Medieval India: 8 March to 8 April

Modern India (6 December to 6 January)

6 December

European Penetration into India: The Early European Settlements; The Portuguese and the Dutch; The English and the French East India Companies; Their struggle for supremacy; Carnatic Wars; Bengal -The conflict between the English and the Nawabs of Bengal; Siraj and the English; The Battle of Plassey; Significance of Plassey.

Questions of 6th December

7 December

British Expansion in India: Bengal – Mir Jafar and Mir Kasim; The Battle of Buxar; Mysore; The Marathas; The three Anglo-Maratha Wars; The Punjab.

Questions of 7th December

8 December

Early Structure of the British Raj: The early administrative structure; From diarchy to direct control; The Regulating Act (1773); The Pitt’s India Act (1784); The Charter Act (1833); The voice of free trade and the changing character of British colonial rule; The English utilitarian and India.

Questions of 8th December

11,12, 13 and 14 December

Economic Impact of British Colonial Rule: (a) Land revenue settlements in British India; The Permanent Settlement; Ryotwari Settlement; Mahalwari Settlement; Economic impact of the revenue arrangements; Commercialization of agriculture; Rise of landless agrarian labourers; Impoverishment of the rural society. (b) Dislocation of traditional trade and commerce; De-industrialisation; Decline of traditional crafts; Drain of wealth; Economic transformation of India; Railroad and communication network including tele-graph and postal services; Famine and poverty in the rural interior; European business enterprise and its limitations.

Questions of 11th December

Questions of 12th December

Questions of 13th December

Questions of 14th December

15 and 18 December

Social and Cultural Developments: The state of indigenous education, its dislocation; Orientalist-Anglicist controversy, The introduction of western education in India; The rise of press, literature and public opinion; The rise of modern vernacular literature; Progress of science; Christian missionary activities in India.

Questions of 15th December

Questions of 18th December

19, 20, 21 December

Social and Religious Reform movements in Bengal and Other Areas: Ram Mohan Roy, The Brahmo Movement; Devendranath Tagore; Iswarchandra Vidyasagar; The Young Bengal Movement; Dayanada Saraswati; The social reform movements in India including Sati, widow remarriage, child marriage etc.; The contribution of Indian renaissance to the growth of modern India; Islamic revivalism – the Feraizi and Wahabi Movements.

Indian Response to British Rule: Peasant movements and tribal uprisings in the 18th and 19th centuries including the Rangpur Dhing (1783), the Kol Rebellion (1832), the Mopla Rebellion in Malabar (1841-1920), the Santal Hul (1855), Indigo Rebellion (1859-60), Deccan Uprising (1875) and the Munda Ulgulan (1899-1900); The Great Revolt of 1857 – Origin, character, causes of failure, the consequences; The shift in the character of peasant uprisings in the post-1857 period; the peasant movements of the 1920s and 1930s.

Questions of 19th December

Questions of 20th December

Questions of 21st December

22 and 25 December

Factors leading to the birth of Indian Nationalism; Politics of Association; The Foundation of the Indian National Congress; The Safety-valve thesis relating to the birth of the Congress; Programme and objectives of Early Congress; the social composition of early Congress leadership; the Moderates and Extremists; The Partition of Bengal (1905); The Swadeshi Movement in Bengal; the economic and political aspects of Swadeshi Movement; The beginning of revolutionary extremism in India.

Questions of 22nd December

Questions of 25 December

26, 27 and 28 December

Rise of Gandhi; Character of Gandhian nationalism; Gandhi’s popular appeal; Rowlatt Satyagraha; the Khilafat Movement; the Non-cooperation Movement; National politics from the end of the Non-cooperation movement to the beginning of the Civil Disobedience movement; the two phases of the Civil Disobedience Movement; Simon Commission; The Nehru Report; the Round Table Conferences; Nationalism and the Peasant Movements; Nationalism and Working class movements; Women and Indian youth and students in Indian politics (1885-1947); the election of 1937 and the formation of ministries; Cripps Mission; the Quit India Movement; the Wavell Plan; The Cabinet Mission.

Questions of 26 December

Questions of 27 December

Questions of 28 December

29 December

Constitutional Developments in the Colonial India between 1858 and 1935

Questions of 29 December

1 January

Other strands in the National Movement The Revolutionaries: Bengal, the Punjab, Maharashtra, U.P, the Madras Presidency, Outside India. The Left; The Left within the Congress: Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhas Chandra Bose, the Congress Socialist Party; the Communist Party of India, other left parties.

Questions of 1 January

2 January

Politics of Separatism; the Muslim League; the Hindu Mahasabha; Communalism and the politics of partition; Transfer of power; Independence.

Questions of 2 January

3 January

Consolidation as a Nation; Nehru’s Foreign Policy; India and her neighbours (1947-1964); The linguistic reorganisation of States (1935-1947); Regionalism and regional inequality; Integration of Princely States; Princes in electoral politics; the Question of National Language.

Questions of 3 January

4 January

Caste and Ethnicity after 1947; Backward castes and tribes in post-colonial electoral politics; Dalit movements.

Economic development and political change; Land reforms; the politics of planning and rural reconstruction; Ecology and environmental policy in post – colonial India; Progress of science.

Questions of 4 January

World History: 7 January to 7 February

8 January  and 9 January

Enlightenment and Modern ideas: (i) Major ideas of Enlightenment: Kant, Rousseau (ii) Spread of Enlightenment in the colonies (iii) Rise of socialist ideas (up to Marx); spread of Marxian Socialism.

Questions of 8 January

Questions of 9 January

10 January, 11 January and 12 January

Origins of Modern Politics: (i) European States System. (ii) American Revolution and the Constitution. (iii) French revolution and aftermath, 1789-1815. (iv) American Civil War with reference to Abraham Lincoln and the abolition of slavery. (v) British Democratic Politics, 1815- 1850; Parliamentary Reformers, Free Traders, Chartists.

Questions of 10 January

Questions of 11 January

Questions of 12 January

15 January

Industrialization: (i) English Industrial Revolution: Causes and Impact on Society (ii) Industrialization in other countries: USA, Germany, Russia, Japan (iii) Industrialization and Globalization.

Questions of 15 January

16 January and 17 January

Nation-State System: (i) Rise of Nationalism in 19th century (ii) Nationalism: state-building in Germany and Italy (iii) Disintegration of Empires in the face of the emergence of nationalities across the world.

Questions of 16 January

Questions of 17 January

18 January and 19 January

Imperialism and Colonialism: (i) South and South-East Asia (ii) Latin America and South Africa (iii) Australia (iv) Imperialism and free trade: Rise of neo-imperialism.

Questions of 18 January

Questions of 19 January

22 January, 23 January and 24 January

Revolution and Counter Revolution: (i) 19th Century European revolutions (ii) The Russian Revolution of 1917-1921 (iii) Fascist Counter-Revolution, Italy and Germany. (iv) The Chinese Revolution of 1949

Questions of 22 January

Questions of 23 January

Questions of 24 January

25 January and 26 January

World Wars: (i) 1st and 2nd World Wars as Total Wars: Societal implications (ii) World War I: Causes and consequences (iii) World War II: Causes and consequence

Questions of 25 January

Questions of 26 January

29 January and 30 January

The World after World War II: (i) Emergence of two power blocs (ii) Emergence of Third World and non-alignment (iii) UNO and the global disputes.

Questions of 29 January

Questions of 30 January

31 January and 1 February

Liberation from Colonial Rule: (i) Latin America-Bolivar (ii) Arab World-Egypt (iii) Africa-Apartheid to Democracy (iv) South-East Asia-Vietnam

Decolonization and Underdevelopment: (i) Factors constraining development: Latin America, Africa

Questions of 31 January

Questions of 1 February

2 February

Unification of Europe: (i) Post War Foundations: NATO and European Community (ii) Consolidation and Expansion of European Community (iii) European Union.

Questions of 2 February

5 February and 6 February

Disintegration of Soviet Union and the Rise of the Unipolar World: (i) Factors leading to the collapse of Soviet communism and the Soviet Union, 1985-1991 (ii) Political Changes in Eastern Europe 1989-2001. (iii) End of the cold war and US ascendancy in the World as the lone superpower.

Questions of 5 February

Questions of 6 February

Ancient India: 8 February to 8 March

8 and 9 February

Sources: Archaeological sources: Exploration, excavation, epigraphy, numismatics, monuments Literary sources: Indigenous: Primary and secondary; poetry, scientific literature, literature, literature in regional languages, religious literature. Foreign accounts: Greek, Chinese and Arab writers.

Pre-history and Proto-history: Geographical factors; hunting and gathering (paleolithic and mesolithic); Beginning of agriculture (neolithic and chalcolithic).

Questions of 8th February

Questions of 9th February

12 February

Indus Valley Civilization: Origin, date, extent, characteristics, decline, survival and significance, art and architecture.

Questions of 12th February

13 February

Megalithic Cultures: Distribution of pastoral and farming cultures outside the Indus, Development of community life, Settlements, Development of agriculture, Crafts, Pottery, and Iron industry.

Questions of 13th February

14 and 15 February

Aryans and Vedic Period: Expansions of Aryans in India. Vedic Period: Religious and philosophic literature; Transformation from Rig Vedic period to the later Vedic period; Political, social and economical life; Significance of the Vedic Age; Evolution of Monarchy and Varna system.

Questions of 14th February

Questions of 15th February

16 February

Period of Mahajanapadas: Formation of States (Mahajanapada) : Republics and monarchies; Rise of urban centres; Trade routes; Economic growth; Introduction of coinage; Spread of Jainism and Buddhism; Rise of Magadha and Nandas. Iranian and Macedonian invasions and their impact.

Questions of 16 February

19 February and 20 February

Mauryan Empire: Foundation of the Mauryan Empire, Chandragupta, Kautilya and Arthashastra; Ashoka; Concept of Dharma; Edicts; Polity, Administration; Economy; Art, architecture and sculpture; External contacts; Religion; Spread of religion; Literature. Disintegration of the empire; Sungas and Kanvas.

Questions of 19 February

Questions of 20 February

21 February

Post – Mauryan Period (Indo-Greeks, Sakas, Kushanas, Western Kshatrapas): Contact with outside world; growth of urban centres, economy, coinage, development of religions, Mahayana, social conditions, art, architecture, culture, literature and science.

Questions of 21 February

22 February

Early State and Society in Eastern India, Deccan and South India: Kharavela, The Satavahanas, Tamil States of the Sangam Age; Administration, economy, land grants, coinage, trade guilds and urban centres; Buddhist centres; Sangam literature and culture; Art and architecture.

Questions of 22 February

23, 26, 27 and 28 February

Guptas, Vakatakas and Vardhanas: Polity and administration, Economic conditions, Coinage of the Guptas, Land grants, Decline of urban centres, Indian feudalism, Caste system, Position of women, Education and educational institutions; Nalanda, Vikramshila and Vallabhi, Literature, scientific literature, art and architecture.

Questions of 23 February

Questions of 26 February

Questions of 27 February

Questions of 28 February

1, 2, 5 March

Regional States during Gupta Era: The Kadambas, Pallavas, Chalukyas of Badami; Polity and Administration, Trade guilds, Literature; growth of Vaishnava and Saiva religions. Tamil Bhakti movement, Shankaracharya; Vedanta; Institutions of temple and temple architecture; Palas, Senas, Rashtrakutas, Paramaras, Polity and administration; Cultural aspects. Arab conquest of Sind; Alberuni, The Chalukyas of Kalyana, Cholas, Hoysalas, Pandyas; Polity and Administration; local Govern-ment; Growth of art and architecture, religious sects, Institution of temple and Mathas, Agraharas, education and literature, economy and society.

Questions of 1 March

Questions of 2 March

5 and 6 March

Themes in Early Indian Cultural History: Languages and texts, major stages in the evolution of art and architecture, major philosophical thinkers and schools, ideas in Science and Mathematics.

Questions of 5 March

Questions of 6 March

Medieval India: 8 March to 8 April

8, 9 and 12 March

Early Medieval India, 750-1200: – Polity: Major political developments in Northern India and the Peninsula, origin and the rise of Rajputs – The Cholas: administration, village economy and society – “Indian Feudalism” – Agrarian economy and urban settlements – Trade and commerce – Society: the status of the Brahman and the new social order – Condition of women – Indian science and technology

Questions of 8 March

Questions of 9 March

Questions of 12 March

13,14, 15 and 16 March

Cultural Traditions in India, 750- 1200: – Philosophy: Skankaracharya and Vedanta, Ramanuja and Vishishtadvaita, Madhva and BrahmaMimansa – Religion: Forms and features of religion, Tamil devotional cult, growth of Bhakti, Islam and its arrival in India, Sufism – Literature: Literature in Sanskrit, growth of Tamil literature, literature in the newly developing languages, Kalhan’s Rajtarangini, Alberuni’s India – Art and Architecture: Temple architecture, sculpture, painting

Questions of 13 March

Questions of 14 March

Questions of 15 March

Questions of 16 March

19 March

The Thirteenth Century: – Establishment of the Delhi Sultanate: The Ghurian invasions – factors behind Ghurian success – Economic, social and cultural consequences – Foundation of Delhi Sultanate and early Turkish Sultans – Consolidation: The rule of Iltutmish and Balban

Questions of 19 March

20, 21, 22 and 23 March

The Fourteenth Century: – “The Khalji Revolution” – Alauddin Khalji: Conquests and territorial expansion, agrarian and economic measures – Muhammad Tughluq: Major projects, agrarian measures, bureaucracy of Muhammad Tughluq – Firuz Tughluq: Agrarian measures, achievements in civil engineering and public works, decline of the Sultanate, foreign contacts and Ibn Battuta’s account

Questions of 20 March

Questions of 21 March

Questions of 22 March

Questions of 23 March

26 and 27 March

Society, Culture and Economy in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries: – Society: composition of rural society, ruling classes, town dwellers, women, religious classes, caste and slavery under the Sultanate, Bhakti movement, Sufi movement – Culture: Persian literature, literature in the regional languages of North India, literature in the languages of South India, Sultanate architecture and new structural forms, painting, evolution of a composite culture – Economy: Agricultural production, rise of urban economy and non-agricultural production, trade and commerce

Questions of 26 March

Questions of 27 March

28, 29 and 30 March

The Fifteenth and Early Sixteenth Century – Political Developments and Economy: – Rise of Provincial Dynasties: Bengal, Kashmir (Zainul Abedin), Gujarat, Malwa, Bahmanids – The Vijayanagra Empire – Lodis – Mughal Empire, First phase: Babur and Humayun – The Sur Empire: Sher Shah’s administration – Portuguese Colonial enterprise – Bhakti and Sufi Movements

Questions of 28 March

Questions of 29 March

Questions of 30 March

Questions of 2 April

3 April

The Fifteenth and early Sixteenth Century – Society and Culture: – Regional cultural specificities – Literary traditions – Provincial architecture – Society, culture, literature and the arts in Vijayanagara Empire.

Questions of 3 April

4 April

Akbar: – Conquests and consolidation of the Empire – Establishment of Jagir and Mansab systems – Rajput policy – Evolution of religious and social outlook, theory of Sulh-i-kul and religious policy – Court patronage of art and technology

Questions of 4 April

5 April

Mughal Empire in the Seventeenth Century: – Major administrative policies of Jahangir, Shahjahan and Aurangzeb – The Empire and the Zamindars – Religious policies of Jahangir, Shahjahan and Aurangzeb – Nature of the Mughal State – Late Seventeenth century crisis and the revolts – The Ahom Kingdom – Shivaji and the early Maratha Kingdom.

Questions of 5 April

Economy and Society in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries: – Population, agricultural production, craft production – Towns, commerce with Europe through Dutch, English and French companies : a trade revolution – Indian mercantile classes, banking, insurance and credit systems – Condition of peasants, condition of women – Evolution of the Sikh community and the Khalsa Panth

6 and 7 April

Culture in the Mughal Empire: – Persian histories and other literature – Hindi and other religious literature – Mughal architecture – Mughal painting – Provincial architecture and painting – Classical music – Science and technology

The Eighteenth Century: – Factors for the decline of the Mughal Empire – The regional principalities: Nizam’s Deccan, Bengal, Awadh – Maratha ascendancy under the Peshwas – The Maratha fiscal and financial system – Emergence of Afghan Power, Battle of Panipat:1761 – State of politics, culture and economy on the eve of the British conquest.

Questions of 6 and 7 April