History Question Paper 2025 [AHSEC Class 12 History Question Papers]

HISTORY QUESTION PAPER 2025
AHSEC Class 12 History Question Papers

Full Marks: 80 | Pass Marks: 24 | Time: 3 Hours

1. Answer any eight of the following: 1*8=8

a) Who is known as the 'Father of Indian Archaeology'?

b) Name one Janapada.

c) Who composed the Allahabad Pillar Inscription?

d) Where was Buddha born?

e) During whose reign did the Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang visit Assam?

f) Who was the first prince of Assam to revolt against the British?

g) Who authored 'Rihla'?

h) Who started the Virashaiva Tradition in Karnataka?

i) Name the best-known woman poet of the Bhakti tradition.

j) What is a Bell of Arms?

k) Name the leader of the Vietnam War.

l) Which country has the longest written Constitution?

2. Answer any eight of the following in brief: 2*8=16

a) Name any two important sites of the Harappan Civilization.

b) What were the two settlements of the Harappan Civilization?

c) Write any two vows of Jain monks and nuns.

d) Name two cities of ancient Assam.

e) Name two important 'Tantra Sastra' of ancient Assam.

f) What, according to historians, were the two categories of Bhakti traditions?

g) Who discovered the ruins at Hampi and when?

h) Name any two types of land under Akbar.

i) Who introduced the Permanent Settlement in Bengal and when?

j) What was Northern Black Polished Ware?

3. Answer any eight of the following: 4*8=32

a) Explain why the Harappan Civilization is called an urban civilization.

b) Which 'Smriti' laid down the duties of the Chandalas? What were those duties according to the text?

c) Discuss the causes of the rise of Magadha.

d) Write a note on Buddhist texts.

e) Discuss the Paik system under the Ahoms.

f) What did Bernier state regarding land ownership in India?

g) Write briefly about the popular practices of Islam.

h) Discuss the role of Zamindars during the Mughal period.

i) What arguments were put forward by the members of the Constituent Assembly in favour of a strong Central Government?

j) Write a note on the Santhals.

k) Write a brief note on the Revolt of 1857.

l) Why was 'salt' destroyed by the colonial government? Why did Mahatma Gandhi consider the salt tax more oppressive than other taxes?

m) Describe briefly the accounts of Assam by Shihabuddin Talish.

n) Discuss the revolts against the British during the first half of the 19th century in Assam.

4. Read the following passage and answer the questions: 6*3=18

a) How Artefacts are identified?

"Processing of food required grinding equipment as well as vessels for mixing, blending and cooking. These were made of stone, metal and terracotta. This is an excerpt from one of the earliest reports on excavations at Mohenjodaro, the best-known Harappan site..."

Saddle querns...are found in considerable numbers... and they seem to have been the only means in use for grinding cereals. As a rule, they were roughly made of hard, gritty, igneous rock or sandstone and mostly show signs of hard usage. As their bases are usually convex, they must have been set in the earth or in mud to prevent their rocking. Two main types have been found: those on which another smaller stone was pushed or rolled to and fro, and others with which a second stone was used as a pounder, eventually making a large cavity in the nether stone. Querns of the former type were probably used solely for grain: the second type possibly only for pounding herbs and spices for making curries. In fact, stones of this latter type are dubbed "curry stones" by our workmen and our cook asked for the loan of one from museum for use in the kitchen.

(From Ernest Mackay, 'Further Excavations at Mohenjo-daro, 1937).

Questions:

(i) What was the equipment used for grinding cereals? (1)

(ii) What were the materials used for making grinding equipment? (2)

(iii) What were the types of grinding equipment? How were they used? (1+2=3)

(b) Ibn Battuta's account of Delhi:

The city of Delhi covers a wide area and has a large population... The rampart around the city without parallel.

The breadth of its wall is eleven cubits; and inside it are houses for night sentry and gate-keepers. Inside the ramparts, there are storehouses for storing edibles, magazines, ammunition, ballistas and siege machines. The grains that are stored (if their ramparts) can last for a long time, without rotting... In the interior of the rampart, horsemen as well as infantrymen move from one end of the city to another. The rampart is pierced through by windows which open on the side of the city, and it is through these windows that light enters inside. The lower part of the rampart is built of stone; the upper part of Brichs. It has many towers close to one another. There are twenty eight gates of this city which are called darwaza, of there, the Budaun Darwaza is the greatest; inside the Mandui Darwaza there is a grain market. It (the city of Delhi) has a fine cemetery in which graves have domes over them, and those that do not have a dome, have an arch, for sure. In the cemetery they sow flowers such as tuberose, jasmine, wild rose etc; and flowers blossom there in all seasons.

Questions:

(i) How many gates were there in the city of Delhi? Name the greatest gate. (1+1=2)

(ii) Give a brief description of the ramparts of Delhi as described by Ibn Battuta. (2)

(iii) How was the cemetery of Delhi? (2)

Welcoming the objectives Resolution introduced by Jawaharlal Nehru, N. G. Ranga said: Sir, there is a lot of talk about minorities. Who are the real minorities? Not the Hindus in the so-called Pakistan provinces, not the sikhs, not even the Muslims. No, the real minorities are the masses of this country. There people are so depressed and oppressed and suppressed till now that they are not able to take advantage of the ordinary civil rights. What is the position? You go to the tribal areas. According to law, their own traditional law, their tribal law, their lands cannot be alienated. Yet our merchants go there, and in the so-called free market they are able to snatch their lands. Thus, even though the law goes against this snatching away of their lands, still the merchants are able to turn the tribal people into veritable slaves by various kinds of bonds, and make them hereditary bond-slaves. Let us go to the ordinary villages. There goes the money-lender with his money and he is able to get the villages in his pocket. There is the landlord himself, the zamindar, and the malguzar and there are various other people who are able to exploit there villages. There is no elementary education even among the people. These are the real minorities that need protection and assurances of protection. In order to give them the necessary protection, we will need much more than this Resolution.

Questions:

(i) Who are according to N. G. Ranga the real minorities? (1)

(ii) Why are they the real minorities? (3)

(iii) Why do they need protection? (2)

5. (i) Draw the map of India and locate any three important centres of Revolt of 1857. 3+3=6

(ii) Draw the map of India and locate any three important centres of Revolt of 1857. 3+3=6