WESTMINSTER SCHOOL
THE CHALLENGE 2013
HISTORY
Tuesday 30 April 2013
You have ONE HOUR for this paper. Answer
ALL the questions in Section A and ONE
essay from Section B.
You should spend 30 minutes on Section A
and 30 minutes on Section B.
Section A: Emperor Justinian (527-565)
Historical background
Justinian (527-565) ruled the ‘Byzantine’ Empire (centred on what we would today call
Turkey), which was Christian and Greek-speaking. He is famous for having reversed the
decline of the Byzantine Empire, for providing it with new codes of law, for his great building
projects, and for his programme of expansion through war. The capital of Justinian’s empire
was Constantinople, which today we call Istanbul.
Don’t worry at all if you have never studied Justinian, or have never even heard of him
before. No ‘own knowledge’ is expected or required. All the information you need is to be
found in the paper.
Source A
A map of the expansion of the Byzantine Empire during Justinian’s reign. The most
important conquests were Italy and northern Africa.
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Source B
An account by Procopius, a famous writer of the period and secretary to Justinian’s leading
general, Belisarius, of the ‘Triumph’ (a ceremony celebrating military victory) after the
defeat in the year 534 of the Vandal King Gelimer, who had ruled in North Africa. Purple is
traditionally a colour associated with emperors or those in control.
‘And there were slaves in the Triumph, among whom was Gelimer himself, wearing some
sort of a purple garment upon his shoulders, and all his family, and as many of the Vandals
as were very tall and fair of body. And when Gelimer reached the hippodrome
[Constantinople’s chariot-racing track, which could accommodate thousands of people] and
saw the emperor sitting upon a lofty seat and the people standing on either side and
realized as he looked about in what an evil plight he was, he neither wept nor cried out, but
ceased not saying over in the words of the Hebrew scripture: "Vanity of vanities, all is
vanity." And when he came before the emperor's seat, they stripped off the purple garment,
and compelled him to fall prone on the ground and do obeisance to the Emperor Justinian.
This also Belisarius did, as he was a subject of the emperor along with him.’
Source C
A ‘novel’, or new law, published by Justinian in the year 538.
‘All new churches must reflect the Emperor’s piety [sense of religion] and majesty. They
must be decorated with the imperial image and show the building to be as much a house of
the Emperor as a House of God.’
Source D
A mosaic in the church of San Vitale in Ravenna (in NE Italy), showing Justinian surrounded
by his followers. The mosaic probably dates from the 540s and is the only known image of
the emperor to date from his lifetime. ‘MAXIMIANUS’ was the Bishop of Ravenna.
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Please turn over
Source E
Dame Averil Cameron, a modern-day historian, gives her view on the expansion of
Justinian’s empire.
‘… here, after all, is an emperor in Constantinople using eastern armies to reclaim what he
still thinks of as Roman territory. In North Africa, where the conquest was most successful
and over which the general Belisarius celebrated a magnificent triumph in Constantinople in
AD 534, we have a spectacle of a Greek administration, imposed from Constantinople in the
name of Roman restoration, being set up in a province which was traditionally a bastion
[secure place] of Latin-speaking Christianity.’
QUESTIONS
1. Look at Source A. What does the map tell you about Justinian’s view of his empire?
[3 marks]
2. Look at Source D. How useful is this image as a source about Justinian? Explain your
answer.
[5 marks]
3. Read Source B. What does this text tell you about Justinian’s way of dealing with
those he conquered?
[5 marks]
4. What do ALL of these Sources tell you about Justinian’s priorities as emperor? In
working out your response, try to evaluate the relative usefulness and reliability of
the evidence based on all the information given to you.
[12 marks]
Total: 25 marks
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Section B: Essays
Instructions: Answer ONE of the following questions.
You should try to use examples and comparisons from your study of history as much as
possible, and you must write in good English. Each question carries 25 marks.
1.
Which would tell you more about the history of Britain: the history of British sport
or the history of British Prime Ministers? Explain your answer fully.
2.
What did the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games tell you about
Britain’s attitude to its past?
3.
Are newspapers or archived news websites good historical sources? Explain your
answer fully.
4.
Why does the history of war preoccupy so many historians?
5.
Should we care about the discovery of Richard III’s remains?
6.
Is there any one personality, event, or battle which you think should be taught in all
British schools? Explain your answer fully.
7.
The 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War falls next year. Do
historical anniversaries matter? Explain your answer fully.
Total: 25 marks
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End of paper