HISTORY-314
HISTORY
Syllabus for Class 12
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Note:
There will be one Question Paper which will have 50 questions out of which 40 questions need to be
attempted.
HISTORY
Unit I: The Story of the First Cities Harappan Archaeology
Broad overview: Early urban centres.
Story of discovery: Harappan civilization.
Excerpt: Archaeological report on a major site. Discussion: how it has been utilized by
archaeologists/ historians.
Unit II: Political and Economic History: How Inscriptions tell a story
Broad overview: Political and economic history from the Mauryan to the Gupta period.
Story of discovery: Inscriptions and the decipherment of the script. Shifts in the understanding of
political and economic history.
Excerpt: Asokan inscription and Gupta period land grant.
Discussion: Interpretation of inscriptions by historians.
Unit III: Social Histories using the Mahabharata
Broad overview: Issues in social history, including caste,class, kinship, and gender.
Story of discovery: Transmission and publications of the Mahabharata.
Excerpt: From the Mahabharata, illustrating how it has been used by historians.
Unit IV: A History of Buddhism: Sanchi Stupa
Broad overview:
(a) A brief review of religious histories of Vedicreligion, Jainism, Vaisnavism, and Saivism.
(b) Focus on Buddhism.
Story of discovery: Sanchi stupa.
Excerpt: Reproduction of sculptures from Sanchi. Discussion: Ways in which sculpture has been interpreted
by historians, a n d other sources for reconstructing the history of Buddhism.
Unit V: Medieval Society Through Travellers’ Accounts
Broad Overview: Outline of social and cultural life as they appear in travellers’ accounts.
Story of their writings: A discussion of where they travelled, why they travelled, what they wrote, and
For whom they wrote.
Excerpts: from Alberuni, Ibn Batuta, Bernier.
Discussion: What these travel accounts can tell us and how they have been interpreted by
historians?
Unit VI: Religious Histories: The Bhakti-Sufi Tradition
Broad Overview:
(a) Outline of religious developments during this period.
HISTORY-314
(b) Ideas and practices of the Bhakti-Sufi saints.
Story of Transmission: How Bhakti-Sufi compositionshave been preserved.
Excerpt: Extracts from selected Bhakti Sufi works.
Discussion: Ways in which these have been interpreted by historians.
Unit VII: New Architecture: Hampi
Broad Overview:
(a) Outline of new buildings during the Vijayanagar period — temples, forts, irrigation facilities.
(b)Relationship between architecture and the political system.
Story of Discovery: Account of how Hampi was found.
Excerpt: Visuals of buildings at Hampi.
Discussion: Ways in which historians have analyzed andinterpreted these structures.
Unit VIII: Agrarian Relations: The Ain-i-Akbari
Broad overview:
(a) Structure of agrarian relations in the 16th and 17th centuries.
(b) Patterns of change over the period.
Story of Discovery: Account of the compilation andtranslation of Ain-i-Akbari.
Excerpt: From the Ain-i-Akbari
Discussion: Ways in which historians have used the text to reconstruct history.
Unit IX: The Mughal Court: Reconstructing Histories through Chronicles
Broad Overview:
(a) Outline of political history c. 15th-17th centuries.
(b) Discussion of the Mughal court and politics.
Story of Discovery: Account of the production of court chronicles, and their subsequent translation and transmission.
Excerpts: from the Akbarnama and Padshahnama.
Discussion: Ways in which historians have used the textsto reconstruct political histories.
Unit X: Colonialism and Rural Society: Evidence from Official Reports
Broad overview:
(a) Life of zamindars, peasants, and artisans in the late 18th century.
(b) East India Company, revenue settlements, and surveys.
(c) Changes over the nineteenth century.
Story of official records: An account of why official investigations into rural societies were undertaken and the
types of records and reports produced.
Excerpts: From Firminger’s Fifth Report, Accounts of Francis Buchanan-Hamilton, and Deccan Riots Report.
Discussion: What do the official records tell and do not tell, and how they have been used by historians?
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Unit XI: Representations of 1857
Broad Overview:
(a) The events of 1857-58.
(b) How these events were recorded and narrated.
Focus: Lucknow.
Excerpts: Pictures of 1857. Extracts from contemporaryaccounts.
Discussion: How the pictures of 1857 shaped British opinion of what had happened.
Unit XII: Colonialism and Indian Towns: Town Plans and Municipal Reports
Broad Overview: The growth of Mumbai, Chennai, hill stations, and cantonments in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Excerpts: Photographs and paintings. Plans of cities. Extract from town plan reports. Focus on Kolkata town
planning.
Discussion: How the above sources can be used to reconstruct the history of towns? What these sources do
not reveal.
Unit XIII: Mahatma Gandhi Through Contemporary Eyes
Broad Overview:
(a) The nationalist movement 1918-48,
(b) The nature of Gandhian politics and leadership.
Focus: Mahatma Gandhi in 1931.
Excerpts: Reports from English and Indian language newspapers and other contemporary writings.
Discussion: How newspapers can be a source of history.
Unit XIV: Partition through Oral Sources
Broad Overview:
(a) The history of the 1940s;
(b) Nationalism, Communalism, and Partition.
Focus: Punjab and Bengal.
Excerpts: Oral testimonies of those who experienced partition.
Discussion: Ways in which these have been analyzed toreconstruct the history of the event.
Unit XV: The Making of the Constitution
Broad Overview:
(a) Independence and the new nation-state.
(b) The making of the Constitution.
Focus: The Constitutional Assembly debates.
Excerpts: From the debates.
Discussion: What do such debates reveal and how they can be analyzed?
