History / Year 8 / Historical Knowledge and Understanding

Curriculum content descriptions

Continuity and change in society in ONE of the following areas: crime and punishment; military and defence systems; towns, cities and commerce (ACDSEH051)

Elaborations
  • investigating different types of crime and punishment (for example, trial by combat as a privilege granted to the nobility; being hung, drawn and quartered as a punishment for heinous crimes such as treason, and the use of the ducking stool as a punishment for women) and in what ways the nature of crime and punishment stayed the same, or changed over time
General capabilities
  • Critical and creative thinking Critical and creative thinking
  • Intercultural understanding Intercultural understanding
ScOT terms

Cities,  Fiefdoms,  Armed forces,  Security,  Sentencing,  Law,  Middle Ages,  Towns

Video

Life in Medieval Europe: Trading for food

What are the essential things you need to survive? Food, water, medicine, shelter, sanitation ... anything else? How do you obtain these basic requirements? How might people living in Medieval Europe have survived if they had no money or land? In this clip, discover a useful practice that helped peasants negotiate a living. ...

Video

Life in Medieval Europe: Rough justice

How do we determine whether someone is innocent or guilty of a crime? Our legal system is quite different to the one that was practised in Medieval Europe, where trials by combat or ordeal were not uncommon. In this clip, consider the merits of the medieval legal system. This clip is one in a series of five.

Video

Foreign Correspondent: Dirty tricks in 1066

How was William of Normandy able to defeat the Saxon army of Harold Godwinson in 1066 and become the king of England? The Norman's victory at Hastings marked the beginning of their complete conquest of England over the following few years. Discover the tactics of both sides in the Battle of Hastings. This clip is the second ...

Video

Foreign Correspondent: The Battle of Hastings, again!

How was England changed forever by one battle in 1066? In that year, a Norman army led by Duke William of Normandy sailed to England and defeated the Saxon army of Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings. Visit the site of the battle during a re-enactment by medieval history buffs. This is the first of two clips.

Text

The Mongol conquests

This is an illustrated four-part historical account of the rise and fall of the Mongol Empire, the largest contiguous land empire in history. It includes sections on: factors leading to the Mongol conquests; the role of Chinggis (Genghis) Khan; how a small group of Mongols succeeded in conquering a vast domain; and the ...

Text

The Mongols in world history

This rich online resource is about the Mongol empire viewed in the context of the beginnings of world history. It provides a comprehensive set of materials about the Mongol culture and its history during the period from the birth of Temujin - later Chinggis (Genghis) Khan - in about 1162 to the end of the empire in 1368. ...

Text

Loot and land

This resource is about Viking conquests in the British Isles. It includes text and some images. The resource is organised under seven topic headings: Terror from the sea; Lindisfarne sacked; Who were the Vikings?; Ships and navigation; A fair wind for raiding; The need for more land; and Find out more. The images are interposed ...

Interactive

Viking quest

This interactive game is about a raid by Vikings to gain the treasures of the monastery of Lindisfarne in Scotland. The game consists of a series of choices each player has to make at each stage of the raid. These include selecting a site to build a boat to sail to Lindisfarne, deciding on the size of the boat, and choosing ...

Interactive

Paint the cathedral

This simple interactive game is about the medieval cathedral of Wells in England. It includes an image of the west front of the cathedral today, some background information about the cathedral and its decorations in medieval times, and instructions on how to 'paint' the west wing.

Text

Key figures in Mongol history

This resource, a component of the online resource The Mongols in world history, focuses on key figures in Mongol history. It includes biographical data on Chinggis (Genghis) Khan, his son Ogodei and grandson Khubilai Khan, and Khubilai's wife Chabi. It also gives an account of Marco Polo and Phags-pa, a Tibetan Buddhist ...

Text

Black Death: the effect of the plague

This resource is about the effects of the plague, known as the Black Death, in rural England from 1348 to 1352. The resource describes deserted villages in rural England, uninhabited after the death of the population from the plague. It reports that the biggest effect of the plague was in rural areas because most people ...

Text

Ottoman Empire (1301-1922)

This resource is about the rise and fall of the Islamic Ottoman Empire. It includes text and some images. The resource is organised under eight topic headings: Introduction; Why was the Empire successful?; Constantinople; Other religions; Sultan and court; Suleiman – a golden age; Decline; and Find out more. The images ...

Image

The mighty Aztecs

Who were the Mexihcah? Discover the rich and brutal history of the Aztec culture and the birth of Modern Mexico.

Video

Mabo: the native title revolution

This a multi-layered website about the life and times of Eddie Mabo and the part he played in Indigenous land rights, produced by the National Sound and Film Archive. There are section headings on: The Mabo film; Mer; The man; The case; Native title; Land rights; and Terra Nullius. Each heading has multiple subheadings ...

Video

How did the world become interconnected?

This 10 minute video in 3 parts offers an overview of the growth of information networks through developments in the technologies of communication and transportation. Part 1 discusses how writing, inventions of paper and printing improved communication between societies and the development of transport and courier systems ...

Audio

Radio National: Peter Lalor's Bakery Hill speech

What events led to the attack on the Eureka Stockade (Eureka rebellion) on the Ballarat goldfield in 1854? This audio clip examines the famous Bakery Hill speech by activist Peter Lalor. Listen to Dr Anne Beggs-Sunter discuss the effect that the speech had on the assembled miners. Find out why this is considered a key event ...

Video

Fair and reliable reporting on Medieval Angkor

What are the dangers of relying on one historical source for an understanding of an ancient society? How important is it for historians to verify information? In this animation of one of history's most significant documents, Zhou Dugaun's 'A Record of Cambodia: the land and its People', consider the reliability of Zhou's ...

Video

Zhou Daguan's account of Medieval Angkor

The city of Angkor was the centre of the mighty Khmer Empire for five hundred years, beginning around 900 CE. It was not only one of the most populous cities in the world, it featured some of the most sophisticated architecture and infrastructure, particularly in regards to water distribution. In this beautiful animation, ...

Online

Indigenous Stories about War and Invasion

This is a website about Indigenous experiences of invasion and war during the British invasion, World War I and World War II. The resource is presented in three sections: Introductory information; Story Objects; and Story Education Resources. There are eight story objects that tell the stories of individuals, events and ...

Text

Year 8: democracy and law in action

This collection of resource sheets for students and teachers support investigations of the types of law in Australian and how laws are made through parliament and the courts. Activities introduce the concept of customary law and different perspectives about Australia's national identity. The resources are designed to provide ...