World History Notes for UPSC 2023

Feb 09, 2023, 16:45 IST

History is crucial in the UPSC Civil Service Prelims and Mains exams. History is separated into three sections for the Prelims examination: Ancient India, Medieval India, and Modern History. World History is also included in the UPSC Mains syllabus for Civil Services Exam.

This section of the General Studies paper includes events during the 18th century. Aspirants must have a solid understanding of World History to face this section. A good comprehension of World history would benefit applicants in General Studies Paper 1 and General Studies Paper 2.

In General Studies Paper 1, UPSC never asks for minute facts from World History. In comparison to Indian History, it necessitates a more generalist perspective. Aspirants should not place too much emphasis on statistics and figures. They should work on developing an analytical approach to World History.

UPSC World History Syllabus

We have already prepared the UPSC curriculum for the Mains examination. The UPSC curriculum for World History in General Studies Mains is shown below. World History will contain 18th-century events such as:

• Revolutionary industrialization.
• Colonization.
• Decolonization.
• World War II.
• National boundaries are being redrawn.
• Political ideologies such as capitalism, socialism, communism, and so on - their manifestations and societal implications.

Important World History Focus Areas for UPSC Mains/Important World History Topics for UPSC Exam:

• Revolution in Russia.
• The French Revolution began in 1789.
• Imperialism.
• Nazism.
• Fascism.
• Italy's unification.
• German unification.
• Cold War and Bipolar World.
• The World Is Unipolar.
• The disintegration of the USSR.

UPSC Mains World History Books

Important Books & Online Study Materials for UPSC Mains World History:

• NCERT Books for History (The recommended textbook is History: NCERT Class XI - Themes in World History).
• Norman Lowe's Mastering Modern World History
• BV Rao's Modern World History
• Jain & Mathur's Modern World History
• Physics Wallah Online Study Materials

UPSC Mains World History Questions

Previous year UPSC Mains world history questions are mentioned below:

UPSC World History 2019 Questions

• Explain how the American and French Revolutions laid the groundwork for the current world.

UPSC World History 2016 Questions

• The new elite of Western-educated Africans led the anti-colonial uprisings in West Africa. Examine.

UPSC World History 2015 Questions

• Why did England experience the first industrial revolution? Discuss the people's quality of life during industrialization. How does that compare to the situation in India today?
• To what extent may Germany be blamed for starting the two World Wars? Examine critically

UPSC World History 2014 Questions

• What primary global political, economic, and social factors fueled India's anti-colonial struggle?
• What were the events that precipitated the 1956 Suez Crisis? How did it deal with the final nail in the coffin of Britain's self-image as a world power?
• Lenin's New Economic Policy - 1921 affected India's policies shortly after independence. Evaluate.

UPSC World History 2013 Questions

• "Latecomer" Certain variables in Japan's industrial revolution were substantially different from those in the West.
• Africa was arbitrarily divided into states as a result of European competition. Analyse.
• The American Revolution was a financial uprising against mercantilism. Substantiate.
• What were policy instruments used to combat the Great Depression?

How to Prepare for UPSC CSE World History?

The UPSC has only briefly addressed the world history syllabus. As a result, most of the questions in the main examination appear to be from outside the syllabus. As a result, you must rebuild the syllabus with great care. you can get direct aid for this from the world history syllabus of the history optional. There is no need to go into detail about these topics here; simply understanding them will help you answer the GS world history section.

Let's look at prior years' UPSC mains Paper 1 question papers. You can find that no questions from international history were asked in 2018, one in 2017 (decolonization in the Malay Peninsula), and one in 2016. (anti-colonial struggle by elite western-educated individuals in West Africa). Given this pattern, it would be prudent not to devote too much time and attention to an in-depth study of World History.

However, no aspirant should walk the Exam unprepared for any part of the curriculum. The same is true for World History.

Given the time an aspirant devotes to preparation, there are two options. First, if applicants begin their preparation a year before the Prelims, they might read the Story of Civilization Part-I & Part-II (Arjun Dev) old NCERT book. They can next study the Vajiram yellow booklet, a world history book by Krishna Reddy, and "Mastering Modern World History" by Norman Lowe. However, it should be noted that any book the candidate reads should be given adequate time to be revised at least three times.

Second, given the shortage of time and weight in the main paper, if the aspirant is only beginning to prepare for global history after Prelims, they should only try the History of Civilization Part-I & Part-II (Arjun Dev) old NCERT book carefully.

Overall, an applicant should not devote too much effort to the world history section of the GS mains paper -1 because the syllabus of the GS mains paper -1 is wide about the number of questions asked in the Main Exam. Instead, that time can be spent on other aspects of history.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1. What are the advantages of "globalisation"?

Ans.

1. Exposure to different cultures
2. Technological advancement
3. Higher living standards
4. The emergence of new talent
5. Higher living standards

Q2. What are the "primary components of globalisation"?

Ans. The following are the primary components of globalisation:

1. Foreign trade
2. Foreign investment
3. Capital market movements
4. Migration of labour
5. Technology diffusion

Q3. What are the "varieties of globalisation"?

Ans. The three major types of globalisation are political, economic, and cultural.

Q4. Which Ncert textbook is suitable for world history?

Ans. In general, the new NCERT books are advised for geography, and the old NCERT books are for history. The books' keywords must all be listed. Before the UPSC exam, review the NCERT books two to three times.

Q5. Can I skip newspaper reading for the UPSC?

Ans. Newspapers offer essential study material for current affairs, which is a significant component of the questions answered in the IAS exam and the traditional NCERT textbooks and reference books. Aspirants should know that reading the entire newspaper in-depth is not mandatory for IAS preparation.

Q6. Is knowledge of world history relevant to the UPSC?

Ans. The UPSC prelims test and the USPC civil services syllabus both heavy weight ancient history. In the IAS prelims, at least 5 to 6 questions are drawn from this area each year.

Q7. How Hard Is AP World History?

Ans. Alumni of the course have given AP World History a difficulty rating of 6.1/10, considered extremely high (the 10th most difficult out of the 28 large AP classes surveyed). With 62% of students graduating with a 3 or better, the pass rate is average compared to comparable AP classes.

Q8. What book should I study for UPSC's World History section?

Ans. I could even study for the general education exam. The finest book for world history for the UPSC will then be discussed in this article, along with the world history curriculum. Mastering Modern World History by Norman Lowe is one of UPSC's greatest textbooks for world history. The most popular book on world history for the UPSC is this one.