Causes and Consequences in History
Work out why past events happened and what happened because of them: suggest possible reasons, notice that big events usually have more than one cause, and trace the consequences that followed
What a learner can do afterwards
- Give a sensible reason why a historical event happened (e.g., 'The Great Fire spread because the houses were wooden and close together')
- Name more than one cause for the same event when asked what led to it
- Describe a change that resulted from an event, such as rebuilding rules requiring brick or stone houses after the Great Fire of London.
1 · Read
A cause is a reason an event happened. A consequence is something that happened because of it. Ask why the event happened and what changed as a result. Several causes may work together. Explain how each helped, using clues. Something happening later does not, by itself, show that the earlier event caused it.
The Great Fire of London began in a bakery in 1666. Many houses had wooden frames and stood close together. Wood could burn, and fire could reach nearby buildings. Strong winds helped carry burning sparks. These conditions helped the fire spread. Where the fire began and why it spread are different questions.
After the fire, rebuilding rules for the City of London required houses to be built in brick or stone. These materials do not burn like wood. The rules aimed to reduce the risk of another spreading fire. The new rules were a consequence of the fire. They did not make every part of a house unable to burn.
Titanic struck an iceberg in 1912. Damage to its hull, the ship's outer body, let water enter, and the ship sank. Too few lifeboats did not make it sink. They left too little rescue space for everyone aboard. A cause of sinking and a reason rescue space was limited explain different parts of the disaster.
Here is a made-up example. A library opens, and later more children enjoy reading. The order alone does not tell us why. Did the library offer reading clubs that helped? Did something else change? Seek clues about a link. If records show that new clubs helped children enjoy reading, you can explain that consequence.
Use clues to explain reasons and results. Several causes may work together. A later event needs a link before you call it a consequence.
Lesson, questions and learning cards written for this dataset. Made-up examples are identified in the text.
Practice stories and learning cards written for this dataset. The stories are fictional examples of historical reasoning.
More to read
Two reasons for a change
This is a made-up story for practising history questions, not evidence about a real village.
A village market becomes busier. A new road makes it easier for nearby farmers to bring food. The market also starts opening on a day when more people can visit. In this story, both changes help bring more people to the market.
Explain each link. The road helps people reach the market. The new opening day gives more people a chance to attend. Naming two changes is not enough without explaining how they helped.
For a real market, you would need records or other clues before accepting this explanation.
Different results for different people
This is a made-up practice story.
A village opens a bridge across a river. People who once took a long route can now reach the market sooner. A boat worker who earned money taking people across has fewer customers. The same bridge brings different changes to different people.
A consequence is a result of an event. Here, the story tells us how the bridge changes journeys and work. We can explain both links instead of calling the bridge good or bad for everyone.
When studying a real bridge, ask whose lives changed and look for clues about their journeys and work.
Check the link
This is a made-up practice story.
A town starts a new bus route. Later, its football team wins a match. These events happened in that order, but the order does not show that the bus route caused the win.
You could ask whether the route helped players reach practice. You would then need clues that it did, and more clues about how practice helped the team. The win may have other causes too. Do not invent the missing links.
In history, dates help put events in order. To explain a cause, also look for evidence of how one thing helped bring about another.
2 · Watch
به انگلیسیTake it off screen
Where it sits
Learn first
Nothing; this is a starting point.
Optional connections
This opens up
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.