O Level History 2147 · Topic 8

Depth study D: The United States, 1919–41: past paper questions

86 real questionsasked in 10 of the last 10 exam series2020–2026usually: Explain, Describe

Real questions on depth study d: the united states, 1919–41

The newest 20 of 86 written questions. Open one to see it on the real paper.

2147/12 · May/June 2026 · Q3a[4]
Describe the American reaction to the sinking of the USS Maine.
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2147/12 · May/June 2026 · Q15a[4]
Describe changes to the lives of some American women in the 1920s.
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2147/12 · May/June 2026 · Q15b[6]
Why did people join the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) in the 1920s?
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2147/12 · May/June 2026 · Q15c[10]
How far was Prohibition a failure? Explain your answer.
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2147/12 · May/June 2026 · Q16a[4]
Describe the weaknesses of the US economy by 1929.
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2147/12 · May/June 2026 · Q16b[6]
Why was the banking crisis so important?
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2147/12 · May/June 2026 · Q16c[10]
‘Roosevelt won the 1932 election because of the nature of his campaign.’ How far do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer. Depth study E: The Second World War in Europe and the Asia–Pacific, 1939–c.1945
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2147/13 · May/June 2026 · Q15a[4]
What was the Wall Street Crash of 1929?
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2147/13 · May/June 2026 · Q15b[6]
Why did the Wall Street Crash have serious economic consequences?
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2147/13 · May/June 2026 · Q15c[10]
‘Hoover did almost nothing to help the American people during the Depression.’ How far do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer.
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2147/13 · May/June 2026 · Q16a[4]
What was the Agricultural Adjustment Administration?
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2147/13 · May/June 2026 · Q16b[6]
Why did Roosevelt think that a second New Deal was needed?
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2147/13 · May/June 2026 · Q16c[10]
‘The opposition to the New Deal came from those who thought the government should not be interfering with business.’ How far do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer. Depth study E: The Second World War in Europe and the Asia–Pacific, 1939–c.1945
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2147/12 · May/June 2025 · Q3a[4]
Describe the US intervention in Cuba in 1898.
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2147/12 · May/June 2025 · Q3b[6]
Why was Theodore Roosevelt important in US foreign policy between 1896 and 1898?
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2147/12 · May/June 2025 · Q15a[4]
Which industries did not benefit from the boom in the 1920s?
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2147/12 · May/June 2025 · Q15b[6]
Why did developments outside the United States affect American farming in the 1920s?
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2147/12 · May/June 2025 · Q15c[10]
‘Credit was more important than Republican policies in causing the boom of the 1920s.’ How far do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer.
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2147/12 · May/June 2025 · Q16a[4]
What were the main measures of the Second New Deal?
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2147/12 · May/June 2025 · Q16b[6]
Why were the first hundred days of Roosevelt’s presidency important?
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What examiners said

This question was answered very well, with many candidates confident in their knowledge and understanding of how the motor car industry developed in the 1920s. Stronger responses were able to describe the changes in the production of cars, for example the introduction of the assembly line by Henry Ford and provided statistics to support statements about the increased speed of production. An altern...
— Examiner report, October/November 2023, 2147/12 Q15(a) (Cambridge)

There were mixed responses to this question and some were one sided. Candidates were more confident discussing the other problems caused by prohibition, rather than the corruption of police and judges, with weaker responses not developing identifications to explain ways in which the police and judges were corrupt. Others tended to list the problems together in one paragraph, rather than taking a p...
— Examiner report, May/June 2022, 2147/12 Q15(c) (Cambridge)

This question was well answered and candidates had a good understanding of the experiences of American farmers in the 1920s. Successful responses described the problems experienced by farmers at this time and gained very high marks as a result of identifying four points. These included: overproduction, competition from Canada, reduction in prices and the eviction of tenant farmers because they cou...
— Examiner report, May/June 2021, 2147/12 Q15(a) (Cambridge)

Practise this topic

Answer these questions online and get each one marked against the official mark scheme, with what you missed and how to fix it.

Practise depth study d: the united states, 1919–41

In the syllabus

8.1 How far did the US economy boom in the 1920s?

On what factors was the economic boom based?.
Why did some industries prosper while others did not?.
Why did agriculture not share in the prosperity?.
Did all Americans benefit from the boom?.

8.2 How far did US society change in the 1920s?

What were the ‘Roaring Twenties’?.
How widespread was intolerance in US society?.
Why was Prohibition introduced, and then later repealed?.
How far did the roles of women change during the 1920s?.

8.3 What were the causes and consequences of the Wall Street Crash?

How far was speculation responsible for the Wall Street Crash?.
What impact did the Crash have on the economy?.
What were the social consequences of the Crash?.
Why did Roosevelt win the election of 1932?.

8.4 How successful was the New Deal?

What was the New Deal as introduced in 1933?.
How far did the character of the New Deal change after 1933?.
Why did the New Deal encounter opposition?.
Why did unemployment persist despite the New Deal?.
Did the fact that the New Deal did not solve unemployment mean that it was a failure?.
The expansion of the US economy during the 1920s:; government policies; mass production in industries for cars and other consumer goods; the fortunes of older industries; the development of credit and hire purchase; the decline of agriculture.
Weaknesses in the economy by the late 1920s.
Society in the 1920s:; the ‘Roaring Twenties’; film and other media; Prohibition and gangsterism; restrictions on immigration, the ‘Red Scare’, religious intolerance; discrimination against Black Americans; the Ku Klux Klan; the changing roles of women.
The Wall Street Crash and its financial, economic and social effects.
The reaction of President Hoover to the Crash.
The presidential election of 1932; Hoover’s and Roosevelt’s programmes.
Roosevelt’s inauguration and the ‘Hundred Days’.

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