Sources and Evidence
Historians use primary sources from the time and secondary sources written later to build a picture of the past.
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Historians use primary sources from the time and secondary sources written later to build a picture of the past.
- Primary: diaries, letters, photographs
- Secondary: textbooks and documentaries
- Judge sources by origin, purpose and bias
🧠 Quick quiz
Three questions. Score 2 or more to complete the topic.
What is Sources and Evidence?
Within History, which covers ancient civilisations, empires, revolutions, world wars and the making of the modern world, this topic explains Sources and Evidence. History topics connect events, people and ideas across time, so each one here gives a clear summary and a way to test your understanding.
Check that you can explain Sources and Evidence in your own words and give one example from everyday life. If you can do that, you have understood the core idea.
Understanding Sources and Evidence helps you explain change over time and judge why events happened, which is the core skill in history essays.
Sources and Evidence in detail
Historical sources are the raw material of history. Primary sources come from the time being studied, such as letters, diaries, photographs, laws, objects and eyewitness accounts. Secondary sources are made later by people who were not there, such as textbooks, documentaries and biographies.
To use a source, ask who made it, when and why, who it was for and what it leaves out. Provenance, content and context together show its usefulness. A biased source can still be valuable if you understand why it was written. Comparing several sources, a process called cross-referencing, gives a more reliable picture than relying on one.
How the interactive helps you understand Sources and Evidence
Click a card to flip it and reveal the answer, then move on to the next one.
Before you change anything, predict the result. Then change one value at a time and check whether your prediction was right. This is a quick way to build a correct mental model of Sources and Evidence.
Real-life uses and examples
- Explain the causes and consequences of Sources and Evidence in a well-structured paragraph.
- Compare Sources and Evidence with another event to spot patterns of change and continuity.
- Build a timeline that shows when Sources and Evidence happened and what came before and after.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Describing events without explaining why they happened.
- Treating one source as the whole story when you study Sources and Evidence.
- Learning the definition without testing it. Use the quiz and the interactive to check that you can apply the idea.
Frequently asked questions about Sources and Evidence
What is Sources and Evidence?
Historians use primary sources from the time and secondary sources written later to build a picture of the past.
What are the most important points about Sources and Evidence?
The main points are: Primary: diaries, letters, photographs; Secondary: textbooks and documentaries; Judge sources by origin, purpose and bias.
Why is Sources and Evidence useful?
Understanding Sources and Evidence helps you explain change over time and judge why events happened, which is the core skill in history essays.
How can I practise Sources and Evidence?
Open the interactive at the top of this page and change the controls one at a time. Predict the result before each change, then take the three-question quiz. A score of two or more marks the topic as complete on this device.
Which topics are related to Sources and Evidence?
Related topics in History include The Agricultural Revolution, Ancient Egypt, Ancient China.