Unit 15: Paper 2 — Authoritarian States (20th Century)
Topic 15.2: Consolidation and maintenance of power Questions
Practice 20 exam-style questions for IB History Topic 15.2. Review the question stems below, then unlock the full Question Bank to access markschemes, model answers, and AI grading.
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What was the name of the secret police used to crush opposition in Stalin's Soviet Union?
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Which Nazi minister ran the Ministry of Propaganda, controlling the media, rallies and film industry?
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What was the Gulag in the Soviet Union?
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During which event did the cult of Mao Zedong reach its peak, with his sayings distributed in the Little Red Book?
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Which Chinese campaign of 1957 silenced critics who had spoken out during the earlier Hundred Flowers period?
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Analyse the extent to which the establishment of a one-party state was essential to maintaining authoritarian control in two states, each chosen from a different region.
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Examine the methods used by two authoritarian states, each chosen from a different region, to consolidate and maintain their power.
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Evaluate the view that propaganda maintained consent while terror maintained control in two authoritarian states, each chosen from a different region.
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Evaluate the importance of force and terror in maintaining the power of two authoritarian states, each chosen from a different region.
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Discuss the role of law and constitutional change in consolidating the power of two authoritarian leaders, each chosen from a different region.
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Examine the reasons why organised opposition remained weak in two authoritarian states, each chosen from a different region.
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To what extent did the cult of personality maintain the power of two authoritarian leaders, each chosen from a different region?
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Discuss the importance of the secret police and surveillance in maintaining control over opposition in two authoritarian states, each chosen from a different region.
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Compare and contrast the use of propaganda by two authoritarian states, each chosen from a different region, to maintain power.
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To what extent were purges of internal rivals more important than mass terror in securing authoritarian control in two states, each chosen from a different region.
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Analyse the reasons why authoritarian leaders combined methods of persuasion with methods of coercion to maintain their power, with reference to two states from different regions.
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Compare and contrast the methods used to deal with opposition in two authoritarian states, each chosen from a different region.
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Examine how one named authoritarian leader from Europe and one from a different region eliminated their rivals in order to consolidate power.
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Analyse the role of concentration camps and forced-labour camps in dealing with opposition in two authoritarian states, each chosen from a different region.
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Discuss the importance of controlling the media and the arts in maintaining the power of two authoritarian states, each chosen from a different region.
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