CBSE 12th Class History Syllabus

Course Structure

Course Syllabus

Themes in Indian History Part - I

Unit 1: The Story of the First Cities: Harappan Archaeology

• Broad overview − Early urban centres.
• Story of discovery − Harappan civilization
• Excerpt − Archaeological report on a major site
• Discussion − How it has been utilized by archaeologists/historians

Unit 2: Political and Economic History: How Inscriptions tell a story

• Broad overview −
  • Political and economic history from the Mauryan to the Gupta period
• Story of discovery −
  • Inscriptions and the decipherment of the script
  • Shifts in the understanding of political and economic history
• Excerpt −
  • Asokan inscription
  • Gupta period land grant
• Discussion −
  • Interpretation of inscriptions by historians

Unit 3: Social Histories: Using the Mahabharata

• Broad overview −

  • Issues in social history

  • Including caste

  • Class

  • Kinship

  • Gender

• Story of discovery −

  • Transmission and publications of the Mahabharata

• Excerpt − From the Mahabharata, illustrating how it has been used by historians

• Discussion − Other sources for reconstructing social history

Unit 4: A History of Buddhism: Sanchi Stupa

• Broad overview −

  • A brief review of religious histories of Vedic religion, Jainism, Vaisnavism, Saivism

  • Focus on Buddhism

• Story of discovery − Sanchi stupa

• Excerpt − Reproduction of sculptures from Sanchi

• Discussion − Ways in which sculpture has been interpreted by historians, other sources for reconstructing the history of Buddhism

Themes in Indian History Part - II

Unit 5: Agrarian Relations: The Ain-i- Akbari

• Broad overview −
  • Structure of agrarian relations in the 16^th and 17^th centuries
  • Patterns of change over the period
• Story of Discovery: Account of the compilation and translation of Ain-i-Akbari
• Excerpt − From the Ain-i-Akbari
• Discussion − Ways in which historians have used the text to reconstruct history

Unit 6: The Mughal Court: Reconstructing Histories through Chronicles

• Broad overview −

  • Outline of political history 15th-17th centuries

  • Discussion of the Mughal court and politics

• Story of Discovery: Account of the production of court chronicles, and their subsequent translation and transmission

• Excerpts: From the Akbarnama and Padshahnama

• Discussion: Ways in which historians have used the texts to reconstruct political histories

Unit 7: New Architecture: Hampi

• Broad overview −

  • Outline of new buildings during Vijayanagar period-temples, forts, irrigation facilities.

  • Relationship between architecture and the political system

• Story of Discovery − Account of how Hampi was found

• Excerpt − Visuals of buildings at Hampi

• Discussion − Ways in which historians have analyzed and interpreted these structures

Unit 8: Religious Histories: The Bhakti-Sufi Tradition

• Broad overview −
  • Outline of religious developments during this period
  • Ideas and practices of the Bhakti-Sufi saints
• Story of Transmission − How Bhakti-Sufi compositions have been preserved
• Excerpt − Extracts from selected Bhakti-Sufi works
• Discussion − Ways in which these have been interpreted by historians

Unit 9: Medieval Society through Travelers' Accounts

• Broad overview −

  • Outline of social and cultural life as they appear in travelers' accounts

• Story of their writings − A discussion of where they travelled, why they travelled, what they wrote, and for whom they wrote

• Excerpts − From Alberuni, Ibn Batuta, Bernier

• Discussion − What these travel accounts can tell us and how they have been interpreted by historians

Themes in Indian History Part - III

Unit 10: Colonialism and Rural Society: Evidence from Official Reports

• Broad overview −

  • Life of zamindars, peasants and artisans in the late 18^th century

  • East India Company, revenue settlements and surveys

  • Changes over the nineteenth century

• Story of official records − An account of why official investigations into rural societies were undertaken and the types of records and reports produced

• Excerpts − From Firminger's Fifth Report, Accounts of Frances BuchananHamilton, and Deccan Riots Report

• Discussion − What the official records tell and do not tell, and how they have been used by historians

Unit 11: Representations of 1857

• Broad overview −

  • The events of 1857-58.

  • How these events were recorded and narrated?

• Focus: Lucknow

• Excerpts −

  • Pictures of 1857

  • Extracts from contemporary accounts

• Discussion − How the pictures of 1857 shaped British opinion of what had happened

Unit 12: Colonialism and Indian Towns: Town Plans and Municipal Reports

• Broad overview −

  • The growth of Mumbai, Chennai, hill stations and cantonments in the 18^th and 19^th centuries

• Excerpts −

  • Photographs and paintings

  • Plans of cities

  • Extract from town plan reports

  • Focus on Kolkata town planning

• Discussion − How the above sources can be used to reconstruct the history of towns. What these sources do not reveal

Unit 13: Mahatma Gandhi through Contemporary Eyes

• Broad overview −

  • The Nationalist Movement 1918 - 1948

  • The nature of Gandhian politics and leadership

• Focus − Mahatma Gandhi in 1931

• Excerpts − Reports from English and Indian language newspapers and other contemporary writings

• Discussion − How newspapers can be a source of history

Unit 14: Partition through Oral Sources

• Broad overview −

  • The history of the 1940s

  • Nationalism, Communalism and Partition

• Focus − Punjab and Bengal

• Excerpts − Oral testimonies of those who experienced partition

• Discussion − Ways in which these have been analyzed to reconstruct the history of the event

Unit 15: The Making of the Constitution

• Broad overview −
  • Independence and the new nation state
  • The making of the Constitution
• Focus − The Constitutional Assembly debates
• Excerpts − From the debates
• Discussion − What such debates reveal and how they can be analyzed

Unit 16: Map Works

• On Units 1 to 15

Project Work

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