Ace your History exams with these 4 top tips for essay writing

1. Strong essay plan

Planning is one of the most important elements to writing a strong History essay. There’s so much content to remember when it comes to History topics, and you want to make sure you’re including the right facts in each paragraph.

It’s essential to write a plan before you begin writing. It doesn’t need to be long, just include a short sentence of the points you want to make for your introduction and then make a short list of the key areas you’re going to cover.

For example, if you were answering a question on what was the main cause of the French Revolution the plan might look something like this:

Introduction - The origins of the French Revolution were A, B, C and D. I think D was the most important factor in causing the revolution because...

Paragraph One - Economic hardship and social unrest

Paragraph Two - The ideas of the Enlightenment

Paragraph Three - Absolutism, the Ancien Regime and Louis XVI

Paragraph Four - Political developments and the Assembly of Notables

Conclusion - Sum up what you have discussed and reinforce your argument that, whilst all factors contributed to the Revolution, D was the most significant.

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2. Clear argument ‍

One of the best things you can do in a History essay is to keep referring back to your argument. You want the reader to know exactly what point you’re trying to make and not have to search for your argument amongst the paragraphs.

You don’t have to mention it constantly, but it’s good to link the points you’re making with your argument. Taking the French Revolution question from before, if you’re arguing that economic hardship was the main cause then you need to say why it was more important than the political climate or Louis XVI’s rule. ‍

3. Chronology ‍

Dates are really important in History, so it's crucial that you get them right. Making flashcards with events on one side and dates on the other is a great way to revise for your exams. ‍

4. Academic criticism ‍

To hit the top marks in History, it’s important to include a bit of critical thinking. At A Level and GCSE, it’s more than enough to include one or two quotes which are relevant to your argument.

Your teachers will most likely provide you with some extra reading around the subject but you can also find resources on sites like JSTOR and Project MUSE. These sites are full of academic journals and you can search through them by topic and era.