The Making of a Global World – Short Answer Type Questions
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CBSE Class 10 History – Chapter 3: The Making of a Global World | Short Answer Questions
Short Answer Type Questions
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Class 10
Social Science – History
NCERT • CBSE Board Exams
Chapter 3 – The Making of a Global World
Book: India and the Contemporary World – II
Topics: The Pre-modern World • The Nineteenth Century • The Interwar Economy • Rebuilding a World Economy (Post-War Era)
Topics: The Pre-modern World • The Nineteenth Century • The Interwar Economy • Rebuilding a World Economy (Post-War Era)
Suitable for CBSE Board Examinations:
- CBSE Class 10 Board Examination – Social Science (History)
- Annual / Term-End School Examinations
- Class Tests, Pre-Boards and Practice Assignments
- Quick Concept Checking and Structured Revision
CBSE Class 10 History – Chapter 3: The Making of a Global World (Short Questions with Answers)
The following 50 Short Answer Type Questions with clear, exam-oriented answers are prepared strictly according to the NCERT textbook for CBSE Class 10 Social Science. They are arranged topic-wise to help students revise each section of the chapter “The Making of a Global World” systematically for the CBSE Board Examination.
A. The Pre-modern World
Questions 1 to 12 are based on early forms of globalisation, Silk Routes, food travels, conquest and cultural exchange.
Q1. What were the Silk Routes? How did they contribute to the making of a global world in the pre-modern era?
Ans. The Silk Routes were ancient overland and sea trade routes connecting China and other parts of Asia with Europe and North Africa. They enabled the long-distance exchange of silk, spices, textiles, precious metals, ideas and religions. In this way, they created early economic and cultural links between distant societies, laying the foundation of a global world.
Q2. Explain how trade through the Silk Routes involved both economic and cultural exchanges.
Ans. Merchants used the Silk Routes to trade goods such as silk, porcelain, spices and metals, creating economic links. At the same time, travellers, pilgrims and missionaries moved along these routes, spreading religions, artistic styles, languages and technologies. Thus, the Silk Routes were channels of both material exchange and cultural interaction.
Q3. How does the history of food show early processes of globalisation? Give any two examples.
Ans. The movement of crops from one region to another shows how societies were connected. For example, potatoes and maize from the Americas became staple foods in Europe and Asia, while chillies and tomatoes spread to Asia and Europe from the New World. These food travels changed diets, agriculture and even population patterns, revealing early globalisation.
Q4. What impact did new crops from the Americas have on the population and economy of Europe?
Ans. New crops like the potato provided cheap and nutritious food, improving the diet of ordinary people. This helped reduce famine, supported better health and contributed to rapid population growth in Europe. Increased food supplies also encouraged urbanisation and the growth of markets, which later supported industrialisation.
Q5. How did conquest and disease together change the population of the Americas in the sixteenth century?
Ans. European conquest of the Americas was accompanied by the spread of diseases such as smallpox and measles to which indigenous people had no immunity. Large-scale deaths occurred due to epidemics, forced labour and warfare. As a result, the native population declined sharply, leading to demographic collapse in many regions.
Q6. In what ways did European conquest of the Americas reshape the world economy?
Ans. European conquest brought huge quantities of gold and silver from American mines to Europe, increasing European wealth. Plantations in the Americas produced sugar, tobacco and other cash crops for European markets. To work on these plantations, enslaved Africans were transported across the Atlantic. This created new trade networks and strengthened Europe’s position in the emerging world economy.
Q7. Why can the pre-modern world be described as an interconnected world even before modern globalisation?
Ans. Long-distance trade routes linked Asia, Europe and Africa; conquerors and travellers moved between continents; and ideas, religions, technologies and diseases spread across regions. Food crops and precious metals also circulated widely. These exchanges show that regions were interdependent and interconnected long before modern globalisation.
Q8. Mention any two major items of trade along the pre-modern trade routes apart from silk.
Ans. Besides silk, merchants traded spices such as pepper and cinnamon, and fine Chinese porcelain along the pre-modern trade routes. These items were highly valued in distant markets and brought great profits to traders.
Q9. How did early global connections lead to the spread of cultural influences across regions?
Ans. Traders, pilgrims and missionaries moving along trade routes carried religious beliefs, architectural styles, music, literature and customs to new regions. For example, Buddhism spread from India to East and Southeast Asia, while Islam spread across West Asia, Africa and parts of Asia through trade and conquest. These cultural influences reshaped local societies.
Q10. How did the introduction of plantation crops in the Americas change patterns of labour and trade?
Ans. European settlers established large plantations in the Americas to grow sugar, tobacco and other crops for export. To work on these plantations, millions of enslaved Africans were transported across the Atlantic. This created a triangular trade between Europe, Africa and the Americas, greatly expanding the scale of trade and labour exploitation.
Q11. Explain the role of traders and travellers in linking distant societies in the pre-modern period.
Ans. Traders carried goods such as spices, textiles and metals across continents, while travellers and pilgrims moved for religious or exploratory reasons. They brought back stories, maps and knowledge of new lands. Through their activities, societies learned about each other’s products, cultures and technologies, which gradually linked distant regions into wider networks.
Q12. Why is the study of the pre-modern world important for understanding modern globalisation?
Ans. Many features of modern globalisation—long-distance trade, movement of people, cultural exchange and unequal power relations—have roots in the pre-modern world. Understanding these earlier patterns helps us see that globalisation is a historical process that has evolved over centuries rather than a sudden recent development.
B. The Nineteenth Century (1815–1914)
Questions 13 to 25 focus on industrialisation, world trade, migration, role of colonies and the global agricultural economy.
Q13. Why is the nineteenth century considered a period of dramatic economic change in world history?
Ans. The nineteenth century witnessed the spread of the Industrial Revolution, growth of factories, use of new machines and expansion of transport and communication. Industrial countries needed raw materials and markets, leading to increased world trade, colonisation and migration. These developments transformed the scale and speed of global economic links.
Q14. How did industrialisation in Europe increase the demand for raw materials and markets?
Ans. Industrialisation multiplied production in factories. To run these factories, European countries needed large quantities of raw materials such as cotton, jute, minerals and agricultural products. They also required markets abroad to sell their surplus manufactured goods. This demand pushed them to expand trade and control new territories.
Q15. Explain the role of colonies in the nineteenth century world economy.
Ans. Colonies supplied raw materials, food grains and cheap labour to industrial countries. They also served as captive markets for finished goods produced in the imperial countries. Colonial governments shaped the economies of colonies through policies that favoured exports of raw materials and imports of industrial goods, thus integrating them into an unequal global system.
Q16. What is meant by the term “global agricultural economy” with reference to the nineteenth century?
Ans. A global agricultural economy refers to a situation in which agricultural production in different regions became linked through international trade. European industrial countries imported food grains and raw materials from America, Asia and Africa, while exporting capital and manufactured goods. Prices and production decisions in one part of the world began to affect farmers and consumers in other parts.
Q17. How did the development of railways and steamships affect the movement of goods and people in the nineteenth century?
Ans. Railways and steamships reduced travel time and transport costs sharply. They made it possible to carry bulk goods like grain and minerals over long distances quickly and cheaply. They also encouraged large-scale migration of people for work and settlement, thereby strengthening links between continents and helping to create a world economy.
Q18. What were “cash crops”? Why were colonies encouraged to grow them?
Ans. Cash crops are crops grown mainly for sale in the market rather than for local consumption, for example cotton, jute, sugarcane and indigo. Colonial governments encouraged or forced farmers to grow cash crops to supply raw materials for industries in Europe and to earn export revenues, often at the cost of local food security.
Q19. Who were indentured labourers? Describe their working conditions briefly.
Ans. Indentured labourers were workers who signed a contract to work for an employer in another country for a fixed period in return for travel and wages. Many were poor peasants from India and other regions. They often faced harsh working conditions on plantations and mines, long hours, strict discipline and physical punishment, with little legal protection.
Q20. Why did many Indians agree to go as indentured labourers to distant colonies?
Ans. Many Indian peasants suffered from poverty, high rents, indebtedness and lack of land. Recruiters, sometimes using false promises, convinced them that they would earn good wages abroad. Hopes of repaying debts, improving family income and escaping local oppression pushed them to agree to indentured labour contracts.
Q21. How did migration in the nineteenth century create a “global labour market”?
Ans. Workers from Asia, Europe and Africa moved to plantations, mines, railways and farms in the Americas, Australia and parts of Africa. Flows of free migrants and indentured labourers linked labour supply in one region with labour demand in another. This global movement of workers created an international labour market connected through migration and contracts.
Q22. Distinguish between early industrialisers and “latecomers” to industrialisation.
Ans. Early industrialisers, like Britain, industrialised first and dominated world trade with their manufactured goods. “Latecomers” such as some European countries and Japan industrialised later. They tried to catch up by using state support, protective tariffs and targeted investments. Their experience shows that industrialisation spread unevenly across countries.
Q23. Why did some late-industrialising countries use tariff protection for their industries?
Ans. Late-industrialising countries feared that cheaper imports from already industrialised countries would destroy their infant industries. Therefore, they imposed high tariffs on imported goods to make them costlier and less competitive, giving local industries time to grow and become strong enough to face foreign competition.
Q24. How did changes in meat trade reflect technological progress in the nineteenth century?
Ans. Earlier, meat could only be transported live on ships, which was costly and risky. With the development of refrigerated ships, meat could be processed and frozen before being shipped over long distances. This reduced prices, enabled regular supply to European markets and allowed farmers in distant regions to participate in the global food economy.
Q25. Explain how the nineteenth century world economy was based on unequal relationships.
Ans. Industrial countries controlled trade, finance and technology, while colonies supplied raw materials, cheap labour and served as markets. Colonial policies were designed to benefit imperial powers, often causing poverty and dependence in colonies. This created an unequal relationship in which gains were concentrated in a few industrial nations at the cost of colonised regions.
C. The Interwar Economy
Questions 26 to 38 relate to the First World War, post-war recovery, the Gold Standard and the Great Depression.
Q26. How did the First World War affect economic relations between Europe and the rest of the world?
Ans. The First World War weakened European economies, increased their debts and disrupted trade. The United States emerged as a major creditor and industrial power. Many regions that had supplied food and raw materials to Europe tried to become more self-reliant. As a result, the pre-war pattern of Europe-centred economic relations was disturbed.
Q27. Why was post-war economic recovery in Europe described as fragile and uncertain?
Ans. European countries faced high war debts, inflation, unemployment and social unrest. They attempted to restore the pre-war Gold Standard, which required deflationary policies and wage cuts. This created hardship for workers and made recovery slow and unstable. Political tensions and changing trade patterns added to the uncertainty.
Q28. What is meant by the Gold Standard? Why did it create difficulties after the First World War?
Ans. Under the Gold Standard, the value of each currency was fixed in terms of gold. After the war, when countries tried to return to pre-war gold values, they had to cut prices and wages to match those rates. This led to unemployment, reduced demand and social unrest, making economic recovery harder.
Q29. Define the Great Depression. When did it begin and what were its general effects?
Ans. The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic crisis that began around 1929. It led to a sharp fall in prices, production, incomes and employment. Factories closed, banks failed and world trade shrank. Millions of people in both industrial and agricultural sectors lost their jobs and livelihoods.
Q30. Give any two causes of the Great Depression of the 1930s.
Ans. First, overproduction in agriculture and industry created unsold stocks, causing prices and profits to fall. Second, a speculative boom in the US stock market was followed by a crash, leading to banking failures. These factors, combined with reduced credit and protectionist policies, triggered the Great Depression.
Q31. How did the Great Depression affect industrial countries like the United States?
Ans. In industrial countries, factories reduced production or shut down due to declining demand. Unemployment rose sharply as millions lost their jobs. Falling wages and incomes further reduced consumer spending. The collapse of banks and firms created widespread insecurity and hardship among all sections of society.
Q32. Explain how the Great Depression impacted agricultural producers in the United States.
Ans. US farmers had expanded production during the war, but post-war demand fell. During the Depression, crop prices collapsed while debts remained. Many farmers were unable to repay loans and lost their land. They destroyed crops or left fields uncultivated because selling them did not cover costs, leading to rural distress.
Q33. Describe the impact of the Great Depression on agricultural colonies like India.
Ans. In colonies such as India, prices of export crops like jute and wheat fell heavily. Peasants received low returns but had to pay taxes and repay debts. Many were forced to sell jewellery or land, or to borrow more. Rural poverty and indebtedness increased, even though India did not see large-scale unemployment in factories like some industrial countries.
Q34. Why did world trade shrink rapidly during the Great Depression?
Ans. As demand and incomes fell, countries tried to protect their own producers by raising tariffs and restricting imports. This reduced international trade. Since many economies depended on export earnings, the fall in trade further deepened the crisis and spread it across the globe.
Q35. What does the Great Depression reveal about the interdependence of the world economy?
Ans. The crisis began in the United States but quickly spread to Europe, Latin America, Asia and Africa. Falling demand in one region reduced exports from others, causing incomes and production to decline worldwide. This shows that by the early twentieth century, economies were closely linked, and a shock in one part could affect the entire world.
Q36. How did the Depression affect people’s faith in the Gold Standard and free market policies?
Ans. The failure of the Gold Standard to provide stability, and the inability of free market policies to prevent mass unemployment, made many people question these systems. Governments increasingly intervened in economies, used public works and welfare measures, and looked for new ways to manage demand and maintain employment.
Q37. How were everyday lives of ordinary people affected during the Great Depression?
Ans. Many people lost jobs or faced wage cuts; families cut down on food and essential spending. In some countries, homelessness and hunger increased. Farmers and workers had to migrate in search of work, while small businesses closed. The Depression was not just an economic crisis but also a social and psychological crisis for ordinary people.
Q38. Why is the interwar period often described as a time of economic instability?
Ans. The interwar years saw war-related destruction, fragile recovery, attempts to restore the Gold Standard, repeated financial crises and the Great Depression. Trade and production fluctuated, unemployment remained high in many countries and political tensions grew. All these factors made the interwar period one of prolonged economic instability.
D. Rebuilding a World Economy – The Post-War Era
Questions 39 to 50 cover the Bretton Woods system, IMF and World Bank, post-war growth, decolonisation and a new phase of globalisation.
Q39. Why did world leaders feel the need for a new international economic system after the Second World War?
Ans. The war had devastated economies and created widespread poverty. Leaders wanted to avoid the mistakes of the interwar period, particularly the Great Depression and competitive devaluations. They aimed to create a stable monetary system, encourage full employment and promote orderly growth of world trade to ensure lasting peace and prosperity.
Q40. What was the Bretton Woods Conference? What was its main objective?
Ans. The Bretton Woods Conference was a meeting of 44 countries held at Bretton Woods in the United States in 1944. Its main objective was to design a new international monetary and financial system that would provide stability, support reconstruction after the war and encourage expansion of world trade.
Q41. Name the two key international institutions set up after the Bretton Woods Conference and state their primary functions.
Ans. The two key institutions were: (i) The International Monetary Fund (IMF), created to maintain stability in the international monetary system and provide short-term financial assistance; and (ii) The World Bank (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development), set up to lend for reconstruction of war-damaged economies and later for development in poorer countries.
Q42. Explain the main features of the Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates.
Ans. Under this system, the value of the US dollar was fixed in terms of gold, and other currencies were pegged to the dollar at fixed rates. Exchange rates could be changed only with IMF approval. This system created stability in international currency values, encouraged trade and investment, and reduced the risk of competitive devaluations.
Q43. How did world trade and production behave in the two decades after the Second World War?
Ans. In the 1950s and 1960s, world trade and production grew rapidly. Many industrial countries experienced high growth, rising incomes and low unemployment. The stable monetary environment created by Bretton Woods and the reduction of trade barriers encouraged expansion of international trade and investment.
Q44. What is meant by “decolonisation”? How did it change the political map of the world after the Second World War?
Ans. Decolonisation refers to the process by which Asian and African countries gained independence from colonial rule. After the war, anti-colonial movements grew strong and European powers weakened. Many former colonies became independent nations, changing the world’s political map from one dominated by a few empires to a world of many sovereign states.
Q45. What economic goals did newly independent countries in Asia and Africa generally pursue?
Ans. Newly independent countries aimed to reduce poverty, build self-reliant economies and improve living standards. They adopted policies such as state-led planning, development of basic and heavy industries, land reforms and investment in education and health. Many tried to protect domestic industries through import controls and tariffs.
Q46. Why did the Bretton Woods system finally collapse in the early 1970s?
Ans. Over time, the United States faced rising inflation and trade deficits, making it difficult to maintain the dollar’s fixed convertibility into gold. In 1971, the US suspended the gold convertibility of the dollar, undermining the basis of the system. Many countries then moved to floating exchange rates, leading to the collapse of the Bretton Woods arrangement.
Q47. What are “floating exchange rates”? How are they different from fixed exchange rates?
Ans. Under floating exchange rates, the value of a currency is determined by the demand and supply of that currency in the foreign exchange market. It can fluctuate freely without being pegged to gold or another currency. In fixed exchange rate systems, by contrast, governments commit to maintaining a set value or range for their currencies.
Q48. Mention any two features of the new phase of globalisation that began after the 1970s.
Ans. First, capital could move more freely across borders, with companies investing in different countries. Second, multinational corporations expanded production and marketing globally. Rapid advances in information and communication technologies further integrated financial markets and production networks across the world.
Q49. How did policies of liberalisation in many countries encourage globalisation in recent decades?
Ans. Many countries reduced trade barriers, privatised state enterprises and allowed foreign investment in their economies. These liberalisation policies made it easier for foreign companies to enter new markets, set up production units and engage in cross-border trade. As a result, goods, services, capital and technology began to move more freely, deepening globalisation.
Q50. Why is it important for students to study the historical making of a global world rather than viewing globalisation only as a present-day process?
Ans. Studying history shows that globalisation has evolved over centuries through trade, conquest, migration, colonisation and new economic institutions. It helps students understand that today’s global inequalities and opportunities are rooted in past decisions and power relations. This historical perspective enables them to critically analyse the benefits and challenges of the present global world.
These Short Answer Type Questions with Answers are designed in line with the NCERT syllabus for Class 10 History – Chapter 3: The Making of a Global World and are ideal for CBSE Board exam preparation, class tests and structured revision.