| Date | November 2020 | Marks available | 4 | Reference code | 20N.1.BP.TZ0.6 |
| Level | Both SL and HL | Paper | Paper 1 - first exams 2017 | Time zone | TZ0 |
| Command term | Analyse | Question number | 6 | Adapted from | N/A |
Question
Source G Bartolomé de las Casas, a Spanish historian and Dominican missionary during the conquest, writing in the chronicle An Account, Much Abbreviated, of the Destruction of the Indies (written to Prince Philip of Spain in 1542, published in 1552).
The Spaniards took the Indians’ lands they [the Indians] had inherited and which nourished them. And the Spaniards had all the Indians—lords, old persons, women, and children—within their own houses, and they would have the Indians serve them night and day, without rest, and even the children were occupied in doing all they could, or even more. And so they have exhausted them, and still this day exhaust the few who still remain, without allowing them to have their own house or any possession.
They have oppressed the Indians and been the cause of the rapid death of many people in this province, by making them carry wood for a great distance to the harbour to make boats with, and sending them to find honey and wax into the forests, where they are eaten by wild animals. And they have treated pregnant women like beasts of burden.
[Source: Adapted from Knight, F.W., ed., 2003. An Account, Much Abbreviated, of the Destruction of the Indies, with
Related Texts. Indianapolis. Hackett.]
With reference to its origin, purpose and content, analyse the value and limitations of Source G for an historian studying the impact of the conquest on indigenous populations.
Markscheme
Value:
- The source was written by an historian who was contemporary to the events studied.
- It offers the perspective of a Spanish missionary during the conquest.
- It provides detailed evidence of the exploitation of the indigenous peoples.
- It is evidence that the Spanish government was aware of the negative impact of the conquest on the indigenous peoples.
Limitations:
- It was written with the purpose of denouncing the excesses committed during the conquest and to urge the Spanish government to respond to the atrocities described. As such, it may have exaggerated events.
- The source was written in 1542, when events were still unfolding.
The focus of the question is on the value and limitations of the source. If only value or limitations are discussed, award a maximum of [2]. Origins, purpose and content should be used as supporting evidence to make relevant comments on the values and limitations. For [4] there must be at least one reference to each of them in either the values or the limitations.
Examiners report
As was the case last session, the majority of candidates offered some analytical comments on the value and limitations of the source from its origin, purpose and content. However, several candidates continue to give long descriptions of the provenance and content of the source instead of using these elements to evaluate the value and limitations. In addition, comments should go beyond merely stating that a source is "primary" or "secondary". There were also instances where a note-form approach was adopted, and candidates should be cautioned against this as these responses tended to lack clarity in terms of establishing the source's value and limitations. There were a very small minority that analysed the wrong source, as mentioned at the beginning of the report, candidates should be reminded to read each question carefully.
