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The Histories and Castles Academy
History Study Guides

Investigations into power, law, and who the medieval system really served. Built for students who want more than their textbook gives them.

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These study guides are right for you

A good fit if you are...

  • An A-Level or GCSE student studying medieval England who wants an argument to make, not just facts to recall
  • Preparing for an essay question on royal authority, law and society, or Church and Crown
  • Someone who can describe what happened but struggles to explain whose interests it served
  • Interested in British history, Welsh history, or the social history of ordinary people
  • A student who wants to walk into the exam with a named historian, a primary source quote, and a line of analysis their classmates don't have
  • A teacher or tutor looking for investigation material that goes beyond the set textbook

Probably not a fit if you want...

  • A condensed summary of everything on your specification
  • Revision flashcards or bullet-point notes
  • A guide that covers the whole medieval period in one document
  • Content written at GCSE level or below
  • A study aid that tells you what to think rather than how to argue
Interactive revision that actually works

The Crusades c.1095–1149, built specifically for Eduqas GCSE History

Stop rereading.
Start remembering.

An interactive digital study guide for The Crusades c.1095–1149, built specifically for Eduqas GCSE History Component 1E. This is not another PDF to highlight and forget - it is a fully interactive HTML file with active recall, self-testing, and exam practice designed to move knowledge from the page into memory.

  • 32 interactive flashcards with filter and shuffle modes
  • Quick Match self-testing games and recall questions
  • Interactive timeline (1046–1149) filterable by theme
  • Five worked exam answers with examiner-style commentary
  • Progress tracking so students know what still needs attention
  • 2 bonus Richard the Lionheart PDF posters included free
Buy the Guide — £9.99
Eduqas GCSE Study Guide cover showing The Crusades Study guide interior page 2 Study guide interior page 4 Study guide interior page 3 Study guide interior page 6 Study guide interior page 5 Study guide interior page 2.1

Click arrows to browse the interactive guide

What you actually get

Most revision gives you facts.
These give you arguments.

Each study guide is a fully argued historical investigation built for students studying Medieval History. Written to the standard of published scholarship, with named historians, primary sources you can quote directly, and analytical frameworks your examiner will recognise. Not a summary. Not a timeline. The kind of historical thinking that separates a Level 4 answer from a Level 5.

  • The central argument your textbook doesn't make, with the evidence to support it
  • Named historians with their positions explained, so you can use them correctly in essays
  • Primary sources in every guide, with structured analytical questions and guidance
  • A-Level and GCSE essay questions written to specification, with full mark scheme commentary at every level
  • Relevant to AQA, OCR, Edexcel, and WJEC medieval England units
Table of contents for a guide on England from 1078 to 1352, with chapter headings and page numbers.

The PDF guides
England's Jewish community, 1066–1290
Book cover of 'Servants of the Royal Chamber' with castle in the background

Medieval Law and Jewish History

England didn't just expel its Jewish community in 1290. It built a legal framework that made expulsion possible, and then used it. This investigation examines the servi camerae regis designation, the machinery of the Exchequer of the Jews, the York massacre of 1190, and Edward I's edict, asking a single question: was the expulsion a betrayal of the law, or its logical conclusion?

PDF Instant download Medieval History
England | 1079–1217
Book cover of 'The King's Deer' with a deer in a forest setting

Norman Legal Code

This investigation examines Forest Law not as royal excess but as a designed legal instrument: who built it, how it worked in practice, and what it reveals about whose interests the medieval legal system was constructed to serve. Five acts trace the full arc of Forest Law from William I's New Forest in 1079 to the Charter of the Forest in 1217.

PDF Instant Download Medieval History
France | 1291–1314
Book cover of 'The Last Crusade: The Trial and Fall of the Knights Templar' with a stormy sky background

The Last Crusade

The Crusades didn't end at Acre in 1291. This investigation argues they ended in 1314, when a French king with a debt he couldn't repay destroyed his own creditor. It traces the Templars' rise as the largest financial institution in medieval France, the dawn arrests of Friday 13 October 1307, the fabricated heresy charges, and the burning of Jacques de Molay, the order's last Grand Master.

PDF Instant Download Medieval History
Simple, affordable pricing
🖥️ Interactive Guide
Cover of The Crusades c.1095-1149 Eduqas GCSE interactive study guide

EDUQAS GCSE, 1095–1149

The Crusades


£9.99

Not a PDF. An interactive HTML guide, not a download-and-read file.

  • 32 clickable flashcards and self-testing games
  • Interactive timeline and 5 worked exam answers
  • Built around the real Component 1E exam pattern
  • 2 bonus PDF posters included
Get this guide
🖥️ Interactive Guide
Cover of The Black Death, the Statute of Labourers, and the Peasants' Revolt interactive study guide

ENGLAND, 1349–1381

Black Death & The Peasants' Revolt


£6.99

Not a PDF. An interactive HTML guide, works offline once downloaded.

  • Clickable chronology, 1348–1381
  • Seven-mechanism breakdown, searchable glossary
  • Self-marking quiz with progress tracker
  • 3 bonus PDF posters included
Get this guide
📄 PDF Download
Book cover of 'Servants of the Royal Chamber' with castle in the background

ENGLAND, 1066–1290

Servants of the Royal Chamber


£4.50

One-time purchase. No subscription.

  • Full PDF investigation, instant download
  • 10 key terms, 3 primary sources, 3 historians
  • Three A-Level essays with mark scheme guidance
  • Download and keep forever
Get this guide
📄 PDF Download
Book cover of 'The King's Deer' with a deer in a forest setting

ENGLAND, 1079–1217

The King's Deer


£4.50

One-time purchase. No subscription.

  • Full PDF investigation, instant download
  • 16 key terms, 3 primary sources, 6 historians
  • Three A-Level essays with mark scheme guidance
  • Download and keep forever
Get this guide
📄 PDF Download
Cover of 'The Last Crusade: The Trial and Fall of the Knights Templar' with a stormy sky background

FRANCE, 1291–1314

The Last Crusade


£4.99

One-time purchase. No subscription.

  • Full PDF investigation, instant download
  • Trial transcripts, papal bulls and standard modern scholarship
  • 60–90 minute read, full bibliography included
  • Download and keep forever
Get this guide
Common questions

What format are the guides and how do I read them?

The guides are either a PDF or interactive HTML file. After purchase you receive a download link by email. PDFs open on any device: phone, tablet, desktop, or Kindle. No app required. HTML files open in a browser. Just click the file and it will open.

Are these revision guides or something different?

Something different. A revision guide summarises content you have already studied. These investigations build a historical argument from the ground up, with primary sources, named historians, and analytical questions throughout. They are designed to give you something to say in an essay, not just something to remember.

Can I quote the primary sources in an exam?

Yes. Every source in the guides is a genuine historical document. The analytical questions are designed specifically to help you use them accurately and effectively in assessed essays.

Will this cover everything on my specification?

No, and it is not designed to. Each guide is a focused investigation into one topic. It goes considerably deeper than a textbook on that topic, which is where its value lies. It works alongside your course materials, not instead of them.

Are these suitable for teachers and tutors?

Yes. The source analysis sections and essay questions with mark scheme guidance can be used directly in teaching. The historiography sections are structured for classroom discussion as well as independent study.

Can I use these if I am not sitting an exam?

Yes. The exam material sits on top of genuine historical investigation, so the core reading works for anyone studying or teaching medieval history at any level, or for a general reader who wants more rigour than a textbook offers.

About the Author

Simon A. Williams

Simon A. Williams

Published Author and Editor-in-Chief · Verified Research

Simon A. Williams is a history communicator and storyteller who makes the past accessible through podcasts, books and digital media. His work blends careful research with compelling narratives that entertain, educate and inspire curiosity, bringing medieval English and Welsh history, castles and the Crusades to life for readers and listeners who want more than a textbook account. Simon is the author of No Law for the Poor, The Pendle Witch Conspiracy and The Truth Behind Welsh Myths and Legends, and serves as Editor-in-Chief at Histories and Castles, where he shapes the site's editorial voice across articles, video and podcast content. Rather than approaching history as a closed academic subject, Simon treats it as a living story worth retelling well, one that rewards curiosity as much as rigour.

Stop guessing.
Start understanding history.

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