Political Changes Class 11 – Concept, MCQs & Notes PDF

Topic covered: Political Changes class 11 notes and MCQs questions: The Three Orders (All single detail notes are exam-oriented).

We have discussed in-depth and exam-oriented pointers that can be asked in the board exam of class 11th about “Political Changes“ from the NCERT history notes for class 11th chapter 4 “The Three Orders”.

Download the NCERT History for Class 11th Chapter 4 The Three Orders Notes PDF

Download the NCERT History for Class 11th Chapter 4 The Three Orders Notes PDF for a detailed and easy-to-understand explanation of medieval European society. These notes begin with an introduction to feudalism and explain how the feudal system developed in France and England. You will clearly understand the three orders of society, focusing on the second order, the nobility, their privileges, duties, and life on the manorial estate, including the role of knights in feudal warfare.

The chapter also explains the first order, the clergy, covering monks, the Church, and its deep influence on social life, education, and moral values. Equal attention is given to the third order, peasants, both free and unfree, with specific references to England and their everyday struggles. In addition, the notes discuss factors affecting social and economic relations, the emergence of a possible fourth order with new towns, townspeople, and cathedral towns, and the major crisis of the fourteenth century, marked by social unrest and political changes. These NCERT-based notes are ideal for concept clarity, revision, and exam preparation.

Political Changes

1. Political Developments and Social Change:

• Political developments paralleled social processes
• Major changes occurred in fifteenth and sixteenth centuries
• Kings strengthened military and financial power

2. Emergence of New Monarchies:

• Powerful new states emerged in Europe
• These states were as significant as economic changes
• Historians called these rulers ‘new monarchs’

3. Examples of New Monarchs:

• Louis XI in France
• Maximilian in Austria
• Henry VII in England
• Isabelle and Ferdinand in Spain

4. Nature of New Monarchies:

• Rulers were absolutist
• They began:
  • Organising standing armies
  • Creating a permanent bureaucracy
  • Introducing national taxation
• Spain and Portugal began overseas expansion

5. Social Basis of Monarchical Power:

• Triumph of monarchies linked to social changes of 12th–13th centuries
• Decline of feudal lordship and vassalage
• Slow economic growth allowed kings to:
  • Increase control over subjects

6. Military Reorganisation:

• Kings abandoned feudal levies
• Introduced:
  • Professionally trained infantry
  • Use of guns and siege artillery
• Armies were placed directly under royal control
• Aristocratic resistance weakened due to royal firepower

7. Role of Taxation:

• Monarchs increased taxes
• Higher revenues allowed:
  • Maintenance of larger armies
  • Defence and expansion of frontiers
  • Suppression of internal resistance

8. Resistance to Centralisation:

• Centralisation faced resistance from aristocracy
• Taxation was the main issue behind opposition

9. Rebellions in England:

• Rebellions occurred in:
  • 1497
  • 1536
  • 1547
  • 1549
  • 1553
• All rebellions were suppressed

10. Aristocratic Resistance in France:

• Louis XI (1461–83) fought:
  • Dukes and princes
• Lesser nobles resisted:
  • Loss of local powers
• Religious wars in 16th century:
  • Conflict between royal authority and regional liberties

11. Survival Strategy of Nobility:

• Nobles shifted from:
  • Opponents to loyalists
• Royal absolutism called:
  • Modified form of feudalism

12. Continuity and Change in Power Structure:

• Same feudal lords continued to:
  • Dominate political life
• Lords received:
  • Permanent administrative positions
• New regimes differed in structure

13. Transformation of Kingship:

• King no longer ruled through:
  • Personal loyalty
• King stood at centre of:
  • Courtier society
  • Patron–client networks

14. Role of Patronage:

• Patronage ensured cooperation
• Patronage operated through: Money
• Authority depended on:
  • Access to royal favour

15. Entry of Non-Feudal Groups:

• Merchants and bankers gained access to courts
• They:
  • Lent money to kings
• Kings used loans to:
  • Pay soldiers’ wages
• Non-feudal elements entered the state system

16. Estates-General in France:

• Meeting held in 1614 during reign of Louis XIII
• Assembly had:
  • Clergy
  • Nobility
  • Rest of society
• Not summoned again till 1789
• Kings avoided sharing power

17. Parliamentary Tradition in England:

• Anglo-Saxons had a Great Council
• King had to consult it before taxing
• Evolved into Parliament
• Parliament had:
  • House of Lords
  • House of Commons

18. Conflict Between King and Parliament:

• Charles I ruled without Parliament (1629–40)
• Forced to summon Parliament for money
• Parliament fought the king
• King Charles I was:
  • Executed
• A republic was established briefly

19. Restoration of Monarchy in England:

• Monarchy restored
• Condition:
  • Parliament to be called regularly

20. Divergent Political Outcomes:

• France became a republic
• England remained a monarchy
• Result of different historical paths after 17th century

Next & Previous Topics of NCERT/CBSE History Class 11 Chapter 4: The Three Orders

MCQs on NCERT History Class 11 Chapter 4 Topic – Political Changes Class 11

Here are the top exam-oriented MCQ-type questions on “Political Changes Class 11” that you should prepare for your CBSE or state board exams:

Question 1. European kings strengthened their power mainly during the:

A. 12th–13th centuries
B. 14th century
C. 15th–16th centuries
D. 17th–18th centuries

Answer: C

Question 2. Historians call the powerful rulers of this period:

A. Feudal lords
B. Divine kings
C. New monarchs
D. Military despots

Answer: C

Question 3. Which of the following was NOT a ‘new monarch’?

A. Louis XI of France
B. Henry VII of England
C. Charlemagne
D. Ferdinand of Spain

Answer: C

Question 4. The rulers Louis XI, Henry VII, and Ferdinand were mainly:

A. Democratic rulers
B. Absolutist rulers
C. Feudal vassals
D. Constitutional monarchs

Answer: B

Question 5. A key feature of the new monarchies was:

A. Decline of taxation
B. Standing armies
C. End of bureaucracy
D. Weak central authority

Answer: B

Question 6. Which institution was permanently established under new monarchs?

A. Feudal council
B. Village assembly
C. Bureaucracy
D. Church courts

Answer: C

Question 7. National taxation helped monarchs mainly to:

A. Reduce trade
B. Support large armies
C. End feudalism immediately
D. Abolish nobility

Answer: B

Question 8. Spain and Portugal played a major role in:

A. Agricultural reforms
B. Religious wars
C. Overseas expansion
D. Industrial growth

Answer: C

Question 9. The triumph of monarchies was closely linked to:

A. Rise of Church power
B. Social changes of 12th–13th centuries
C. Peasant revolts
D. Industrialisation

Answer: B

Question 10. The feudal system declined mainly because of:

A. Economic stagnation alone
B. Dissolution of lord–vassal ties
C. Rise of towns
D. Religious reforms

Answer: B

Question 11. Kings replaced feudal levies with:

A. Mercenary cavalry
B. Peasant militias
C. Professional infantry
D. Church soldiers

Answer: C

Question 12. New armies were equipped with:

A. Bows and arrows
B. Swords only
C. Guns and siege artillery
D. Spears

Answer: C

Question 13. Aristocratic resistance weakened mainly due to:

A. Royal diplomacy
B. Firepower of kings
C. Church support
D. Popular elections

Answer: B

Question 14. Increased taxation allowed monarchs to:

A. Reduce internal conflicts
B. Defend and expand frontiers
C. Abolish assemblies
D. End wars

Answer: B

Question 15. The most common issue behind resistance to monarchies was:

A. Religion
B. Language
C. Taxation
D. Trade

Answer: C

Question 16. In England, repeated rebellions against monarchy occurred mainly in the:

A. 14th century
B. 15th–16th centuries
C. 17th century
D. 18th century

Answer: B

Question 17. Louis XI of France struggled mainly against:

A. Peasants
B. Merchants
C. Dukes and princes
D. Church officials

Answer: C

Question 18. Lesser nobles opposed monarchs because they:

A. Lost trade rights
B. Lost local powers
C. Were heavily taxed
D. Were excluded from court

Answer: B

Question 19. Religious wars in France partly reflected a conflict between:

A. Catholics and Protestants only
B. Peasants and nobles
C. Royal power and regional liberties
D. Church and merchants

Answer: C

Question 20. The nobility ensured survival by becoming:

A. Rebels
B. Soldiers
C. Loyalists
D. Priests

Answer: C

Question 21. Royal absolutism is called a modified form of feudalism because:

A. Feudal laws continued unchanged
B. Lords still dominated politics
C. Kings ruled weakly
D. Peasants gained power

Answer: B

Question 22. Under new regimes, the king was now:

A. A feudal overlord
B. A religious head
C. Centre of a court society
D. A military commander only

Answer: C

Question 23. Political cooperation was ensured mainly through:

A. Violence
B. Loyalty oaths
C. Patronage
D. Elections

Answer: C

Question 24. Patron–client relationships were based largely on:

A. Religion
B. Birth
C. Money
D. Military rank

Answer: C

Question 25. Merchants and bankers gained access to courts because they:

A. Led revolts
B. Controlled churches
C. Lent money to kings
D. Commanded armies

Answer: C

Question 26. Kings used borrowed money mainly to:

A. Build palaces
B. Pay soldiers’ wages
C. Fund religious institutions
D. Support peasants

Answer: B

Question 27. The inclusion of merchants shows that states now included:

A. Only feudal elites
B. Non-feudal elements
C. Peasant representatives
D. Church dominance

Answer: B

Question 28. The Estates-General in France represented:

A. Two estates
B. Three estates
C. Four estates
D. Only nobility

Answer: B

Question 29. The Estates-General was not summoned after 1614 mainly because:

A. It lost relevance
B. Nobles opposed it
C. Kings did not want to share power
D. It supported peasants

Answer: C

Question 30. The English Parliament developed from the:

A. Feudal council
B. Great Council
C. Church synod
D. Royal court

Answer: B

Question 31. The House of Commons represented:

A. Nobility only
B. Clergy only
C. Towns and rural areas
D. Merchants only

Answer: C

Question 32. King Charles I ruled without Parliament from:

A. 1603–1610
B. 1629–1640
C. 1640–1651
D. 1658–1668

Answer: B

Question 33. Charles I was executed after:

A. A peasant revolt
B. A religious war
C. A civil war
D. Foreign invasion

Answer: C

Question 34. After monarchy was restored in England, it was agreed that:

A. Parliament would be abolished
B. Kings would rule alone
C. Parliament would be called regularly
D. Nobles would rule

Answer: C

Question 35. France eventually became a:

A. Constitutional monarchy
B. Absolute monarchy
C. Republic
D. Theocracy

Answer: C

Question 36. England today is a:

A. Republic
B. Dictatorship
C. Absolute monarchy
D. Constitutional monarchy

Answer: D

Question 37. Different political outcomes in France and England were due to:

A. Geography
B. Religion
C. Different historical paths after the 17th century
D. Economic backwardness

Answer: C

Question 38. The passage mainly explains:

A. Growth of democracy
B. Rise of absolutist states
C. Fall of capitalism
D. Spread of socialism

Answer: B

Question 39. A key result of new monarchies was:

A. Weakening of state power
B. Complete end of nobility
C. Centralised political authority
D. Peasant rule

Answer: C

Question 40. Which concept best describes the political system discussed?

A. Feudal democracy
B. Modified feudal absolutism
C. Industrial monarchy
D. Military republic

Answer: B