Skip to content
    History A-Level

    Social inequality

    What Social inequality means in History A-Level, as defined for AQA.

    Definitions of Social inequality

    Exam boards and our study guides word this term in slightly different ways. Learn the version your board uses.

    Check what you remember

    Read the wording for your board, then hide it and explain Social inequality in your own words. Rough notes are fine. This is a self-check, with no mark or grade.

    Reference: AQA

    A condition of rigid stratification in which heavy taxation fell disproportionately on the Castilian peasantry, alongside lingering tensions surrounding the marginalised morisco population.
    AQA · 1B Spain in the Age of Discovery, 1469–1598 (A-level only) – The 'Golden Age', 1556–1598 (A-level only) (study guide)
    Deep social divisions existed between the privileged estates, who were largely exempt from direct taxes like the taille, and the heavily burdened Third Estate.
    AQA · 2F The Sun King: Louis XIV, France and Europe, 1643– 1715 (A-level only) – Challenges at home, 1685–1715 (study guide)
    Wealth highlighted regional, ethnic and social divisions, with the South segregated under Jim Crow laws and the North facing racial tensions.
    AQA · 2Q The American Dream: reality and illusion, 1945–1980 – Truman and Post-war America, 1945–1952 (study guide)
    A stark social divide in which ordinary workers faced shortages and queues while the party elite enjoyed luxurious lifestyles.
    AQA · 2T The Crisis of Communism: The USSR and the Soviet Empire, 1953–2000 (A-level only) – Years of Stagnation, 1964–1985 (study guide)
    The rigid class structure and heavy tax burden on the peasantry caused widespread poverty.
    AQA · 1B Spain in the Age of Discovery, 1469–1598 (A-level only) – The drive to 'Great Power' status, 1516–1556 (study guide)

    Topics that use Social inequality

    Related terms

    Using Social inequality in the exam

    Check the command word and mark scheme for your exact question. After comparing your explanation with the reference, use the term in an answer on the linked topic. This practice does not predict an exam mark.

    Practise History questions

    Create a free account to answer exam-style questions on this topic and get feedback on your answers.

    Start free

    A week of Premium from your first lesson · Then the free plan continues · No card, no charge

    All History A-Level terms