Verbatim quotes from 3 official Cambridge examiner reports (2023–2025). Every quote is attributable to a specific paper and session — these are the things Cambridge markers flag year after year.

Listing points instead of explaining in continuous prose

Candidates should avoid 'listing points' and instead write in continuous prose.

— Cambridge examiner, Paper 1, March 2025

Describing WHAT happened instead of explaining WHY

Weaker responses described at length how Hitler persecuted the Jews, details of which were not relevant to this question about why.

— Cambridge examiner, Paper 1, March 2025

Using ellipses in quotations that destroy the original…

When quoting from a source, it should be written out in full, not abbreviated. When ellipses are used, the quotation often loses its meaning.

— Cambridge examiner, Paper 2, March 2025

See how to avoid these in the History 0470 exam guide

Avoid these

Most Common Mistakes — History (0470)

Based on analysis of 3 official Cambridge examiner reports (2023, 2025). Avoid these errors to maximise your marks.

Listing points instead of explaining in continuous prose

Paper 1 · Paper 1, both sessions (2023, 2025)

Describing WHAT happened instead of explaining WHY

Paper 1 · Paper 1 part (b), both sessions

One-sided arguments in part (c) evaluation questions

Paper 1 · Paper 1 part (c), both sessions

Using ellipses in quotations that destroy the original meaning

Paper 2 · Paper 2, both sessions

Confusing usefulness with reliability

Paper 2 · Paper 2, both sessions

Focus your revision

Topics Students Struggle With Most

Treaty of Saint Germain — confused with other treaties

Some responses confused it with the Treaty of Sevres or attributed it to the wrong country. Students know it was part of the Versailles settlement but cannot recall its specific terms for Austria.

Paper 1

Paris Peace Accords 1973 and the end of the Vietnam War

Weak knowledge of the specific terms of the Paris Peace Accords, the role of Kissinger and Le Duc Tho, and the distinction between the ceasefire agreement and the eventual fall of Saigon in 1975.

Paper 1

Nuremberg Laws specifics — distinguishing the two laws

Candidates often referred to 'the Nuremberg Laws' generically without distinguishing between the Reich Citizenship Law (stripped Jews of citizenship) and the Law for the Protection of German Blood and Honour (banned intermarriage).

Paper 1

Soviet takeover methods in Eastern Europe — country-specific details

Answers were often generic ('the Soviets took over Eastern Europe') without specific knowledge of how takeovers varied by country — salami tactics in Hungary, rigged elections in Poland, the coup in Czechoslovakia 1948.

Paper 1

War economy — concept and specific examples

Candidates struggled to explain what a war economy involves (rationing, industrial conversion, labour mobilisation, government control) and to provide specific examples from the countries studied.

Paper 1, Paper 4

Collective security — concept and why it failed

Vague understanding of what collective security meant in practice through the League of Nations. Candidates could name failures (Manchuria, Abyssinia) but struggled to explain WHY the collective security mechanism failed and what structural weaknesses caused it.

Paper 1

Korean War — causes, course, and consequences

Knowledge was often limited to 'North Korea invaded South Korea'. Specific details about UN involvement, Chinese intervention, MacArthur's dismissal, the Inchon landing, and the armistice terms were poorly known.

Paper 1

DAF (German Labour Front) — purpose and impact

Candidates knew the DAF replaced trade unions but struggled with specific details about Strength Through Joy (KdF), Beauty of Labour, and how these programmes functioned as tools of Nazi social control rather than genuine worker welfare.

Paper 1, Paper 4

About

History (0470) — Cambridge IGCSE Full Archive 2002–2026

This page contains all 811 available papers for Cambridge IGCSE History (0470) — 59 exam sessions from 2002 to 2026. Each session includes question papers, mark schemes, and where available, examiner reports and grade threshold documents. All files are free to download as PDF — no account required.

Cambridge IGCSE History (0470) is examined through multiple paper components. Question papers are available in two or three variants per session (v1, v2, v3) — each variant is sat in a different time zone but covers the same syllabus content and is equivalent in difficulty. The paper number in the filename indicates which component: for example, 0470_qp_12 is Paper 1, Variant 2.

Mark schemes for 0470 show the exact marking points accepted by Cambridge examiners. Many questions have multiple acceptable phrasings — look for 'accept', 'allow', and 'credit' in the mark scheme to understand the full range of valid responses. Examiner reports (where available) reveal the most common errors made by the cohort and what top-band answers looked like, making them essential reading before the actual exam.

The most effective way to use this archive is to attempt past papers under timed exam conditions, then analyse your mark scheme results by component. Track which paper components and question types you score lowest on — this tells you exactly where to focus revision. Grade threshold documents show the minimum mark needed for each grade in that specific session, which helps calibrate how your practice scores translate to actual grades.

Same subject

History 0470 at other levels

Cambridge O Level History

Subject code: 2147

Cambridge AS & A Level History

Subject code: 9697

FAQs

Questions, answered.

You can download all Cambridge History 0470 past papers right here on PapersDaddy. We have 59 exam sessions from 2002–2026 — including question papers, mark schemes, examiner reports, and grade thresholds for 0470. Click any session below to view and download PDFs.

Yes! Every Cambridge IGCSE History (0470) exam session includes the corresponding mark scheme alongside the question paper. Mark schemes show exactly how marks are allocated, helping you understand what examiners look for in top-scoring answers.

Start with recent 0470 papers (2025–2023) to understand current trends. Practice under timed conditions, then mark yourself using the mark scheme. Read examiner reports to learn common mistakes. For targeted revision, use History 0470 topical past papers to focus on specific topics.

We have Cambridge IGCSE History (0470) papers from May/June, October/November, and March sessions (where applicable), covering 2002–2026. That's 59 exam sessions in total.