Comparing Sources as Evidence
Some questions in History will ask you to compare sources as evidence.
Sources may be of any kind, Primary or Secondary, books, letters, diaries,
newspapers, photographs, cartoons, etc.
Two things to remember when answering a
question like this.
1. When you make a comparison you
need to note the similarities and
differences of the sources, as well as
what evidence they supply.
2. Use information from the sources in
your answer, this could be quotes, or
descriptions of photos. Anything that
helps you answer the question.
Useful comparison words and phrases might
include:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Source A is different from Source B
because it shows…
Source A is similar to Source B because they
both explain…
By contrast...
However...
Similarly…
By comparison…
When compared to Source A, Source B is less
reliable because…
Examples of questions might be:
•
Compare sources A and B as evidence of the failure of the Treaty of Versailles.
•
Compare sources C, D, and E as evidence of conditions on the Home Front in Britain
during World War One.
•
Compare sources A and B as evidence of Hitler’s attitude towards Jewish people in
Europe.
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Comparing Sources as Evidence
A Venn diagram is one way of organising your thoughts. You can easily show differences and
similarities between sources.
Late one afternoon when returning from town we
were met by a few women and children who told us
that Mexican troops from some other town had
attacked our camp, killed all the warriors of the
guard, captured all our ponies, secured our arms,
destroyed our supplies, and killed many of our
women and children…when all were counted, I
found that my aged mother, my young wife, and my
three small children were among the slain.
– Geronimo
Source A
Source B
Both
Personal Account
Geronimo’s perspective
About Geronimo’s
family
Possibly biased against
Mexicans
Australians At War
Primary Sources
About Geronimo
Focus on violence
Newspaper article
United States
Perspective
About Geronimo’s
violence
Likely biased against
Geronimo
Macaulay
Comparing Sources as Evidence
Source A
Source B
Anzac Soldier, 1915
From the website “Turkey in the First World War” Dr.
Altay Atlı, 2003-2019
Our troops made a successful advance and, according to
the number of injured coming in, they paid dearly for it.
What a pitiful sight they presented. They had been 20
hours lying all over the place with great gaping wounds.
Some had both legs broken and the pain they endured
coming down the steep sides was almost unendurable.
Question :
In the morning of April 26, 1915, the total Turkish
strength at the northern part of the peninsula, the
Arıburnu sector, was around 10 thousand men
supported by 16 machine guns and 28 pieces of
artillery. They were to face 20 thousand Anzacs.
Fortunately, Anzacs had only been digging during the
night, instead of taking advantage of this weakness.
Mustafa Kemal’s immediate response was to move
two battalions of the 72. Regiment to the left wing in
order to fill the gap.
Compare sources A and B as evidence of the casualties inflicted at Gallipoli upon the
ANZACs.
Both Sources A and B contain evidence that shows us the nature of and reasons for
casualties at Gallipoli.
Source A is a primary source detailing the aftermath of a “successful advance” of the Anzacs.
It is also written by an Anzac and so comes from his perspective, it may not be biased but
contains emotive language which may be explained by the intense experience. . This source
explains that although there were successful attacks during the ultimately doomed
campaign, it came at a high cost paying “dearly for it.” The source describes the “gaping
wounds” the soldiers received and lack of immediate attention, for at least “20 hours”.
“Broken legs” and extreme pain was also part of the life at Gallipoli for the casualties.
Source B, unlike Source A, is a secondary source. It is not a personal account, but a
researched piece of writing from an historian. It may come from a Turkish perspective but
there is no emotive language and so, in contrast to source A, doesn’t appear biased or
caught up in the emotion of the event. While source B does not contain the graphic imagery
of the aftermath of battle the way source A does, instead it contains evidence of the
reasons for the casualties. While the Anzacs initially outnumbered the Turkish troops by
20,000 to 10,000, the Anzacs were slow to dig in and Turkish reinforcements were called in
to “fill the gap”. Also facing the Anzacs was heavy weaponry such as ”16 machine guns and
28 pieces of artillery” which accounts for the horrible injuries mentioned in source A.
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Comparing Sources as Evidence
Source C
Source D
ANZAC Soldier 1915
Extract of an article from
The armistice began for the purpose of
burying the dead. The smell is something
awful. Some of the bodies have been lying
in the heat of the sun for four weeks and
of course all are unrecognisable. It is only
by identification discs that the corpses are
known. The ground was simply covered
with dead between the trenches and
estimates of 12,000 Turks killed have been
made.
https://nzhistory.govt.nz/media/photo/gallipoli-armistice
At The Nek, Arab and Turkish infantry made repeated attempts to
breach the Anzac defences, each attack collapsing in the face of
accurate machine-gun and rifle fire. An estimated 3000 Ottoman
soldiers died during the failed attack, and their bodies were left to
rot in no-man’s-land alongside Anzac dead from earlier battles. The
fouled state of the line became too much to endure, and both sides
agreed to a 24-hour truce on 24 May 1915 to bury the dead.
Question:
Compare sources C and D as evidence of the armistice at Gallipoli.
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Australians At War
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