AP EUROPEAN HISTORY
HOW TO WRITE AN OUTSTANDING HISTORICAL ESSAY
(Writing the Free Response Question – FRQ)

The ability to write a good historical essay is not only critical in order to do well in AP European History, but is
a vital skill that will help you improve your writing for other high school classes, and for college-level work.

Historical essays often ask you to agree or disagree with an interpretation of history, or will require you to
develop your own interpretation and support it with evidence.
Before you begin to write:
1.
Carefully read the question to make sure you understand what it is asking you to do.
 Pay careful attention to the TASK WORDS in the question (e.g., analyze, describe, compare and contrast,
evaluate).
 Look closely at the CHRONOLOGY (time periods) of the question. Many students write great essays
that, unfortunately, don’t answer the question that was asked! You must discuss those time periods,
locations, and topics that are in the question, and only those!
 Also check if there is more than one part to the question (e.g., “compare and contrast,” “social, political,
and economic reasons”). To do well on the essay, you must address all parts of the question evenly.
2.
Take a few minutes to review what you already know about the question, and develop a thesis statement.
3.
Write a brief outline of your essay before you begin to write.
The Introduction:
The introduction is where you make your first impression on the reader. Therefore, it is important that you have a
strong introduction that defines your thesis and your argument. NEVER begin your essay with the words
“Throughout history….”
1.
Your essay should be clearly organized around a thesis statement. The thesis statement:
 should clearly respond to the question, without directly repeating it
 should represent your own original interpretation or analysis of the information
 should make a clear ARGUMENT
 does not need to be the first sentence of your introduction
2.
Define important terms, (e.g. humanism, secular, absolutism) to demonstrate that you understand the question
and the essay topics. Provide a concise statement (no more than one sentence) that places the essay topic in its
historical context.
3. Clearly identify the supporting arguments that you will use in your essay. Again, make sure you are
responding to all parts of the question.
4.
After reading your introduction, your reader should know exactly what your argument is (your thesis), and
how you are going to prove it (your supporting arguments/evidence) - sometimes called a "preview."
The Body Paragraphs:
1.
Three supporting paragraphs are recommended, but depending on the question and how you are organizing
your essay, you could have 2-4 body paragraphs. You should have one paragraph for each of your supporting
arguments.
2.
Each paragraph must begin with a CLEAR GUIDING SENTENCE that introduces the topic of the paragraph.
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3.
In the body of the paragraph, give SPECIFIC AND ACCURATE EXAMPLES that support the topic sentence.
Be as precise as possible – mention events, people, publications, and ideas, and describe them in detail.
4.
End each paragraph with a sentence that links the information in that paragraph to your overall argument and
thesis.
5.
You will not lose points for minor historical errors (e.g., writing that a book was written in 1820 instead of
1830).
6.
Only include information that is relevant to your argument.
7.
REMEMBER - YOUR ARGUMENT IS ONLY AS STRONG AS THE EVIDENCE YOU USE TO SUPPORT IT!
The Conclusion:
1.
End with a concise summary of your argument – do not simply recopy your first paragraph, or rewrite your
thesis word-for-word.
2.
Try to state your position in a new way, and pull together the threads of each supporting argument.
Final Thoughts:

Think of writing an historical essay as similar to a lawyer presenting a case in court – you need to have a clear
position you are trying to prove, and you need to have specific, accurate, and convincing evidence to prove
it.

Always write your essays in blue or black ink!

The next page contains an outline format that you should use when writing essays for this class.
TASK WORDS & THEIR MEANINGS:

ANALYZE: determine their component parts; examine their nature and relationship.

ASSESS/EVALUATE: judge the value or character of something; appraise; evaluate the positive points and
the negative ones; give an opinion regarding the value of; discuss the advantages and disadvantages of.

COMPARE: examine for the purpose of noting similarities and differences.

CONTRAST: examine in order to show dissimilarities or points of difference.

DESCRIBE: give an account of; tell about; give a word picture of.

DISCUSS: talk over; write about; consider or examine by argument or from various points of view; debate;
present the different sides of.

EXPLAIN: make clear or plain; make clear the causes or reasons for; make known in detail; tell the
meaning of.
FORBIDDEN WORDS:
You should NEVER use the following words in your essay: I, stuff, things
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ESSAY OUTLINE WORKSHEET
I.
Introduction
A. Thesis Statement (one sentence):
B. Supporting arguments:
II.
Body Paragraph #1
A. Topic sentence:
B. Specific supporting evidence:
C. Final sentence to link information to thesis statement:
III.
Body Paragraph #2:
A. Topic sentence:
B. Specific supporting evidence:
C. Final sentence to link information to thesis statement:
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IV.
Body Paragraph #3:
A. Topic sentence:
B. Specific supporting evidence:
C. Final sentence to link information to thesis statement:
V.
Conclusion:
A. Concise summary of your argument and supporting evidence:
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