Question
Question (8 marks + up to additional marks for SPaG depending on series; treat as 8 here): "The specified site is more important as a symbol than as a functional building." How far do you agree? Use the site and your wider knowledge to support your answer.
Mark scheme (AO1 + AO2 + AO3 synoptic):
- L1 (1–2): Asserts a view; minimal evidence.
- L2 (3–4): One-sided argument with some site evidence.
- L3 (5–6): Balanced argument — symbolic (banded masonry imitating Constantinople; Eagle Tower iconography of Magnus Maximus / Macsen Wledig from the Mabinogion) AND functional (concentric defence, town wall integration, garrison logistics).
- L4 (7–8): Sustained line of reasoning reaching a substantiated judgement, deploying historiography (e.g. Arnold Taylor's imperial imitation thesis; Abigail Wheatley, The Idea of the Castle in Medieval England, 2004, on myth and memory) and a comparative site (Beaumaris's concentric purity vs. Caernarfon's symbolic eccentricity). Must use named physical features as primary evidence (AO3).
8 marks · take your time before peeking.
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Generated by TopMyGrade AI · cross-check official sources before relying on the mark-scheme phrasing.