Actually a lot harder. Imagine all the mathematics courses you have to take now, but without the convenience of a calculator. You had to do it all long hand with an abacus and a slide rule. You were actually expected to know and articulate the significance of specific historical events. You not only did more writing, but you did it by hand with a pen and paper, and you were expected to actually conform to standard rules governing spelling, punctuation, grammar, etc, or you would fail... Oh and that is in Latin as well as English. Being able to read, write, and speak foreign languages was one of the benchmarks of an educated individual. As an example, Thomas Jefferson could fluently speak Latin, Greek, and French by the time he was 16, and was already in university studying Mathematics and philosophy. He graduated with honors and was a bar certified lawyer by the time he was 24.
