Chapter Four: Experience of Empire: Eighteenth Century America, 1680-1763

Practice Quiz:

1. The factor most responsible for the growth of the colonial population between 1700 and 1770 was the
a. the natural reproduction of colonial families
b. the great wave of immigration during that period
c. the program of forced migration instituted by the monarchy
d. the dramatic upsurge in the importation of slaves

2. What was the main motivation that brought so many Scots-Irish to America in the 1700s?
a. They came to practice their Catholicism freely, something they could not do in Ireland
b. They came in search of freedom and prosperity, two things they lacked in Ireland
c. They came to work as indentured servants in the New World
d. They came to earn money in America and planned to return to Scotland

3. The “middle ground” was an area
a. where whites and Indians interacted on an approximately equal basis
b. inhabited by renegades, half-breeds, and runaway slaves
c. designation by treaty to be a demilitarized zone
d. where most of the fighting between whites and Indians occurred

4. Why did Spain initially have little interest in settling California?
a. The region was full of Native American groups who fought any Europeans that tried to settle there
b. The region had so many French settlers there that the Spanish did not want to fight over land with them
c. The region was continually plagued by earthquakes, which frightened the settlers away
d. The region appeared to lack natural resources and was not easy to reach from Mexico City

5. Which best summarizes the basic philosophy of the Enlightenment?
a. Faith and tolerance could help humans achieve perfection in this world
b. Knowledge was of little use when confined to speculation
c. Reason could help humans achieve perfection in this world
d. People must give up most possessions to achieve true enlightenment

6. The one American who, more than anyone else, symbolized the spirit of the Enlightenment was
a. George Washington
b. Cotton Mather
c. Benjamin Franklin
d. Isaac Newton

7. A major financial problem that confronted mid-eighteenth century America involved the
a. heavy debt owed to the British
b. colonists refusal to buy English products
c. shortage of gold and silver coinage
d. lack of credit available to merchants

8. The two most important leaders of the Great Awakening in colonial America were
a. Thomas Gordon and John Trenchard
b. John Locke and Benjamin Franklin
c. Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield
d. Samuel Adams and Ebenezer McIntosh

9. Why did tensions arise between colonial congregations of the 1740s and 1750s?
a. Evangelical preachers began to challenge traditional preaching.
b. Colonial preachers no longer wanted to be controlled by the English clergy
c. Some preachers wanted to prevent colonists from joining their congregations
d. Congregations disagreed about whether women should participate in the church

10. Which was NOT true of royal governors in colonial America.
a. They had the power to dismiss judges
b. They were military commanders-in-chief in each colony
c. They had the power to tax colonists
d. They had the right to veto legislation

11. What did the Great Awakening, intercolonial trade, and the rise of colonial assemblies have in common?
a. They created disdain for England
b. They created a rebellious spirit in America
c. They contributed to a growing sense of shared identity
d. They exacerbated the problems of an already-divided citizenry

12. Which was NOT a colonial war fought between France and England?
a. King William’s War.
b. Queen Anne’s War.
c. the War of the Austrian Succession.
d. King Philip’s War.

13. The major source of Anglo-French conflict in the colonies was
a. slavery
b. international navel supremacy
c. arguments over relations and treaties with Native Americans
d. control of the Mississippi and Ohio Valleys

14. Which best describes Benjamin Franklin’s main goal in drafting the Albany Plan?
a. to set up a system of common taxes and tariffs throughout the colonies
b. to organize a council of delegates to coordinate common defense and western expansion
c. to draft a constitution that freed the colonies from any control by the British crown
d. to prepare the colonies for an eventual war of independence with England

15. Which was NOT a consequence of the Seven Years War
a. The war revealed British discontent with America’s contribution to its own defense
b. The war led to the creation of several new French colonies
c. The war trained a corps of American officers
d. The war forced the colonists to cooperate on an unprecedented scale