Chapter 8 Questions

Always include specific names, locations, and dates where possible.

1. What was the timing  between the battles of Lexington and Concord and the convening of the 2nd Continental Congress? What is the significance of the number of colonies who sent delegates to this meeting? What did most of the delegates originally seem to favor as the course of action to take?

2. What was the most important thing the Congress did and what were the reasons why they made this decision? What characteristics did George Washington have that made him a good choice? What qualities did he lack?

3. What was unusual about the time period from April 1775 to July 1776? What did the Continental Congress do in July 1775 that seemed at odds with military events during that time, and what was the response from the king in August 1775?

4. List and describe the early military engagements in the war in 1775. How did the invasion of Canada undercut colonial claims of fighting defensively based upon ideology?

5. What happened on Evacuation Day?

6. What were the specific reasons why the colonists delayed in declaring their outright independence until July of 1776?

7. Explain the basic republican ideology behind Common Sense and the Declaration of Independence? What were the main tenets about government articulated by both Paine and Jefferson? What conditions were considered necessary to have a successful republican government?

8. What were the examples the colonists drew upon when arguing the feasibility of self-government?

9. Summarize the grievances listed in the Declaration of Independence.

10. What were the specific tasks performed by the Patriot militia?

11. Explain the main differences between the Patriots and the Tories in terms of location, education, wealth, etc. Why did some remain Loyalists while others gambled everything by declaring themselves revolutionaries? How did most people feel about revolution?

12. Why was the Battle of Long Island significant? What were Washington’s two greatest successes in 1776-early 1777, and where were these located?

13. Create a simple chart detailing which British and American generals were associated with which battles, and the date and region in which the  battles took place.

14. What was the intent and significance of the Model Treaty? Who negotiated it?

15. When and why did France come to the aid of the colonists? What was the catalyst for their open support? What specific advantages did America gain? Were there any disadvantages?

16. What calamity struck the American forces on the heels of the French alliance?

17. How were indigenous peoples and the frontier affected by the war? Why did some native tribes fight for the British? What did the Treaty of Fort Stanwix do?

18. What do privateers do? What role did they play? How did the US Navy perform during the war? add some specific details to support your answer.

19. What happened at Yorktown? Why do some historians claim that it was not accurate to claim that the Americans won there?

20. What were the main provisions of the Treaty of Paris of 1783, and why were they so relatively generous to the Americans?

MC practice 7

1. In 1763, a definite shift occurred in British-colonial relations when _________ assumed control of colonial policy.                      (129,d)
A. Charles Townsend
B. Lord North
C. George Grenville
D. William Pitt
E. King George III

2. Under mercantilist doctrine, British currency policies enforced in the colonies were intended to primarily benefit            (128,d)
A. backwoods farmers.
B. British merchants.
C. Virginia tobacco planters.
D. the British Crown.
E. New England merchants.

3. The Navigation Acts, as written, aroused colonial resentment because they  (128,d)
A. prevented the colonists from developing a mature, self-sustaining economy.
B. forced the South to adopt a single crop as the basis for their economy.
C. favored the northern colonies at the expense of the southern colonies.
D. forced the American colonists to engage in economic activity which was not profitable.
E. all of the above.

4. The “radical whigs” were most opposed to, and feared,           (127)
A. republicanism
B. a written constitution
C. a too powerful parliament
D. too much democracy
E. the arbitrary power of the monarchy

5. The British Crown’s (officially the King, but actually often the Prime Minister acting on the King’s behalf) right to use the royal veto over colonial legislation        (128)
A. was opposed by many members of the British Parliament.
B. prohibited colonists from participating in the Atlantic slave trade.
C. was used sparingly by the British government.
D. was used frequently to overturn laws passed in colonial assemblies.
E. was what finally provoked the War of Independence.

6. The first Navigation Laws were specifically designed to          (128, b)
A. encourage the American colonies to experiment with growing new crops.
B. enable the colonists to maximize the profits they could earn through the sale of their trade goods.
C. foster a colonial economy that could offer healthy competition with Britain’s economy.
D. eliminate Dutch shippers from the American carrying trade.
E. support the mapping of Atlantic trade routes.

7. Before 1763, the Navigation Laws          (128, d,b)
A.  were loosely or rarely enforced in the American colonies.
B. were stringently enforced in Britain’s Indian colonies.
C. were aggressively enforced in the American colonies.
D. were more detrimental to the British mainland rather than the colonies.
E. were effective at putting American smugglers out of business.

8. The first law ever passed by Parliament  for raising tax revenues in the colonies was       (129,d)
A. Stamp Act
B. Townshend Act
C. Quartering Act
D. Declaratory Act
E. Sugar Act

9. All of these were benefits Americans gained from mercantilism before 1763 EXCEPT     (128, d)
A. the protection of the greatest navy and army in the world without any cost to the colonists.
B.  Americans were allowed to trade freely with other countries on the open market.
C. some British merchants were not allowed to compete with Colonial merchants, giving the Americans a virtual monopoly.
D. Virginia tobacco planters enjoyed a monopoly of the British market.
E. London paid high prices for ship parts made by colonial shipbuilders.

10. Mercantilists believed that        (127,d)
A. power came from a small but concentrated colonial empire.
B. the mother country produced raw materials and the colonies produced the finished good.
C. a mother country needed to import more than export.
D. a country’s power was determined by the amount of gold and silver in its treasury.
E. colonies were a drain on the mother country and should be curtailed.

Maps on French Colonization

New France before 1763

After the Seven Years’ War (the French and Indian War here…) here’s a map of how territory swapped hands…

Territorial changes after the French and Indian War