AP US History : AP US History
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP US History
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Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Ap Us History
Which of the following statements is best supported by the information provided in the diagram above?
Improved economic and political stability in Europe paved the way for rapid exploration and settlement of the New World
One of the goals of European colonization of the Americas and subjugation of Native Populations was religious conversion
In search of power and profit for themselves and their nation, conquering explorers laid waste to large parts of Central and South America, disrupting long-standing civilizations
Violent conflicts occurred between European explorers and the Native Americans, whom the Europeans perceived as racially and culturally inferior
The importation of slaves from Africa to the Americas supplied forced labor to conquering Europeans in the wake of decimation of native populations as a result of disease
The importation of slaves from Africa to the Americas supplied forced labor to conquering Europeans in the wake of decimation of native populations as a result of disease
Note: the diagram was created by the question writer.
While all of the statements are true, the diagram depicts the Columbian exchange, which led to the formation of the Triangular Trade network. The decimation of native populations due to introduced diseases and race-based violence from the colonizing forces led to a labor shortage, leading European explorers to import slaves from Africa. Note that the question asks which statement is best supported by the provided source, so just because an option is true does not make it the correct answer.
Example Question #1 : 1491–1607
Which of the following events was most directly caused by the exchange network depicted in the diagram?
The Reformation in Europe
The rise of capitalism among European nations
The spread of Christianity across the Americas
The development of the encomienda system
The intermarriage of Spanish conquerors and native women
The rise of capitalism among European nations
Note: the diagram was created by the question writer.
Mineral wealth in the form of gold and silver facilitated the European shift from feudalism to capitalism. While the other events did occur in the selected time period (late 15th century - 16th century), the shift towards capitalism can be the most directly tied to the Columbian exchange.
Example Question #3 : Ap Us History
In 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created (published in 2011), the historian Charles H. Mann describes the effects of the Columbian exchange: the unwitting transfer of plants, animals, and microbes between the New World and the Old which transformed life on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
According to Mann, among the living things exchanged were tomatoes, potatoes, sugarcane, horses, corn, smallpox, measles, cacao, vanilla, tobacco, rice, onions, and bananas.
Which of the following was a direct, long-term effect of the European arrival in the Americas?
Large numbers of the native population died from diseases for which they had no immunity.
The arrival of horses changed the hunting habits of many North American tribes.
Sugarcane became a cash crop in Caribbean plantations.
All of the answers are correct.
All of the answers are correct.
All of the answers are correct. Although the disease toll of the Columbian exchange is well known, the ecological effects of Europe's arrival in the Americas were no less impactful.
Example Question #1 : 1491–1607
In 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created (published in 2011), the historian Charles H. Mann describes the effects of the Columbian exchange: the unwitting transfer of plants, animals, and microbes between the New World and the Old which transformed life on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
According to Mann, among the living things exchanged were tomatoes, potatoes, sugarcane, horses, corn, smallpox, measles, cacao, vanilla, tobacco, rice, onions, and bananas.
Which of the following statements best describes the goals of Europeans traveling to the New World in the 1400s and 1500s?
establishing new settlements for European prisoners
finding new sources of wealth and spreading Christianity
expanding knowledge by discovering new territories
escaping religious persecution
finding new sources of wealth and spreading Christianity
Although eventually colonies in the New World would be settled for all these reasons, the initial motives of Columbus and other early explorers were evangelism and the pursuit of riches.
Example Question #1 : 1608–1754
Passage adapted from John Winthrop's "A Modell of Christian Charity" (1630)
The Lord will be our God, and delight to dwell among us, as his own people, and will command a blessing upon us in all our ways, so that we shall see much more of his wisdom, power, goodness and truth, than formerly we have been acquainted with. We shall find that the God of Israel is among us, when ten of us shall be able to resist a thousand of our enemies; when he shall make us a praise and glory that men shall say of succeeding plantations, “the Lord make it like that of New England.” For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and so cause him to withdraw his present help from us, we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world. We shall open the mouths of enemies to speak evil of the ways of God.
John Winthrop's speech is representative of the ideas and beliefs associated with which of the following groups?
Puritans
Catholics
Separatists
Baptists
Puritans
John Winthrop was the leader of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, which in 1630 settled Boston Harbor as a refuge for Puritans. Puritans believed that the Anglican church, which was the state church of England, was horribly corrupt on a number of levels and needed to be thoroughly cleansed and purified. Winthrop's speech "A Modell of Christian Charity" was given aboard the ship Arabella before going ashore to remind his followers of their religious duties.
Example Question #1 : Ap Us History
Passage adapted from John Winthrop's "A Modell of Christian Charity" (1630)
The Lord will be our God, and delight to dwell among us, as his own people, and will command a blessing upon us in all our ways, so that we shall see much more of his wisdom, power, goodness and truth, than formerly we have been acquainted with. We shall find that the God of Israel is among us, when ten of us shall be able to resist a thousand of our enemies; when he shall make us a praise and glory that men shall say of succeeding plantations, “the Lord make it like that of New England.” For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and so cause him to withdraw his present help from us, we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world. We shall open the mouths of enemies to speak evil of the ways of God.
John Winthrop gave the above speech to the original colonists of which North American British colony?
Plymouth
Connecticut
Virginia
Massachusetts Bay
Massachusetts Bay
John Winthrop was a leader among the radical reforming group known as the Puritans, and was chosen to lead a group of Puritans to form a new colony in the Americas as a safe haven for the group. Winthrop intentionally went north of the colonies of Virginia to Massachusetts Bay, which placed him closer to the similarly minded Plymouth Colony. Eventually, Massachusetts would overrun the Plymouth Colony and through divisions spawn Rhode Island, Connecticut, Maine, and New Hampshire.
Example Question #2 : Ap Us History
Passage adapted from John Winthrop's "A Modell of Christian Charity" (1630)
The Lord will be our God, and delight to dwell among us, as his own people, and will command a blessing upon us in all our ways, so that we shall see much more of his wisdom, power, goodness and truth, than formerly we have been acquainted with. We shall find that the God of Israel is among us, when ten of us shall be able to resist a thousand of our enemies; when he shall make us a praise and glory that men shall say of succeeding plantations, “the Lord make it like that of New England.” For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and so cause him to withdraw his present help from us, we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world. We shall open the mouths of enemies to speak evil of the ways of God.
The idea expressed in Winthrop's speech of a "city upon a hill" echoes what later idea in American society and politics?
American Exceptionalism
Isolationism
Manifest Destiny
Secession
American Exceptionalism
The phrase "city upon a hill" is the most lasting echo of Winthrop's speech, and it has been used by many politicians into the twenty first century. The idea, that New England would stand as a beacon to the rest of the world about how to construct a society, would get adapted to referring to the United States of America as a nation. This idea, that America stands apart as a shining example for others due to its unique goodness, is known as American exceptionalism.
Example Question #1 : 1608–1754
"At last they brought him to [Werowocomoco], where was Powhatan their Emperor. Here more then two hundred of those grim Courtiers stood wondering at him, as he had been a monster; till Powhatan and his train had put themselves in their greatest braveries. Before a fire upon a seat like a bedstead, he sat covered with a great robe, made of Rarowcun [raccoon] skins, and all the tails hanging by. At his entrance before the King, all the people gave a great shout.
Having feasted him after their best barbarous manner they could, a long consultation was held, but the conclusion was, two great stones were brought before Powhatan: then as many as could laid hands on him, dragged him to them, and thereon laid his head, and being ready with their clubs, to beat out his brains, Pocahontas the Kings dearest daughter, when no intreaty could prevail, got his head in her arms, and laid her own upon his to save him from death."
- John Smith, the General History of Virginia, 1624
In this story, Pocahontas' role can be compared to which of the following women?
Amelia Earhart
Dolly Madison
Sally Ride
Susan B. Anthony
Jane Addams
Jane Addams
In the context of this story, Pocahontas' work as a peace-maker can best be compared to Jane Addams. In addition to being a pioneering social worker, Addams was a vocal peace advocate and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931.
Example Question #3 : Ap Us History
Cotton Mather was a Boston minister who followed in the footsteps of his father, Increase Mather, serving as the pastor of Boston’s Old North Church and then the Second Church. He was a steadfast defender of the Puritan orthodoxy to the extent that he persuaded Elihu Yale, a London merchant and Anglican, to endow Yale University in 1703 as the training ground for Puritanism. Mather believed that Harvard University had become too liberal to suit his Puritan beliefs and decided a new educational base for Puritan training was needed. Mather also denounced witchcraft, a belief he would recant after reviewing the records of the Salem trials. Later in his life, he deviated further from condemning witchcraft when he encouraged his congregation to forgo any belief in the supernatural. He wrote prolifically during his lifetime. His writings were varied. He wrote on social, political and religious issues. He also wrote on the “New Sciences” and medical theories. Many of his writings were controversial for his time. Nonetheless, his writings are considered the best of early Enlightenment thinking in Colonial America.
Which of the following topics of Mather’s writings are noted for leading to extensive discussion, controversy, and change in New England thinking?
the continuing power of the King of England in the colonies
immunization against smallpox
societal changes to allow more freedom to women
the need for liberty from England in America
The creation of universities in all of the colonies to maintain Puritan ideas
immunization against smallpox
Cotton Mather had a strong interest in the “New Sciences” and medical theories of his day. He studied theology and medicine while at Harvard. During 1721, Boston experienced a smallpox epidemic. At this time a debate began regarding the benefits of inoculations against the disease. It was observed that those who survived smallpox were immune to the disease in the future. Mather learned about smallpox inoculations from the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, which awarded him the F.R.S. in 1713 for his writings on inoculations. He inoculated his son and that action combined with his writings and sermons on smallpox inoculation began a long debate. Many felt that inoculations would lead to a spread of the disease. This belief was based on the fact that a “live” version of the virus would be given in the inoculation. Mather stated that inoculations were a gift from God and to oppose inoculation was to oppose the word of God. He believed it was possible to reconcile science with Scripture. Mather, working with Dr. Zabdiel Boylston, convinced many people that religion and clinical medicine could work together to save lives. As a result, hundreds were inoculated against smallpox.
Example Question #4 : Ap Us History
Benjamin Franklin’s woodcut from May 9, 1754.
The image displayed a snake cut up into eight pieces. The snake’s detached head was labeled "N.E." for “New England,” while the trailing seven sections were tagged with letters representing the colonies of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
What is the main political goal supported by this cartoon?
the movement to force the Indian Confederacy to join the colonists
the resignation of the current ruling legislators of the United States
the movement to seek help from England
the joining of the colonies into a unified state
the joining of the colonies into a unified state
In 1754, Benjamin Franklin suggested a plan to unify the colonies of the time. More than twenty representatives of several colonies had gathered to plan their defense related to the French and Indian War. The plan represented one of multiple early attempts at unification.
Image is in the public domain: The Pennsylvania Gazette, 9 May 1754. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Benjamin_Franklin_-_Join_or_Die.jpg
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