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CHAPTER 6: THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE, 1774–1783
Multiple Choice
1. The Conciliatory Proposition pledged not to tax the colonists if they __________.
A) swore allegiance to the king
B) purchased all of their finished goods from England
C) quartered British troops in America
D) voluntarily contributed to the defense of the empire
2. Lord North’s Conciliatory Proposition seemed to be at odds with his order that __________.
A) all rebels be shot
B) John Hancock and Samuel Adams be arrested
C) the villagers live together in peace
D) all British loyalists return to England
3. Who headed the Massachusetts Committee of Safety in 1774?
A) Samuel Adams
B) John Hancock
C) John Adams
D) Paul Revere
4. The Committee of Safety __________.
A) sought to disband the Minutemen
B) organized a militia
C) called for the creation of a Provincial Congress
D) was most active in the Lower South
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5. Gage and his troops were given orders to arrest John Hancock and whom on April 18, 1775?
A) John Adams
B) Ethan Allen
C) Paul Revere
D) Samuel Adams
6. What was Paul Revere’s job before the American Revolution?
A) groom
B) silversmith
C) brewer
D) poet
7. The Battle of __________ was originally intended to be a show of defiance but not an actual fight.
A) Lexington
B) Concord
C) Boston
D) Philadelphia
8. Patriots made an effort to spread the news of the Battles of Lexington and Concord so that
__________.
A) they could garner support
B) the British would back off
C) British enemies would attack in Europe
D) they could raise market prices on exported goods
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9. Why was the first shot fired in Lexington called the shot “heard round the world”?
A) It came from a new kind of gun.
B) It started the American Revolution.
C) It set off a world war.
D) It had a dramatic impact on the world economy.
10. The Second Continental Congress was held in __________.
A) Boston
B) New York
C) Philadelphia
D) Annapolis
11. In its early days, one of the acts of the Second Continental Congress was to __________.
A) establish the Supreme Court
B) set up shelters for war veterans
C) accept North’s Conciliatory Proposition
D) create the Continental Army
12. Fort Ticonderoga was __________.
A) a British fort taken over by Americans
B) an American fort taken over by the British
C) the site of a significant victory against the Native Americans
D) the location of a major slave rebellion
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13. What document asserted American patriots would “die freemen, rather than live as slaves”?
A) the Olive Branch Petition
B) the Declaration of Independence
C) the Constitution
D) the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms
14. Why did a British officer remark that another victory like the Battle of Bunker Hill “would have
ruined us”?
A) The British spent a great deal of money arming their soldiers.
B) British morale was at an all-time low.
C) The battle caused fires that destroyed many resources.
D) The British suffered substantial casualties.
15. John Adams of Massachusetts nominated George Washington as commander in chief of the army
because __________.
A) they were old college friends
B) Washington was from a southern state
C) Washington was willing to spend his own fortune on arms for his troops
D) Washington had agreed to support Adams’s bid to be the first president
16. In March 1776, the British evacuated their troops from Boston and moved to Halifax because
__________.
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A) Boston did not have strategic value
B) Halifax was a safer position
C) Boston was growing too dangerous
D) Halifax had more money
17. During the Revolutionary War, loyalists made up about __________ percent of the colonial
population.
A) 3
B) 5
C) 10
D) 20
18. Why did Republican theory mistrust professional armies?
A) They were the instrument of tyrants.
B) They were reckless and sloppy.
C) They were prone to desertion.
D) They were too costly.
19. German mercenaries were called what by the Americans?
A) Prussians
B) Badens
C) Bavarians
D) Hessians
20. Benedict Arnold offered to surrender what to the British?
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A) West Point
B) Annapolis
C) Valley Forge
D) Providence
21. What kept professional soldiers in line?
A) money
B) food
C) discipline
D) women
22. The Newburgh affair was defused by __________.
A) congressional appropriations of payment for soldiers
B) a show of force from soldiers loyal to the government
C) George Washington
D) Alexander Hamilton
23. Why did the British troops lack supplies, even though they had sufficient money?
A) They got most of their supplies from the British Isles.
B) American troops frequently ambushed their suppliers.
C) Rebels damaged their supplies.
D) British troops used their supplies inefficiently.
24. Early in the war, some royal officials sought to recruit black slaves into the loyalist forces with a
promise of __________.
A) freedom
B) land
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C) money
D) passage to Africa
25. Republicanism was least associated with __________.
A) “country” ideology
B) the Enlightenment
C) the Renaissance
D) Tory philosophy
26. Why was the enlistment of black soldiers controversial in the Continental Army?
A) White soldiers did not believe additional soldiers were necessary.
B) White soldiers did not want to share wages with black soldiers.
C) More soldiers were needed, but funds for wages were very limited.
D) More soldiers were needed, but southerners didn’t want to fight with slaves.
27. During the late colonial period, the headquarters of the British Army in America was in __________.
A) Boston
B) New York
C) Philadelphia
D) Norfolk
28. Whose nickname was “Gentleman Johnny”?
A) John Adams
B) John Jay
C) John Howe
D) John Burgoyne
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29. After what battle did General Burgoyne surrender to the Americans?
A) the Battle of Princeton
B) the Battle of Ticonderoga
C) the Battle of Saratoga
D) the Battle of Brandywine Creek
30. Who received the British surrender at the Battle of Saratoga?
A) Washington
B) Gates
C) Jones
D) Arnold
31. Why is the Continental Army’s winter at Valley Forge famous?
A) It was the first time the soldiers were able to rest in comfort.
B) Thousands of soldiers died from cold, disease, and starvation.
C) It was the site of an epic battle and victory against the British.
D) George Washington was elected president there.
32. The American victory at Saratoga convinced the French __________.
A) that the United States had a viable future
B) that the colonies were doomed
C) to fund the Revolutionary War
D) to stay neutral
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33. Why did Catherine the Great suggest that the European powers form a League of Armed Neutrality?
A) to protect civilians
B) to protect the environment
C) to protect sea travel
D) to protect trade
34. What is the Battle of Monmouth Court House famous for?
A) It was the first battle of the Revolution that used African American soldiers.
B) It was the first Revolutionary War battle against Native Americans.
C) It was the last major military engagement in the North during the Revolutionary War.
D) It was the last battle of the Revolutionary War.
35. How did foreign intervention turn the Revolutionary War into a virtual world war?
A) British forces were engaged in fighting in the colonies, the West Indies, and in India.
B) Many nations watched the war closely.
C) Most large nations contributed to the war financially.
D) Colonial forces drew paid soldiers from Russia, China, and Italy.
36. With so many men away at war, women experienced __________.
A) large increases in education
B) a dramatically lowered birth rate
C) increased control over financial considerations
D) a decrease in incidents of disease
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37. The Ladies’ Association of Philadelphia was established to raise money for __________ for soldiers.
A) guns
B) food
C) blankets
D) shirts
38. England established which African colony for ex-slaves?
A) Liberia
B) Zaire
C) Sierra Leone
D) Rwanda
39. In northern states with small numbers of slaves, __________ helped to bring an end to slavery.
A) immigration
B) the Revolutionary War
C) manufacturing
D) religion
40. __________ who sided with the British suffered significantly when the war ended.
A) Women
B) Hessians
C) Frenchmen
D) Native Americans
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41. Over the course of the Revolutionary War, prices in America __________.
A) rose
B) fell
C) remained steady
D) were denominated in French currency
42. The peace negotiations at the end of the Revolutionary War took place in __________.
A) Amsterdam
B) Paris
C) Yalta
D) Versailles
43. America’s senior negotiator at the peace talks ending the Revolutionary War was __________.
A) Franklin
B) Washington
C) Jefferson
D) Madison
44. Who was the British Prime Minister during the Revolutionary War peace talks?
A) North
B) Rockingham
C) Shelburne
D) Glenville
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45. Who controlled Florida in the aftermath of the 1783 Treaty of Paris?
A) the United States
B) Britain
C) France
D) Spain
46. After North resigned, the new prime minister was eager to be conciliatory in order to __________.
A) exit the colonies peacefully
B) regain colonial trade
C) mollify British citizens
D) undermine further slave trading
47. What was Spain’s most important goal in the Paris peace talks?
A) to receive gold
B) to regain Florida
C) to regain the Philippines
D) to regain Gibraltar
48. In the Paris peace agreement, __________.
A) slavery was banned in the northern colonies
B) slavery was banned in Canada
C) slavery was banned in New England
D) nothing was said about the slave trade
49. How were British economic interests hurt and helped by the Treaty of Paris?
A) British soldiers left behind American-owned property, but Americans still had to pay their debts to the
British.
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B) The British took back all of their slaves but were not allowed to keep other property.
C) British soldiers were compensated by the early American government but many decided to become
American.
D) The British lost many ships but were able to take a cache of weapons as a concession.
50. Some historians say that, besides Washington’s leadership, the most crucial reason for the American
victory in the Revolutionary War was __________.
A) the ineptness of British soldiers
B) the aid of the French
C) the stable American economy
D) the European diplomacy of John Adams
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Essay Questions
51. What role did marginalized groups (e.g., African Americans, Indians, women) play in the war for both
sides? Were any of these groups left better off after the war ended?
52. Analyze Washington’s leadership during the war. What qualities made him especially well-suited for his
role?
53. Why was the much larger and better-supported British military defeated?
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