U.S. History Regents Review: Independence

Which fundamental political idea is expressed in the Declaration of Independence?

• The government should guarantee every citizen economic security
• The central government and state governments should have equal power
• If the government denies its people certain basic rights, that government can be overthrown
• Rulers derive their right to govern from God and are therefore bound to govern in the nation's best interest

During the Revolutionary War period, Thomas Paine's Common Sense was important because it

• described a military plan for the defeat of England
• convinced many Americans who had been undecided to support independence
• contained a detailed outline for a new form of government
• argued for the addition of a bill of rights to the Constitution

Which conclusion about the American Revolutionary War is most clearly supported by information in this chart?

• England had few advantages in a war with her American colonies
• The 13 colonies had more advantages than disadvantages upon entering the war
• England did not believe that the 13 colonies were worth the expense of a war
• The 13 colonies had few, but important advantages in the war with England

Which important reason for the American victory in the Revolutionary War is missing from the chart?

• naval superiority of the 13 colonies
• aid from foreign nations
• control of the railroads and canals
• greater number of Indian allies

Which heading completes the partial outline below? 
_______________________
A. Committees of Correspondence
B. Non-importation Agreements
C. Boston Tea Party
D. First Continental Congress

• Protests Against Slavery in the American Colonies
• British Parliamentary Actions to Punish Colonial Americans
• Colonial Responses to British Mercantile Policies
• Colonial Attempts to End the British Policy of Salutary Neglect

A major argument for American independnece found in the Declaration of Independence was that the British

• deprived Americans of their natural rights
• stopped participating in the slave trade
• refused to sell products to Americans
• censored American representatives to Parliament

The social contract theory as used in the Declaration of Independence was most directly influenced by the writings of 

• John Locke
• Adam Smith
• Thomas Paine
• Benjamin Franklin

The years between the end of the American Revolution and the ratification of the Constitution are sometimes called the "critical period" because

• the western territories were left ungoverned
• the United States fought a war with France
• Spain refused to sell Florida to the United States
• the central government failed to solve many economic problems

Which protection in the Bill of Rights is most directly related to the 1735 trial of John Peter Zenger?

• freedom of the press
• right to bear arms
• ban on unreasonable searches
• freedom from double jeapardy

Shays' Rebellion (1786) became a concern for many national leaders because it

• indicated there would be future conflicts over the spread of slavery
• exposed fundamental weaknesses in government under the Articles of Confederation
• pointed to the need for federal government regulation of interstate commerce
• showed that frontier settlements were vulnerable to raids by Native Americans