Constitution 1783-1787 Study Guide

Which document created the first national government of the United States but proved too weak to tax or enforce laws?

• U.S. Constitution

• Articles of Confederation

• Declaration of Independence

• Northwest Ordinance

A key weakness of the Articles of Confederation was that the national government could not do which essential task?

• Elect state governors

• Regulate local schools

• Collect taxes from states

• Write state constitutions

The Great Compromise resolved a conflict between large and small states by creating which structure of Congress?

• A council of governors

• A single-house chamber

• A bicameral legislature

• A royal parliament

What did the Three-Fifths Compromise decide about representation and taxation?

• Three-fifths of enslaved people counted

• All enslaved people counted equally

• Enslaved people did not count

• Only free males counted fully

Which principle states that government power comes from the people through voting?

• Judicial review

• Manifest destiny

• Popular sovereignty

• Implied powers

The idea that each branch of government can limit the others is best described as which principle?

• Military oversight

• Limited monarchy

• Direct democracy

• Checks and balances

Separating lawmaking, law-enforcing, and law-interpreting powers reflects which constitutional principle?

• Separation of powers

• Reserved powers

• Enumerated clauses

• Universal suffrage

Which enlightenment thinker influenced the Constitution with the concept of separation of powers and checks and balances?

• Baron de Montesquieu

• Thomas Hobbes

• Voltaire François

• Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Which document listed individual rights that the Constitution later protected, inspiring the Founders?

• Treaty of Paris

• Mayflower Compact

• Code of Hammurabi

• English Bill of Rights

Which principle limits government actions through the rule of law and a written framework?

• Limited government

• Total sovereignty

• Unitary supremacy

• Divine right kingship