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WorksheetsEuropean Exploration: Before 1492
Total questions: 33
Worksheet time: 17mins
What revolution took place in central Mexico between 10,000 and 5,000 years ago?
the invention of kayaks
the development of agriculture
the introduction of big-game hunting
the arrival of explorers across the land bridge
How did the Adena people differ from the Anasazi people?
The Adena grew crops in desert climates.
The Adena constructed their houses in cliffs.
The Adena established civilizations near major rivers.
The Adena built gigantic mounds filled with special objects.
What was the main reason that the ancient peoples in the Americas had so many different cultural traditions?
They had different religious backgrounds.
They came from different parts of the world.
They used different modes of transportation.
They lived in different climates and landscapes.
What effect did an elaborate transcontinental trading network have on the ancient Native Americans?
It allowed them to develop religious beliefs.
It allowed them to eliminate the need for specialization.
It allowed them to establish both urban and agricultural societies.
It allowed them to have both direct and indirect contact with
each other.
Besides having access to goods from other regions, how else were West Africans affected by trade across the Sahara highway?
They were forced into slave labor.
They were introduced to the ideas of Islam.
They were forbidden to purchase plantations.
They were encouraged to grow their own crops.
What prevented the kings of Songhai from gaining control of Benin and Kongo?
large rivers
dry deserts
vast grasslands
dense rainforests
What was a similarity among most West African cultures?
lifelong slavery
strong family ties
belief in multiple creators
private ownership of land
If the European social order were organized in a pyramid-style chart, why would the peasants be located at the bottom of the chart?
The people in this class had less wealth than the other classes.
The people in this class provided protection for the other classes.
The people in this class had possession of more land than the
other classes.
There were fewer skilled artisans and merchants in this class than in the other classes.
What was the primary purpose of the Christian missionary effort during the 1400s?
to attain wealth
to set up colonies
to defend the faith
to increase in power
Which of the following events happened prior to an epidemic of plagues that killed over 25 million Europeans?
Thousands of peasants died from heavy rains and disease.
Towns and cities emerged and many people returned to urban
life.
Europeans wanted to expand their cultural influence around the
world.
Four major European nations formed (England, France, Portugal, and Spain).
Why did Europeans suddenly have more interest in the East in the 1400s?
New maps were drawn to show easier land routes.
The first edition of Marco Polo’s book was printed.
More sailors started using the caravel in their travels.
Europeans invented the astrolabe to help provide directions at
sea.
What was the main purpose of Christopher Columbus’s first journey across the Atlantic in 1492?
to locate a route around Africa
to find gold for the Spanish Crown
to build an empire for Queen Isabella
to learn more about the Indian people
What was the major cause of the native peoples’ population decline after Columbus arrived in the Americas?
disease
poison
slavery
warfare
Why did the Europeans start bringing slaves to the Americas from Africa?
Native peoples in the Americas refused to work for free.
Diseases had killed many of the native peoples in the Americas.
The African slaves had already been trained on the plantation
system.
The price of Africans was greater than the price of native peoples from the Americas.
What is one of the main reasons why thousands of Europeans began crossing the Atlantic after Columbus’s voyages?
They wanted to participate in the slave trade.
They wanted to start a new empire for their monarchs.
They wanted to live in a place without economic constraints.
They wanted to obtain plants and animals to sell on the world
market.
Why did Christopher Columbus feel that he had failed to accomplish his goals by the time he died?
He wished that he had reached China.
He failed to maintain order on Hispaniola.
He felt disgraced by the king and queen of Spain.
He missed out on discovering more islands in the Caribbean.
How were the Spanish conquistadors similar to Christopher
Columbus?
They both went on voyages to the Americas in search of gold.
They both wanted to colonize new lands and never return
to Spain.
They both were ordered to return to Spain because of poor
leadership skills.
They both insisted that African slaves be used as labor in the
Americas.
What did Juan Ponce de León and Francisco Vásquez de Coronado have in common?
Neither found gold in the areas where they searched.
Neither wanted to spread their religion to the native peoples.
Both found climates that were desirous for future colonizations.
Both consistently battled the native peoples in the places where
they settled.
What caused Popé’s rebellion?
The Dutch destroyed Spanish churches.
The Spanish Armada bombarded the English Channel.
The conquistadors executed Catholic priests in the New World.
The Spanish refused to allow the Puebloans to practice their
own religion.
_____________was located in the rainforest of southern
Mexico.
Olmec
Maya
Aztec
Inca
_____________most prominent empire builder in the
Americas.
Olmec
Maya
Aztec
Inca
_____________mysteriously collapsed in 400 BC.
Olmec
Maya
Aztec
Inca
________________built a culture in what is now Guatemala and Central America.
Olmec
Maya
Aztec
Inca
________________empire stretched 2,500 miles along the
mountainous coast of South America.
Olmec
Maya
Aztec
Inca
________________believed to be the first empire in the
Americas.
Olmec
Maya
Aztec
Inca
_________________________built a culture in the Valley of Mexico.
Olmec
Maya
Aztec
Inca
The Portuguese established trade networks across the Sahara.
True
False
Islam was highly influential among the West Africans in the
1400s.
True
False
Slaves were brought from West Africa’s mainland to islands off the West African coast.
True
False
Prior to the 1400s, the West African and European people had little contact with each other.
True
False
What attracted the conquistadors to the Americas?
religious freedom
democratic principles
the prospect of wealth
the idea of missionary work
Why did the Spanish push northward into what is now the southwestern and southeastern United States?
They wanted to push the Muslims out of this part of the world.
They wanted to prevent other countries from establishing colonies there.
They wanted to provide an education to the Native Americans who lived there.
They wanted to encourage the construction of major cities and trade networks.
How did the Spanish priests show disrespect to the Native Americans in New Mexico?
The Spanish priests destroyed the Native Americans’ religious objects.
The Spanish priests forced the Native Americans to trade with Europeans.
The Spanish priests discouraged the Native Americans’ beliefs in land ownership.
The Spanish priests compelled the Native Americans into fighting battles for them.
