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Declaration of Independence

Total questions: 20

Worksheet time: 8mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Who was the main author of the Declaration of Independence?

a)

Charles Cornwallis

b)

Andrew Jackson

c)

George Washington

d)

Thomas Jefferson

2.

Which of the following Enlightenment Ideas was NOT part of the Declaration of Independence?

a)

Right to life

b)

Right to liberty

c)

Right to property

d)

3 separate branches of government

3.

Idea that government must protect people's rights, and that people choose their elected leaders:

a)

Natural Rights

b)

Social Contract

c)

Limited Government

d)

Divine Right of Kings

4.

Government cannot take these away from people because they are born with them:

a)

Natural Rights

b)

Divine Rights

c)

Limited Rights

d)

Socially Contracted Rights

5.

Enlightenment thinker who wrote about "Natural Rights" and the "Social Contract"

a)

Voltaire

b)

Rousseau

c)

Montesquieu

d)

Locke

6.

A person becomes King or Queen because God chose them:

a)

Socially-Contracted Right of Kings

b)

Natural Right of Kings

c)

Communist Right of Kings

d)

Divine Right of Kings

7.

The idea that people should rule themselves is known as:

a)

Popular Sovereignty

b)

Representative Democracy

c)

Direct Democracy

d)

Limited Government

8.

Type of government that is ruled by a King or Queen

a)

Democracy

b)

Monarchy

c)

Theocracy

d)

Oligarchy

9.

Type of Democracy that the Founders wanted to set up:

a)

Direct Democracy

b)

Limited Democracy

c)

Total Democracy

d)

Representative Democracy

10.

Author of "Common Sense"

a)

Thomas Jefferson

b)

John Adams

c)

Ben Franklin

d)

Thomas Paine

11.

What date is listed at the top of the Declaration of Independence?

a)

July 2, 1776

b)

July 4, 1776

c)

August 2, 1776

d)

August 4, 1776

12.

Who was the Declaration of Independence being sent to?

a)

King George III

b)

King Henry VIII

c)

George Washington

d)

Napoleon Bonaparte

13.

Which of the following was NOT a reason for separating from Great Britain?

a)

Sinking of the Lusitania

b)

Stamp Act

c)

Boston Massacre

d)

Quartering of Troops

14.

Which legislative body asked Thomas Jefferson to write the Declaration of Independence?

a)

1st Continental Congress

b)

2nd Continental Congress

c)

3rd Continental Congress

d)

4th Continental Congress

15.

Why was Thomas Jefferson asked to write the Declaration of Independence?

a)

He was wealthy

b)

He was a skilled writer & intelligent

c)

He was a skilled lawyer

d)

He had a good relationship with King George

16.

What was the main purpose of the Declaration of Independence?

a)

Declare war on Great Britain

b)

Ask King George for permission to separate

c)

Ask King George for forgiveness for the Boston Tea Party

d)

Explain to King George the reasons for separation from Great Britain

17.

Many of the people who signed the Declaration of Independence suffered at the hands of the British because they were considered traitors.

a)

True

b)

False

18.

Based on the Declaration of Independence, whos actions are the colonists most upset with?

a)

Alexander Hamilton

b)

Charles Cornwallis

c)

Benedict Arnold

d)

King George III

19.

Which "era" contributed many ideas that would later appear in the Declaration of Independence?

a)

Industrial Revolution

b)

Progressive Era

c)

Enlightenment

d)

Revolutionary Era

20.

About how many miles separated Great Britain from the American colonies?

a)

1,000 miles

b)

2,000 miles

c)

3,000 miles

d)

4,000 miles