wayground logo

Free Printable Worksheets

NEW

Font size

S
M
L
XL
Worksheets

European Colonies in America

Total questions: 50

Worksheet time: 25mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Who were the Vikings?

a)

Native Americans who lived on the island where Columbus first landed

b)

Sea raiders from Scandinavia who attacked the coasts of western Europe

c)

Explorers who landed in the Americas in 1492

d)

People who established colonies in the Americas

2.

Who was Leif Eriksson?

a)

An explorer whose landings in the Americas led to colonization

b)

A Viking who probably landed on the coast of Canada in about 1000

c)

A Native American who lived on the island where Columbus first landed

d)

A person who started the process of colonization

3.

What did Christopher Columbus believe he could achieve by sailing west?

a)

He thought he could get to India

b)

He thought he could find new colonies

c)

He thought he could reach Africa

d)

He thought he could find the Vikings

4.

Who were the Tainos?

a)

Sea raiders from Scandinavia

b)

Native Americans who lived on the island where Columbus first landed

c)

Explorers who landed in the Americas in 1492

d)

People who established colonies in the Americas

5.

Why did Columbus call the Tainos 'Indians'?

a)

Because he believed he was in the Indies

b)

Because they were from India

c)

Because they were friendly

d)

Because they lived in thatched houses

6.

What was the impact of Columbus's trips on Native Americans?

a)

They formed alliances with Europeans.

b)

They were enslaved and forced to work in mines.

c)

They were given new lands to settle.

d)

They were unaffected by the Europeans.

7.

What was the Columbian Exchange?

a)

A trade route between Europe and Asia.

b)

A series of battles between Europeans and Native Americans.

c)

An exchange of goods, animals, and diseases between Europe and the Americas.

d)

A treaty signed by Columbus and Native American leaders.

8.

Which of the following was NOT brought to Europe from the Americas during the Columbian Exchange?

a)

Corn

b)

Squash

c)

Horses

d)

Peanuts

9.

What diseases did Europeans spread among Native Americans?

a)

Malaria and tuberculosis

b)

Smallpox and measles

c)

Influenza and cholera

d)

Typhoid and yellow fever

10.

What was the Treaty of Tordesillas?

a)

An agreement dividing the New World between Spain and Portugal

b)

A treaty between England and France

c)

A peace agreement between Spain and the Aztecs

d)

A trade agreement between Spain and Holland

11.

Which countries did not accept the Treaty of Tordesillas?

a)

Spain, Portugal, and France

b)

England, France, and Holland

c)

Spain, England, and Holland

d)

Portugal, France, and Holland

12.

Who were the church members sent by Spain to teach and convert others to Christianity?

a)

Missionaries

b)

Explorers

c)

Soldiers

d)

Merchants

13.

Which groups did the Spanish colonists first use as workers on the land?

a)

Native Americans and Africans

b)

Europeans and Asians

c)

Australians and Europeans

d)

Africans and Asians

14.

What did the French find rich in the area they explored in the New World?

a)

Furs and fish

b)

Gold and silver

c)

Spices and silk

d)

Diamonds and pearls

15.

Who was the leader of the Jamestown colony?

a)

John Smith

b)

John Rolfe

c)

Powhatan

d)

Pocahontas

16.

What was a joint-stock company?

a)

A company owned by a single person

b)

A business in which people pool their money hoping to make a profit

c)

A company that only trades stocks

d)

A business that only operates in Virginia

17.

Who was the Native American leader in whose territory Jamestown was settled?

a)

John Smith

b)

John Rolfe

c)

Powhatan

d)

Pocahontas

18.

Who was the first tobacco grower in Virginia and married Pocahontas?

a)

John Smith

b)

John Rolfe

c)

Powhatan

d)

An indentured servant

19.

What was the House of Burgesses?

a)

A type of joint-stock company

b)

A Virginia assembly that was America’s first legislature

c)

A group of Native American leaders

d)

A rebellion against the English settlers

20.

What was Bacon’s Rebellion?

a)

A revolt that resulted from differing views on westward expansion into land reserved for Native Americans

b)

A peaceful negotiation between settlers and Native Americans

c)

A celebration of the first tobacco harvest

d)

A meeting of the House of Burgesses

21.

Where was England’s first colony in North America?

a)

Roanoke

b)

Jamestown

c)

Plymouth

d)

Virginia

22.

What was the main issue with the site of the Jamestown colony?

a)

It was low and swampy

b)

It was too far from the coast

c)

It had no access to fresh water

d)

It was in the middle of a desert

23.

Who helped trade for food with the Native Americans and was captured by the Powhatans?

a)

John Rolfe

b)

John Smith

c)

Nathaniel Bacon

d)

Pocahontas

24.

Who begged her father to save John Smith?

a)

Pocahontas

b)

Virginia

c)

Headright

d)

Indentured servant

25.

What was the first crop to make money for the Virginia colony?

a)

Corn

b)

Wheat

c)

Tobacco

d)

Cotton

26.

What term was used for people who had to work for four to seven years in return for food, shelter, and their voyage to America?

a)

Slaves

b)

Indentured servants

c)

Artisans

d)

Headrights

27.

In what year were the first enslaved Africans brought to the Virginia colony?

a)

1609

b)

1610

c)

1619

d)

1620

28.

Who started Bacon's Rebellion?

a)

John Smith

b)

John Rolfe

c)

Nathaniel Bacon

d)

Powhatan

29.

Who were the people that wanted to "purify" or reform the Church of England?

a)

Pilgrims

b)

Puritans

c)

Quakers

d)

Catholics

30.

Who was the leader of the Pilgrims who sailed on the Mayflower?

a)

John Winthrop

b)

Roger Williams

c)

William Bradford

d)

Anne Hutchinson

31.

What was the Mayflower Compact?

a)

A treaty with Native Americans

b)

A set of rules the Pilgrims wrote to keep order in the new settlement

c)

A map of the New World

d)

A list of supplies for the journey

32.

Who was the leader of the Massachusetts Bay Colony?

a)

William Bradford

b)

John Winthrop

c)

Roger Williams

d)

King Philip

33.

What was the Great Migration?

a)

The movement of 20,000 English people to New England between 1620 and 1643

b)

The journey of the Pilgrims on the Mayflower

c)

The conflict between Native Americans and settlers

d)

The establishment of the Plymouth Colony

34.

Who started the settlement of Providence?

a)

William Bradford

b)

John Winthrop

c)

Roger Williams

d)

Anne Hutchinson

35.

Who was thrown out of Massachusetts for saying people could be spiritual without the help of ministers?

a)

William Bradford

b)

John Winthrop

c)

Roger Williams

d)

Anne Hutchinson

36.

What was the Pequot War?

a)

A conflict over land and trade in the Connecticut River Valley in 1637

b)

A conflict between Native Americans and settlers in 1675

c)

The journey of the Pilgrims on the Mayflower

d)

The establishment of the Plymouth Colony

37.

What was King Philip's War?

a)

A conflict over land and trade in the Connecticut River Valley in 1637

b)

A conflict between Native Americans and settlers in 1675

c)

The journey of the Pilgrims on the Mayflower

d)

The establishment of the Plymouth Colony

38.

What did Roger Williams believe about the relationship between church and state?

a)

A) Church and state should be united.

b)

B) Church and state should be separate.

c)

C) The state should control the church.

d)

D) The church should control the state.

39.

What were the colonies under the direct control of the king known as in the late 1600s?

a)

A) Independent colonies

b)

B) Charter colonies

c)

C) Royal colonies

d)

D) Proprietary colonies

40.

What was the outcome of the Pequot War?

a)

A) The Pequot people won and took control of the land.

b)

B) The Pequot people were massacred.

c)

C) The Pequot people formed an alliance with the settlers.

d)

D) The Pequot people were relocated peacefully.

41.

What was the result of King Philip's War for the Native Americans in southern New England?

a)

A) They formed a strong alliance with the settlers.

b)

B) They were able to keep their land.

c)

C) Most of them were killed, and the area was left open to white settlers.

d)

D) They were given new land by the settlers.

42.

What was the period called when Charles II was invited to be king of England in 1660?

a)

The Enlightenment

b)

The Restoration

c)

The Reformation

d)

The Renaissance

43.

What were proprietary colonies?

a)

Colonies owned by the king

b)

Colonies ruled by the church

c)

Colonies granted to loyal friends of the king

d)

Colonies that were independent

44.

Which religious group believed in equality of men and women and direct, personal communication with God?

a)

Catholics

b)

Puritans

c)

Quakers

d)

Anglicans

45.

Who started the colony of Pennsylvania?

a)

James Oglethorpe

b)

William Penn

c)

Lord Baltimore

d)

Charles II

46.

What law passed by the Maryland colonial assembly gave all Christians the right to practice their religion?

a)

The Restoration Act

b)

The Proprietary Act

c)

The Toleration Act

d)

The Freedom Act

47.

What was the southern part of Carolina known for?

a)

Mining

b)

Large plantations and important crops like rice and indigo

c)

Shipbuilding

d)

Fishing

48.

Who established the colony of Georgia?

a)

William Penn

b)

Lord Baltimore

c)

James Oglethorpe

d)

Duke of York

49.

What was the main reason for establishing the colony of Georgia?

a)

To create a buffer between Spanish Florida and the Carolinas

b)

To provide a place for English Catholics

c)

To establish a representative assembly

d)

To promote the equality of all men and women

50.

Who asked for a grant for land in the Chesapeake Bay area and named the colony Maryland?

a)

James Oglethorpe

b)

William Penn

c)

Lord Baltimore

d)

Duke of York