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Unit 2 - First Contact

Total questions: 12

Worksheet time: 6mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

What was the main purpose of France and Spain establishing missions in North America?

a)

To learn about Native tribes’ religions

b)

As a method of finding gold

c)

To convert Native Americans to Christianity

d)

To establish trading posts

2.

Which of the following reasons demonstrate why British colonists were willing to leave their home country to venture to a “brand new land”?

a)

To acquire new cheap land, to discover gold, and to develop trade relations with Native Americans

b)

Obtain religious freedom, to share the land with France, and to discover gold

c)

To establish trade posts, obtain silver, and to find the Northwest Passage

d)

Have a better life, acquire new cheap land, obtain religious freedom

3.

Which statement is true about all European powers and the relationship with their colonies?

a)

They were still ruled by a king in Europe

b)

They were still politically considered part of their motherland and economically essential

c)

They were founded as permanent settlements

d)

All of these choices are correct

4.

Which of the following best explains why countries wanted to explore major rivers such as the Mississippi, Ohio, St. Lawrence, and Hudson?

a)

To store their ships and expand their navy

b)

To find a Northwest passage to the East Indies and find new resources like gold and fur

c)

To find a freshwater source for agriculture

d)

To find and share resources with their competing European neighbors

5.

What statement is implied by the following passage: “Relations became strained, however; as the colonies increased in size and settlers encroached more and more on native lands”?

a)

The colonists will follow French policy and begin to share land with the Native Americans when it gets crowded.

b)

Peace does not last between the colonists and the Natives and the colonists will begin taking land from the Native Americans.

c)

The colonists need help with surviving in the new world.

d)

The colonies were becoming too large and were forced to return to England.

6.

Which statement best summarizes why Spain, France, and England were the main three European powers to dominate colonization of North America?

a)

These powers were weaker than others in Europe and sought to gain credibility.

b)

These powers were ruled by kings who lacked ambition for colonization.

c)

These powers did not desire to colonize in North America and instead focused on Africa.

d)

These powers desired wealth and trade for their mother country as well as resources they sought out in North America.

7.

Determine which European power made the following statement. Quote 1: “We… know a sickness of the heart only gold can cure”

a)

Britain

b)

France

c)

Spain

8.

Determine which European power made the following statement. Quote 2: “…[There] is more land than all the people in Christiandome… and yet more to spare than all the natives … can use and cultivate.”

a)

Britain

b)

France

c)

Spain

9.

Determine which European power made the following statement. Quote 3: “They might in the future more than ever before engage in hunting beavers”.

a)

Britain

b)

France

c)

Spain

10.

Read the excerpt from this speech: Chief Powhatan to Captain John Smith, c. 1609: “Captain Smith, some doubt I have of your coming . . . for many do inform me, your coming is not for trade, but to invade my people and possess my Country. . . . I am now grown old, and must soon die; and the succession must descend… to my brothers… and then to my two sisters, and their two daughters. I wish their experience was equal to mine; and that your love to us might not be less than ours to you. Why should you take by force that from us which you can have by love? Why should you destroy us, who have provided you with food? What can you get by war?” Based on the quote, what does Powhatan see as the true motivations of Captain Smith and the British based on his experience?

a)

To form a good relationship with his people

b)

To possess and invade the land of his people

c)

To share and provide food with his people

d)

To trade goods and resources with his people

11.

“Captain Smith, some doubt I have of your coming . . . for many do inform me, your coming is not for trade, but to invade my people and possess my Country. . . . I am now grown old, and must soon die; and the succession must descend… to my brothers… and then to my two sisters, and their two daughters. I wish their experience was equal to mine; and that your love to us might not be less than ours to you. Why should you take by force that from us which you can have by love? Why should you destroy us, who have provided you with food? What can you get by war?”

After reading the quote from Chief Powhatan to Captain John Smith (c. 1609), which statement best describes the point of view of Chief Powhatan?

a)

Chief Powhatan can’t understand why Captain Smith and the British resort to violence and not friendship.

b)

Chief Powhatan understands why Captain Smith and the British resort to violence and not friendship.

12.

Using information from the source Encomienda: The Plan and the Reality, select how the Spanish oppressed the Native peoples through the Encomienda system.

a)

Native Americans died from harsh working and living conditions, Native Americans revolted, and Spanish settlers cared for and protected Native peoples.

b)

The Spanish didn’t pay the Native Americans for their labor, Natives died from harsh working and living conditions, and the Spanish seized Native lands.

c)

Spanish settlers cared for and protected Native peoples, Natives were peacefully converted to Christianity, and the Spanish gave Native Americans rights.

d)

The Spanish seized Native American lands, Spanish settlers cared for and protected Native peoples, Native Americans traded productively with the Spanish.