American Civil War & Founding Figures Quiz

Christopher Columbus

• Explored the Americas in 1492
• Credited with discovering a new continent
• Sparked European competition for land
• Discovered San Salvador (Bahamas)

James Monroe

• Known for the Monroe Doctrine, asserting US influence in the Western Hemisphere and opposing European colonialism
• 5th US President
• Served in the Revolutionary War, rising to lieutenant colonel

Amerigo Vespucci

• Italian navigator
• First to suggest the Americas were a separate continent from Asia, challenging Columbus's views
• Named "America" after him by German mapmakers

Benedict Arnold

• America's most infamous traitor
• Skilled military leader, achieving numerous victories for the colonies
• Attempted to deliver a secret message to British; intercepted by three militiamen
• Evidence given to Washington

Lord Baltimore

• Founded Maryland for profit and religious/political freedom
• Promoted religious tolerance for Catholics

William Penn

• Sought fair treatment of Native Americans
• Founded Pennsylvania as a haven for Quakers and Mennonites
• Opposed slavery, advocating for equality

John Jay

• Contributed to the Federalist Papers, supporting the US Constitution
• Chief Justice of the United States
• Opposed trade with Britain without sufficient safeguards
• Instrumental in negotiating the Treaty of Paris, ending the Revolutionary War

Thomas Jefferson

• 3rd US President (elected alongside Aaron Burr in 1800)
• Wrote the Declaration of Independence
• Oversaw the Louisiana Purchase
• Founded the Democratic-Republican Party

George Washington

• First US President, expressing dissatisfaction with his term
• Rejected offers to become a monarch
• Established the first Presidential Cabinet
• Led numerous victories in the Revolutionary War
• Beloved by Americans

Abraham Lincoln

• 16th US President
• Led the US during the Civil War
• Advocated for preserving the Union, advancing democracy, abolishing slavery
• Issued the Emancipation Proclamation (1863), freeing enslaved people in Confederate states
• Delivered the Gettysburg Address, redefining American democracy
• The 13th Amendment to the US Constitution abolished slavery

Ulysses S. Grant

• Union General during the Civil War, securing key victories leading to Confederate surrender
• 18th US President

Robert E. Lee

• Confederate General, commander of the Army of Northern Virginia
• Top officer in the US Army
• Rejected Lincoln's offer to lead the Union Army due to his loyalty to Virginia
• Surrendered to Grant, respecting his Confederate army and general

Jefferson Davis

• President of the Confederacy during the Civil War, former senator and Secretary of War
• Led the South's fight for independence, defending slavery and states' rights
• Captured after the Confederate defeat, then released

Boston Tea Party

• Colonists, disguised as Mohawks, protested British taxation without representation by dumping tea into Boston Harbor.

The American System

• Economic system advanced by Henry Clay
• Included protective tariffs, national bank renewal and internal improvements for agriculture markets
• Emphasized a strong federal government role

Gadsden Purchase

• USA (1854) purchased land from Mexico to facilitate transcontinental railroad construction

Barbary Pirates

• North African pirates captured American ships demanding tribute (bribes), creating a humiliating foreign relations issue.
• Four states (Morocco, Tunisia, Tripoli, Algiers) demanded tribute for safe passage through Mediterranean

Alexander Hamilton

• Key author of the Federalist Papers
• Aided Washington during the American Revolution
• First US Secretary of the Treasury, establishing the first national bank
• Killed in a duel by Aaron Burr in 1804

Harriet Tubman

• Served as a spy for the Union army
• Escaped slavery in Maryland
• Assisted others on the Underground Railroad, liberating over 300 slaves
• Made 19 trips with no capture despite a $40,000 bounty

Stamp Act

• Tax on official documents, paper and publications to fund the North American army

Townshend Acts

• Taxes on various goods (tea, glass, paper, and lead)
• Caused tension and boycotts, particularly in Boston
• Most taxes repealed in 1770, except for tea

Jay Treaty

• Agreement between the US and Great Britain (1794)
• Resolved issues from the Revolutionary War
• Established up to a decade of peaceful trade

Boston Massacre

• First major clash between British and American colonists (March 5, 1770)
• Soldiers panicked and fired into a crowd
• 5 colonists killed

Columbian Exchange

• Exchange of technology, culture, plants, diseases, people, animals, etc. between Europe and North America after Columbus's voyage
• Altered human life and the environment in both worlds

Treaty of Tordesillas

• Agreement between Spain and Portugal dividing newly discovered land in the Americas
• Drew an imaginary line through the Atlantic Ocean that divided the hemispheres, with Spain claiming west of the line.

Mercantilism

• Belief in the importance of trade for national power
• Colonies played a key role in supplying raw materials and markets for the mother country

Articles of Confederation

• First attempt at a central government in the US
• Established both state and national governments
• Replaced by the US Constitution due to inherent weaknesses

Shay's Rebellion

• Farmers (led by Daniel Shays) rebelled against the state government due to debt and farm losses
• Caused concern about the need for a stronger central government.

Whiskey Rebellion

• Westerners protested Hamilton's excise tax on whiskey
• Citizens resisted paying taxes, attacking tax collectors, and burning stills
• Washington sent troops to suppress the rebellion, demonstrating federal government strength

First and Second Continental Congress

• First Continental Congress (1774): Delegates from 12 colonies (minus Georgia) met to petition the king and boycott British trade.
• Second Continental Congress (1775-1781): Representatives from colonies met after Lexington/Concord, initiating the Revolutionary War, declared war against a possibly more powerful opponent

Lexington and Concord

• First battles of the Revolutionary War
• British troops clashed with colonial minutemen at Lexington and Concord. Colonial victory
• Signaled the beginning of the Revolution

Spanish-American War

• Conflict between the US and Spain
• US supported Cuba's independence movement

Enlightenment

• Spread to the new world in the mid-18th century influencing thought away from predominantly religious ideologies
• Emphasized Reason, science and philosophy.
• John Locke's philosophies influenced development of republican ideals.
• Newspapers and books raised public awareness of new ideas.

Manifest Destiny

• Belief that the US was divinely ordained to expand throughout North America and beyond.

Philadelphia Convention

• Meeting to draft a strong central government for the US (1787)
• 12 of 13 states represented (Rhode Island excluded)
• James Madison, most prepared, arrived early with a draft of a new system of government
• Led to the foundation of the US Constitution

Underground Railroad

• Secret network aiding enslaved people's escape to free states and Canada

Declaration of Independence

• Divided into four sections: Preamable, Declaration of Natural Rights, Grievances, and Result/Independence
• Declared colonies' freedom and independence.

Crossing of the Delaware

• George Washington's surprise attack on Hessian forces on December 26, 1776, boosted morale and renewed hope.
• Army crossed the freezing Delaware River during the night

Indentured Servants

• Individuals who paid for transatlantic travel by lending labour for payment for 5–10 years

Treaty of Paris (1763)

• Ended the French and Indian War, reshaping territories and contributing to tensions between Britain and the colonies

Treaty of Paris (1783)

• Ended the American Revolutionary War. Britain recognized US independence and granted land east of the Mississippi River.

Jamestown

• First permanent English settlement in North America (Virginia)
• Faced difficulties with disease, starvation, and conflicts with Native Americans.

Saratoga

• Turning point in the American Revolution (1777)
• American victory under General Gates, leading to French support for the American cause.

XYZ Affair

• US diplomats sent to France to negotiate; French agents demanded bribery, infuriating Americans
• Led to an undeclared naval war (Quasi-War) between the US and France

Lewis and Clark

• Led an expedition to explore the Louisiana Territory after the Louisiana Purchase
• Mapped new lands, recorded wildlife and established relations with indigenous tribes
• Expeditions maps were significant to the westward migration of settlers

Louisiana Purchase

• Thomas Jefferson acquired the Louisiana Territory from France (1803)
• Drastically expanding the size of the US.

Andrew Jackson

• President associated with the rights of the common man (voting rights to all white men), but also with the forced relocation of Native Americans through the Trail of Tears

Henry Clay

• Secretary of State responsible for establishing the American System with its 3 parts

John C. Calhoun

• Advocated for states' rights, believing states could reject federal laws.
• Key role in the Nullification Crisis
• Defended slavery in support of Southern interests

Charles Talleyrand

• Key negotiator for the Louisiana Purchase
• French foreign minister under Napoleon.

General Cornwallis

• British general who surrendered to Washington at the Battle of Yorktown, leading to the end of the Revolutionary War.

War of 1812

• War between the US and Britain (1812-1814)
• Neither side achieved a decisive victory, the Treaty of Ghent restored previous boundaries.

Fort Sumter

• Confederate attack on the Union Fort Sumter (1861)
• Marked the beginning of the US Civil War

Civil War

• War between the Union and the Confederacy (1861-1865)
• Primarily about slavery and states' rights, with Lincoln's election sparking secession
• The Union's victory led to abolition through the 13th Amendment

Zenger Case

• John Peter Zenger's trial highlighted freedom of the press in the American colonies

Pinckney Treaty

• Agreement between the US and Spain resolving border disputes and providing US river access.

John Wilkes Booth

• Assassinated Abraham Lincoln in 1865

Emancipation Proclamation

• Lincoln's 1863 proclamation freeing enslaved people in Confederate states

Paul Revere

• Famous for warning of British troop movements

Thomas Paine

• Author of "Common Sense," advocating for American independence.

Monroe Doctrine

• US foreign policy issued by James Monroe declaring the Americas closed to further European colonization

Declaration of Neutrality

• Washington's declaration advising against unnecessary alliances.

Star-Spangled Banner

• Inspired by the defense of Fort McHenry

French Revolution

• Inspired by the American Revolution, also a consequence of the American Revolution
• Significant event influenced by the American Revolution.

Quebec Act

• Extended Quebec territory, allowing French Canadians to use their legal system

Constitution

• Divided into three major sections (Preamble, Articles, Amendments)

The Alamo

• Texians fought for independence from Mexico
• Mexican victory, killing most defenders.

Colonial Regions

• New England, Middle, and Southern colonies described by their founding purposes, figures, and economies
• Included detailed descriptions of states within each colonial region, such as Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia

World War I

• US remained neutral until 1917 due to Lusitania attack and Zimmerman Telegram, entering war to defeat Germany
• Helped allies win against Germany by 1918

World War II

• US entered the war after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, triggered by Japan
• Dropped atomic bombs on Japan (Hiroshima and Nagasaki), forcing surrender, followed by German surrender
• Provided aid to allies prior to entry