The Portuguese Empire (Image from Wikipedia)
⛔STOP!⛔ Before you look at the answers make sure you gave this practice quiz a try so you can assess your understanding of the concepts covered in unit 4. Click here for the practice questions:
AP World History Unit 4 Multiple Choice Questions.
Facts about the test: The AP World History exam has 55 multiple choice questions and you will be given 55 minutes to complete the section. That means it should take you around one minute to answer a question.
*The following questions were not written by College Board and although they cover information outlined in the
AP World History Course and Exam Description
1. This era marks a change in trade because
A. It's the first time that Chinese products are found in the Middle East
B. It's the first time the Americas are included in global trade
C. It's the first time Europe engages in trade with Africa
D. Its the first time trade routes are only ocean-based
Explanation: For the first time in world history, the Americas are brought into the trade with the eastern hemisphere, thanks to European exploration and Asian/Middle Eastern technologies.
Watch this review of the Columbian Exchange!
2. An example of cross-technological exchange is shown with
A. The Portuguese using the magnetic compass
B. Muslim traders using the astrolabe
C. Chinese merchants using gunpowder for ship cannons
D. Africans using the camel saddle for desert trade
Explanation: The magnetic compass originates in China and makes its way to Portugal via the IOTN and Mediterranean Sea route. This technology will help the Portuguese becomes the first European nation to gain control of the IOTN.
Learn more about technological developments in this study guide!
3. Which of the following was NOT a motivation for European exploration during this era?
A. A desire to find more Christian converts
B. A desire for access to the Asian Spice Trade
C. A desire to gain national glory
D. A desire for cultural syncretism with Asia
Explanation: Europeans were motivated to explore due to "gold, glory, and God" which covers the Christian, spice trade and nationalism aspects. When the Portuguese set sail for the IOTN, they did not have a desire to blend their cultural traits with others - they wanted others to adapt to the Portuguese way of life.
Learn about European expansion in this study guide!
4. The Columbian Exchange can best be described as
A. A regional exchange of religious beliefs
B. An international exchange of technology
C. A cross cultural exchange of biological goods
D. A local trade of animal and plant life
Explanation: The Columbian Exchange was trade that occurred between different regions across the hemispheres: Europe, Africa, and the Americas. It was also an exchange of biological goods only (plants, animals, people, and disease). Technological exchange is not considered part of the Columbian Exchange.
Watch this video about the Columbian Exchange!
5. A DEMOGRAPHIC impact of the Columbian Exchange was
A. Population decrease in Africa, population decrease in Europe
B. Population increase in Europe, Native American population decrease in the Americas
C. Population increase in the Americas, population decrease in Europe
D. Population decrease in Europe, Africa, and the Americas
Explanation: As a result of the Columbian Exchange, new food sources such as the nutrient-dense potato led to a population increase in the Americas, while diseases such as smallpox led to a large decrease of Native American population in the Americas.
Read this study guide on the Columbian Exchange!
6. Which of the following cash crops/good was NOT produced in the Americas?
A. Pepper
B. Sugar
C. Tobacco
D. Silver
Explanation: Sugar, Tobacco, and silver were the main exports coming out of the Americas. Pepper was a spice that originated in South and Southeast Asia.
7. All of the following were reasons that Europeans took African slaves from Africa EXCEPT
A. Europeans felt a sense of superiority to Africans and saw them as chattel
B. African tribes were willing to sell their rivals to Europeans for firearms
C. Africans were acclimated to tropical diseases that could be found in the Caribbean and Brazil
D. Africans were more accustomed to hard work than Europeans
Explanation: As the need for labor in the Americas grew, Europeans turned to Africa to gain a labor source. A combination of racist attitudes, African resistance to tropical diseases, and rival tribes fighting each other for control of land and resources led to the Atlantic Slave Trade.
Read this guide about Resistance to European Exploration!
8. A key difference between the Atlantic Slave Trade and the East African slave trade revolve around
A. Ethnicity of laborers
B. Age of laborers
C. Gender of laborers
D. Religious beliefs of laborers
Explanation: One of the main differences between the Atlantic Slave Trade and East Africa slave trade was gender. It was mostly men who were traded via the Atlantic Ocean, and predominantly women in East Africa. Men were needed for the hard labor on sugar and tobacco plantations, while women were sought as concubines and house servants in East Africa and the Middle East.
Read this guide about Resistance to European Exploration!
9. Which of the following was NOT a labor system used in the Americas?
A. Chattel slavery
B. Mita system
C. Serfdom
D. Indentured servitude
Explanation: The first two labor systems used in the Americas were indentured servitude and the mita system (indentured servants tended to work the land, and the mita system was used in the silver mines. Slavery will be used on the sugar and tobacco plantations. Serfdom was a system predominantly used in western Europe and Russia
Read this study guide on the Columbian Exchange!
10. Which religious event may have been responsible for the Portuguese and Spanish desire to spread Christianity?
A. The Great Awakening
B. The Inquisition
C. The Rapture
D. The Great Schism
Explanation: The Spanish Inquisition was created to battle the "heresy" in Spain. In all actuality, it was part of larger theme of Spanish leaders trying to rid the country of Muslims, Jews, and Protestants. The desire to solidify Catholicism in their own country also leads them to want to spread Catholicism elsewhere, hence the "god" part of their desire to explore.
Read this study guide on the establishment of European empires.
11. The main reason for Portuguese and Spanish exploration from 1450-1750 was
A. To gain access to the Asian Spice Trade
B. To promote European naval technologies
C. To combat British control of the Indian Ocean Trade Network
D. To ease overpopulation in both countries
Explanation: For both Portugal and Spain, access to the Asian Spice Trade was the number one motivator for exploration. Both nations were tired of paying such high prices for Asian goods. Most Asian goods went through Istanbul (controlled by the Ottomans) before entering the Mediterranean Sea, then to European nations. Portugal and Spain wanted to cut out the middleman, in order to gain the goods at much lower prices.
Read this study guide on the establishment of European empires.
12. The main goal of mercantilism was to
A. Promote wealth in the colonies
B. Ensure the wealth and success of mother countries
C. Ensure economic equality between colonies and mother nations
D. Allow free trade in the colonies, to promote economic growth
Explanation: Mercantilism was as an economic system designed to minimize imports and maximize exports of the mother country, in order to get as much bullion (gold/silver) into the national treasury as possible. In practice, mercantilism drained wealth from the colonies and made mother countries very, very wealthy.
Learn about European expansion in this study guide!
13. Which European technology was most instrumental in helping Europeans explore the Americas?
A. Caravel
B. Magnetic Compass
C. Astrolabe
D. Lateen sail
Explanation: The caravel was a shipped designed by Prince Henry the Navigator, and its design enabled the Europeans to sail the waters of Indian and Atlantic Oceans. All of the other technologies shown here originated in places other than Europe.
Learn more about technological developments in this study guide!
14. As a result of forced and voluntary immigration into the Americas, a new social hierarchy was created. Which of the following groups was NOT part of that hierarchy?
A. Creoles
B. Mestizos
C. Marquesas
D. Peninsulares
Explanation: Marquesas are Polynesians from the Marquesas islands in the South Pacific
Read this guide about class and race in the Early Modern period!
15. A difference between Latin American and North American colonies was
A. Latin American colonies produced cash crops, while North American colonies didn't
B. North American colonies slave labor, while Latin American colonies did not
C. Only men traveled to Latin American colonies, while men and women traveled to North American colonies
D. Latin American colonies were directly controlled by the Crown, while North American colonies were given more autonomy
Explanation: North American colonies were given more latitude when it came to decisions made in the colonies. Most colonies had local governments that were allowed to make a lot of their own political decisions that pertained to the colonies. In Latin American colonies, especially Spanish ones, the political decisions were made by the Council of Indies, which was based in Spain - and then applied to the colonies.
Watch about social hierarchies here!