Remember that I post a terms list as well as previous test questions; checking them out is a good way to focus your thinking in preparation for the test.

You can expect to see an identification section. A proper identification should include: Who? What? Where? How? (if appropriate) Why? AND: What was the significance?  Why is this important?  How did this affect later events?

For example:  John Hancock

John Hancock was a founding father, a Boston shipping merchant, and a key player in the Patriot movement in Massachusetts that ultimately effected separation from Great Britain in 1783 (Who). He served as the president of the Second Continental Congress which managed the war effort and was essentially the first government of the United States; he was also the first to sign the Declaration of Independence in 1776. He helped Sam Adams and the Brothers of Liberty with funding in Boston Massachusetts (What/Where), the first battlefield of the War. British considered him their number one enemy.  He was angry at British for not giving representation to the American Colonists and more particularly over what he perceived as the heavy-handed and illegal taxation exemplified by the Stamp and Navigation Acts (Why). Significance:  Without John Hancock, Sam Adams is just a drunken rioter.  With John Hancock, he is a respected patriot. The opening battles of the American War of Independence take place in Boston and Hancock’s participation was essential to the war effort. His support for the US Constitution was probably instrumental in getting it ratified in 1789 by Massachusetts. [Yes, there’s much more that could be added.]

—

Here are some particularly thoughtful and well-written responses from students to Term Identifications. The number refers to the score out of 100. Phrases in italics indicate that I have slightly altered some words to clean up the language:

ENCOMIENDA (94): “The encomienda system was established in Spain’s New World holdings. In this system, the Spanish offered natives protection in exchange for agricultural labor. This agreement was essentially forced and amounted to effective slavery. The Dominican Bartolome de las Casas, as well as Jesuit missions, clashed with the system, claiming that the natives did have souls and deserved proper treatment. Jesuits preferred cultural immersion as a route to saving souls. Since anyone with any Spanish blood at all was not subject to the encomienda system, the Spanish New World witnessed a great deal of mixing of Spanish and native blood.”

POTOSI (93): “The Potosi mines were silver mines mined by the Spanish in the 16th and 17th centuries. The mines were nestled deep within Incan territory and were only fully exploited by 1545. The mines demonstrate the speed of which the Spanish conquered in the Americas. In under 25 years (from Hernan Cortez’s war with the Aztecs in 1519) the Spanish had conquered much of South and Central America. The Spanish arrived bent on colonization and expansion, and Cortez’s scuttling of his ships in 1519 and quick penetration of mainland South America helped spread Spanish culture by conquest. By 1545, vast amounts of Potosi silver were being shipped to mainland Spain. The silver made the Spanish treasure fleets susceptible to English piracy, ultimately helping precipitate the Anglo-Spanish War of the late 16th century. In Spain, the silver caused hyper-inflation that plagued the Spanish economy during Philip II’s reign. This hyper-inflation made Spain increasingly dependent on the importation of New World buillion which ultimately helped stagnate the Spanish economy. In fact Philip II declared bankruptcy multiple times during his reign. In his letters from the Segovia Woods in 1565-66, Philip describes the Spanish debt crisis, in part attributable to the Potosi mines.

ANTWERP (92): A notable city on the Scheldt River, Antwerp, wealthy and dynamic, was perhaps the most important port in Europe during the first half of the 16th century. Portugal used as a commercial entrepot for spices and other Asian luxuries and it was a haven for merchants from all over Europe. After the Spanish mutineers sacked the city in 1576 during the Spanish Fury, Antwerp was never the same. The with the Spanish siege of 1584-85 (an event that also provoked war between Spain and England), the Scheldt River was closed for over a century and Amsterdam replaced it as the major European trading center.