HST201 Essay Exams

Look at the following essay questions from your book. These are a little too narrow or limited for a midterm exam. Your actual questions will involved a broader base of knowledge, complete with specific examples to bolster your arguments and make your points. Be sure you are familiar with the Essay Question Standards.

You may use a single 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper, ONE side, to jot down important events, names, dates, places, etc. to use while writing your essay. Bring at least 8 sheets of paper and a pen to class on the day of the midterm.

You should know that the broad areas of essay interest and emphasis are:

• the differences between the English and Spanish settlements
• the development of the 3 distinctive colonial regions
• the combination of democracy, land, control, and power
• the growth of the schism between the colonies and England

Chapter 1 Essay Questions How did conditions in Europe help to promote the exploration and settlement of America? How does the location of American colonies reflect the geographic situation of the mother country? (Students may want to consult a world map for this question.) Note the differences in the geographic features of New England and the Chesapeake region. Consider the different motives for settlement and the societies that settled in these regions. Now describe how geographic conditions in the New World, combined with cultural attitudes brought from the Old World, shaped the pattern of settlement of these English societies. Compare and contrast the maps in Chapter 1, paying special attention to eastern North America. Based on these maps, what was the impact of the English arrival in North America? Why did the English system prevail in this region? What other factors contributed to English success here? Chapter 2 Essay Questions How did the Virginia colony evolve between 1607 and 1625? What was the impact of New World conditions on English goals and expectations? How did the Virginia colonists adapt to American circumstances, and what sort of society emerged as a result? How did the goals of those who settled Massachusetts Bay differ from those of the Virginia colonists? How and why did these goals change during the first half-century of the Massachusetts Bay colony? How did conditions in both Massachusetts and Virginia affect their respective goals and ultimate social organizations? How did opponents of change in Massachusetts deal with those changes that did occur? In what ways did England apply the principles of mercantilism to its North American and West Indian colonies? Were there any critical differences in execution and/or enforcement of imperial policy? How did the various colonial interests respond to British mercantile policies? Why did England begin to view Massachusetts as a "troublemaker" (if not an outright enemy) after about 1660? Why did the people of Massachusetts Bay hold similar opinions of England? Explain the evolution of British imperial policy toward Puritan New England between 1660 and the end of the seventeenth century. How did the Puritans respond to the various efforts to control them? Identify the "utopian" notions and/or schemes that seemed to motivate many colonists. Compare and contrast those colonies which were founded by utopian dreamers. Also compare the utopian colonies with those not founded on such a basis. Explain the reasons behind the success and failure of various types of utopian colonies, as well as the success and failure of utopian versus nonutopian colonies.

Chapter 3 Essay Questions The "triangular trade" was not just one pattern of trade, but embraced a variety of patterns. How did all patterns tie the British Empire together? How might the trade have contributed to a colonial American desire for independence? Trace the route of the so-called triangular trade. Which region of Britain's North American colonies benefited most from this trade? How did this lead to the creation of a colonial mercantile system outside the British Empire? Note where the English were concentrated. Which are the most "English" colonies and regions? Why would the southern colonies continue to have a strong English orientation despite the presence of a large immigrant group? Note the goods that the various colonial groups exported. If economic ties correspond to political ties, what do these markets indicate about the various regions' obedience to the Navigation Acts and their loyalty to England? How did the New England economy reflect the culture of the dominant immigrant group in that region? Examine the sort of commerce this region carried on and with whom, and assess the impact this commercial activity had on the culture responsible for it. What commodities were exported from the southern colonies and where were they sent? How did the geography of that region contribute to its economic development, and what impact did this have on its cultural evolution? Chapter 4 Essay Questions What was the British argument for restricting the westward movement? Consider the frontier line in relation to the Proclamation Line, then assess the strengths and weaknesses of the British position. Which colonies and colonists would have been most upset by British restrictions on westward expansion. How did the land settlement of the Peace of Paris of 1763 both please and disappoint the American colonists? Which groups would have been pleased and which disappointed? Explain.