Midterm Flashcards
What is the system of checks and balances with the U.S government?
A federal principle of American Government, guaranteed by the Constitution, whereby each branch of the government has some measure of influence over the other branches and may choose to block procedures of the other branches
What is unrestricted submarine warfare? What did it cause?
Type of naval warfare in which submarines sunk vessels such as freighters and tankers without warning
Who argued for “life, liberty, and property”? What U.S founding document did this influence?
John Locke
Declaration of Independence (Thomas Jefferson)
Explain the social contract between the U.S and Great Britain. Which document broke this contract?
U.S was a colony of Great Britain, therefore they were supposed to be treated equally and under the same laws as British citizens
Broke the Declaration of Independence
What was the Lusitania? What happened to it? When did it happen? Why was is significant?
British ocean liner that was sunk by a German U-boat in 1915
128 Americans died
Made America want to enter WWI
Explain the First Red Scare.
Rounding up and deportation of several hundred immigrants with radical political views by the federal government
Happened in 1919 and 1920
Caused by fear of subversion by communists in the U.S after the Russian Revolution
What do anti-federalists believe system of government should be?
Opposed the ratification of the new federal Constitution in 1787
Feared a powerful and potentially oppressive national government (a government dominated by wealthy aristocrats, and the absence of a bill of rights in the new constitution)
Who were the federalists and what did they want our system of government to be?
Supported of federal government, especially the U.S Constitution
Major political party in the early years of the U.S that wanted a strong central government
What is TOTAL WAR?
War that is unrestricted in terms of the weapons used, the territory or combatants involved, or the objectives pursued, especially one in which the laws of war are disregarded
Which countries suffered the most deaths in WWI?
Russia: 1,750,000 Germany: 1,600,000 France: 1,400,000 Austro-Hungary: 900,000 Italy: 700,000 Great Britain: 650,000 U.S.A: 50,000
Who wrote the 14-point program?
President Woodrow Wilson
What was the main goal of the 14-point program?
World peace
League of Nations
What started the Palmer Raids? What were the Raids about? Who was involved? Why was it an infringement on our first amendment rights?
Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer and other prominent political figures were sent bombs in the mail
Assumed that communists and anarchists sent the bombs, so they went on raids to put the suspected people in jail or deport them
Went against the first amendment of freedom of speech, religion, press, and assembly
Where did immigrants settle in the U.S and why?
Cities/urban areas because more jobs were available there than in rural areas
Explain Nativism
Policy of protecting the interests of the native-born or established inhabitants against those of immigrants
Xenophobic belief that native-born Americans are better than immigrants within a given country
How many European immigrants came to the U.S in the late 19th and early 20th century?
Roughly 20 million immigrants
What are unions? What are their goals and techniques to achieve these goals?
Organized association of workers formed to protect and further their rights and interests (a labor union)
Achieved goals through strikes, protests, negotiations
What was the occupation of a large number of Chinese immigrants arriving in the country in the late 19th century?
Railroad workers
Provide three examples of voting discrimination that was taking place following the Reconstruction in the south towards African Americans
KKK intimidation, Poll taxes, Literacy tests
List 7 inventions of the late 19th century
automobile, light bulb, elevator, movie camera, sewing machine, telephone, typewriter, washing machine
What is a transcontinental railroad line? Why was it significant?
Train route across the U.S that was finished in 1869 and met in Utah
Project of the Union Pacific company built from the east and the Central Pacific company built from the west
Connected the country and made travel much easier
What is the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882?
One of the most significant restrictions on free immigrants in the U.S history, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers
Explain the De Lome Letter. What war did it help start? Why?
Note written by the Spanish Ambassador to the U.S that revealed De Lome’s opinion about Spanish involvement in Cuba and U.S President McKinley’s diplomacy
Helped start the Spanish-American war because Americans were upset that another country was talking badly about our President and country
Explain the difference between a Robber Baron and a Captain of Industry
A robber baron is an American capitalist who acquired a fortune in the late 19th century by ruthless means
A captain of industry is a business leader whose means of amassing a personal fortune contributed positively to the country in some way
What were 5 major problems in American society that Progressive Reformers were trying to fix?
Corruption in business, Urban issues (overcrowding, disease, etc.), working conditions, women’s rights, immigration reform, prohibition, civil rights issues
List the members of the Triple Entente (Allies)
Russia, France, Great Britain
List the members of the Triple Alliance
Germany, Austro-Hungary, Italy
Explain the significance of the U.S.S Maine and what war it helped start and why
U.S Naval ship that mysteriously exploded in the Havana Harbor
Helped start Spanish-American War
Americans assumed Spain blew it up and wanted to go to war to gain Imperialist possessions
What is the Treaty of Versailles? Who did affect the most and why?
Treaty the ended WWI
Affected Germany the most- had to pay huge reparations, took away military power and land
How much did Germany have to pay in reparations because of the Treaty of Versailles in modern dollars?
$400-500 billion
What are muckrakers? What were they trying to accomplish?
Journalists who search for and expose real or alleged corruption and scandal, especially in politics
What are political machines?
Political organization in which an authoritative boss or small group commands the support of a corps of supporters and business (usually campaign workers)
Receive rewards for their efforts
What two main groups did the KKK discriminate against in 1920s and why?
Catholics because they feared that they were more loyal to the Pope than to America
Immigrants because they were bringing in new ideas, cultures, language, ideas, and were making the country illiterate and uneducated
Explain Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle” and what it helped to improve during the Progressive Era
1906 novel written by the American journalists and novelists Upton Sinclair
Wrote the novel to portray the harsh conditions and exploited lives of immigrants in the U.S
Helped to improve the food industry
What replaced the Articles of Confederation and why?
U.S Constitution replaced it
Articles didn’t have an executive branch, national court systems, different currencies between states, and couldn’t collect taxes
What is Prohibition and who supported it?
The prevention by law of the manufacture and sale of alcohol in the US between 1920 and 1933
Supported by progressives, women, and the KKK
Where did Americans from the rural areas move to in the US in the late 19th century and why?
moved to cities because there was more jobs
What is the Declaration of Independence?
fundamental constitution document establishing the US as a nation
adopted on July 4th, 1776
Ordered and approved by the continental congress
broke the social contract between the US and Great Britain
Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
Thomas Jefferson
Explain the League of Nations and the purpose of this organization
international organization established after WWI under the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles
tried to establish world peace and protect against future world conflicts
what is women’s suffrage?
women’s right to vote
19th amendment
What time period is the 19th, 20th, and 21st century?
19th: 1800-1899
20th: 1900-1999
21st: 2000-2099
what freedoms does the constitution guarantee?
Bill of Rights
1st 10 amendments
Freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly
What are the Jim Crow Laws? Provide examples
Racial segregation laws enacted after the Reconstruction period in Southern United States at local and state levels
In force until 1965
ex: no walking along railroads, no interracial marriage, segregation of all public spaces, segregated military
How long did the Spanish-American War last?
15 weeks
What is the Zimmerman Telegram?
Message that came as a coded telegram from Germany to Mexico on January 16, 1917
It was an attempt to persuade Mexico to attack the United States and promised to return all of the territory they had lost in the Mexican-American war
Explain the Articles of Confederation
Original constitution of the US, ratified in 1781, which was replaced by the US Constitution in 1789
Were many problems with it
(couldn’t tax citizens, no national currency, no executive branch, weak central government, no national army)
What are two positives things that occurred when the Articles of Confederation was in place?
Won the Revolutionary War
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
What are two negative things that occurred when the Articles of Confederations was in place?
Couldn’t collect taxes, no national currency, no executive, no national army
What are the poll taxes and who were they meant to affect?
tax applied to voters
meant to affect African Americans
What are literacy test and who were they meant to affect?
part of voter registration by southern state legislature
used to deny suffrage to African Americans
What four territories did the US acquire after winning the Spanish-American War?
Guam, Guantanamo Bay, Philippines, Puerto Rico
List 4 positives of Imperialism
Spread Christianity, Gain natural resources, modernize natives, new technology, civilize native
List 4 negatives of imperialism
Destroys culture and religion, takes natural resources, wars/revolutions/deaths occurred, exploitation of native people (slavery)
Describe an immigrant’s journey to Ellis Island
Took 2-3 months and was hot, dirty, cramped, diseased, lack of food
Describe an immigrant’s process once they arrived at Ellis Island
Required to undergo a medical inspection to make sure they were fit to enter America and were sent back if they didn’t pass
Had to have at least $25 so they could find a place to stay until they found employment or they got sent back
Once they entered, they were preyed upon by political machines to try and receive votes
What is social darwinism?
Theory that individuals, groups, and peoples are subject to the same Darwinian laws of natural selection as plants and animals
used to justify imperialism, racism. and discourage intervention and reform
What does militarism mean?
Belief that a strong military force should be maintained and used aggressively to defend or promote nation interests
Belief that you need to devote a lot of money to military and build the largest military that you can
What does Alliance System mean?
Defense agreement among nations promising to protect each other if one goes to war or another nation declares war on them
What does Nationalism mean?
Feeling of intense loyalty to one’s country or group
What does Imperialism mean?
Policy of extending a country’s power and influence through military force
Usually a larger, more powerful country nation overtaking a smaller, weaker one
Why is the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand significant?
spark that started WWI
What is tenant farming?
Farming by a farmer who rents rather than owns the land
What is sharecropping?
Providing someone with land and equipment in return for a percentage of the crops yield
What is debt-peonage?
System where an employer compels a worker to pay off a debt with work
Often used as another form of slavery where in reality people could never pay off their debt
What is the convict-leasing system?
Prisoners were sold to private companies and forced to work for months at a time
Worse than slavery because if they died from exhaustion, people could just go rent more from prisons
slaves were treated better because they were individual property of their owner and often did not want to seriously harm the, which could damage their ability to turn a profit
Explain the Bolshevik Revolution
Revolution in Russia in 1917-1918
Overthrew the czar and brought the Bolsheviks in, who were a communist party led by Lenin
Why did America enter WWI?
Lusitania (1915), Zimmerman Telegram, Germany’s Unrestricted Submarine Warfare
What is the Bill of Rights? What group wanted it to be part of the Constitution?
First ten amendment to the Constitution, ratified in 1791, and guaranteed rights and freedoms (speech, religion)
Anti-federalists wanted it
List positive changes of the American cities in the late 19th century
Population Growth, technological innovations, job opportunities
List the negative changes of the American cities in the late 19th century
Overcrowding, disease, discrimination, crime, dirty, dangerous/bad factory conditions
Why was the American city changing during the late 19th century?
Industrial Expansion: rapid expansion of bis business, development of large-scale agriculture, and the rise of national labor unions and industrial conflict
Population growth in cities: Unprecedented amount of immigrants in the US, so cities grew at a drastic rate
Urbanization: workers moved towards manufacturing centers in cities, so agricultural jobs become less common
