Multiple Choice Questions: The Enlightenment and Revolutions
Choose the best answer for each question and mark the correspondingd.letter on your scantron.
1. The Enlightenment influenced revolutionary
thought by
a. Encouraging the poor to take up
arms
b. Stressing the importance of the
monarchy
c. Designing a common revolutionary
strategy
d. Instilling a belief in the natural
rights of man
2. The Declaration of Independence states, “That
whenever any form of government becomes
destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the
People to alter or abolish it.” These words
describe the enlightened idea of a
a. Need to ensure a representative
government
b. Return to a society that has no
central authority
c. Social contract between government
and the people
d. Revolutionary intent to overthrow
the current government
3. The American Revolution was motivated by
the Enlightened idea
a. Of a distinct class system
b. That all men are created equal
c. Of the rightful rule of a monarch
d. That government needs central
authority
4. The revolutionaries who wrote the 1789
Declaration of the Rights of Man wanted liberty
for the people of France. This document
embodied the Enlightenment idea that
a. The French Revolution was justified
b. Reason should guide human affairs
c. A constitutional monarchy should
exist
Hereditary 75 points.
and tradition should
guide government
5. He believed that every person was born with a
tabula rasa, or blank slate.
a. Locke
b. Voltaire
c. Montesquieu
d. Frederick the Great
6. Under Spanish rule, Latin American society
was strictly divided into a class system
determined by birth. Among the aristocracy
were individuals born in Europe or ancestors of
European immigrants. This rigid social class
system contradicted the Enlightenment idea of
a. A two class system
b. Equality among men
c. The importance of birth order
d. Constitutional guarantee of rights
7. The American Revolution and French
Revolution were similar in that both
a. Were encouraged by Enlightenment
idea of natural rights
b. Sought to limit the participation of
people in government
c. Supported the theory of divine right
d. Increased the influence of religious
institutions in government
8. This class was unaffected by the
Enlightenment…
a. Nobles
b. Bourgeoisie
c. Clergy
d. Lower class and peasants
“The person of the king is sacred, and to attack
him in any way is an attack on God itself. Kings
represent the Divine Majesty and have been
appointed to Him to carry out His purposes.
Serving God and respecting kings are bound
together.”
- Bishop Jacques Bossuet
9. Which group directly challenged the political
philosophy expressed in this statement?
 Multiple Choice Questions: The Enlightenment and Revolutions
a. Advocates of divine right
b. Writers of the Enlightenment
c. Absolute monarchs of Europe
d. Leaders of the Catholic Church
10. This philosophe separated the government
into three branches of government and argued
for separation of powers.
a. Voltaire
b. Montesquieu
c. Locke
d. Diderot
11. John Wesley founded this form of religion
during the Enlightenment.
a. Catholicism
b. Methodism
c. Christianity
d. Buddhism
“If man in the state of nature is free, and lord of
his own possessions, why will he give up his
freedom? The answer is that right in the state of
nature are constantly exposed to attack by
others. Hence each man joins in society to
preserve his life, liberty, and property.
Whenever the ruler endeavors to take away the
property of the people, or reduce them to
slavery…they are removed from any further
obedience and left to…rise up with force and
violence.”
-John Locke,
The Second Treatise of
Government (1690)
12. The ideas expressed by Locke in this passage
helped inspire the
a. Theory of Divine Right
b. American Revolution
c. Separation of church and state
d. Industrial Revolution
13. Enlightenment thinkers contributed to
changes in relationships between citizens and
governments through their belief that
a. Most changes in government are
dangerous
b. Absolute monarchy is the most
effective form of government
c. Governments are instituted to
protect citizens’ rights
d. Popular liberties should be limited
by the need for social order
14. Which of the following identifies one of the
ways Enlightenment ideas influenced the actions
of colonial leaders in Latin America?
a. They strengthened the power of the
Catholic Church
b. They shared their wealth with the
lower classes
c. They demanded self-government
from Spain and Portugal
d. They abolished slavery throughout
Latin America
15. Colonists in North America protested against
the taxes imposed on them by the British
following the French and Indian War. What was
the main reason the colonists were upset about
these taxes?
a. Colonists believed that because they
lived so far from Britain, they did
not have to pay taxes on anything
b. Colonists were not represented in
the British Parliament and for that
reason believed the taxes were
unjust
c. Colonists drank less tea than people
living in Britain, so the tax was an
unfair burden on them
d. Colonists had already paid a great
deal to fund the British effort in the
French and Indian War.
16. This type of ruler allowed religious
toleration, freedom of speech and the press,
rights to own private property and nurtured the
arts, sciences and education. They also obeyed
their own laws and still maintained absolute
power.
a. Tyrant
b. Absolutist
c. Enlightened despot
d. President
17. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of
the Citizen includes several Enlightenment
ideas. Which of the following is not one of the
Enlightenment ideas incorporated into the
document?
 Multiple Choice Questions: The Enlightenment and Revolutions
a. Citizens should have a voice in the
decisions the government makes on
their behalf
b. People give rights to their
governments to limit their
governments’ power
c. All citizens possess basic human
rights (ie. freedom of speech)
d. People are incapable of ruling
themselves because they are
inherently disorganized and chaotic
18. The application of science and reason to
understanding the world resulted in the 1700s
being known for the
a. New Deal
b. Enlightenment
c. Progressive Movement
d. Reformation
19. The members of the Third Estate took
revolutionary action because they
a. Were suspicious of the liberal ideas
coming out of the French legislature
b. Believed that a king should rule by
divine right, not the will of the
people
c. Disagreed with the ideas behind the
Declaration of the Rights of Man
and of the Citizen
d. Had fewer rights, owned less land
and paid more taxes than the
wealthier members of the French
population
20. Which of these enlightened rulers made
enlightened reforms which completely failed?
a. Frederick the Great
b. Joseph II
c. Catherine the Great
d. Louis XVI
21. Thomas Paine’s 1776 pamphlet, Common
Sense, is based on Enlightenment ideas. Which
of the following ideas is the primary basis for
Common Sense?
a. Human society is disorganized and
chaotic, and for that reason,
governments are required to
maintain order
b. People have the natural right to rule
themselves because they are capable
of using their powers of reason to
understand their world
c. The scientific method can unlock
the mysteries in the natural world
d. Government should operate in
separate branches: one to write the
laws, one to carry them out, and one
to interpret them.
22. John Locke believed that the government
had an obligation to the people it governed to
protect their natural rights. If the government
failed to do this, then the people had the right to
a. Move to another country
b. Refuse to vote in the next election
c. Overthrow the government
d. Continue to be persecuted
23. The discoveries of Isaac Newton had a major
influence on Enlightenment thinkers. In what
way was this influence so significant?
a. Enlightenment thinkers attempted to
base their philosophies on religious
tradition
b. Enlightenment thinkers studied
Newton’s writings about the
freedom of human beings and the
proper role of kings and
governments
c. Enlightenment thinkers employed
Newton’s scientific method when
exploring questions about human
nature and the responsibilities of the
citizen
d. Enlightenment thinkers looked to
the works of Copernicus and
Galileo, as Newton had, when
seeking answers about the nature of
art and religion
 Multiple Choice Questions: The Enlightenment and Revolutions

c. Kings ruled by divine right

d. Government should serve
the people

24. During the early Revolutionary period, 28. The major contribution of the Enlightenment
American colonists used many methods to show philosophers was the introduction of new ideas
their opposition to British taxation. Which about
method did they use to show their opposition to a. Government
taxes imposed by the British government? b. Economics
a. American colonists boycotted c. Religion
British goods, such as sugar and tea d. Science
b. American colonists carried out a
plan to overthrow King George III 29. The new intellectual movement that stressed
c. American colonists demanded seats reason and thought and the power of an
in Parliament, which led to the individual to solve problems was the
creation of the National Assembly a. Scientific Revolution
d. Americans distributed copies of the b. Enlightenment
Declaration of the Rights of Man c. Great Awakening
and of the Citizen among the 13 d. Geocentric theory
colonies
30. The willingness of people to hand over their
25. These are the three locations in which the rights to a ruler in exchange for law and order in
Seven Years War was fought. society was called the
a. Europe, North America and India a. Scientific method
b. North America, South America, and b. Magna Carta
India c. Enlightenment
c. Europe, India, and Africa d. Social contract
d. India, Africa, and Japan
31. The philosopher who believed that all people
are born free and equal, with the rights to life,
liberty, and property was
a. John Locke
b. Thomas Hobbes
26. Montesquieu believed that to prevent c. Galileo Galilei
tyranny in government there should be a d. Baron de Montesquieu
separation of powers. Which of the following
best illustrates this idea? 32. The group of social critics in Enlightenment
a. Absolute power in the executive France were called
branch a. Satirists
b. Splitting power among three or b. Philosophes
more countries c. Stoics
c. Total power in the legislative branch d. Revolutionaries
d. Dividing power among three
branches of government
33. Upon whose ideas is our Bill of Rights
27. Which of the following is not an idea from based?
the Enlightenment? a. Montesquieu
a. People have natural rights b. Locke
b. Problems can be solved by c. Hobbes
using reason d. Voltaire
 Multiple Choice Questions: The Enlightenment and Revolutions
34. Brilliant French satirist who frequently
targeted the clergy, aristocracy, and the
government was
a. Thomas Hobbes
b. Baron de Montesquieu
c. Voltaire
d. John Locke
35. An influential French writer who wrote that
“Power should be a check to power” was
a. Louis XIV
b. Voltaire
c. Thomas Hobbes
d. Baron de Montesquieu
36. French philosophe Jean Jacques Rousseau
believed that the best form of government would
be a
a. Direct democracy
b. Constitutional monarchy
c. Dictatorship
d. Republic
37. Women’s contributions to the Enlightenment
included all of the following EXCEPT
a. Urging women to enter male-
dominated fields
b. Writing about the inequalities
between men and women
c. Running for office
d. Holding social gatherings called
salons for influential people
38. Enlightenment philosophes such as John
Locke and Jean Jacques Rousseau wrote that the
relationship between citizens and their
government was a social contract.
Which statement describes the impact of the idea
of government as social contract on the French
Revolution in 1789?
a. The king granted women the right to
vote
b. French citizens claimed their natural
rights
c. The king raised taxes to pay off
public debt
d. French citizens supported the king
against the nobles
39. This was the period under Maximillien
Robespierre when revolutionary courts were set
up to prosecute enemies of the French
Revolution.
a. The Reign of Terror
b. The Directory
c. The Enlightenment
d. The National Assembly
40. This was the name for the lower class that
ran the Paris Commune.
a. Paris Communists
b. The Directory
c. The sans culottes
d. The philosophes
41. What is a coup d’etat?
a. A revolution
b. A salon
c. An overthrow of the government
d. The Paris Commune
42. When power is shared between the state and
federal government it is called what?
a. A federal system
b. A coup d’etat
c. Separate, but equal
d. Nationalism
43. What was one idea that the leaders of the
American Revolution shared with
Enlightenment thinkers?
a. Colonies exist to provide raw
materials and markets for mother
countries
b. The people have the right to
overthrow their government if it
abuses its powers
c. Governments may restrict freedom
of speech and of the press during
times of crisis
 Multiple Choice Questions: The Enlightenment and Revolutions
d. Factories and businesses should be
owned by the government rather
than by individuals
44. What action by the leaders of the French
Revolution demonstrates that they were
influenced by Enlightenment ideas?
a. They called for the fall of the
absolute monarchy
b. They encouraged the conquests of
Napoleon
c. They fought to maintain France’s
colonial empire
d. They supported the combination of
church and state
45. In exploring the relationship between
governments and people, Thomas Hobbes
argued that governments resulted from a social
contract to maintain and orderly society. John
Locke, another philosopher of the
Enlightenment, inspired American
revolutionaries by arguing that a new social
contract could be instituted under what
circumstance?
a. If a government failed to compel
obedience
b. If a government violated people’s
natural rights
c. If a government failed to protect
people from economic inequality
d. If a government entered into
alliances with foreign governments
46. Where was Marie Antoinette from?
a. France
b. Britain
c. Canada
d. Austria
47. This philosophe studied government and
devised the idea of a separation of powers.
a. Voltaire
b. John Locke
c. Montesquieu
d. Rousseau
48. Many Latin American nations gained their
independence early in the 19th century. The
relationship between the people and their
government changed. Slavery existed under
colonial governments, but some of the new
nations, such as Haiti, did not permit slavery.
The abolition of slavery was based on
Enlightenment ideas of
a. Liberty as a natural rights of man
b. Separation of government powers
c. Personal rights as less important
than civil order
d. The authority of absolute monarchs
49. Natural law was a fundamental idea of the
Enlightenment.
Which concept is an application of natural law
to the government’s role in the economic lives
of its citizens?
a. Free markets based on supply and
demand
b. Government control to achieve a
favorable balance of trade
c. Agriculture based on tenant farming
and serfdom
d. Lower taxes on the most privileged
groups in society
50. Enlightenment philosophes such as John
Locke and Jean Jacques Rousseau challenged
the idea of the divine right of kings. They wrote
about a government’s obligations to uphold
people’s rights and how the government should
be based on the consent of the governed.
These new ideas encouraged people to
a. Remain firm in their support of
absolute monarchs
b. Look for leaders who would
exercise dictatorial powers
c. Engage in revolutions to establish
democratic governments
d. Call for church leaders to create
theocracies and replace the
monarchies.
 Multiple Choice Questions: The Enlightenment and Revolutions
51. ______________________ is the only
system of government in which monarchy is the
only source of power
a. Absolutism
b. Dictatorship
c. Democracy
d. Commonwealth
52. In Latin American society, this class of
people are the most important and have the most
rights.
a. Creoles
b. Mestizos
c. Mulattos
d. Peninsulares
53. During the Enlightenment, a number of
writers explored the relationship between
governments and the people they governed. For
example, Rousseau wrote The Social Contract,
in which he examined ideas about majority will
and the common good.
How did these ideas influence the American and
French Revolutions?
a. They encouraged loyalty to
established governments
b. They supported movements for
social and political change
c. They encouraged the formation of
American and French constitutional
monarchies
d. They supported the efforts of
governments to maintain control
over their subjects
54. According to the concept of absolutism
a. there is no absolute authority in
society
b. people have absolute power in
government
c. people have the right to overthrow
absolute monarchies
d. authority had absolute power and
could not be disobeyed
55. Enlightened thinkers believed society was
governed by
a. religion
b. a social contract
c. scientific inquiry
d. political philosophers
56. Isaac Newton was a mathematician and a
scientist. Newton’s discovery of the laws of
motion and universal gravitation helped to
advance the scientific revolution of the time.
Newton and other enlightened thinkers believed
truth could be found through
a. the study of philosophy
b. the application of reason
c. strict obedience to authority
d. the study of religious doctrines
57. Earth-centered theory of the universe…
a. geocentric theory
b. heliocentric theory
c. scientific method
d. Aristotle’s Theory
58. A new way of thinking about the natural
world based on careful observation and a
willingness to question accepted beliefs
a. geocentric theory
b. heliocentric theory
c. scientific method
d. Scientific Revolution
59. A logical procedure for gathering and testing
scientific data.
a. geocentric theory
b. heliocentric theory
c. scientific method
d. Scientific Revolution
 Multiple Choice Questions: The Enlightenment and Revolutions

60. Russian empress who was considered an

enlightened despot
a. Catherine the Great
b. Mary Wollstonecraft
c. Votaire
d. Queen Elizabeth I

61. Which of the ideas does not belong?

a. natural rights
b. checks and balances
c. social contract
d. Bill of Rights
62. In social gatherings called ___________,
wealthy hostesses of Paris helped spread the
ideas of the Enlightenment to educated
Europeans.
a. salons
b. sans culottes
c. philosophes
d. neoclassical

63. Early proponent of women’s rights

a. Voltaire
b. Montesquieu
c. Mary Wollstonecraft
d. Catherine the Great

64. Intellectual movement that stressed reason

and thought and the power of individuals to
solve problems
a. individualism
b. Enlightenment
c. Intellectualism
d. Salons

65. Thomas Hobbes called the agreement by

which people create a government the
___________
a. salon
b. Enlightenment
c. checks and balances
d. social contract