REVIEW FOR THE
UNIT 1 TEST
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
REVIEW FOR THE
UNIT 1 TEST
INSTRUCTIONS:
Go through the slides and answer each
question in the packet; the slide numbers
are listed for each question
A government is the institution through which a
state (a country or nation) makes and enforces
laws that run the state
A “state” is a body of people living in a defined
territory; they are organized politically and are
able to independently make and enforce laws
Each of the
clearly
defined
territories on
this map of
modern
Europe is a
state
A constitution is the plan of government that
establishes the basic structure, powers, and
duties of the government
An autocracy is a
system of
government in
which a single
person holds
unlimited
political power
Divine right is
the view that
God granted
those of royal
birth the right to
rule their people
A democracy is a form of government in
which the supreme authority to exercise
power rests with the people of the state
Politics is the struggle among groups with
differing ideologies to control or influence the
conduct and policies of a government
The term “sovereignty” refers to the supreme
and absolute authority of a state within its
territorial borders
A “sovereign state” has the authority to determine
its own form of government; no outside state
decides this for another sovereign state
For example, when America was
Britain’s 13 Colonies, America was
NOT “sovereign”; Britain had
“sovereignty” here
After the British were defeated in
the Revolutionary War, however,
the American colonies became
states and had sovereignty
The unitary
system is a
form of
government in
which all the
key powers are
given to a
national or
central
government
An oligarchy
is a type of
government
where a small
number of
elite hold the
power
The “Framers” refers to the framers of the U.S.
Constitution, a group of delegates who attended
the Philadelphia Convention
The formation of the
United States’
government was most
influenced by the
“social contract”
theory of the
Enlightenment (most
notably, the ideas of
John Locke)
This chart
illustrates
the three
levels of a
federal
government
in Australia
A federal government divides power between a
central government and several state-level,
regional-level, and local-level governments
The form of government the United States has is a
representative democracy (also known as a “republic”),
NOT a direct democracy
In a representative democracy, voters express
their approval or disapproval of the actions of
public officials by casting ballots in elections
A “confederation” is an alliance of virtually independent
states loosely joined together for a common purpose
For example, 39
different
Germanspeaking states
formed the
German
Confederation in
the early 1800s;
they would fully
unite to form the
nation-state of
Germany in 1871
Most governments have three basic types of power:
legislative (makes laws), executive (carries out laws),
and judicial (evaluates laws)
The Articles of
Confederation was
the first attempt by
the former colonies
(which became the
new United States)
to unite under a
government
The Articles of
Confederation
had many
weaknesses;
these
weaknesses
resulted in
bickering among
the states and
economic chaos
Federalists supported the ratification of the new
Constitution because they favored a strong central
government; Federalists felt the Articles of Confederation
made the government too weak
Anti-Federalists opposed ratifying the new Constitution
because they feared a strong central government would
take away individual freedoms; they wanted a Bill of
Rights that would guard individual freedoms
James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay
wrote a collection of 85 essays called the “Federalist
Papers” in support of the new Constitution
The English
developed
three types of
colonies in
America: royal,
proprietary,
and charter
A unicameral legislature (lawmaking
body) is a single-house body
A bicameral legislature (lawmaking
body) has two houses
The British policy that most upset the American colonists
was being taxed by England without any American
colonists representing the colonies in Parliament
Their slogan became:
“No taxation without representation”
The Magna Carta,
the Petition of
Right, and the
English Bill of
Rights are among
the English
documents that
helped shape the
government of
the American
colonies
The Declaration of Independence (when the American
colonists announced their break from Britain) was
signed on July 4th, 1776
Under the Articles, Congress had no
power to tax and could not raise money,
which made Congress go deeply into debt
The main goal of the Constitutional Convention (also known
as the Philadelphia Convention) was to create a new
government that had greatly expanded powers and the
ability to enforce its decisions
James Madison
became known
as the “Father
of the
Constitution”
because he
contributed
more than
anyone to the
Convention and
to the
document itself
The most heated debate between large states and
small states at the Constitutional Convention was over
HOW the states would be represented in Congress
The Virginia Plan called for a two-house Congress with
representation of both houses based on population
The New Jersey Plan called for equal
representation in Congress (one vote per
state) and benefited the smaller states
The Great Compromise (also known as the
Connecticut Compromise) solved the dispute over
representation in Congress
The Slave Trade
Compromise (also
known as the
Commerce
Compromise)
prevented Congress
from taxing exports
or abolishing the
slave trade for at
least twenty years
A mixed economy is when private enterprise exists in
combination with some government regulation
A presidential government features separation of
powers between executive and legislative branches
During Colonial times, to gain the right to vote, one
had to be (1) White (2) male (3) a property owner
The Stamp Act Congress was the group that sent King
George III the Declaration of Rights and Grievances
that protested the new British policies (this was the
first time the colonies opposed Britain)
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THE
ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION
STRENGTHS
Make war and peace
Send and receive
ambassadors
Make treaties
Borrow money
Set up money system
Establish post offices
Can settle disputes among
states
Can ask states to supply
troops
WEAKNESSES
One vote for each state
regardless of size
Congress had no power
to tax
No executive
No national courts
(judicial)
Amendments only with
consent of all the states
9/13 majority needed to
pass laws
Weak central
government
Cannot order states to
supply troops
When the colonists from England arrived in America,
they brought the English idea of an ordered, limited,
and representative form of government with them
IF YOU HAVE
CORRECTLY
ANSWERED ALL OF
THE QUESTIONS ON
YOUR REVIEW
PACKET, YOU WILL
BE READY FOR THE
UNIT 1 TEST

Originally created by
Christopher Jaskowiak
Assisted by
Josh Allen