Imperialism and Causes of WWI Test Study Guide
California State Standards
Addressed:
10.4 Students analyze patterns
of global change in the era of
New Imperialism in at least
two of the following regions
or countries: Africa, Southeast
Asia, China, India, Latin
America, and the Philippines.
1. Describe the rise of
industrial economies and
their link to imperialism and colonialism (e.g., the role played by national security and
strategic advantage; moral issues raised by the search for national hegemony, Social
Darwinism, and the missionary impulse; material issues such as land, resources, and
technology).
2. Discuss the locations of the colonial rule of such nations as England, France, Germany,
Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, Portugal, and the United States.
3.
Explain imperialism from the perspective of the colonizers and the colonized and the varied
immediate and long-term responses by the people under colonial rule.
10.5 Students analyze the causes and course of the First World War.
1. Analyze the arguments for entering into war presented by leaders from all sides of the Great
War and the role of political and economic rivalries, ethnic and ideological conflicts, domestic
discontent and disorder, and propaganda and nationalism in mobilizing the civilian population
in support of “total war.”
2. Examine the principal theaters of battle, major turning points, and the importance of geographic
factors in military decisions and outcomes (e.g., topography, waterways, distance, climate).
3. Understand the nature of the war and its human costs (military and civilian) on all sides of the
conflict, including how colonial peoples contributed to the war effort.
Terms to Know (as they relate to Imperialism):
Imperialism
Nationalism
Social Darwinism
Colonialism
Religion and Culture
Test Format:
40 Multiple Choice, Short Answer and Matching type items
3 Short Answer (out of choice of 5)
2 Essays- Choose One (For those students in A or B range desiring an A grade.
1 Map of Europe
Imperialism: Answer the following questions as they relate to New Imperialism
1. What were the European motives for Imperialism? Why did European nations want colonies in
places like Africa, India, and China?
2. Describe and analyze the African Land Grab by European nations during the New Age of
Imperialism
3. What were the European motives for Imperializing? Apply the Motives for Imperializing to India
or China. Write two specific examples for each motive.
4. Explain how Imperialism benefitted the people of the Imperial Power. Now explain how
Imperialism affected the people in the place being colonized. This could be a paragraph or so for
each country, or you could write a dialogue between a colonizer and a person in the area being
colonized. Make sure to include your understanding of how their experience was different!
World War I:
1. How did Imperialism help lead to WWI?
2. What were the M.A.I.N. causes of WWI?
3. What were the two alliances on the eve of WWI and how did they change once the war started?
4. Briefly describe the sequence of events at the beginning of the war starting with the assassination
of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary. Include the reasons why different countries entered the
war.
5. What was the Schlieffen Plan? Explain it or draw it.
6. What were some of the new weapons used in WWI and what were their effects on the war?
7. Describe trench warfare.