Deck 11: Liberation: African Americans and the Civil War

Question 1

Which of the following slave states was never a member of the Confederacy?

A) Virginia
B) Delaware
C) Tennessee
D) North Carolina

Answer 1

Delaware

Question 2

Why did Lincoln decide to postpone his July 1862 decision to emancipate the slaves?

A) He was considering changing his mind and allowing the South to keep their slaves.
B) Members of his cabinet told him to wait for a Union victory, when the decision would not look desperate.
C) His racist wife and cabinet were attempting to change his mind about emancipation.
D) He wanted to wait until Great Britain entered the war on the side of the Union.

Answer 2

Members of his cabinet told him to wait for a Union victory, when the decision would not look desperate.

Question 3

Who commanded the Army of Northern Virginia, the main Confederate Army?

A) Robert E. Lee
B) Ulysses S. Grant
C) Abraham Lincoln
D) Jefferson Davis, before he accepted the presidency of the Confederacy

Answer 3

Robert E. Lee

Question 4

How did Lincoln change the nature of the war with the Emancipation Proclamation?

A) It became a war to free the slaves. The North gained the moral advantage.
B) The South realized it was futile to continue, and surrendered.
C) The North began to rebel against Lincoln as well.
D) He really didn't change the war, since the Emancipation Proclamation had no real effect.

Question 5

What Union victory preceded Lincoln issuing the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation?

Question 6

What is not true about the effect of the Emancipation Proclamation on the South?

A) It caused southerners in rebellious areas to free their slaves.
B) It stopped chances for an alliance between the Confederacy and either Britain or France.
C) More slaves began to run away, dramatically affecting the South's war effort and morale.
D) It weakened the South's ability to fight the war.

Question 7

What is true about the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation issued on September 22, 1862?

A) It freed all the slaves in the United States.
B) It freed no one during that year at all.
C) It caused terror and fear of rebellion among white southerners.
D) It freed some slaves in 1862, right after it was issued, and the rest in 1863.

Question 8

What can be said about the First South Carolina Volunteers?

A) They were well paid for black troops, almost as well as the whites.
B) They were generally all from the North.
C) General Hunter sometimes used white troops to force blacks to volunteer.
D) They fought bravely at the assault on Fort Wagner.

Question 9

What was not a part of the terms of the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation?

A) It would free those slaves still in bondage in areas under rebellion on January 1, 1863.
B) It gave the Confederacy until January 1, 1863 to come back into the Union.
C) If the Confederacy returned to the Union by January 1, 1863, they could keep their slaves.
D) It allowed slaves to leave the country to obtain freedom if they wished.

Question 10

Where did Congress attempt to send African Americans during 1863 and 1864?

A) California
B) Dominican Republic
C) Ile à Vache
D) France

Question 11

What was Lincoln's initial aim of the Civil War when it began in 1861?

A) to free the slaves
B) to preserve the Union, without regard to ending slavery
C) to preserve the Union and to free the slaves
D) Lincoln was completely surprised by the South's secession, and had no initial aims

Question 12

What political effect did the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation have on Lincoln and his Republican party?

A) The northern Democrats gained seats in Congress, as many voters expressed dissatisfaction with the policy and lack of progress in the war.
B) The northern people solidly backed Lincoln.
C) Many southerners also moved to the Republican camp to support Lincoln.
D) It caused Lincoln to lose his race for the presidency.

Question 13

How were black volunteers greeted by the United States government in 1861?

A) The government, realizing it would need all available manpower, accepted them reluctantly.
B) The government accepted the early volunteers, but only with great reluctance.
C) The government immediately sent them into the South to serve as spies.
D) The government refused to enlist them.

Question 14

What did the First Confiscation Act of 1861 do?

A) It allowed the North to seize only those slaves who were used to benefit the Confederacy.
B) It allowed the South to confiscate blacks in service to the Union.
C) It allowed the North to confiscate all slaves in all areas of the Confederacy.
D) It allowed both sides to confiscate land of their enemies.

Question 15

Other than outright racism, why did many white working-class people oppose the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation?

A) They feared that it would lead to social and political rights.
B) They feared that the freed slaves would rush into the North, and compete with them for jobs.
C) All northerners actually approved of the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation.
D) They thought that it would make the southerners act more harshly toward their slaves.

Question 16

How did blacks react to Lincoln's plan to abolish slavery by compensating owners?

A) They would have preferred immediate abolition, but thought his idea was a good compromise, since it would free the slaves.
B) They approved of this idea, as it was what they had forced on him.
C) They were never informed of the idea, and therefore had little reaction.
D) They were vehemently against the idea, as it seemed to recognize slaves as property, rather than as human beings.

Question 17

What did Abraham Lincoln initially think was the appropriate long-term solution to slavery?

A) Lincoln thought that slaves should be freed immediately, without compensation.
B) Lincoln thought no slaves should be freed, since that would damage property rights.
C) Lincoln wanted to compensate masters for their slaves and then send the slaves out of the United States.
D) Lincoln believed that slaves should be moved to the far west, so that they could be used in building railroads.

Question 18

What Union commander began the policy of accepting runaway slaves as "contraband"?

Question 19

Examine Map 11-1. In addition to the border states, what areas did the Emancipation Proclamation not affect?

A) Texas
B) The western part of Virginia
C) Most of Georgia
D) Most of Florida

Question 20

How did Lincoln react to the actions of Gens. John C. Fremont and David Hunter, who ordered all slaves in their areas freed under the First Confiscation Act?

A) He generally ignored their actions.
B) He immediately countermanded their orders, and told them to stick to the letter of the law.
C) He immediately approved of their actions, sending them medals of valor and bravery for their support of the northern cause.
D) He approved of their actions privately, but required them to return slaves to their masters.

Question 21

What is true about the North's population advantage?

A) The North didn't actually have an advantage with the slaves added into the South's population.
B) The North had more than double the South's population.
C) The North had more people, but since many of them were blacks, they couldn't vote.
D) The North had far fewer people than the South.

Question 22

What was General Order 11?

A) an order issued by Grant, freeing all slaves in South Carolina
B) an order issued by Lincoln, freeing all slaves in the United States, and backing up the Emancipation Proclamation with threats of violence
C) an order issued by Lincoln in response to the mistreatment of black soldiers-it threatened to execute southern prisoners
D) an order issued by Lee, to kill all black prisoners of war held by the South

Question 23

Which of the following statements is true about black military service during the Civil War?

A) Occasionally, black men served in integrated units in the army.
B) White officers were often ready to command black troops, since they received more pay.
C) Black soldiers were paid less, since whites thought they would only be used for menial work.
D) Blacks were only used as combat troops, since that was more dangerous.

Question 24

Where were many of the members of the Second South Carolina Volunteers from?

A) New York
B) Georgia and Florida
C) Massachusetts
D) South Carolina

Question 25

What radical idea about blacks did Thomas Wentworth Higginson have as commander of the First South Carolina Volunteers?

A) He wanted to destroy the black race by killing them.
B) He thought that blacks should be sent to Africa, rather than stay in the United States.
C) He not only wanted to abolish slavery, but to show that blacks and whites were equal.
D) Higginson was very conservative, not radical, in his ideas about blacks.

Question 26

How was the 54th Massachusetts different from the South Carolina regiments?

A) The 54th was commanded by a black man.
B) The 54th was composed mainly of free blacks, rather than slaves.
C) The 54th included only black men from Massachusetts.
D) Because work for the 54th was so dangerous, they received more pay than the average white soldier.

Question 27

What eventually happened to the First South Carolina Volunteers?

A) They were mostly disbanded after Congress failed to appropriate money for them, and later regrouped and were inducted into the United States Army.
B) They won the assault on Fort Wagner for the North.
C) They were all killed in the Battle of Bull Run.
D) They mutinied, protesting against poor treatment in the military.

Question 28

How did the United States government resolve the issue of unequal pay for blacks?

A) They never did. Blacks were never granted equal pay with whites.
B) They granted equal pay toward the end of the war and allowed free blacks to receive back pay for service only before January 1, 1864.
C) They granted blacks double the pay of whites if they served in actual combat.
D) They court-martialed all the men protesting for insubordination and treason.

Question 29

What did Harriet Tubman and Mary Elizabeth Bowser have in common about their activities during the Civil War?

A) Both black women led helpful spying efforts on the Confederacy for the Union.
B) Both women were influential writers for the Union cause.
C) Both black women actually supported the Confederacy, demonstrating that blacks held varying opinions during the Civil War.
D) They were early women's rights activists.

Question 30

Many wealthy slave owners refused to give their slaves to the Confederacy for labor. What other advantages did these wealthy men see during the Civil War?

A) Slaveholders with more than 20 slaves were exempt from military service.
B) They were generally sent out of the country, at government expense, to free them from danger.
C) They did not have to pay taxes or support the Confederacy in any way.
D) Slaveholders were actually held to the exact same standards as others.

Question 31

Who was the Confederate officer in charge of the Fort Pillow massacre?

Question 32

What did the men of the 54th Massachusetts do to protest race discrimination?

A) They went on a hunger strike to protest unequal treatment.
B) They had the first sit-in, at the White House, and were arrested and charged with treason.
C) They said they would accept no pay unless it was equal to white men's pay.
D) The 54th Massachusetts men made no protest against race discrimination, as they were an all white regiment.

Question 33

Which of the following is true about Union treatment of southern blacks during the war?

A) Union soldiers were always more humane than southern soldiers toward blacks.
B) Union soldiers refused to accept blacks into their care.
C) They circulated rumors of black threats of violence, justifying placing them under arrest.
D) Like urban whites, they also engaged in acts of enormous brutality, including rape and murder.

Question 34

What did James Montgomery see as his goal with the Second South Carolina Volunteers?

A) Montgomery wanted to wipe out all evidence of slavery, especially the plantation houses.
B) Montgomery wanted to prove the bravery and equality of blacks.
C) Montgomery actually supported the South, and wanted to assist them, rather than the North.
D) Montgomery thought he could prove that black soldiers were only capable of menial labor.

Question 35

What was "the crater" in Petersburg, Virginia?

A) A prison for black soldiers.
B) A hiding place for slaves waiting for Union help.
C) The largest man-made explosion up to that point, and an unsuccessful effort by the Union to win a battle over the Confederates.
D) A huge impression made by a falling meteorite, seen by Confederate troops as an omen against the Union.

Question 36

Which black unit was involved in the assault on Battery Wagner in July of 1863?

Question 37

What happened during the New York City Draft Riot of 1863?

A) New Yorkers, angry about the mistreatment of slaves, massed to join the army.
B) Working-class Irishmen, angry over suspected black attempts to take jobs, engaged in violence and destruction for four days, lynching blacks and burning black-affiliated businesses.
C) After police beat and arrested several prominent blacks, the black community responded with violence.
D) Southerners infiltrated New York, and began the draft riot to confuse northern troops.

Question 38

What is true about black service in the Navy as opposed to black service in the Army?

A) Blacks in the Navy rarely had to perform menial tasks, and they frequently received promotions to officer status.
B) Blacks had a tradition of continuously serving in the Navy in substantial numbers.
C) Blacks in the Army suffered from less discrimination than in the Navy.
D) All of these are true.

Question 39

How did southerners react to black troops fighting for the Union?

A) They generally refused to recognize them as prisoners of war, and instead attempted to treat them like escaped slaves.
B) They treated them as they did the other white Union prisoners, infuriating Lincoln, who wanted the prisoners kept separate.
C) They attempted to persuade them to become slaves and fight for freedom with the South.
D) They immediately hung every black soldier they caught.

Question 40

What was the result of the assault on Battery Wagner in July of 1863?

A) The black soldiers fought ran away when they heard the cannons and whites used this evidence against black soldiers in general..
B) William H. Carney, who fought in the battle, was the first black man to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor for his efforts.
C) The Union won the battle.
D) The assault ended before it began, as the Union forces discovered a spy in their midst.

Question 41

What was Jefferson Davis's response to Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation?

A) He surrendered the Confederate Army immediately.
B) He declared that all free blacks would be enslaved, and he ordered the Confederate Army to capture and enslave all free blacks in the North.
C) He went on a rampage, killing all of his slaves personally, so they would never know freedom.
D) He completely ignored it as ineffective.

Question 42

What did Robert E. Lee think about enlisting blacks in the military?

A) He thought that it was a very poor idea, since no slave would support the Confederacy.
B) He refused to hear any arguments about it.
C) He favored it, since as slaves they were accustomed to obedience and discipline.
D) No southerner ever thought about enlisting blacks in the military.

Question 43

What event was not one of the considerations that prompted Confederate leaders to entertain the possibility of having black men help them militarily?

A) the impossibility of gaining British aid or recognition
B) effective Union military efforts, especially the naval blockade
C) terrible losses of manpower at several battles
D) several main Confederate leaders were beginning to believe that blacks could be equal to whites socially, and on the battlefield

Question 44

What policy regarding the service of blacks for the Confederacy was eventually agreed upon in March of 1865?

A) Blacks would be enlisted, would receive the same pay as whites, but would only be freed if their owner and the state consented.
B) Blacks would never serve the Confederacy.
C) Only blacks who had been free in the South for more than 10 years could serve.
D) Any black who wanted to fight would be allowed to.

Question 45

What policy did General Patrick Cleburne recommend?

A) putting all slaves in prison until after the war
B) freeing slaves for their military service, if they were loyal to the Confederacy
C) surrendering to the North in exchange for keeping their slaves
D) the wholesale slaughter of black soldiers and runaway slaves