Portfolio Exemplars: Driving Multiple-Choice
Answer the question, then analyze its significance… Which of the following was the major cause of the decline of medieval Eurasian cities?
A. Invasions made city life dangerous
B. Increases in global temperatures after 800 CE C. The rise of trade
D. An increase in population What is the content
being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical knowledge)?
Which of the following factors represents the most significant cause of the growth of cities in Afro-Eurasia in the period 1000–1450?
(A) Climate change
(B) Increased interregional trade (C) Decreased agricultural productivity (D) Increased invasions
What is the content being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical knowledge)?
Which of the following is a common feature of Mongolian and Southeast Asia culture in the 1200s-1400? A. Use of gunpowder weapons to suppress peasant rebellions
B. Adoption of Zen Buddhism
C. Women had more influence than in typical patriarchic societies D. Widespread use of Sanskrit literature and wayang puppetry What is the content
What conclusion can you make about the Vikings, based upon the map?
a. The cultural center of Viking life was Iceland.
b. The Vikings generally began their voyages in Scandinavia.
c. The Vikings were less interested in Europe than in Greenland and North America.
d. Vikings conquered Iceland, Greenland, and L’Anse aux Meadows.
Directions: For the next three questions, use the following chart.
Approximately when did the global temperatures reach their highest moment?
a. 180 AD
b. 840 AD
c. 1600 AD
d. 2000 AD
The Vikings appeared to end their colonization efforts in Greenland around
a. 1000 AD
b. 1200 AD
c. 1350 AD
d. During the Little Ice Age
Which of the following might be the best inference based on the chart above?
a. The Vikings became stronger as the weather got colder.
b. During the Little Ice Age, Vikings were able to conquer Europe and had no need
to colonize elsewhere.
c. The Vikings did little exploring until 900 AD.
d. Viking exploration and colonization depended on warm weather.
What is the contentMedieval Cultures of Faith
During the medieval period of Eurasia, new religious and philosophic traditions emphasizing universal truths spread. These new belief systems tended to emphasize the need for disassociation from “normal” society, in favor of joining communities of others who wished to devote most of their time to achieve personal spirituality. Not only did this offer a way for lower classes and women to benefit themselves, but it also gained criticism from traditionalists who were concerned about the movements’ negative effects on the strength of the family.
Which of the following could be used as a piece of evidence to counter the pattern suggested by the passage above?
a) Confucianism b) Buddhism c) Daoism d) Christianity What is the content being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical knowledge)?
The spread of Bantu-speaking peoples over southern Africa
before 1400 C.E.
can be best explained by their
(A) conversion to Islam
(B) use of cavalry
(C) centralized political systems
(D) knowledge of agriculture
What is the content being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical knowledge)?
frequent delivery of supplies and manpower from Europe.
[They] were defended primarily by three semi-monastic
military orders: the Templars, the Hospitallers, and the Teutonic
Knights. Combining monasticism and militarism, these orders
served to protect pilgrims and to wage perpetual war against
the Muslims.
Palmira Brummett, world historian, 2007
Whenever I visited Jerusalem, I always entered the al-Aqsa
Mosque, beside which stood a small mosque which the
Franks had converted into a church.… [T]he Templars, …
who were my friends, would evacuate the little adjoining
mosque so that I could pray in it.
Usamah ibn Munqidh, Muslim historian, Jerusalem, circa 1138
The second passage does not support the first passage because
the second passage
(A) shows that an influx of manpower from Europe was
not critical for the survival of the Crusader states
(B) shows that Muslims vastly outnumbered Europeans in the
Crusader states
(C) minimizes the importance of Hospitallers and Teutonic
Knights in the administration of the Crusader states
(D) presents an incident in which a military order supported a
Muslim traveler
What is the content being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical knowledge)?
Economics, politics, social classes, gender relationships, the arts, all were dominated conceptually by the value systems established in the medieval worlds. This reality even extended to the way in which people conceptualized love and marriage. Different ideas about such topics stemmed primarily from the philosophies and religions present in different areas.
Which of the following most directly undermines the argument made in the passage?
a) The Western European tradition of romantic chivalry b) The Byzantine emphasis on the “woman’s world” c) Bhakti eroticism in India
d) Chinese polygamy and use of concubines
What is the content being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical knowledge)?
The Byzantine Empire and Sui, Tang, and Song Dynasties of China had which of the following in common?
A. Using traditional government systems in combination with new philosophic justifications of government
B. Widespread construction of garden-intensive cities and massive defensive fortifications C. Continuing reliance on a major religious system
The photograph above of a mosque (first erected in the
fourteenth century) in the modern-day West African country
of Mali best exemplifies which of the following historical
processes?
(A) Imposition of religion through military conquest
(B) Spread of religion along trade routes
(C) Abandonment of indigenous cultural styles in the face of colonization
(D) Conflict between local and universalizing religions
What is the content being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical knowledge)?
A. Created new syncretic belief systems B. Led to diffusion of agricultural techniques
C. Spread throughout Asia largely due to military conquest D. Relied upon new technologies to facilitate long-distance trade What is the content
being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical knowledge)?
“Justinian created countless cities which did not exist before. And finding that the belief in God was...straying into errors...he brought it about that it stood on the firm foundation of a single faith...”
Buildings, Court Historian Procopius, published speech c. 550s CE
Judging from the excerpt above, which of the following was the main purpose of Procopius’ book?
(A) To oppose a plan for the long-term development of religious toleration (B) To argue that Justinian was a strong and helpful leader
(C) To criticize the leaders of the Christian churches for misinterpretations of faith (D) To suggest that the ruinous costs of city-building were mitigated by religious unity What is the content
The map above shows which of the following political developments? A. The expansion of the Byzantine Empire’s theme system B. The Crusader states
C. The Mongol khanates D. The Muslim caliphates What is the content being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical
knowledge)?
“Justinian was...crafty, hypocritical, secretive by temperament, two-faced; a clever fellow with marvelous ability to conceal his real opinion...lying all the time....”
Secret History, former Court historian Procopius, unpublished work c. 550-562 CE
In the excerpt above, Procopius’ main purpose is to point out that
(A) there was a great deal of political upheaval during the reign of Justinian (B) Justinian should be admired for his talents in lying
(C) the peace and prosperity of Justinian’s reign depended on his ability to lie (D) Justinian should be perceived first and foremost as intelligent but nasty
What is the content being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical knowledge)?
Inca and Aztec societies were similar in that both A. Developed from Mayan civilization
B. Acquired empires by means of military conquest C. Independently developed iron technology D. Depended entirely on oral record keeping What is the content
knowledge)?
Since the title of emperor had become extinct among the Greeks and a woman (Empress Irene) claimed the imperial authority, it seemed to Pope Leo and to all the holy fathers who were present at the council and to the rest of the Christian people that Charles, king of the Franks, ought to be named emperor, for he held Rome itself where the Caesars were always accustomed to reside and also other cities in Italy, Gaul and Germany. Since almighty God had put all these places in his power it seemed fitting to them that, with the help of God, and in accordance with the request of all the Christian people, he should hold this title. King Charles did not wish to refuse their petition, and, humbly submitting himself to God and to the petition of all the Christian priests and people, he accepted the title of emperor on the day of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ and was consecrated by Pope Leo…On the most holy day of the Nativity of the Lord when the king rose from praying at Mass before the tomb of blessed Peter the Apostle, Pope Leo placed a crown on his head and all the Roman people cried out, "To Charles Augustus, crowned by God, great and peace giving emperor of the Romans, life and victory." And after the laudation he was adored by the pope in the manner of the ancient princes and, the title of Patrician being set aside, he was called emperor and Augustus.
Annales Laureshamenses, A.D. 801
The ideas expressed in the passage were most strongly influenced by which of the following? (A) Patriarchy
(B) Papal supremacy (C) Humanism
A historian of medieval Europe would probably find the passage most useful as a source of information about which of the following?
(A) The government of Charlemagne (B) Medieval European social issues (C) Ideas about government legitimacy (D) Religious ceremonies and methods What is the content
being assessed by this question (what skills, what historical knowledge)?
was unquestionably much their superior.
Einhard, Frankish scholar and courtier to Charlemagne, A.D. 817
This description of the crowning of Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor best supports which of the following conclusions?
(A) Charlemagne did not want to be seen as desiring the position of Holy Roman Emperor. (B) There were multiple rebellions against the papacy.
(C) The crowning of Charlemagne was supported by Roman political leaders. (D) The Pope was one of Charlemagne’s greatest supporters.
The point of view of the author can best be described as (A) sympathetic to Charlemagne
(B) hostile to Charlemagne
(C) indifferent to the reactions of the Roman government officials (D) sympathetic to the Pontiff Leo
