AP AP Imperialism & Colonial Empires 2

Question 1

Which system, used extensively in the Belgian Congo, forced indigenous people to meet rubber quotas under threat of mutilation or death?

Accepted Answer

Forced labor concession system

Answer

King Leopold II's Congo Free State relied on a brutal forced-labor concession system that killed an estimated 10 million Congolese.

Question 2

The Opium Wars (1839–1842, 1856–1860) resulted in China being forced to:

Accepted Answer

Cede Hong Kong and open treaty ports to Western trade

Answer

China's defeat in the Opium Wars led to the 'unequal treaties,' ceding Hong Kong to Britain and opening coastal cities as treaty ports.

Question 3

The Boer War (1899–1902) in South Africa was fought between Britain and:

Accepted Answer

Dutch-descended Afrikaner settlers over control of gold-rich territory

Answer

Britain fought the Afrikaners (Boers) for control of the Transvaal and Orange Free State, regions rich in gold and diamonds.

Question 4

How did the Meiji Restoration (1868) change Japan's approach to Western imperialism?

Accepted Answer

Japan modernized rapidly and became an imperial power itself

Answer

The Meiji government industrialized Japan, built a modern military, and launched its own empire in Taiwan (1895) and Korea (1910).

Question 5

Ethiopia's victory at the Battle of Adwa (1896) was significant because it:

Accepted Answer

Made Ethiopia the only African country to successfully repel a European conquest attempt

Answer

Emperor Menelik II's defeat of the Italian army at Adwa preserved Ethiopian independence and became a symbol of African resistance to imperialism.

AP Practice Test