APUSH Daily Quiz #5

Oligarchy

gov’t in which power is held by a select few individuals, or by a small class of powerful people

Bigotry

narrow-mindedness; prejudice; stubborn and complete intolerance of any creed, belief, or opinion that differs from one’s own; the actions, beliefs, prejudices, etc. of a bigot

Spiritual

religious folk song, esp. one of African-American slave origin

Manifest Destiny

phrase coined by journalist John O’ Sullivan in 1845 to express the popularly held 19th century belief that the US would inevitably expand westward to the Pacific Ocean, due to their god-given right, and due to the superiority of the American people and their institutions

Martyr

person who sacrifices something of great value, esp. their life, for a higher cause or principal

Bombastic

speech or writing that is pompous, high-sounding, inflated, pretentious, or intended to impress

Stalwart

firm, steadfast, or uncompromising

Incumbent

person who currently holds political office

Dark Horse

a candidate who is unexpectedly nominated at a political convention

Fire-Eater

an early and extreme Southern advocate of secession before the Civil War

Secede

to withdraw formally; to officially leave or separate from another

Popular Sovereignty

doctrine which states that the people living in a given territory should be free from federal interference to decide upon internal policy issues, esp. with regard to slavery

Free-Soiler

person opposing the further expansion of slavery, or the admission of more slave states into the Union (but not necessarily an abolitionist)

Placer Mining

when individual prospectors wash surface mineral deposits (often alluvial, i.e., deposited by rivers or flowing water) to separate the gold or other valuable elements from the surrounding sand or small gravel particles

Doughface

a Northerner who sympathized with the South during the sectional controversies over new territories and slavery before the Civil War

Belligerent

of warlike character; aggressively hostile; bellicose

Electorate

body of persons entitled to vote in an election

Border Ruffians

pro-slavery forces from Missouri, who poured into neighboring Kansas territory after the Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854); heavily armed and suing fraudulent election tactics in the effort to fore Kansas to become a slave state, they contributed to the violence that became known as Bleeding Kansas (1854-1861)

Jayhawkers

militant anti-slavery abolitionists and free-soilers, who flocked into Kansas after the Kansas-Nebraska Act in order to fight in the guerilla war known as “Bleeding Kansas”, a dress rehearsal for the Civil War to come; the enemies of the “border ruffians”

Attrition

military strategy in which a belligerent attempts to win a war by gradually wearing down its enemy to the point of collapse through continuous losses in personnel and material

Emancipation

the freeing of someone from the control of another, or from any social, political, or legal restrictions

Enfranchise

to admit to citizenship, esp. to the right to vote

Forage

to wander in search of provisions (i.e. food, supplies), by stripping the countryside; to ravage or raid for supplies

Siege

military tactic in which an enemy is surrounded and starved in order to force their surrender

Writ of Habeas Corpus

formal document ordering a prisoner to be brought before a judge or court, to secure the person’s release, unless lawful grounds for their imprisonment are shown; the constitutional right that protects citizens against arbitrary arrest and detention

Martial Law

when the military enforces the law or takes control of the normal administration of justice, esp. when civilian authority has broken down, or during times of war or national crisis

Greenback

paper currency issued during the US Civil War that was legal tender, but which was not backed up by gold or silver, only the good credit of the US gov’t; led to gradual inflation

Scuttle

to deliberately sink a vessel; to abandon, withdraw from, undermine, or cause to be abandoned or destroyed

Copperhead

Northern Democrat who opposed the Civil War, advocating peace and restoration of the Union, even if it meant that slavery continued in the South

Total War

(aka scorched earth policy) harsh and controversial military strategy used by Union Generals such as William T Sherman against Southern civilians; it is designed to destroy the enemy’s will to go on fighting and thus shorten the war

Amnesty

a general pardon for offenses, esp. political crimes against a gov’t often granted before any trial or conviction

Chattel

any moveable article of personal property, either animate or inanimate