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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In "Chapter 7: On the Altar of my Country," how did soldiers frequently misspell the word "altar"?
(a) Atlar.
(b) Alter.
(c) Alterr.
(d) Alttar.

2. During the discussion of the desire to punish treason and "clean out" the rebels, a soldier from which state wrote his sister "I want to fight the rest of my life if necessary"?
(a) Wisconsin.
(b) Texas.
(c) Michigan.
(d) Illinois.

3. According to "Chapter 9: Slavery Must be Cleaned Out," what fraction of Union soldiers came from Democratic backgrounds?
(a) 4/5.
(b) 3/5.
(c) 1/5.
(d) 2/5.

4. Between May 5 and June 22, 1864, the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Northern Virginia experienced casualties amounting to what percent of their original strength?
(a) 95%.
(b) 38%.
(c) 60%.
(d) 49%.

5. After the battle of Antietam, the colonel of the 20th Massachusetts disappeared and was later found wandering without food or water and without having changed clothes for how long?
(a) 48 hours.
(b) 6 days.
(c) 3 months.
(d) 4 weeks.

Short Answer Questions

1. McPherson says that one of the reasons for this famous Confederate general's invasion of Tennessee during November 1864 was a hope to revitalize the troops from that state. What was this general's name?

2. As McPherson discusses the statistics for married men versus unmarried men, what percentage of married soldiers does he say were killed in action?

3. Which soldier in the 103rd Ohio denounced the Emancipation Proclamation in letters to family from January to March of 1863?

4. When discussing the assertions of patriotism as a motivation for fighting, what percentage of the 429 Confederate letters and diaries used as sources affirmed this motivation?

5. As "Chapter 12: The Same Holy Cause" opens, McPherson says that Civil War soldiers never heard of all BUT WHICH of the following terms?

Short Essay Questions

1. What challenges did soldiers face in the last year of the Civil War that exacerbated their combat exhaustion?

2. McPherson denies, in the discussion of liberty, that Southern soldiers were obsessed with slavery. What statistical evidence does he supply to support this?

3. What types of letters did Confederate soldiers begin sending home toward the end of "Chapter 11: Vengeance Will be Our Motto"?

4. Why are there no letters from black Union soldiers, according to "Chapter 9: Slavery Must be Cleaned Out"?

5. Explain the phenomenon of "dry rot," as discussed in "Chapter 10: We Know That We Are Supported at Home."

6. In the discussion of revenge, why does McPherson say that the Confederate army was more motivated by hatred and revenge than the Union?

7. In Lincoln's discussions of democracy, what fear did he express if the South should be allowed to secede?

8. When McPherson discusses the extra incentive Confederate soldiers had to keep fighting, what does he say about the Northern opinion of Southern soldiers?

9. How did Northern soldiers initially respond when Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation?

10. At the close of "Chapter 12: The Same Holy Cause," what final lessons does McPherson hope readers take from the book?

(see the answer keys)

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