UPSC World History – Chapter 1: The World in the Eighteenth Century (20 MCQs)

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UPSC World History – Chapter 1: The World in the Eighteenth Century (20 MCQs) – 20 questions, subject: History. Every question has the correct answer with a one-line explanation; tap "Show Answer". Free practice for TNPSC, UPSC, SSC, Bank and RRB exams – Shanmugam IAS Academy, Coimbatore.

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1.  

The idea of the separation of powers is most closely associated with:

Correct Answer: A [Montesquieu]

Explanation:

The Spirit of the Laws (1748).

2.  

The Wealth of Nations (1776) was written by:

Correct Answer: D [Adam Smith]

Explanation:

Adam Smith, the Scottish economist, published The Wealth of Nations in 1776, arguing for free trade and the invisible hand of the market.

3.  

The Bill of Rights that limited the powers of the English Crown was passed in:

Correct Answer: C [1689]

Explanation:

The Bill of Rights of 1689, passed after the Glorious Revolution, limited the Crown and laid the basis of constitutional monarchy.

4.  

According to mercantilism, a nation's wealth lay mainly in:

Correct Answer: D [its stock of gold and silver]

Explanation:

Mercantilists measured national wealth by bullion, so they sought an export surplus to bring in gold and silver.

5.  

The Reformation began with the protest of:

Correct Answer: B [Martin Luther]

Explanation:

1517.

6.  

Which treaty gave Canada to Britain in 1763?

Correct Answer: A [Treaty of Paris]

Explanation:

By the Treaty of Paris (1763), which ended the Seven Years' War, France ceded Canada to Britain.

7.  

The phrase "general will" is associated with:

Correct Answer: D [Rousseau]

Explanation:

Rousseau's The Social Contract (1762) made the general will the basis of popular sovereignty.

8.  

The Dutch East India Company (VOC) was founded in:

Correct Answer: D [1602]

Explanation:

The Dutch VOC was chartered in 1602, two years after the English East India Company of 1600.

9.  

Which of the following rulers is regarded as an "enlightened despot"?

Correct Answer: B [Frederick II of Prussia]

Explanation:

Frederick II of Prussia carried out reforms inspired by Enlightenment ideas while keeping absolute power, the mark of an enlightened despot.

10.  

Consider the following statements:

1. The Seven Years' War was fought between 1756 and 1763.
2. The French captured Madras in 1746.
3. The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle gave Pondicherry to Britain.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Correct Answer: B [1 and 2 only]

Explanation:

Statements 1 and 2 are true: the war lasted from 1756 to 1763, and the French took Madras in 1746.

11.  

Assertion (A): Britain raised new taxes on its American colonies after 1763.

Reason (R): The Seven Years' War had left Britain with heavy debts.

Correct Answer: A [Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A]

Explanation:

Both are true and linked: debts from the Seven Years' War led Britain to tax the colonies, for example by the Stamp Act of 1765.

12.  

Newton's Principia was published in:

Correct Answer: C [1687]

Explanation:

Isaac Newton's Principia, setting out the laws of motion and universal gravitation, was published in 1687.

13.  

During the eighteenth century, Japan followed a policy of near-isolation known as:

Correct Answer: A [Sakoku]

Explanation:

Sakoku was the Tokugawa policy of near-isolation that limited foreign contact to Dutch and Chinese traders at Nagasaki.

14.  

The Navigation Acts were an example of:

Correct Answer: B [mercantilism]

Explanation:

The Navigation Acts reserved colonial trade for English ships, a protectionist measure typical of mercantilism.

15.  

Natural rights to "life, liberty and property" were described by:

Correct Answer: C [John Locke]

Explanation:

John Locke's Two Treatises of Government (1690) set out natural rights to life, liberty and property.

16.  

The Encyclopédie was edited mainly by:

Correct Answer: A [Diderot]

Explanation:

Denis Diderot edited the Encyclopédie from 1751, at first jointly with d'Alembert.

17.  

Arrange the following in chronological order:

1. Glorious Revolution
2. The Wealth of Nations published
3. Luther's Ninety-five Theses
4. Seven Years' War begins

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Correct Answer: C [3-1-4-2]

Explanation:

1517, 1688, 1756, 1776.

18.  

The triangular trade connected:

Correct Answer: B [Europe, West Africa and the Americas]

Explanation:

Ships carried manufactures to West Africa, enslaved people to the Americas, and plantation goods back to Europe.

19.  

Under the Qing dynasty, from 1757 European trade with China was confined mainly to:

Correct Answer: A [Canton]

Explanation:

Under the Canton System begun by the Qianlong Emperor in 1757, European trade was confined to Canton (Guangzhou).

20.  

Under the Tokugawa policy of near-isolation, limited Dutch and Chinese trade was allowed at:

Correct Answer: C [Nagasaki]

Explanation:

Under sakoku the Dutch traded from Dejima island and the Chinese from their own quarter, both at Nagasaki.

➤ Full notes, maps, tables, a reason for every option and Mains PYQs – U05 · World History (UPSC book, ₹249): www.shanmugamiasacademy.in/study-materials/upsc-world-history

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