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Unit 5: Period 5: 1844-1877

About this unit, manifest destiny.

  • Manifest Destiny: causes and effects of westward expansion (Opens a modal)
  • Manifest Destiny (Opens a modal)
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The Mexican-American War

  • Annexing Texas (Opens a modal)
  • The Mexican-American War (Opens a modal)
  • The Mexican-American War Get 3 of 4 questions to level up!

The Compromise of 1850

  • Slavery and the Missouri Compromise (Opens a modal)
  • Increasing political battles over slavery in the mid-1800s (Opens a modal)
  • The Compromise of 1850 (Opens a modal)
  • The Compromise of 1850 Get 3 of 4 questions to level up!

Sectional conflict: regional differences

  • The slave economy (Opens a modal)
  • Life for enslaved men and women (Opens a modal)
  • Early abolition (Opens a modal)
  • Uncle Tom's Cabin - influence of the Fugitive Slave Act (Opens a modal)
  • Uncle Tom's Cabin - plot and analysis (Opens a modal)
  • Uncle Tom's Cabin - reception and significance (Opens a modal)
  • Sectional conflict: Regional differences (Opens a modal)
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Failure of compromise

  • The Kansas-Nebraska Act and party realignment (Opens a modal)
  • Bleeding Kansas (Opens a modal)
  • Dred Scott v. Sandford (Opens a modal)
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Election of 1860 and secession

  • Start of the Civil War - secession and Fort Sumter (Opens a modal)
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Military conflict in the Civil War

  • Strategy of the Civil War (Opens a modal)
  • Early phases of Civil War and Antietam (Opens a modal)
  • Significance of the battle of Antietam (Opens a modal)
  • The battle of Gettysburg (Opens a modal)
  • Later stages of the Civil War - 1863 (Opens a modal)
  • Later stages of the Civil War - the election of 1864 and Sherman's March (Opens a modal)
  • Later stages of the Civil War - Appomattox and Lincoln's assassination (Opens a modal)
  • Military conflict in the Civil War Get 3 of 4 questions to level up!

Government policies during the Civil War

  • The Emancipation Proclamation (Opens a modal)
  • The Gettysburg Address - setting and context (Opens a modal)
  • The Gettysburg Address - full text and analysis (Opens a modal)
  • Government policies during the Civil War Get 3 of 4 questions to level up!

Reconstruction

  • Black Codes (Opens a modal)
  • The First KKK (Opens a modal)
  • The Freedmen's Bureau (Opens a modal)
  • An overview and the 13th Amendment (Opens a modal)
  • The 14th Amendment (Opens a modal)
  • The 15th Amendment (Opens a modal)
  • The Compromise of 1877 (Opens a modal)
  • Reconstruction Get 3 of 4 questions to level up!

Failure of Reconstruction

  • Life after slavery for African Americans (Opens a modal)
  • Failure of Reconstruction (Opens a modal)
  • Failure of Reconstruction Get 3 of 4 questions to level up!

Comparison in Period 5

  • Big takeaways from the Civil War (Opens a modal)
  • Comparing the effects of the Civil War on American national identity (Opens a modal)

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5.8 Military Conflict in the Civil War

8 min read • december 22, 2022

Milo Chang

Introduction

🎥Watch: AP US History - The Road to the Civil War

For the United States, the Civil War saw the unprecedented mobilization of manpower and materials alongside unprecedented carnage on the battlefield. The Civil War was a total war because it involved every aspect of society.

Total war is a term used to describe a conflict in which all of the resources and capabilities of a society are mobilized for the purpose of achieving military victory. It involves the use of all available economic, political, and social resources, including the conscription of soldiers, the mobilization of industry, and the use of propaganda to support the war effort.

The South wanted a short war and needed European support. They were sure that Great Britain would support them because of their need for southern cotton. Unfortunately for them, the British just got their cotton from Egypt and India instead.

The North had more resources and thus could afford a longer war, especially since their Anaconda Plan could strangle the South’s ability to trade or receive resources through its naval blockade of Southern ports and coastline. The idea was to blockade all the ocean ports on the Atlantic and Gulf as well as the ports on the Mississippi, literally constricting the South (like an Anaconda).

Union Timidity

During the early years of the American Civil War , many Union generals were criticized for their timidity and lack of aggressive action on the battlefield. This was particularly evident in the Eastern Theater of the war, where Union commanders were often hesitant to engage the Confederate Army in open battle and preferred to rely on defensive tactics and fortifications.

One of the main reasons for this timidity was the Union's lack of experienced military leadership at the start of the war. Many of the Union's senior generals, such as Winfield Scott and Robert E. Lee , had resigned their commissions to join the Confederacy, leaving the Union Army with a leadership vacuum. The Union's remaining generals were largely inexperienced and untested, and they were often hesitant to take risks or engage in aggressive action for fear of failure.

Another factor contributing to the timidity of Union generals was the Union Army's overall lack of preparedness for the war. The Union Army was poorly trained, poorly equipped, and poorly organized at the start of the conflict, and many of its generals were overwhelmed by the scale and intensity of the fighting. As a result, they were often reluctant to take the initiative or engage in offensive operations, preferring instead to defend their positions and wait for the Confederates to attack.

Overall, the timidity of Union generals at the start of the Civil War was a significant factor in the Union's slow and often ineffective response to the Confederate threat. It was not until later in the war, when more experienced and aggressive generals such as Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman took command, that the Union began to achieve more decisive victories on the battlefield.

In fact, other Union generals often criticized Grant for being too aggressive and too willing to take risks on the battlefield. Some of his peers, such as General George B. McClellan , believed that he was too quick to engage the Confederate Army in open battle and too slow to retreat or regroup when necessary. They also accused him of being too focused on defeating the enemy at any cost, regardless of the number of casualties sustained.

Yet after firing many of his previous generals for their timidity, including General McClellan, Lincoln was excited by General Grant's leadership, strategic vision, and determination to win the war. When told to fire General Grant, Lincoln reportedly retorted, "I can’t spare this man. He fights."

Civil War Turning Points

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Bodies_on_the_battlefield_at_antietam.jpg

Image Courtesy of Wikimedia

The South won many early battles under General Robert E. Lee , but as the war dragged on, improving leadership (such as the generalship of Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman ) and superior resources helped the North win key turning points that changed the tide of the war and the United States as a whole:

Antietam (1862) was/is the bloodiest day in US history and led Lincoln to issue the Emancipation Proclamation , keeping Europe out of the war and changing the Union Army into an army of liberation: it now freed slaves as contraband or property taken from those breaking the law. This also added African American manpower to the US Army (example: 54th Massachusetts ).

Gettysburg (1863) again kept Europe out of the war and was the Confederate high water mark. The Confederacy was on the defensive after this, especially since Lee lost ⅓ of his army. This also led to the Gettysburg Address and Lincoln’s statement that the US would have a “new birth of freedom” as the war would end slavery. This and Vicksburg were the turning points of the war.

Vicksburg (1863) occurring at the exact same time as Gettysburg , it allowed the Union to gain control of the Mississippi River and split the Confederacy. General Grant was promoted after this too, giving the Union better leadership in higher positions.

Atlanta (1864) was a well-timed victory that led to Lincoln’s re-election in 1864 and thus allowed the US to finish the war with the eradication of slavery.

Sherman’s March (1864) Leading a force of 100,000 men, Sherman set out from Chattanooga, Tennessee on a campaign of deliberate destruction that went clear across the state of Georgia and then swept north into South Carolina. Marching relentlessly though Georgia, his troops destroyed everything in their path, burning cotton fields, barns, and houses; everything the enemy might use to survive. It was total warfare. This was called a scorched-earth policy.

Appomattox (1865) The Confederate government tried to negotiate for peace, but Lincoln would accept nothing short of restoration of the Union, and Jefferson Davis still demanded nothing less than independence. Lee retreated from Richmond with less than 30,000 men and tried to escape to the mountains, only to be cut off and forced to surrender to Grant at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.

🎥 Watch: AP US History - The Civil War

Modern Warfare

The Civil War was a modern war in many ways, and it saw the introduction and use of many new technologies and tactics that would later become commonplace in future wars. One of the most significant innovations of the Civil War was the ironclad warship , which changed the face of naval warfare and paved the way for the development of the modern battleship.

Ironclads were armored steam-powered ships with iron or steel hulls and decks that were heavily fortified with iron or steel plates. They were designed to be able to withstand the impact of cannonballs and other artillery, and they were much more difficult to sink than traditional wooden ships.

The first ironclad warship was the USS Monitor , which was built for the Union Navy during the Civil War . It saw its first action in March 1862, when it fought the Confederate ironclad CSS Virginia (formerly the USS Merrimack) in the Battle of Hampton Roads . The battle ended in a draw, but it demonstrated the effectiveness of ironclads and their potential to revolutionize naval warfare.

Other ironclads were built and used by both the Union and the Confederacy during the Civil War , and they played a significant role in the outcome of the conflict. The Union Navy used ironclads to blockade the Southern coast and disrupt Confederate trade, while the Confederacy used ironclads to defend its ports and rivers.

The Civil War also saw the use of new weapons, such as the repeating rifle and the Gatling gun , as well as the development of new tactics, such as total war and trench warfare .

The repeating rifle was a type of firearm that allowed a shooter to fire multiple rounds without reloading. It was designed to be more efficient and effective than traditional single-shot rifles, which required the shooter to manually load each round into the barrel before firing.

The Gatling gun was a type of machine gun that was invented by Richard Gatling in the 1860s. It was one of the first practical machine guns to be developed. The Gatling gun was a revolving-barrel machine gun that used a crank handle to rotate a series of barrels, which allowed it to fire a continuous stream of bullets without the need for manual reloading. It was highly accurate and could fire up to 1,000 rounds per minute, making it a formidable weapon on the battlefield.

Both the Union and the Confederacy engaged in total war , as they mobilized all of their resources and capabilities to fight the conflict. This included the use of conscription, the mass production of weapons and other military supplies, and the implementation of economic policies to support the war effort.

Trench warfare is a type of warfare where soldiers fight from trenches or fortified positions rather than engaging in open battle. It is characterized by the use of heavy fortifications, such as earthworks and sandbags, and the use of artillery and machine guns to defend against enemy attacks. Trench warfare was a major feature of the Civil War , particularly in the Eastern Theater, where both the Union and the Confederacy constructed elaborate trench systems to defend against attacks.

All of these innovations had a lasting impact on the way wars were fought and would shape the course of military history for decades to come.

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  • Articles of Confederation
  • Monroe Doctrine
  • Prohibition
  • Imperialism
  • Expansionism
  • Manifest destiny

List of Document Based Questions

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  • 6 2010 

The APUSH exam underwent a major redesiee-response portion now only contains one DBQ and one LEQ (from a choice of two).

  • DBQ: Explain the reasons why a new conservatism rose to prominence in the United States between 1960 and 1989.
  • ... relations with Great Britain, analyzing what changed and what stayed the same from the period before the war to the period after it.
  • Evaluate the extent to which the Mexican-American War (1846–1848) marked a turning point in the debate over slavery in the United States, analyzing what changed and what stayed the same from the period before the war to the period after it.
  • DBQ: How and why did the goals of United States foreign policy change from the end of the First World War (1918) to the end of the Korean War (1953)?
  • Choose TWO of the following and analyze their impact on colonial North American development between 1620 and 1776: Puritanism, The Enlightenment, The First Great Awakening
  • Compare and contrast the Jacksonian Democratic Party and the Whig Party of the 1830's and 1840's. Focus on TWO of the following: The role of the federal government in the economy, Social reform, Westward expansion
  • To what extent were the goals of Reconstruction (1865–1877) regarding African Americans achieved by 1900?
  • Explain the social, economic, and foreign policy goals of New Right conservatives from the 1960's to the 1980's and assess the degree to which the Reagan administration succeeded in implementing these goals in the 1980's.
  • DBQ: Analyze the causes of growing opposition to slavery in the United States from 1776 to 1852. In your response, consider both underlying forces and specific events that contributed to the growing opposition.
  • Analyze the role of trans-Atlantic trade and Great Britain’s mercantilist policies in the economic development of the British North American colonies in the period from 1650 to 1750.
  • Analyze the ways in which the United States sought to advance its interests in world affairs between 1789 and 1823.
  • Analyze the impact of technological innovations on the lives of TWO of the following groups. Confine your answer to the period 1865–1920: Factory workers, Middle-class urban residents, Mid-western farmers.
  • Between 1945 and 1975 various groups in the United States engaged in acts of protest. Analyze the reasons that protest emerged in this period for TWO of the following groups: African Americans, College students, Latino Americans, Women.
  • DBQ: In the post–Civil War United States, corporations grew significantly in number, size, and influence. Analyze the impact of big business on the economy and politics and the responses of Americans to these changes. Confine your answer to the period 1870 to 1900.
  • Analyze the effect of the French and Indian War and its aftermath on the relationship between Great Britain and the British colonies. Confine your response to the period from 1754 to 1776.
  • Analyze how western expansion contributed to growing sectional tensions between the North and the South. Confine your answer to the period from 1800 to 1850.
  • Analyze the origins and outcomes of the intense cultural conflicts of the 1920's. In your response, focus on TWO of the following: Immigration, Prohibition, Religion.
  • Compare and contrast the Cold War foreign policies of TWO of the following presidents: Harry Truman (1945–1953), Dwight Eisenhower (1953–1961), Richard Nixon (1969–1974).
  • DBQ: Analyze the international and domestic challenges the United States faced between 1968 and 1974, and evaluate how President Richard Nixon’s administration responded to them.
  • Analyze the origins and development of slavery in Britain’s North American colonies in the period 1607 to 1776.
  • To what extent did political parties contribute to the development of national unity in the United States between 1790 and 1840?
  • Compare and contrast the ways that many Americans expressed their opposition to immigrants in the 1840's– 1850's with the ways that many Americans expressed their opposition to immigrants in the 1910's– 1920's.
  • African American leaders have responded to racial discrimination in the United States in a variety of ways. Compare and contrast the goals and strategies of African American leaders in the 1890's–1920's with the goals and strategies of African American leaders in the 1950's-1960's.
  • DBQ: Explain the ways that participation in political campaigns and elections in the United States changed between 1815 and 1840, and analyze forces and events that led to these changes.
  • Compare and contrast the British, French, and Spanish imperial goals in North America between 1580 and 1763.
  • Analyze the ways in which the political, economic, and diplomatic crises of the 1780's shaped the provisions of the United States Constitution.'
  • Compare and contrast the foreign policies of Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson.
  • Compare and contrast the women’s rights movement of the 1840's–1860's with the women’s rights movement of the 1960's–1980's.

2010  [ ]

  • DBQ: In what ways did ideas and values held by the Puritans influence the political, economic, and social development of the New England colonies from 1630 through the 1660's?
  • Analyze the political, diplomatic, and military reasons for the United States victory in the Revolutionary War. Confine your answer to the period 1775-1783.
  • Analyze the ways in which controversy over the extension of slavery into western territories contributed to the coming of the Civil War. Confine your answer to the period 1845-1861.
  • Analyze the roles that women played in the Progressive Era reforms from the 1880's through 1920. Focus your essay on TWO of the following: Politics, Social conditions, Labor and working conditions.
  • Explain the causes and consequences of TWO of the following population movements in the United States during the period 1945–1985: Suburbanization, The growth of the Sunbelt, Immigration to the United States.
  • DBQ: The issue of territorial expansion sparked considerable debate in the period 1800–1855. Analyze this debate and evaluate the influence of both supporters and opponents of territorial expansion in shaping federal government policy. Use the documents and your knowledge of the years 1800–1855 in your answer.
  • Evaluate the influence of religion on the development of colonial society in TWO of the following regions: The Spanish Southwest, New England, New France.
  • Compare and contrast the experience of slaves on tobacco plantations in the early seventeenth-century Chesapeake region with that of slaves on nineteenth-century cotton plantations in the Deep South. What forces transformed the institution of slavery from the early seventeenth century to the nineteenth century?
  • Analyze the effectiveness of Progressive Era reformers in addressing problems of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In your answer, focus on reform efforts in TWO of the following areas: State and federal government, The workplace, Living conditions in cities.
  • Analyze the effects of the Vietnam War on TWO of the following in the United States in the period from 1961 to 1975: The presidency, The population between 18 and 35 years old, Cold War diplomacy.
  • DBQ: From 1775 to 1830, many African Americans gained freedom from slavery, yet during the same period the institution of slavery expanded. Explain why BOTH of those changes took place. Analyze the ways that BOTH free African Americans and enslaved African Americans responded to the challenges confronting them.
  • Analyze the ways in which British imperial policies between 1763 and 1776 intensified colonials' resistance to British rule and their comitment to republican values.
  • Analyze the social, political, and economic forces of the 1840s and early 1850s that led to the emergence of the Republican Party.
  • Choose TWO of the following organizations and explain their strategies for advancing the interests of workers. To what extent were these organizations successful in achieving their objectives? Confine your answers to the period from 1875 to 1925. Choices: Knights of Labor, American Federation of Labor, Socialist Part of America, Industrial Workers of the World.
  • Analyze the home-front experiences of TWO of the following groups during the Second World War: African Americans, Japanese Americans, Jewish Americans, Mexican Americans.
  • DBQ: In what ways did African Americans shape the course and consequences of the Civil War? Confine your answer to the years from 1861 to 1870.
  • Analyze how the ideas and experiences of the revolutionary era influenced the principles embodied in the Articles of Confederation.
  • Analyze the political, economic, and religious tensions between immigrant Roman Catholics and native-born Protestants in the United States from the 1830s through the 1850s.
  • Explain the origins of TWO of the following third parties and evaluate their impact on United States politics and national policies: The People's Party (Populists) in 1892, the Progressive Party (Bull Moose Party) in 1912, the States' Rights Party (Dixiecrats) in 1948, the American Independent Party in 1968.
  • Analyze the ways in which the events and trends of the 1970s diminished the nation's economic power and international influence, and challenged Americans' confidence in both.
  • DBQ: Analyze the ways in which the Vietnam War heightened social, political, and economic tensions in the United States. Focus your answer on the period 1964 to 1975.
  • Early encofghvand, Chesapeake, Spanish Southwest, California and New France.
  • Analyze the impact of the market ratchets (1815-1860) on the economies of TWO of the following regions: the Northeast, the Midwest, the South.
  • Following Reconstruction, many southern leaders promoted the idea of a "New South." To what extent was the "New South" a reality by the time of the First World War? In your answer be sure to address TWO of the following: Economic development, Politics, Race relations.
  • Presidential elections between 1928 and 1948 revealed major shifts in political party loyalties. Analyze both the reasons for these changes and their consequences during this period.
  • DBQ: For the years 1880 to 1925, analyze both the tensions surrounding the issue of immigration and the United States government's response to these tensions. Use the following documents and your knowledge of the period from 1880 to 1925 to construct your answer.
  • Analyze the reasons for the Anti-Federalists' opposition to ratifying the Constitution.
  • Use TWO of the following categories to analyze the ways in which African Americans created a distinctive culture in slavery: Family, Music, Oral traditions, Religions.
  • Analyze the extent to which the Spanish-American War was a turning point in American foreign policy.
  • Analyze the extent to which the 1920s and 1950s were similar in TWO of the following areas: Impact of technology, Intolerant attitudes, Literary developments.
  • DBQ: Analyze the ways in which technology, government policy, and economic conditions changed American agriculture in the period 1865-1900. In your answer be sure to evaluate farmers' responses to these changes.
  • Settlers in the eighteenth-century American back country sometimes resorted to violent protest to express their grievances. Analyze the causes and significance of TWO of the following: March of the Paxton Boys, Regulator movement, Shays' Rebellion, Whiskey Rebellion.
  • In what ways did the Second Great Awakening in the North influence TWO of the following? Abolitionism, Temperance, the Cult of Domesticity, Utopian communities.
  • To what extent did the role of the federal government change under President Theodore Roosevelt in regard to TWO of the following: Labor, Trusts, Conservation, World affairs.
  • "Landslide presidential victories do not ensure continued political effectiveness or legislative success." Assess the validity of this statement by comparing TWO of the following presidential administration: Franklin Roosevelt (1936), Lyndon Johnson (1964), Richard Nixon (1972), Ronald Reagan (1984).
  • DBQ: In what ways did the administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson respond to the political, economic, and social problems of the United States? Assess the effectiveness of these responses. Use the documents and your knowledge of the period 1960-1970 to construct your response.
  • The French and Indian War (1754-1763) altered the relationship between Britain and its North American colonies. Assess this change with regard to TWO of the following in the period between 1763 and 1775: Land acquisition, Politics, Economics.
  • Compare the experiences of TWO of the following groups of immigrants during the period 1830 to 1860: English, Irish, German.
  • Explain how TWO of the following individuals responded to the economic and social problems created by industrialization during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries: Jane Addams, Andrew Carnegie, Samuel Gompers, Upton Sinclair.
  • Analyze the ways in which the federal government sought support on the home front for the war effort during the First World War.
  • DBQ: Discuss the changing ideals of American womanhood between the American Revolution (1770s) and the outbreak of the Civil War. What factors fostered the emergence of "republican motherhood" and the "cult of domesticity?" Assess the extent to which these ideals influenced the lives of women during this period. In your answer be sure to consider issues of race and class.
  • Analyze the differences between the Spanish settlements in the Southwest and the English colonies in New England in the seventeenth century in terms of TWO of the following: Politics, Religion, Economic development.
  • Explain why and how the role of the federal government changed as a result of the Civil War with respect to TWO of the following during the period 1861-1877.
  • Historians have argued that Progressive reform lost momentum in the 1920s. Evaluate this statement with respect to TWO of the following: Regulation of business, Labor, Immigrants.
  • While the United States appeared to be dominated by consensus and conformity in the 1950s, some Americans reacted against the status quo. Analyze the critiques of United States society made by TWO of the following: Youth, Civil Rights Activists, Intellectuals.
  • DBQ: Analyze developments from 1941 to 1949 that increased suspicion and tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. Use the documents and your knowledge of the period 1941-1949 to construct your response.
  • "The United States Constitution of 1787 represented an economic and ideological victory for the traditional American political elite." Assess the validity of that statement for the period 1781 to 1789.
  • In what ways and to what extent was industrial development from 1800 to 1860 a factor in the relationship between the northern and the southern states?
  • For whom and to what extent was the American West a land of opportunity from 1865 to 1890?
  • How did TWO of the following help shape American national culture in the 1920s? Advertising, Entertainment, Mass production.
  • DBQ: To what extent did the American Revolution fundamentally change American society? In your answer, be sure to address the political, social, and economic effects of the Revolution in the period from 1775 to 1800.
  • Compare and contrast the ways in which economic development affected politics in Massachusetts and Virginia in the period from 1607 to 1750.
  • To what extent did the debates about the Mexican War and its aftermath reflect the sectional interests of New Englanders, westerners, and southerners in the period from 1845 to 1855?
  • Describe the patterns of immigration in TWO of the periods listed below. Compare and contrast the responses of Americans to immigrants in these periods: 1820 to 1860, 1880 to 1924, 1965 to 2000.
  • Analyze the extent to which TWO of the following transformed American society in the 1960s and 1970s: The Civil Rights movement, the antiwar movement, the women's movement.
  • DBQ: In the early nineteenth century, Americans sought to resolve their political disputes through compromise, yet by 1860 this no longer seemed possible. Analyze the reasons for this change. Use the documents and your knowledge of the period 1820-1860 in constructing your response.
  • "Geography was the primary factor in shaping the development of the British colonies in North America." Assess the validity of this statement for the 1600s.
  • To what extent was the United States Constitution a radical departure from the Articles of Confederation?
  • How successful were progressive reforms during the period 1890 to 1915 with respect to TWO of the following? Industrial conditions, Urban life, Politics.
  • Analyze the ways in which TWO of the following contributed to the changes in women's lives in the United States in the mid-twentieth century: Wars, Literature and/or popular culture, Medical and/or technological advances.
  • DBQ: In what ways did the French and Indian War (1754-63) alter the political, economic, and ideological relations between Britain and its American colonies? Use the documents and your knowledge of the period 1740-1766 in constructing your response.
  • Analyze the impact of the American Revolution of the both slavery and the status of women in the period from 1775-1800.
  • Analyze the effectiveness of political compromise in reducing sectional tensions in the period 1820 to 1861.
  • Compare and contrast the programs and policies designed by reformers of the Progressive era to those designed by reformers of the New jkhkDeal period. Confine your answers to programs and policies that addressed the needs of those living in poverty.
  • Analyze the successes and failures of the United States Cold War policy of containment as it developed in TWO of the follow regions of the world during the period 1945 to 1975: East and Southeast Asia, Europe, Latin America, Middle East.
  • DBQ: How and for what reasons did the United States foreign policy change between 1920 and 1941? Use the documents and your knowledge of the period 1920-1941 to construct your response.
  • To what extent was the election of 1800 aptly named the "Revolution of 1800?" Respond with reference to TWO of the following areas: Economics, Foreign policy, Judiciary, Politics.
  • To what extent and in what ways did the roles of women change in American society between 1790 and 1860? Respond with reference to TWO of the following areas: Domestic, Economic, Political, Social.
  • Analyze the primary causes of the population shift from a rural to an urban environment in the United States between 1875 and 1925.
  • "Between 1960 and 1975, there was great progress in the struggle for political and social equality." Assess the validity of this statement with respect to TWO of the following groups during that period: African Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, Women.
  • DBQ: Analyze the responses of Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration to the problems of the Great Depression. How effective were the responses? How did they change the role of the federal government? Use the documents and your knowledge of the period 1929-1941 to construct your essay.
  • Evaluate the extent to which the Articles of Confederation were effective in solving the problems that confronted the new nation.
  • In what ways did developments in transportation bring about economic and social change in the United States in the period 1820-1860?
  • Evaluate the impact of the Civil War on political and economic developments in TWO of the following regions: The South, the North, the West. Focus your answer on the period between 1865 and 1900.
  • Compare and contrast United States society in the 1920s and the 1950s with respect to TWO of the following: race relations, role of women, consumerism.
  • DBQ: Evaluate the effectiveness of Progressive Era reformers and the federal government in bringing about reform at the national level. In your answer be sure to analyze the successes and limitation of these efforts in the period 1900-1920.
  • Compare the ways in which TWO of the following reflected tensions in colonial society: Bacon's Rebellion (1676), Pueblo Revolt (1680), Salem witchcraft trials (1692), Stono Rebellion (1739)
  • Although the power of the national government increased during the early republic, this development often faced serious opposition. Compare the motives and effectiveness of those opposed to the growing power of the national government in TWO of the following: Whiskey Rebellion (1794), Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions (1798-1799), Hartford Convention (1814-1815), Nullification Crisis (1832-1833).
  • Analyze the ways in which farmers and industrial workers responded to industrialization in the Gilded Age (1865-1900).
  • Describe and account for changes in the American presidency between 1960 and 1975, as symbolized by Kennedy's "Camelot," Johnson's Great Society, and Nixon's Watergate. In your answer, address the powers of the presidency and the role of the media.
  • DBQ: "Reform movements in the United States sought to expand democratic ideals." Assess the validity of this statement with specific reference to the years 1825-1850.
  • Compare the ways in which religion shaped the development of colonial society (to 1740) in TWO of the following regions: New England, Chesapeake, Middle Atlantic.
  • Analyze the contribution of TWO of the following in helping establish a stable government after the adoption of the Constitution: John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, George Washington.
  • Compare and contrast United States foreign policy after the First World War and after the Second World War. Consider the periods 1919-1928 and 1945-1950.
  • How did the African American Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s address the failures of the Reconstruction?
  • DBQ: Historians have traditionally labeled the period after the War of 1812 the "Era of Good Feelings." Evaluate the accuracy of this label, considering the emergence of nationalism and sectionalism. Use the documents and your knowledge of the period 1815-1825 to construct your answer.
  • Analyze the impact of the Atlantic trade routes established in the mid 1600s on economic development in the British North American colonies. Consider the period 1650-1750.
  • Identify and analyze the factors that changed the American city in the second half of the nineteenth century.
  • How successful were the programs of the New Deal in solving the problems of the Great Depression? Assess with respect to TWO of the following: Relief, recovery, reform.
  • Analyze the ways in which TWO of the following shaped American politics after the Second World War: Anticommunism in the 1940s and 1950s, the women's liberation movement in the 1960s, the "silent majority" in the 1970s.
  • DBQ: What were the Cold War fears of the American people in the aftermath of the Second World War? How successfully did the administration of President Dwight D. Eisenhower address these fears?
  • How did economic, geographic, and social factors encourage the growth of slavery as an important part of the economy of the southern colonies between 1607 and 1775?
  • The Jacksonian Period (1824-1848) has been celebrated as the era of the "common man." To what extent did the period live up to its characterization? Consider TWO of the following in your response: Economic development, Politics, Reform movements.
  • How and why did transportation developments spark economic growth during the period from 1860 to 1900 in the United States?
  • Describe and account for the rise of nativism in American society from 1900 to 1930.

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Advanced Placement (AP)

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The DBQ, or document-based-question, is a somewhat unusually-formatted timed essay on the AP History Exams: AP US History, AP European History, and AP World History. Because of its unfamiliarity, many students are at a loss as to how to even prepare, let alone how to write a successful DBQ essay on test day.

Never fear! I, the DBQ wizard and master, have a wealth of preparation strategies for you, as well as advice on how to cram everything you need to cover into your limited DBQ writing time on exam day. When you're done reading this guide, you'll know exactly how to write a DBQ.

For a general overview of the DBQ—what it is, its purpose, its format, etc.—see my article "What is a DBQ?"

Table of Contents

What Should My Study Timeline Be?

Preparing for the DBQ

Establish a Baseline

Foundational Skills

Rubric Breakdown

Take Another Practice DBQ

How Can I Succeed on Test Day?

Reading the Question and Documents

Planning Your Essay

Writing Your Essay

Key Takeaways

What Should My DBQ Study Timeline Be?

Your AP exam study timeline depends on a few things. First, how much time you have to study per week, and how many hours you want to study in total? If you don't have much time per week, start a little earlier; if you will be able to devote a substantial amount of time per week (10-15 hours) to prep, you can wait until later in the year.

One thing to keep in mind, though, is that the earlier you start studying for your AP test, the less material you will have covered in class. Make sure you continually review older material as the school year goes on to keep things fresh in your mind, but in terms of DBQ prep it probably doesn't make sense to start before February or January at the absolute earliest.

Another factor is how much you need to work on. I recommend you complete a baseline DBQ around early February to see where you need to focus your efforts.

If, for example, you got a six out of seven and missed one point for doing further document analysis, you won't need to spend too much time studying how to write a DBQ. Maybe just do a document analysis exercise every few weeks and check in a couple months later with another timed practice DBQ to make sure you've got it.

However, if you got a two or three out of seven, you'll know you have more work to do, and you'll probably want to devote at least an hour or two every week to honing your skills.

The general flow of your preparation should be: take a practice DBQ, do focused skills practice, take another practice DBQ, do focused skills practice, take another practice DBQ, and so on. How often you take the practice DBQs and how many times you repeat the cycle really depends on how much preparation you need, and how often you want to check your progress. Take practice DBQs often enough that the format stays familiar, but not so much that you've done barely any skills practice in between.

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He's ready to start studying!

The general preparation process is to diagnose, practice, test, and repeat. First, you'll figure out what you need to work on by establishing a baseline level for your DBQ skills. Then, you'll practice building skills. Finally, you'll take another DBQ to see how you've improved and what you still need to work on.

In this next section, I'll go over the whole process. First, I'll give guidance on how to establish a baseline. Then I'll go over some basic, foundational essay-writing skills and how to build them. After that I'll break down the DBQ rubric. You'll be acing practice DBQs before you know it!

#1: Establish a Baseline

The first thing you need to do is to establish a baseline— figure out where you are at with respect to your DBQ skills. This will let you know where you need to focus your preparation efforts.

To do this, you will take a timed, practice DBQ and have a trusted teacher or advisor grade it according to the appropriate rubric.

AP US History

For the AP US History DBQ, you'll be given a 15-minute reading period and 45 minutes of writing time.

A selection of practice questions from the exam can be found online at the College Board, including a DBQ. (Go to page 136 in the linked document for the practice prompt.)

If you've already seen this practice question, perhaps in class, you might use the 2015 DBQ question .

Other available College Board DBQs are going to be in the old format (find them in the "Free-Response Questions" documents). This is fine if you need to use them, but be sure to use the new rubric (which is out of seven points, rather than nine) to grade.

I advise you to save all these links , or even download all the Free Response Questions and the Scoring Guides, for reference because you will be using them again and again for practice.

AP European History

The College Board has provided practice questions for the exam , including a DBQ (see page 200 in the linked document).

If you've already seen this question, the only other questions available through the College Board are in the old format, because the 2016 DBQ is in a new, seven-point format identical to the AP US History exam. Just be sure to use the new DBQ rubric if you want to use any of the old prompts provided by the College Board . (DBQs are in the documents titled "Free-Response Questions.")

I advise you to save all these links (or even download all the Free Response Questions and the Scoring Guides) for reference, because you will be using them again and again for practice.

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Who knows—maybe this will be one of your documents!

AP World History

For this exam, you'll be given a 15-minute reading period and 45 minutes of writing time . As for the other two history exams, the College Board has provided practice questions . See page 166 for the DBQ.

If you've already seen this question, the only other questions available through the College Board are in the old format, because the 2017 World History DBQ is in a new, seven-point format identical to the AP US History and AP European History exams. So be sure to use the new DBQ rubric if you want to use any of the old prompts provided by the College Board . (DBQs are in the documents titled "Free-Response Questions.")

Finding a Trusted Advisor to Look at Your Papers

A history teacher would be a great resource, but if they are not available to you in this capacity, here are some other ideas:

  • An English teacher.
  • Ask a librarian at your school or public library! If they can't help you, they may be able to direct you to resources who can.
  • You could also ask a school guidance counselor to direct you to in-school resources you could use.
  • A tutor. This is especially helpful if they are familiar with the test, although even if they aren't, they can still advise—the DBQ is mostly testing academic writing skills under pressure.
  • Your parent(s)! Again, ideally your trusted advisor will be familiar with the AP, but if you have used your parents for writing help in the past they can also assist here.
  • You might try an older friend who has already taken the exam and did well...although bear in mind that some people are better at doing than scoring and/or explaining!

Can I Prepare For My Baseline?

If you know nothing about the DBQ and you'd like to do a little basic familiarization before you establish your baseline, that's completely fine. There's no point in taking a practice exam if you are going to panic and muddle your way through it; it won't give a useful picture of your skills.

For a basic orientation, check out my article for a basic introduction to the DBQ including DBQ format.

If you want to look at one or two sample essays, see my article for a list of DBQ example essay resources . Keep in mind that you should use a fresh prompt you haven't seen to establish your baseline, though, so if you do look at samples don't use those prompts to set your baseline.

I would also check out this page about the various "task" words associated with AP essay questions . This page was created primarily for the AP European History Long Essay question, but the definitions are still useful for the DBQ on all the history exams, particularly since these are the definitions provided by the College Board.

Once you feel oriented, take your practice exam!

Don't worry if you don't do well on your first practice! That's what studying is for. The point of establishing a baseline is not to make you feel bad, but to empower you to focus your efforts on the areas you need to work on. Even if you need to work on all the areas, that is completely fine and doable! Every skill you need for the DBQ can be built .

In the following section, we'll go over these skills and how to build them for each exam.

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You need a stronger foundation than this sand castle.

#2: Develop Foundational Skills

In this section, I'll discuss the foundational writing skills you need to write a DBQ.

I'll start with some general information on crafting an effective thesis , since this is a skill you will need for any DBQ exam (and for your entire academic life). Then, I'll go over outlining essays, with some sample outline ideas for the DBQ. After I'll touch on time management. Finally, I'll briefly discuss how to non-awkwardly integrate information from your documents into your writing.

It sounds like a lot, but not only are these skills vital to your academic career in general, you probably already have the basic building blocks to master them in your arsenal!

Writing An Effective Thesis

Writing a good thesis is a skill you will need to develop for all your DBQs, and for any essay you write, on the AP or otherwise.

Here are some general rules as to what makes a good thesis:

A good thesis does more than just restate the prompt.

Let's say our class prompt is: "Analyze the primary factors that led to the French Revolution."

Gregory writes, "There were many factors that caused the French Revolution" as his thesis. This is not an effective thesis. All it does is vaguely restate the prompt.

A good thesis makes a plausible claim that you can defend in an essay-length piece of writing.

Maybe Karen writes, "Marie Antoinette caused the French Revolution when she said ‘Let them eat cake' because it made people mad."

This is not an effective thesis, either. For one thing, Marie Antoinette never said that. More importantly, how are you going to write an entire essay on how one offhand comment by Marie Antoinette caused the entire Revolution? This is both implausible and overly simplistic.

A good thesis answers the question .

If LaToya writes, "The Reign of Terror led to the ultimate demise of the French Revolution and ultimately paved the way for Napoleon Bonaparte to seize control of France," she may be making a reasonable, defensible claim, but it doesn't answer the question, which is not about what happened after the Revolution, but what caused it!

A good thesis makes it clear where you are going in your essay.

Let's say Juan writes, "The French Revolution, while caused by a variety of political, social, and economic factors, was primarily incited by the emergence of the highly educated Bourgeois class." This thesis provides a mini-roadmap for the entire essay, laying out that Juan is going to discuss the political, social, and economic factors that led to the Revolution, in that order, and that he will argue that the members of the Bourgeois class were the ultimate inciters of the Revolution.

This is a great thesis! It answers the question, makes an overarching point, and provides a clear idea of what the writer is going to discuss in the essay.

To review: a good thesis makes a claim, responds to the prompt, and lays out what you will discuss in your essay.

If you feel like you have trouble telling the difference between a good thesis and a not-so-good one, here are a few resources you can consult:

This site from SUNY Empire has an exercise in choosing the best thesis from several options. It's meant for research papers, but the general rules as to what makes a good thesis apply.

About.com has another exercise in choosing thesis statements specifically for short essays. Note, however, that most of the correct answers here would be "good" thesis statements as opposed to "super" thesis statements.

  • This guide from the University of Iowa provides some really helpful tips on writing a thesis for a history paper.

So how do you practice your thesis statement skills for the DBQ?

While you should definitely practice looking at DBQ questions and documents and writing a thesis in response to those, you may also find it useful to write some practice thesis statements in response to the Free-Response Questions. While you won't be taking any documents into account in your argument for the Free-Response Questions, it's good practice on how to construct an effective thesis in general.

You could even try writing multiple thesis statements in response to the same prompt! It is a great exercise to see how you could approach the prompt from different angles. Time yourself for 5-10 minutes to mimic the time pressure of the AP exam.

If possible, have a trusted advisor or friend look over your practice statements and give you feedback. Barring that, looking over the scoring guidelines for old prompts (accessible from the same page on the College Board where past free-response questions can be found) will provide you with useful tips on what might make a good thesis in response to a given prompt.

Once you can write a thesis, you need to be able to support it—that's where outlining comes in!

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This is not a good outline.

Outlining and Formatting Your Essay

You may be the greatest document analyst and thesis-writer in the world, but if you don't know how to put it all together in a DBQ essay outline, you won't be able to write a cohesive, high-scoring essay on test day.

A good outline will clearly lay out your thesis and how you are going to support that thesis in your body paragraphs. It will keep your writing organized and prevent you from forgetting anything you want to mention!

For some general tips on writing outlines, this page from Roane State has some useful information. While the general principles of outlining an essay hold, the DBQ format is going to have its own unique outlining considerations.To that end, I've provided some brief sample outlines that will help you hit all the important points.

Sample DBQ Outline

  • Introduction
  • Thesis. The most important part of your intro!
  • Body 1 - contextual information
  • Any outside historical/contextual information
  • Body 2 - First point
  • Documents & analysis that support the first point
  • If three body paragraphs: use about three documents, do deeper analysis on two
  • Body 3 - Second point
  • Documents & analysis that support the second point
  • Use about three documents, do deeper analysis on two
  • Be sure to mention your outside example if you have not done so yet!
  • Body 4 (optional) - Third point
  • Documents and analysis that support third point
  • Re-state thesis
  • Draw a comparison to another time period or situation (synthesis)

Depending on your number of body paragraphs and your main points, you may include different numbers of documents in each paragraph, or switch around where you place your contextual information, your outside example, or your synthesis.

There's no one right way to outline, just so long as each of your body paragraphs has a clear point that you support with documents, and you remember to do a deeper analysis on four documents, bring in outside historical information, and make a comparison to another historical situation or time (you will see these last points further explained in the rubric breakdown).

Of course, all the organizational skills in the world won't help you if you can't write your entire essay in the time allotted. The next section will cover time management skills.

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You can be as organized as this library!

Time Management Skills for Essay Writing

Do you know all of your essay-writing skills, but just can't get a DBQ essay together in a 15-minute planning period and 40 minutes of writing?

There could be a few things at play here:

Do you find yourself spending a lot of time staring at a blank paper?

If you feel like you don't know where to start, spend one-two minutes brainstorming as soon as you read the question and the documents. Write anything here—don't censor yourself. No one will look at those notes but you!

After you've brainstormed for a bit, try to organize those thoughts into a thesis, and then into body paragraphs. It's better to start working and change things around than to waste time agonizing that you don't know the perfect thing to say.

Are you too anxious to start writing, or does anxiety distract you in the middle of your writing time? Do you just feel overwhelmed?

Sounds like test anxiety. Lots of people have this. (Including me! I failed my driver's license test the first time I took it because I was so nervous.)

You might talk to a guidance counselor about your anxiety. They will be able to provide advice and direct you to resources you can use.

There are also some valuable test anxiety resources online: try our guide to mindfulness (it's focused on the SAT, but the same concepts apply on any high-pressure test) and check out tips from Minnesota State University , these strategies from TeensHealth , or this plan for reducing anxiety from West Virginia University.

Are you only two thirds of the way through your essay when 40 minutes have passed?

You are probably spending too long on your outline, biting off more than you can chew, or both.

If you find yourself spending 20+ minutes outlining, you need to practice bringing down your outline time. Remember, an outline is just a guide for your essay—it is fine to switch things around as you are writing. It doesn't need to be perfect. To cut down on your outline time, practice just outlining for shorter and shorter time intervals. When you can write one in 20 minutes, bring it down to 18, then down to 16.

You may also be trying to cover too much in your paper. If you have five body paragraphs, you need to scale things back to three. If you are spending twenty minutes writing two paragraphs of contextual information, you need to trim it down to a few relevant sentences. Be mindful of where you are spending a lot of time, and target those areas.

You don't know the problem —you just can't get it done!

If you can't exactly pinpoint what's taking you so long, I advise you to simply practice writing DBQs in less and less time. Start with 20 minutes for your outline and 50 for your essay, (or longer, if you need). Then when you can do it in 20 and 50, move back to 18 minutes and 45 for writing, then to 15 and 40.

You absolutely can learn to manage your time effectively so that you can write a great DBQ in the time allotted. On to the next skill!

Integrating Citations

The final skill that isn't explicitly covered in the rubric, but will make a big difference in your essay quality, is integrating document citations into your essay. In other words, how do you reference the information in the documents in a clear, non-awkward way?

It is usually better to use the author or title of the document to identify a document instead of writing "Document A." So instead of writing "Document A describes the riot as...," you might say, "In Sven Svenson's description of the riot…"

When you quote a document directly without otherwise identifying it, you may want to include a parenthetical citation. For example, you might write, "The strikers were described as ‘valiant and true' by the working class citizens of the city (Document E)."

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Get a 5 On Your AP Exam

Now that we've reviewed the essential, foundational skills of the DBQ, I'll move into the rubric breakdowns. We'll discuss each skill the AP graders will be looking for when they score your exam. All of the history exams share a DBQ rubric, so the guidelines are identical.

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Don't worry, you won't need a magnifying glass to examine the rubric.

#3: Learn the DBQ Rubric

The DBQ rubric has four sections for a total of seven points.

Part A: Thesis - 2 Points

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One point is for having a thesis that works and is historically defensible. This just means that your thesis can be reasonably supported by the documents and historical fact. So please don't make the main point of your essay that JFK was a member of the Illuminati or that Pope Urban II was an alien.

Per the College Board, your thesis needs to be located in your introduction or your conclusion. You've probably been taught to place your thesis in your intro, so stick with what you're used to. Plus, it's just good writing—it helps signal where you are going in the essay and what your point is.

You can receive another point for having a super thesis.

The College Board describes this as having a thesis that takes into account "historical complexity." Historical complexity is really just the idea that historical evidence does not always agree about everything, and that there are reasons for agreement, disagreement, etc.

How will you know whether the historical evidence agrees or disagrees? The documents! Suppose you are responding to a prompt about women's suffrage (suffrage is the right to vote, for those of you who haven't gotten to that unit in class yet):

"Analyze the responses to the women's suffrage movement in the United States."

Included among your documents, you have a letter from a suffragette passionately explaining why she feels women should have the vote, a copy of a suffragette's speech at a women's meeting, a letter from one congressman to another debating the pros and cons of suffrage, and a political cartoon displaying the death of society and the end of the ‘natural' order at the hands of female voters.

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A simple but effective thesis might be something like,

"Though ultimately successful, the women's suffrage movement sharply divided the country between those who believed women's suffrage was unnatural and those who believed it was an inherent right of women."

This is good: it answers the question and clearly states the two responses to suffrage that are going to be analyzed in the essay.

A super thesis , however, would take the relationships between the documents (and the people behind the documents!) into account.

It might be something like,

"The dramatic contrast between those who responded in favor of women's suffrage and those who fought against it revealed a fundamental rift in American society centered on the role of women—whether women were ‘naturally' meant to be socially and civilly subordinate to men, or whether they were in fact equals."

This is a "super" thesis because it gets into the specifics of the relationship between historical factors and shows the broader picture —that is, what responses to women's suffrage revealed about the role of women in the United States overall.

It goes beyond just analyzing the specific issues to a "so what"? It doesn't just take a position about history, it tells the reader why they should care . In this case, our super thesis tells us that the reader should care about women's suffrage because the issue reveals a fundamental conflict in America over the position of women in society.

Part B: Document Analysis - 2 Points

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One point for using six or seven of the documents in your essay to support your argument. Easy-peasy! However, make sure you aren't just summarizing documents in a list, but are tying them back to the main points of your paragraphs.

It's best to avoid writing things like, "Document A says X, and Document B says Y, and Document C says Z." Instead, you might write something like, "The anonymous author of Document C expresses his support and admiration for the suffragettes but also expresses fear that giving women the right to vote will lead to conflict in the home, highlighting the common fear that women's suffrage would lead to upheaval in women's traditional role in society."

Any summarizing should be connected a point. Essentially, any explanation of what a document says needs to be tied to a "so what?" If it's not clear to you why what you are writing about a document is related to your main point, it's not going to be clear to the AP grader.

You can get an additional point here for doing further analysis on 4 of the documents. This further analysis could be in any of these 4 areas:

Author's point of view - Why does the author think the way that they do? What is their position in society and how does this influence what they are saying?

Author's purpose - Why is the author writing what they are writing? What are they trying to convince their audience of?

Historical context - What broader historical facts are relevant to this document?

Audience - Who is the intended audience for this document? Who is the author addressing or trying to convince?

Be sure to tie any further analysis back to your main argument! And remember, you only have to do this for four documents for full credit, but it's fine to do it for more if you can.

Practicing Document Analysis

So how do you practice document analysis? By analyzing documents!

Luckily for AP test takers everywhere, New York State has an exam called the Regents Exam that has its own DBQ section. Before they write the essay, however, New York students have to answer short answer questions about the documents.

Answering Regents exam DBQ short-answer questions is good practice for basic document analysis. While most of the questions are pretty basic, it's a good warm-up in terms of thinking more deeply about the documents and how to use them. This set of Regent-style DBQs from the Teacher's Project are mostly about US History, but the practice could be good for other tests too.

This prompt from the Morningside center also has some good document comprehensions questions about a US-History based prompt.

Note: While the document short-answer questions are useful for thinking about basic document analysis, I wouldn't advise completing entire Regents exam DBQ essay prompts for practice, because the format and rubric are both somewhat different from the AP.

Your AP history textbook may also have documents with questions that you can use to practice. Flip around in there!

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This otter is ready to swim in the waters of the DBQ.

When you want to do a deeper dive on the documents, you can also pull out those old College Board DBQ prompts.

Read the documents carefully. Write down everything that comes to your attention. Do further analysis—author's point of view, purpose, audience, and historical context—on all the documents for practice, even though you will only need to do additional analysis on four on test day. Of course, you might not be able to do all kinds of further analysis on things like maps and graphs, which is fine.

You might also try thinking about how you would arrange those observations in an argument, or even try writing a practice outline! This exercise would combine your thesis and document-analysis skills practice.

When you've analyzed everything you can possibly think of for all the documents, pull up the Scoring Guide for that prompt. It helpfully has an entire list of analysis points for each document.

Consider what they identified that you missed.

Do you seem way off-base in your interpretation? If so, how did it happen?

Part C: Using Evidence Beyond the Documents - 2 Points

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Don't be freaked out by the fact that this is two points!

One point is just for context—if you can locate the issue within its broader historical situation. You do need to write several sentences to a paragraph about it, but don't stress; all you really need to know to be able to get this point is information about major historical trends over time, and you will need to know this anyways for the multiple choice section. If the question is about the Dust Bowl during the Great Depression, for example, be sure to include some of the general information you know about the Great Depression! Boom. Contextualized.

The other point is for naming a specific, relevant example in your essay that does not appear in the documents.

To practice your outside information skills, pull up your College Board prompts!

Read through the prompt and documents and then write down all of the contextualizing facts and as many specific examples as you can think of.

I advise timing yourself—maybe 5-10 minutes to read the documents and prompt and list your outside knowledge—to imitate the time pressure of the DBQ.

When you've exhausted your knowledge, make sure to fact-check your examples and your contextual information! You don't want to use incorrect information on test day.

If you can't remember any examples or contextual information about that topic, look some up! This will help fill in holes in your knowledge.

Part D: Synthesis - 1 Point

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All you need to do for synthesis is relate your argument about this specific time period to a different time period, geographical area, historical movement, etc. It is probably easiest to do this in the conclusion of the essay. If your essay is about the Great Depression, you might relate it to the Great Recession of 2007-2009.

You do need to do more than just mention your synthesis connection. You need to make it meaningful. How are the two things you are comparing similar? What does one reveal about the other? Is there a key difference that highlights something important?

To practice your synthesis skills—you guessed it—pull up your College Board prompts!

  • Read through the prompt and documents and then identify what historical connections you could make for your synthesis point. Be sure to write a few words on why the connection is significant!
  • A great way to make sure that your synthesis connection makes sense is to explain it to someone else. If you explain what you think the connection is and they get it, you're probably on the right track.
  • You can also look at sample responses and the scoring guide for the old prompts to see what other connections students and AP graders made.

That's a wrap on the rubric! Let's move on to skill-building strategy.

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I know you're tired, but you can do it!

#5: Take Another Practice DBQ

So, you established a baseline, identified the skills you need to work on, and practiced writing a thesis statement and analyzing documents for hours. What now?

Take another timed, practice DBQ from a prompt you haven't seen before to check how you've improved. Recruit your same trusted advisor to grade your exam and give feedback. After, work on any skills that still need to be honed.

Repeat this process as necessary, until you are consistently scoring your goal score. Then you just need to make sure you maintain your skills until test day by doing an occasional practice DBQ.

Eventually, test day will come—read on for my DBQ-test-taking tips.

How Can I Succeed On DBQ Test Day?

Once you've prepped your brains out, you still have to take the test! I know, I know. But I've got some advice on how to make sure all of your hard work pays off on test day—both some general tips and some specific advice on how to write a DBQ.

#1: General Test-Taking Tips

Most of these are probably tips you've heard before, but they bear repeating:

Get a good night's sleep for the two nights preceding the exam. This will keep your memory sharp!

Eat a good breakfast (and lunch, if the exam is in the afternoon) before the exam with protein and whole grains. This will keep your blood sugar from crashing and making you tired during the exam.

Don't study the night before the exam if you can help it. Instead, do something relaxing. You've been preparing, and you will have an easier time on exam day if you aren't stressed from trying to cram the night before.

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This dude knows he needs to get a good night's rest!

#2: DBQ Plan and Strategies

Below I've laid out how to use your time during the DBQ exam. I'll provide tips on reading the question and docs, planning your essay, and writing!

Be sure to keep an eye on the clock throughout so you can track your general progress.

Reading the Question and the Documents: 5-6 min

First thing's first: r ead the question carefully , two or even three times. You may want to circle the task words ("analyze," "describe," "evaluate," "compare") to make sure they stand out.

You could also quickly jot down some contextual information you already know before moving on to the documents, but if you can't remember any right then, move on to the docs and let them jog your memory.

It's fine to have a general idea of a thesis after you read the question, but if you don't, move on to the docs and let them guide you in the right direction.

Next, move on to the documents. Mark them as you read—circle things that seem important, jot thoughts and notes in the margins.

After you've passed over the documents once, you should choose the four documents you are going to analyze more deeply and read them again. You probably won't be analyzing the author's purpose for sources like maps and charts. Good choices are documents in which the author's social or political position and stake in the issue at hand are clear.

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Get ready to go down the document rabbit hole.

Planning Your Essay: 9-11 min

Once you've read the question and you have preliminary notes on the documents, it's time to start working on a thesis. If you still aren't sure what to talk about, spend a minute or so brainstorming. Write down themes and concepts that seem important and create a thesis from those. Remember, your thesis needs to answer the question and make a claim!

When you've got a thesis, it's time to work on an outline . Once you've got some appropriate topics for your body paragraphs, use your notes on the documents to populate your outline. Which documents support which ideas? You don't need to use every little thought you had about the document when you read it, but you should be sure to use every document.

Here's three things to make sure of:

Make sure your outline notes where you are going to include your contextual information (often placed in the first body paragraph, but this is up to you), your specific example (likely in one of the body paragraphs), and your synthesis (the conclusion is a good place for this).

Make sure you've also integrated the four documents you are going to further analyze and how to analyze them.

Make sure you use all the documents! I can't stress this enough. Take a quick pass over your outline and the docs and make sure all of the docs appear in your outline.

If you go over the planning time a couple of minutes, it's not the end of the world. This probably just means you have a really thorough outline! But be ready to write pretty fast.

Writing the Essay - 45 min

If you have a good outline, the hard part is out of the way! You just need to make sure you get all of your great ideas down in the test booklet.

Don't get too bogged down in writing a super-exciting introduction. You won't get points for it, so trying to be fancy will just waste time. Spend maybe one or two sentences introducing the issue, then get right to your thesis.

For your body paragraphs, make sure your topic sentences clearly state the point of the paragraph . Then you can get right into your evidence and your document analysis.

As you write, make sure to keep an eye on the time. You want to be a little more than halfway through at the 20-minute mark of the writing period, so you have a couple minutes to go back and edit your essay at the end.

Keep in mind that it's more important to clearly lay out your argument than to use flowery language. Sentences that are shorter and to the point are completely fine.

If you are short on time, the conclusion is the least important part of your essay . Even just one sentence to wrap things up is fine just so long as you've hit all the points you need to (i.e. don't skip your conclusion if you still need to put in your synthesis example).

When you are done, make one last past through your essay. Make sure you included everything that was in your outline and hit all the rubric skills! Then take a deep breath and pat yourself on the back.

birthday-cake-380178_640.jpg

You did it!! Have a cupcake to celebrate.

Key Tips for How to Write a DBQ

I realize I've bombarded you with information, so here are the key points to take away:

Remember the drill for prep: establish a baseline, build skills, take another practice DBQ, repeat skill-building as necessary.

Make sure that you know the rubric inside and out so you will remember to hit all the necessary points on test day! It's easy to lose points just for forgetting something like your synthesis point.

On test day, keep yourself on track time-wise !

This may seem like a lot, but you can learn how to ace your DBQ! With a combination of preparation and good test-taking strategy, you will get the score you're aiming for. The more you practice, the more natural it will seem, until every DBQ is a breeze.

What's Next?

If you want more information about the DBQ, see my introductory guide to the DBQ .

Haven't registered for your AP test yet? See our article for help registering for AP exams .

For more on studying for the AP US History exam, check out the best AP US History notes to study with .

Studying for World History? See these AP World History study tips from one of our experts.

ap us history dbq civil war

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