Final Exam Study Guide

History 115
Fall 2013
Dr. Seery-Murphy

Final Exam: Tuesday, December 17, 3-5 pm.

Unless otherwise specified, the exam will be given in our classroom.

Please use PEN and blue books only. No pencils allowed! You may have one page of
notes, on notebook paper, written on both sides. DO NOT COME IN WITH A TYPED
PAGE OF NOTES, BECAUSE I WILL NOT LET YOU USE THEM. NOPE. DO NOT
COME IN WITH YOUR ESSAYS PRE-WRITTEN EITHER. NOPE.

Note: You are NOT allowed to repeat the same information when answering questions.
Doing so will cause you to lose credit.

Essay Questions

I will choose seven from the list below. You must answer three of those seven.

You MUST write at least three paragraphs and no MORE than five for each answer.
Vague and/or incomplete sentences/ideas will not get credit. Lists and/or bullet points
will not get credit. I urge you to be as specific as possible.

1. Why was the Church of England different from other Reformation-era sects?
Explain how it came to be and compare it (in this period) to Roman Catholicism
(in this period) and at least one other major Protestant sect (from this period).

2. The printing press created a cultural revolution in Europe. How did this revolution
occur? Why is it so important?

3. What was the King’s Great Matter? Explain it in its religious and political
contexts. Who was in favor of it and why? Who opposed it and why? What was
the outcome and why was that outcome so important for the future of England?

4. Why and how did the Protestant Reformation begin? Who and what were its
precursors, and where did it originate?

5. Define humanism and explain why it was so important in early modern Europe.

6. Why and how did the Catholic Church reform in this period? Which term do you
prefer, ‘Catholic Reformation’ or ‘Counter-Reformation,’ and why? (Give reasons
for your choices. An opinion without evidence is not a valid reason.)
7. What role did women play in the Italian Renaissance? What evidence do we have
for their activity?

8. Why was the city of Florence so crucial to the development of the Italian
Renaissance? Explain.

9. What are the continuities between the era often called “Renaissance and
Reformation” and the era which preceded it, the Middle Ages? What are the
changes? Which, to your mind, predominates: change or continuity? Explain.

10. How did the Northern Renaissance differ from the Italian Renaissance? What
were some of the reasons for these differences?