Q 01/05

Martin Van Buren was which number president of the United States?

A) Fourth

B) Eighth

C) Sixteenth

D) Thirty-second

Answer · why

B) Eighth

Eighth: he took office in March 1837 after four years as Jackson's vice president, and within weeks a financial panic struck that shadowed his whole s...

Q 02/05

Van Buren was a principal founder of which political party?

A) The Whig Party

B) The Democratic Party

C) The Federalist Party

D) The Republican Party

Answer · why

B) The Democratic Party

The Democratic Party: after the disputed 1824 election he stitched rival factions into a new coalition behind Andrew Jackson, which won the White Hous...

Q 03/05

Which language did Van Buren grow up speaking at home in his Hudson Valley village?

A) German

B) French

C) Dutch

D) Swedish

Answer · why

C) Dutch

Dutch: the village had kept the language for generations after English rule began, and he was baptised Maarten.

Q 04/05

Van Buren was the first president born after which document?

A) The Northwest Ordinance

B) The United States Constitution

C) The Declaration of Independence

D) The Treaty of Paris

Answer · why

C) The Declaration of Independence

The Declaration of Independence: he was born in December 1782, six years after it was adopted, while all seven presidents before him had been born sub...

Q 05/05

Which nickname did the 5-foot-6 Van Buren earn in New York politics?

A) The Little Giant

B) The Little Magician

C) The Little Napoleon

D) The Little Flower

Answer · why

B) The Little Magician

The Little Magician: the name stuck because of the skill with which he worked New York's party machinery, a knack that admirers and critics alike rema...