Cinco de Mayo Quiz
Questions: 16 · 10 minutes
1. Which development helped broaden recognition of Cinco de Mayo in the United States during the 1960s?
The Mexican government designated it as a United States federal holiday
Historians discovered that the Battle of Puebla occurred in California
Chicano activists embraced the occasion as a celebration of heritage and resistance
The French government promoted it as an anniversary of imperial expansion
2. The army defeated at Puebla on May 5, 1862, represented which foreign power?
Spain
The United States
The French Empire under Napoleon III
Britain
3. Who was Mexico’s president during the French intervention and led the republican resistance?
Ignacio Zaragoza
Benito Juárez
Maximilian I
Porfirio Díaz
4. A source dated May 6, 1862, reports that Mexican troops near the forts of Loreto and Guadalupe repelled a French assault. Which event is the source describing?
The Battle of Puebla in 1862
The Siege of Veracruz in 1847
The Battle of Celaya in 1915
The Battle of Chapultepec in 1847
5. Which date is celebrated as Mexico’s Independence Day, rather than Cinco de Mayo?
May 5
September 16
November 20
September 27
6. A historical reenactment in Puebla shows troops defending the city’s forts on May 5. Which episode is it portraying?
Mexican defenders repelling a French assault in 1862
Miguel Hidalgo issuing the call for independence in 1810
Benito Juárez returning to Mexico City in 1867
Revolutionaries beginning an uprising in 1910
7. Which statement most accurately compares modern Cinco de Mayo observance in Mexico with Mexican Independence Day?
Cinco de Mayo is especially prominent in Puebla and is generally less nationally central than September 16
Cinco de Mayo is Mexico’s principal nationwide independence celebration
Cinco de Mayo is observed only outside Mexico
Cinco de Mayo replaced Mexico’s Revolution Day throughout the country
8. Which statement best compares the Battle of Puebla with the wider French intervention in Mexico?
The battle immediately ended all French military activity in Mexico
The battle was a French victory that secured permanent control of Puebla
Mexico lost at Puebla but defeated France in Mexico City the following day
Mexico won at Puebla, but France later returned and occupied Mexico City
9. Who commanded the Mexican forces at the Battle of Puebla?
Benito Juárez
Maximilian I
Ignacio Zaragoza
Miguel Hidalgo
10. What does the Spanish phrase “Cinco de Mayo” mean in English?
Victory in May
May Festival
Mexican Independence
Fifth of May
11. If a timeline continues beyond the Mexican victory of May 5, 1862, which later development belongs on it?
France accepted a settlement and immediately ended its intervention
Spain took permanent control of Puebla from France
Napoleon III formed an alliance with Benito Juárez
French forces captured Mexico City and backed Maximilian as emperor
12. What historical event does Cinco de Mayo primarily commemorate?
The declaration of Mexican independence from Spain in 1810
The Mexican victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla in 1862
The beginning of the Mexican Revolution in 1910
The final withdrawal of French forces from Mexico in 1867
13. The Battle of Puebla took place in 1862. Which major conflict was then underway in the United States?
The War of 1812
The American Civil War
The Spanish-American War
World War I
14. A traveler wants to visit the place most directly associated with the battle commemorated on Cinco de Mayo. Where should they go?
Dolores Hidalgo, where the independence movement began
Mexico City’s National Palace
Puebla, in east-central Mexico
Querétaro, associated with the end of the French-backed empire
15. Britain and Spain joined France in pressuring Mexico over unpaid debts, but negotiated and withdrew. Which country continued the military campaign?
France
Spain
Britain
The United States
16. Why was the Mexican victory at Puebla widely viewed as remarkable?
France had surrendered its capital before the battle began
Mexico had received a large British army as reinforcement
The French army was defending Puebla rather than attacking it
The Mexican defenders defeated a larger, well-equipped French force