World History Guide:
Byzantine EmpireThe Byzantine Empire began as the Roman Empire. Emperor Constantine founded the city of Byzantium on the site of a former Greek city-state, and made it the capital of the Roman Empire. Constantinople was the major center of trade. Goods came from China via the Silk Road, Africa, Europe, and the Middle East.
He also decreed that Christianity would become the official religion, although at the start nobody was forced to be Christian. In later years, the worship of the old pagan gods was outlawed. As the Western Roman Empire collapsed, the Eastern remained. Justinian a powerful ruler, created a "New Rome", he re-codified all old Roman Law into a new more useful law book that applied to the Byzantines. Also, the Christian Eastern Orthodox Church flourished under imperial control of the Byzantine Emperors. This conflict with the Pope, Bishop of Rome, over who had power in the Church eventually led to a schism, a split in the church. Western Europe became Roman Catholic and Eastern Europe (The Byzantine Empire) became Eastern Orthodox. |
Crash Course #12 Fall of RomeCrash Course #12 Fall of Rome Fill in the Blank NotesByzantine Empire Lecture NotesByzantine Power PointReading Notes 11A: Byzantine |
Western Europe "The Dark Ages"Western Europe experiences a decline in learning, trade, and struggles to find a universal traits to bond them together all the while the Islamic and Chinese worlds experience a "Golden Age" with the expansion of trade and new technologies.
In Western Europe the Roman Catholic Church begins to influence the various political units in the West leading to its dramatic rise in power and then eventual collapse after the Crusades. Kings in Western Europe set up the Feudal Society, Manor System, and code of Chivalry. Powerful countries emerge in the Latter Middle Ages like England and France. In China the Sui Dynasty briefly unified China after a long period of rule by various feudal War Lords. They built the Grand Canal forever linking northern and southern China. Soon the Tang Dynasty came to power re-instituting the vital test to train civil service workers who ran the government. This allowed the next dynasty, the Song, to allow China to experience a "Golden Age" with the discovery of many first inventions for man including: gunpowder, paper money, porcelain, mechanical clock, and magnetic compass. During the Abbasid Empire, Islam spreads rapidly. Through conquest it reaches north Africa, Europe, and the former Persian Empire. Through trade it reaches the West Africa, influencing later rulers of the Mali Empire like Mansa Musa, and in East Africa it reaches the Swahili City-States. |
Crash Course #14 The Dark AgesCrash Course #14 The Dark Ages
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Rise of IslamThe Arabian Peninsula prior to the founding of Islam, was a crossroads of trade and ideas. It was a mixture of many different religions and cultures as goods from the Silk Road passed through. The Bedouins, tribal nomads of the area, placed an importance on family loyalty and were extremely good at fighting after years of raids by other groups in the harsh desert environment.
The Prophet Muhammad founded the religion of Islam and helped spread it's ideas throughout the Arabian Peninsula, unifying the Arabs. The Five Pillars of Islam Shahada (faith), Salat (prayer 5x a day), Sawm (fasting), Zakat (alms giving), and Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) shape the new society. Islam has a powerful influence on all aspects of it's followers lives as they do not separate personal and religious life. Through conquest, Muslims create an empire that stretches from Spain to India. Although the empire later splits among different groups, its people continue to speak Arabic and to maintain a lucrative Muslim trade network. This replaces the earlier Hellenistic culture throughout the region. Muslim society, centered in the cities benefits from a mix of cultures and traditions. The Houses of Wisdom (universities) allow religion and science to work together. Learning flourishes in this environment, and Muslim scholars make important advances in the arts and sciences. For example, new art forms like Calligraphy (beautiful handwriting) and geometric architecture flourish, Arabic numbers are introduced from India, al-jabr (algebra) is created, as well as advances in medicine, science, and astronomy. The Dar al-Islam, the Muslim world, experiences a "Golden Age" in mathematics, science, art & technology that would last until the Mongol invasion. |
Crash Course #13 Rise of IslamCrash Course #13 Islam Fill in the Blank NotesIslam Lecture NotesIslam Power PointReading Notes 10: Islam
DBQ: Rise of Islam |
Mansa Musa & Islam in AfricaSouth of the Sahara, African peoples formed hunting-gathering societies. These societies would later grow into nomadic trading groups.
As Islam spread across North Africa, many kings converted to Islam. Since Islam does not separate religious and personal life, it has a profound impact on Sub-Saharan Africa. Kings convert and then entire kingdoms soon follow. All citizens then follow Islamic laws and culture with Islamic scholars taking key roles in government and society. In West Africa, three empires -- Ghana, Mali, and Songhai -- thrive by controlling the trade of gold and salt. Muslim merchants had spread the religion to this region. Mansa Musa, the most famous ruler of Mali, went on the hajj, Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, in 1324. Upon his return he ordered new Mosques built in Mali and Timbuktu became an important center of trade. The city attracted Muslim judges, doctors, and religious leaders and scholars from far and wide to study at its mosques and House of Wisdom (universities). Cities on Africa's East coast thrived on trade with Asia. Swahili, a mixture of Bantu and Arabic languages, became the trade language and Islam spread southward as well. Great cities like Mogadishu, Mombasa, and Kilwa become important trade cities. They would thrive until being conquered by Portuguese explorers in the 15th century. |
Crash Course #16 Mansa Musa & Islam in AfricaCrash Course #16 Mansa Musa & Islam in Africa
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Monsoon Marketplace
Monsoon Marketplace.
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Crash Course #18 Monsoon Marketplace
Crash Course #18 Monsoon Marketplace
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The CrusadesThe Roman Catholic Church, the only unifying power in Western Europe during the Middle Ages, gains a huge amount of power by aligning themselves with Kings. They grant Kings "rule by the grace of God" in exchange for land and support from the Church. The Catholic Church's power steadily grows throughout the Middle Ages as it becomes more involved in the secular world. The church will eventually lose power after centuries of turmoil, corruption, plague, and the Crusades.
The Crusades were a series of religious wars started by Pope Urban II in order for Western Catholic Christians to regain the Holy Land, the land of Jesus. Numerous kings, lords, knights and peasants participated in the Crusades. Most were fairly unsuccessful and long term the Middle East still remained dominated by Islam. Long term results of the Crusades include a revival of learning and the increase of trade and guilds. Muslims will now distrust Christians. The Church's inability to secure the holy land caused another rift in their power just as kings were consolidating more power underneath themselves. England, united under the Norman Invasion, and France, united under the Capetian dynasty, fight the 100 years war. This helped create the first true nation-states in the world. They also would take steps towards representative government. King John of England would sign the Magna Carta in 1215 and King Philip IV would include commoners in the Third Estate. |
Crash Course #15 The CrusadesCrash Course #15 The Crusades
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Mongols Invasions
In a short period of time, the Mongols fundamentally shaped the world and then quickly reverted back to their pastoral society. See how they helped create a unified Russia and destroyed the "Golden Age" of Islamic Empires and China. The Mongols ruled with a light touch, preferring to force others to pay tribute and allow home rule. Any who refused would be quickly destroyed.
In Russia, the "idea" of a unified Russia flourished. By allowing in protection through the paying of tribute, the Mongols, indirectly allowed Moscow to flourish as a center of trade and religion while avoiding destruction. In due time, the Russians refused to pay the tribute tax and over threw the Mongols in battle. The Mongols conquered China and set up the Yuan Dyansty ending the golden age of the Song Dynasty. Using Chinese technology they were able to conquer vast parts of Asia, spreading ideas like gunpowder. In China, mongol emperor Kublai Khan, took on many Chinese traits as ruler. In the Middle East the powerful Islamic Trade empires briefly collapsed until the rise of the Seljuk Turkish Empire. |
Crash Course #17 MongolsCrash Course #17 Mongols
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Feudalism in Japan
Japan
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Crash Course #34 Japan: Samurai, Daimyo, & Matthew Perry
Crash Course #34 Japan: Samurai, Daimyo, & Matthew Perry Fill in the Blank Notes
Japan Lecture Notes
Japan Power Point
Reading Notes: 12C Japan
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Native AmericasEarly Native Americans came across Berengia, the ice bridge between Asia and North America, over 35,000 years ago. It at last closed or submerged when the last Ice Age ended around 15,000 years ago.
Beginning around 2,000 BCE, the Olmec civilization emerged as an early precursor to later Mesoamerican civilizations. This was the same time the Egyptian civilization began to fade. The Olmecs laid a foundation for later Mesoamerican civilization with ideas on religion (specifically human sacrifice), trade, and agriculture (maize or corn). Like all civilizations they rose and fell. The Maya, Aztec and Inca civilizations all took ideas from the earlier Olmec civilizations. The Mayas had advancements in astronomy, mathematics, writing and even invented a 365 day calendar. The Aztecs created a hierarchical society very similar to what occurred in Western Europe in at Middle Ages. The Aztecs also controlled their conquered populations by creating a tribute society. The Inca expanded to a grand scale, controlling over 4 to 6 million people at its peak. They used various government programs to control and integrate conquered peoples in their society, including language, schools, and trade. All the while in North America many different tribes would emerge. Each one adapted to their diverse environments creating distinctively unique cultures. Three similarities can be found between them, however, nature worship (not including human sacrifice), social patterns, and trade. |
Crash Course #25 Spanish Empire
Crash Course #25 Spanish Empire
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15th Century Mariners
Zheng He, Vasco da Gama, & Christopher Columbus
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Crash Course #21 15th Century Mariners
Crash Course #21 15th Century Mariners
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European Exploration
Through contacts with the Ottomans and the other Islamic Gun Powder Empires, Europeans become hooked on the spices of the East. The most lucrative of which was the pepper trade. Seeking new cheaper means to procure the spice was at the heart of early European explorations.
The Portuguese led European exploration by the help of Prince Henry the Navigator. His school of navigation allowed Europeans to study maps, use new inventions for travel, and build larger ocean going ships. The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama would round the Cape of Good Hope on the southern tip of Africa, entering the Indian Ocean trade network, the Monsoon Marketplace. Meanwhile the Spanish sought their own wealth from the trade funding a little expedition by Christopher Columbus. He would go on to find a "New World", the Americas, full of riches. Explorers, now called conquistadors, like Hernan Cortes and Francisco Pizzaro would topple some of the most powerful empires the world has ever seen in the Americas. All the while Europeans became to dominate the Atlantic and exploration, China and Japan began a policy isolationism. After a series of explorations, China withdrew into a policy of limited foreign trade and a policy of self-sufficiency under the Ming and the Qing dynasties. In Japan the Tokugawa Shogunate closes off the country to Christianity and outsiders in order to provide stability, peace, and prosperity. |
Crash Course #25 Spanish Empire
Crash Course #25 Spanish Empire
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The Columbian Exchange
The Columbian Exchange is the term used to describe the transfer of plants, animals, people and diseases between the Old World (Europe, Asia, & Africa) and the New World (the Americas). This exchange had a profound impact in both negative and positive ways for Europeans.
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Crash Course #23 The Columbian Exchange
Crash Course #23 Columbian Exchange
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The Atlantic Slave Trade
The Atlantic Slave Trade is definitely one of the darkest times in all of world history. However, it was the culmination of many long standing practices in slavery that grew over a long period of time.
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Crash Course #24 The Atlantic Slave Trade
Crash Course #24 The Atlantic Slave Trade
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Renaissance & ReformationAbout 1450, European scholars became more interested in studying the world around them. Their art became more true to life. They began to explore new lands. The new age in Europe was eventually called "the Renaissance." Renaissance is a French word that means "rebirth." Historians consider the Renaissance to be the beginning of modern history.
The Renaissance began in northern Italy and then spread through Europe. Italian cities such as Florence, Naples, Genoa, and Venice became centers of trade between Europe and the Middle East. Arab scholars preserved the writings of the ancient Greeks in their libraries. When the Italian cities traded with the Arabs, ideas were exchanged along with goods. These ideas, preserved from the ancient past, served as the basis of the Renaissance. When the Byzantine Empire fell to Muslim Turks in 1453, many Christian scholars left Greece for Italy. The Renaissance was much more than simply studying the work of ancient scholars. It influenced painting, sculpture, and architecture. Paintings became more realistic and focused less often on religious topics. Rich families became patrons and commissioned great art. Artists advanced the Renaissance style of showing nature and depicting the feelings of people. In Britain, there was a flowering in literature and drama that included the plays of William Shakespeare. |
Reading Notes: Chapter 17 Renaissance and ReformationCrash Course #22 The Renaissance: Was it a Thing?Renaissance Lecture NotesRenaissance Power PointReformation Power Point |