Historical Perspectives Midterm Study Guide (1)

It allowed humans to adopt settled agriculture, which led to food surpluses, population growth, specialization of labor, and the emergence of cities and states.

What was the significance of the Neolithic Revolution?

Mesopotamia (cuneiform writing); Egypt (centralized monarchy & monumental architecture like pyramids)

Name two river-valley civilizations and one major innovation from each?

Religious beliefs legitimized rulers, explained natural phenomena, provided social cohesion, and often tied to kingship (e.g. divine kings).

What role did religion play in early civilizations?

The polis was the city-state—political, social, religious center—defining identity and organizing community life (e.g. Athens, Sparta).

What was the polis, and why was it central to Greek life?

It spread Greek culture, stimulated trade, and created networks of city‑states across the Mediterranean and Black Sea.

How did Greek colonization affect the Mediterranean world?

Euclid’s geometry; Archimedes’ work on levers and pi; Stoicism and Epicureanism in philosophy.

Describe one Hellenistic contribution to science or philosophy?

Boosted Greek confidence, led to Athenian dominance (Delian League), but also sowed rivalries leading to Peloponnesian War.

What were the outcomes of the Persian Wars for the Greek city-states?

A struggle between plebeians and patricians over political equality, leading to reforms such as the office of tribune, Law of the Twelve Tables, and opening of magistracies.

What was the “Conflict of the Orders”?

Rome defeated Carthage, gained dominance over the western Mediterranean, and amassed wealth, leading to internal social and political stresses.

What was the significance of the Punic Wars?

Tetrarchy (rule by four), stricter control of economy, civil service reforms, increased military.

What reforms did Diocletian introduce to address the third-century crises?

Constantine legalized Christianity (Edict of Milan, 313), and Theodosius made it the state religion of the empire (379 onward).

How did Constantine and Theodosius shift the status of Christianity?

It preserved literacy, administration, legal tradition; provided local leadership; connected Europe via common faith.

Why was the Church so powerful in early medieval Europe?

A revival of learning, arts, and Latin culture under Charlemagne’s reign, promoting scriptoria and education.

What was the Carolingian Renaissance?

A hierarchy of lords and vassals based on land grants (fiefs) in exchange for military service and loyalty.

What was feudalism, and how did it structure medieval society?

Encouraged local fortified centers, reliance on local defense, fragmentation of authority.

How did external raids (Vikings, Magyars) influence European political structure?

The three-field crop rotation, heavier plow, and horse collar.

What agricultural innovations helped increase productivity in the High Middle Ages?

A power struggle between popes and secular rulers over who had authority to appoint bishops and invest them with religious symbols.

What was the Investiture Controversy?

A medieval intellectual method combining faith and reason; Thomas Aquinas is a principal figure.

What is scholasticism, and who is a key figure?

Motivations: religious fervor, desire for land, pilgrimage, church leadership. Outcomes: cultural exchange, trade, weakened Byzantium, religious tensions.

What were key motivations and outcomes of the Crusades?

Guilds regulated trade, quality, prices; provided social and economic structure for artisans and merchants.

What role did guilds play in medieval towns?

Philip II Augustus of France introduced royal bailiffs; Henry II of England developed common law and royal courts.

Name one reform by a medieval monarch that strengthened royal authority.

Strengthened sense of English and French nationalism, centralized royal power, shift in military tactics.

How did the Hundred Years’ War contribute to national identity?

Labor shortage, rising wages for peasants, contract labor, abandonment of marginal lands, inflation.

What were economic consequences of the Black Death in Europe?

Humanism emphasized the study of classical texts, individual potential, secular themes, and rhetoric.

What distinguishes Renaissance humanism from medieval scholastic thought?

Leonardo da Vinci: “Vitruvian Man,” bridging art and anatomy.

Name a Renaissance artist or thinker and one contribution?

That salvation comes through faith (not works) alone — faith justifies sinners before God.

What was Luther’s doctrine of justification by faith?

Reaffirmed doctrine at the Council of Trent; reformed clerical discipline; established new orders (e.g. Jesuits); improved education and missionary efforts.

How did the Catholic Church respond in the Counter Reformation?