Social Studies Praxis 5004 - World History ONLY

Bronze Age

3300 B.C.-1200 B.C. was a technological advancement time that led to unprecedented growth and innovation in ancient cultures; bronze tools and weapons changed the technology by introducing more effective methods of farming, which increased food production; with a surplus of foods, people began to develop advanced cultures because more time could be dedicated to mathematics, science, and politics instead of food production

Early Mesopotamia

emerged as one of the early river valley civilizations through the use of river water for irrigating crops, which produced sufficient surplus of food to support the first cities

Sumerians

a civilization between 4000 and 1500 B.C; developed cuneiform, a writing system that used pictures and symbols; they lived in mud brick buildings within farming communities; first civilization to use the wheel; they traded widely; they had many tools, pottery, and wooden furniture; they had an advanced military

Egyptians

a civilization around 3000 B.C; they lived in areas around the lower part of the Nile River; they grew surplus crops and farmed minerals; they developed their own writing system; they had a vast trading network, a military, and an effective system of medicine; they are most famous for their pyramids, which were burial sites for Pharos; peasants would work on them in trade for food and shelter

Hieroglyphics

Egyptian writing system and a form of writing on papyrus

Written language

independently developed in Mesoamerica around 600 B.C.

Phoenicians

developed the alphabet at the same time as the Egyptians and it became the model for Greek and Latin alphabets

Aztec/Aztec Indians

build stone temples and pyramids in central Mexico, specifically the great pyramid of Tenochtitlan in present-day Mexico City; also known for their cultivation of maize

Polytheistic

early civilizations that worshipped different gods that were all closely tied to various processes of nature

Hebrews

the first group to create a society based upon the idea of one God or monotheism; from this grew Abrahamic faiths

Monotheism

worshipping only one God

Ancient Greece

a classical civilization from 800 B.C. to 500 B.C. known for one of its major contributions, the idea of democracy; had poor soil for farming so they looked to the sea as a means of improving their economy; also used the sea to trade which spread their language, arts, food, and sciences across the known world; isolation among the people lead to the rise of the city-state

Homer

author of the first known novels, the Iliad and the Odyssey

Sophocles

a playwright of dramas and comedies still performed today

Socrates

the “Father of Western Philosophy”

Plato

pupil of Socrates; author of The Republic; influential political scientist

Aristotle

pupil of Plato; influenced philosophers from the Renaissance to today; personal tutor of Alexander the Great

Thucydides

authored accounts about the Peloponnesian War and the battles between Athens and Sparta

Pythagoras

architect of geometry; known for the Pythagorean Theorem

Euclid

"Father of Geometry"

Alexander the Great

arguably the best military commander in history; conquered the known world in twelve years; responsible for spreading Hellenistic (Greek) culture throughout the known world; died at the age of 33

Peridian Age (5th century B.C.)

known for Socrates (philosophy), Hippocrates (medicine), and great dramatic works

Hellenistic Age (4th century B.C.)

known for Alexander the Great and the spreading of the Greek culture

Athens

democratic, luxurious, celebrated the individual over the group, and they were leaders in philosophy, arts, and architecture

Sparta

a class system, devoted to agriculture and military, military was mandatory, and stressed group over the individual

Holy Roman Empire

began to form in the late 200 B.C.; republic, representative government Otto the Great reunited most of the lands of Charlemagne’s Empire; Otto was crowned emperor by the Pope in 962 and had unbroken line of succession of emperors for over 8 centuries; Otto involved the church but tried to limit its power. The church slowly acquired control, which corrupted many of the church leaders. Simony is the buying and selling of church positions. One of Otto’s legacies was the rivalry against church and state. The emperor of the empire was always crowned by the church

Punic Wars

264-146 B.C. a series of 3 wars against the Phoenicians for dominance of the Mediterranean Sea

Assassination of Julius Caesar

44 B.C. Emperor of Rome and was killed in a reaction to his power grab; Augustus filled his seat of power, and became the first ruling emperor of Rome; this marked the beginning of empirical reign in the Roman Empire

Division of the Roman Empire

285 A.D. the decline of Rome can be contributed to the decline in the loyalty of the army, the invasion of Germanic tribes, and the inefficiency of the government; eventually the split into two empires

Adoption of Christianity

312 A.D. the Roman Empire, under the rule of Constantine, adopted this as its official religion; this solidified the influence and importance of it in Europe thinking, as well as establishing the church as an important governing body

Monsoon

a season of great amounts of rain

India religions

Hinduism and Buddhism

Hinduism

1700 B.C. uses the ancient text known as the Vedas for teaching; rise of it resulted in the caste system where individuals are born into a socio-economic class and are required to stay in that class the length of their life; individuals can move up or down in a class in their next lives, but moving up or down is determined by their actions in their current lives

Buddhism

500 B.C. was founded by Siddhartha Gautama who was born in an upper-family but shunned his material possessions and began seeking answers to his questions of hardships of the world; he founded this religion which is based on the renunciation of worldly desires, wealth, and objects to find happiness through a spiritual way of life; reaching enlightenment; there was little support in India but it was eagerly accepted in Southeast Asia, Tibet, China, and Japan

Gupta Empire

the most notable empire throughout India’s ancient history that lasted from 320-550 B.C.

Islam

700 A.D. was an empire that reorganized India into city-states

Islam

622 A.D. Muhammad founded a new religion meaning “submission to the will of God”; the religion spread because the followers and Muhammad were travelers and people of trade; the teachings are studied in the Koran

Genghis Khan

nomadic people from Mongolia, north of China, migrated on horseback and conquered the land from China to Eastern Europe including Russia and Persia; the Mongols were led by a led by a legendary warrior whose name means universal ruler

The Mongols

they invented saddles with stirrups that allowed them to control their horses while having their hands free to use the newly invented crossbow, a horizontally mounted bow with a trigger; they were mobile and could cover 100 miles in a day; they were courageous fighters that at their peak controlled between 11 and 12 million miles of land (the size of Africa); the empire ended with an unequal distribution of power that led to a civil war

Dark Ages

after the fall of Rome, trade and industry declined leading to a time called this lasting until the 14th century

Feudal System

people were scared of being robbed during the Dark ages so farmers gave their land to regional nobles powerful enough to protect the people. In return for military pledges, the regional nobles granted land to lords who provided military support at their own expense; this system was established and was divided by class. The feudal lords owned the estates or manors, knights were warriors, and serfs were workers

Local nobles during the Dark Ages

made laws, levied taxes, and dispensed justice

Serfs during the Dark Ages

did labor such as raising crops, cooking, tanning leather, shoeing horses, cutting lumber, making furniture, and doing anything else determined by the lord of the manor

The Silk Road

ran from China through Afghanistan and into Persia and Eastern Europe from 100 B.C. to 1300 A.D; it was a trade route traveled by camel caravans with safety purposes; Jade, silk, and spices were sent to Europe while wool, silver, and gold were sent to China; the Chinese making of paper, gunpowder, and the compass fueled European exploration and weapons’ technology; the resources helped end the Dark Ages during the Middle Ages; educational advancements of ancient civilizations began to pour back into Europe starting the Renaissance

The Middle Ages

A period that ran between the 5th and 15th centuries; Started at the collapse of the Roman Empire; often referred to as the Age of Faith; education declined except for church teaching

Catholic church

leadership of the bishop of Rome, the Pope, who brought unity and stability to the land; village life revolved around it

Roman Catholicism

the cultural and religious center, extending into politics and economics; most powerful institution in medieval Europe

Excommunication

the process by which an individual was removed from the church and would not receive the sacraments of the Church, thereby being dammed to hell for eternity

Usury

forbade the interest on a loan

Feudalism

peasants would live on a Lord’s land and work in exchange for food and shelter

Crusades

wars between European Christians and the Middle Eastern Muslims, ranged over the Holy Lands; towns revived because of increased trade and allowed growth in the merchant/middle class; also stimulated the people’s desire for knowledge of the classical period and brought about the Renaissance period

Charles the Great (or Charlemagne)

created an empire across France and Germany around 800 A.D.; conquered lands across modern day Western Europe and encouraged education and the building of libraries; forced people to convert to Christianity

William the Conqueror

invaded the Normans (people from France); was successful over English King Harold II

Black Death

a plague that swept across Europe from 1347-1350, leaving between 1/3 and 1/2 of the population dead; started from trade ships carrying infected rodents and became destructive because of poor sanitary conditions in cities

Renaissance

the French word for rebirth that is used to describe the renewal of interest in Ancient Greek and Latin art, literature, and philosophy that began in Florence, Italy from the 14th and 16th centuries; it includes advances in science, education, politics, and art; paper was important

Leonardo Da Vinci

artist and inventor; also known as the Renaissance Man

Michelangelo

artist during the Renaissance

Desiderius Erasmus

applied historical scholarship to the New Testament and laid the seeds for the Protestant Reformation

Nicolo Machiavelli

a Florentine historian, politician, diplomat, philosopher, humanist, and writer. He has often been called the founder of modern science. He authored The Prince and Discourses, which proposed a science of human nature and civil life

Issac Newton

revolutionized thinking in mathematics, physics, and astronomy, defining the law of gravity and Laws of Motion

The Printing Press

an invention in 1450 by Johannes Gutenberg that was one of the most notable inventions in history and allowed mass production of literacy works

Age of Exploration in Europe

academic advancements and the printing press opened education to lower classes of society which laid the foundation for more intricate economy based on specialization of labor; the money gained from trade simulated nautical research and advancements to allow ships to sail farther and ushered in this time period

Protestant Reformation

began as an attempt to reform the Catholic Church, but eventually led to the separation from it; it did cause the Catholic Church to reform itself resulting in a proliferation of new denominations

Indulgences

if a person committed a sin, they could buy an indulgence and be forgiven for that sin, without doing a penance, or self-punishment; they were very profitable for the church

Martin Luther

in 1517 he posted his “Ninety-Five Theses” on the door of the church in Saxony, which criticized unethical practices, various doctrines, and the authority of the Pope. Other reformers such as John Calvin and John Wesley soon followed. Consequently, the Lutheran, Reformed, Calvinist, and Presbyterian churches were founded, among others

King Henry VIII

was denied a divorce by the Pope, so he broke away and established the Anglican Church

The Power of Catholic Church ended

after the separation of the church, Europe was divided into religious sects, each sect holding a deep mistrust of the other; the power of states increased because…

European exploration and expansion

the rise of European nation-states drove this and the main incentive was to establish trade with the eastern nations, such as China and India; trade had to go through the Middle East so the Arab nations became extremely wealthy which upset the Europeans, so they established a trade route by sea between Europe and Asia

Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal

was the driving force in the European advancement of nautical technology; commissioned and promoted many scientific advancements that increased the capabilities of sailing; helped Portugal sail the “first trade route by sea with the East” along the African coast to India

Christopher Columbus

financial investors Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain helped him try to find a shorted route to trade by sea with countries of Asia by going west; he landed on modern day Bahamas on October 12, 1492 and discovered the Americas

Spanish Conquistadors

discovered South America and found indigenous people with vast amounts of gold; gold flooded Europe after taking it from the Native Americans and indigenous people

The economic idea of mercantilism

idea that views wealth as a finite amount and each nation must protect its own wealth, which is measured by the amount of gold a nation possesses

Slave trade

evolved out of the need for manual labor to cultivate the cash crops of sugar cane in the Caribbean and tobacco and cotton in the American colonies; started as bringing over indentured servants that would be given freedom and land after seven years of labor but African individuals lost the deal and were made into lifelong slaves

The Dutch

the first to begin slave trade

The Triangle Trade

A trade system where Europe sent manufactured goods to Africa, Africa sent enslaved people to the Americas, and the Americas sent raw materials back to Europe. The journey was dangerous, and many enslaved people died during the voyage. Most enslaved people were taken to the Caribbean to produce sugar and rum.

The Enlightenment

the political philosophy that led to a resurgence of democracy in Europe which had not been seen since the Greek and Roman empires; changes like the creation of trial by jury and the growth of English common law, law made through the rulings of judges

Magna Carta

the first document establishing the rule of law

Model Parliament

Britain’s first legislative body whose purpose was to tax the wealthy landowners, and the creation of a system of making laws carried out by an elected parliament

The Puritan Revolution

A conflict in England in 1642 between the Puritans (Roundheads) and King Charles I and his supporters (Cavaliers). The war led to the execution of King Charles I, the creation of a republic called the Commonwealth of England, and rule by Oliver Cromwell. Later, the monarchy was restored, but the king ruled with the approval of Parliament, creating a parliamentary monarchy.

Glorious Revolution of 1688

A peaceful revolution in England where Parliament invited William and Mary of Holland to become rulers. They ruled as Protestants, accepted limits on their power, and confirmed Parliament’s authority over the monarchy. Important laws passed included the English Bill of Rights and the Toleration Act, which allowed freedom of worship.

John Locke

modern philosophy of democracy influencer; thought that man was born free and should live in a state of perfect freedom; his ideas became the ideological foundation for the Declaration of Independence (influenced Thomas Jefferson too) and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man

American Revolution

A rebellion in which the American colonies fought for independence from Britain. It was influenced by John Locke’s ideas about natural rights and government by consent. Colonists protested being taxed without representation in Parliament, especially after Britain raised taxes to pay for the French and Indian War. Britain also restricted colonial expansion west of the Appalachian Mountains and limited trade with other countries under mercantilism, which angered the colonists.

The French Revolution of 1789

A revolution in France caused by an absolute monarchy and an unfair class system. Society was divided into three estates, where the first and second estates paid no taxes, and the third estate paid most of them. The middle class (bourgeoisie) led the revolution, inspired by Enlightenment thinkers like Rousseau, Voltaire, and Montesquieu, who supported ideas such as separation of powers. The revolution began with the storming of the Bastille and ended with Napoleon taking power. Its main result was the spread of democratic ideals like liberty, equality, and fraternity across Europe.

Napolean Bonaparte

became the Emperor of France and is considered a military genius; contributed to the centralization of the local government, improvement in education and the public works programs, and the organization of the bank of France; conquered the entire continent of Europe and tried to conquer Russia but slowed down during the winter in Russia while British attacked on the weak army; he was defeated and sent to exile ending his 14-year reign as Emperor of France

Industrial Revolution

Began in England in the 19th century; First cotton mill in 1733; The steel industry grew exponentially; Found coal could be used instead of wool

Steam engine

revolutionized transportation and work power

Urbanization

around 1830, society changed from agrarian

Labor unions and Child labor laws

a need for cheap, unskilled labor resulted in the extensive employment and abuse of women and children, who worked up to 14 hours a day, six days a week in deplorable conditions; society enacted these laws to protect the safety of workers

WWI

the U.S. was reluctant to enter the war (1917) but played a decisive role in ending the war and creating the League of Nations and establishing its central position in international relations; after the war, the U.S. remained prosperous in industrial growth and stock markets, but farm prices and wages fell which created the unbalanced situation that led to the economic collapse of 1929

Nationalism

the rise at the end of the 19th century in Europe led to a series of alliances and agreements among European nations; these arguments eventually led to WWI, as their nations called on their military allies to provide assistance and defense

League of Nations

after the devastation of WWI, this was formed to promote peace, but it ultimately failed having no way to enforce these resolutions. From this failure, the United Nations started as an international assembly given the authority to arrange and enforce international resolutions

Treaty of Versailles

signed at the end of WWI; Article 231 required that “Germany accepts the responsibility of Germany and her allies for causing all the loss and damage to which the Allied and Associated Governments… have been subjected as a consequence of… the aggression of Germany and her allies.” In simple terms

WWII

U.S. entered in 1941, fighting against Japan and Germany and their allied Axis powers; the war ended September 2, 1945; the end of the war brought renewed power struggles, especially in Europe and China, as they came under the control of the communists

Cold War

long period of tension between the democracies of the Western World and the communist countries of Eastern Europe. The west was led by the U.S. and Eastern Europe was led by the Soviet Union. These two countries became known as superpowers. Although the two superpowers NEVER officially declared war on each other, they fought indirectly in proxy wars, the arms race, and the space race. Began not too long AFTER WWI ended in 1945

Marshall Plan

aimed at preventing the spread of communism, involved the economic aid that was sent to Europe in the aftermath of WWII

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)

formed in 1949 for the purposes of opposing communist aggression