Early Modern World History Review

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering gunpowder empires, maritime exploration, the Columbian Exchange, colonial structures, the transatlantic slave trade, religious movements, the Scientific Revolution, and the Enlightenment.

Ottoman Empire

Sunni Muslim gunpowder empire that controlled the Middle East, North Africa, and Southeast Europe

Suleiman the Magnificent

Most powerful Ottoman ruler who expanded territory and strengthened laws

Janissaries

Elite Ottoman soldiers loyal to the sultan

Devshirme

Ottoman system of taking Christian boys and training them for government or military service

Safavid Empire

Persian gunpowder empire that established Twelver Shi'ism as the state religion

Twelver Shiism

Main branch of Shi'a Islam promoted by the Safavids

Shah Abbas the Great

Strong Safavid ruler who expanded and strengthened the empire

Battle of Chaldiran

1514 Ottoman victory over the Safavids that showed the importance of gunpowder weapons

Mughal Empire

Muslim empire that ruled most of India

Akbar

Mughal ruler known for religious tolerance and effective administration

Jizya

Tax paid by non-Muslims in Islamic states

Aurangzeb

Mughal ruler who enforced stricter Islamic policies

Taj Mahal

Monumental tomb built by Shah Jahan and a symbol of Mughal power

Qing Dynasty

Dynasty established by the Manchus in China in 1644

Manchus

People who conquered China and founded the Qing Dynasty

Mandate of Heaven

Chinese belief that a ruler's authority comes from divine approval

Eunuchs

Castrated officials who often served in China's imperial bureaucracy

Peter the Great

Russian ruler who westernized and modernized Russia

Catherine the Great

Russian ruler who expanded and strengthened Russia

Prince Henry the Navigator

Portuguese prince who sponsored exploration

Christopher Columbus

Explorer whose 1492 voyage connected Europe and the Americas

Vasco da Gama

Portuguese explorer who reached India by sea

Ferdinand Magellan

Explorer whose expedition completed the first circumnavigation of Earth

Caravel

Fast and maneuverable ship used during European exploration

Astrolabe

Navigation tool used to determine latitude

Magnetic Compass

Instrument used to determine direction at sea

Lateen Sail

Triangular sail that improved a ship's ability to sail against the wind

Columbian Exchange

Transfer of plants, animals, diseases, and people between the Eastern and Western Hemispheres

Great Dying

Massive Native American population decline caused by disease

Smallpox

Eurasian disease that devastated Native American populations

Potato

American crop that increased food supplies and populations in Afro-Eurasia

Maize

Corn; American crop that spread worldwide

Trading Post Empire

Empire based on controlling trade ports rather than large territories

Mercantilism

Economic system where colonies exist to benefit the mother country

Joint-Stock Company

Business organization in which investors share risks and profits

Dutch East India Company (VOC)

Powerful Dutch trading company that dominated the spice trade

British East India Company

English trading company that gained influence in India

Manila

Spanish trading center linking American silver and Asian goods

Silver Drain

Flow of silver from Europe and the Americas into China

Hernán Cortés

Spanish conquistador who conquered the Aztec Empire

Francisco Pizarro

Spanish conquistador who conquered the Inca Empire

Encomienda

System requiring Indigenous people to provide labor to Spanish colonists

Hacienda

Large agricultural estate in Spanish America

Viceroy

Royal official who governed a colony on behalf of a monarch

Peninsulares

People born in Spain who held the highest colonial status

Creoles

People of European ancestry born in the Americas

Mestizos

People of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry

Mulattoes

People of mixed European and African ancestry

Atlantic Slave Trade

Forced transport of millions of Africans across the Atlantic Ocean

Triangular Trade

Trading network linking Europe, Africa, and the Americas

Middle Passage

Atlantic voyage carrying enslaved Africans to the Americas

African Diaspora

Dispersion of African peoples throughout the Americas

Maroon Societies

Communities formed by escaped enslaved people

Queen Nzinga

African ruler who resisted Portuguese control and the slave trade

Chattel Slavery

System in which enslaved people were considered property

Indentured Servitude

Labor system where workers exchanged years of labor for passage or opportunities

Protestant Reformation

Religious movement that challenged the Catholic Church

Martin Luther

German monk who started the Protestant Reformation

Counter-Reformation

Catholic Church response to Protestantism

Jesuits

Catholic missionary order active around the world

Matteo Ricci

Jesuit missionary known for his work in China

Sikhism

Religion founded in India that blended elements of Hinduism and Islam

Bhakti Movement

Hindu devotional movement emphasizing personal connection with God

Sufism

Mystical branch of Islam

Wahhabi Islam

Reform movement that sought a return to early Islamic practices

Neo-Confucianism

Revival of Confucian philosophy influential throughout East Asia

Scientific Revolution

Movement emphasizing observation, experimentation, and reason

Copernicus

Scientist who proposed the heliocentric model

Galileo

Scientist who used observation to support heliocentrism

Isaac Newton

Scientist who developed laws of motion and gravity

Enlightenment

Intellectual movement emphasizing reason and human progress

Voltaire

Enlightenment thinker who criticized traditional authority

Progress

Enlightenment belief that society can improve through reason and knowledge