AP World History Review: Rise of Christianity, Fall of Rome, and the Middle Ages

Vocabulary flashcards based on lecture notes covering the evolution of Christianity, factors in the fall of the Roman Empire, the Crusades, and the cultural and biological impacts of the Middle Ages.

Constantine

The Roman emperor and first Roman Christian who announced the end of persecution of Christians and moved the capital to Constantinople.

Church Hierarchy

The organizational structure of the Church consisting of the Pope (the top priest, associated with Peter) and Bishops who supervised local churches.

Augustine

The Bishop of Hippo who compiled the Bible approximately 200 years after the birth of Jesus.

Inflation

An economic factor that weakened the Roman Empire involving higher taxes and coins containing less silver.

Diocletian

The leader who broke the Roman empire into two parts: the Greek-speaking East and the Latin-speaking West.

63 B.C.

The year the Romans conquered the Jews in Israel (Judea).

Messiah

A savior, also known as "Christos," whom the Hebrews believed God would send to save the empire from the Romans.

Paul

An individual who used Roman roads to spread Christianity throughout the Roman empire.

Pontius Pilate

The official who arrested and crucified Jesus.

Attila

A powerful Chieftain of the Huns known for horseback archery who led an attack on Gaul and faced Rome and the Germans in 451.

Romulus Augustulus

The last Roman emperor who was killed when Germanic people burned the city.

Hellenism

A religious mixture of Greek and Roman beliefs.

Latin

The language of the Catholic Church that was adopted by various other languages.

Crusades

Holy missions occurring from 1096 to 1291 where Christian warriors attempted to reclaim Jerusalem.

Pope Urban 11

The Pope who, in 1095, called for Christian warriors to reclaim the holy land of Jerusalem.

Third Crusade

A conflict from 1189 to 1191 in which Crusaders burnt the Eastern Orthodox in Constantinople and Saladin eventually won control of Jerusalem.

Hanseatic League

A group of German cities that worked to promote free trade and developed the concept of credit as a promise of later payment.

Guild

A medieval trade organization that set uniform prices for products to eliminate competition.

Journeyman

A guild member who knew the basics of a trade but moved from workshop to workshop.

Gothic Architecture

A style of lavishly decorated cathedrals, such as Notre Dame, featuring flying buttresses and stained glass.

Troubadours

A traveling music group that spread stories like Geoffrey Chauchers Canterbury Tales and Dante's Dive Comedy.

Black Death

An outbreak from 1347 to 1351 consisting of the Bubonic plague (spread by fleas on rats) and the Pneumonic plague (spread person to person through the air).

Mongols

The group that brought plague-infested rats through Black Sea ports and catapulted dead plague victims into cities.