US History Midterm

Terrorism

the use of violence and intimidation in the pursuit of political aims.

Monotheism

Belief in one God

Torah

The first five books of Jewish Scripture, which they believe are by Moses, are called this

Paul of Tarsus

A Jew from Asia Minor that played the most influential role in the spread of Christianity. Paul never met Jesus but he had a vision one day of speaking to him.

Roman Religion

Polytheistic. Influenced by Greek religion. Had gods with nearly the same names, and had patron deities.

Spread of Christianity

The Pax Romana (period of Roman peace) and extensive roads made spreading easier; also promise of eternal life, and accessible to all people of various backgrounds.

Persecution of the Christians began because

Christians refused to worship the emperor

Constantine

Emperor of Rome who adopted the Christian faith and stopped the persecution of Christians (280-337)

Islam means

To submit to the will of God or Allah (Arabic)

Last great prophet in Islam

Muhammad

Sunni vs. Shia

two separate branches of Islam, both believe fully in the Quran, but disagree about certain historical issues of leadership

Sharia

Body of Islamic law that includes interpretation of the Quran and applies Islamic principles to everyday life

Holy Land

The region of present-day Israel; includes the city of Jerusalem, which is a holy city to Christianity, Islam, and Judaism.

Crusades

A series of holy wars from 1096-1270 AD undertaken by European Christians to free the Holy Land from Muslim rule.

Effects of the Crusades

• cultural diffusion between Europeans & Muslims

• trade between Europe and Middle East

The Great Schism

in 1054 this severing of relations divided medieval Christianity into the already distinct Eastern (Greek) and Western (Latin) branches, which later became known as the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church, respectively. Relations between East and West had long been embittered by political and ecclesiastical differences and theological disputes.

Gunpowder Empires

Muslim empires of the Ottomans, Safavids, and the Mughals that employed cannonry and gunpowder to advance their military causes. While all Muslim empires, they were known for religious tolerance, migration, and trade.

Mughal Empire

Muslim state (1526-1857) exercising dominion over most of India in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries even thought India was primarily Hindu.

Akbar the Great

(1542-1605) Emperor of the Mughal Empire in India. He is considered to be their greatest ruler. He is responsible for the expansion of his empire, the stability his administration gave to it, and the increasing of trade and cultural diffusion.

Safavid Empire

Iranian (Persian) kingdom (1502-1722) established by Ismail Safavi, who declared Persia a Shi'ite (Shia Islam) state.

Shah Abbas

Took the throne in 1587 and took the Safavid Empire into its golden age, created an empire that took the best out of all neighboring cultures including Ottomans and Persians, reformed military and civilian life in the empire

Ottoman Empire

A Muslim empire based in Turkey that lasted from the 1300's to 1922. Known for Mediterranean Sea trade and the capture of Constantinople in 1453.

Suleyman the Lawgiver

Ruler who brought Ottoman Empire to its height. came to the throne in 1520 and ruled for 46 years. AKA Suleyman the Magnificent; great military leader, created code of law, simplified system of taxation, reduced government bureaucracy.

Arab-Israeli Conflict

This conflict has been going on for years. It started when both the Jewish and Arab Palestinians wanted Palestine for their own. Eventually the Jews got control of Palestine, but there has been a number of wars and terrorist attacks between these two. This conflict continues today.

Occupied Territories

Areas controlled by a nation that are part of another entity; Palestinians use this term for certain lands Israel gained after the 1967 war: Gaza Strip, West Bank, Golan Heights, Sinai Peninsula

Camp David Accords (1978)

The first signed agreement between Israel and an Arab country, in which Egyptian president Anwar Sadat recognized Israel as a legitimate state and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin agreed to return the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt.

Declaration of Principles (1993)

a plan for creating a Palestinian government

Palestinian Authority

A quasi-governmental body that "self rules" and represents Palestinian (Arab/Muslim) interests in the West Bank and Gaza

9/11/2001

Attack on the twin towers and pentagon carried out by Al Qaeda

Al Qaeda

a network of Islamic terrorist organizations, led by Osama bin Laden, that carried out the attacks on the US embassies in Tanzania and Kenya in 1998, the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000, and the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in 2001

Taliban in Afghanistan

Afghanistan's fundamentalist political regime allowing for Al Qaeda to use Afghan territory as a base of operations. Brutal and repressive regimes that Doesn't enjoy support of the people. Seize control of a fragile and dysfunctional state and turned it into a tool of domestic and international terrorism.

Department of Homeland Security

US federal agency created in 2002 to coordinate national efforts against terrorism

Patriot Act (2001)

Law responding to 9/11. Expands anti-terrorist powers (wiretapping, surveillance); 4th Amendment concern for civil liberties.

Triangle Trade

the trading system between the Americas, England and Africa; Africa would give slaves and rum to the Americas, including the West Indies; America would offer timber, tobacco, fish, and flour; England would mainly process into finished goods and ship back

Columbian Exchange

The exchange of plants, animals, diseases, and technologies between the Americas and the rest of the world following Columbus's voyages.

Reasons for exploration

Trade, Curiosity about the East, Wealth and Ambition of European States, Scientific Progress, Spread of Christianity, location for the growth of cash crops

Arguments for globalization

Can advance the economies of developing nations; allows for new markets to sell goods; allows for cheaper products due to lower labor costs; provides sense of world community.

cultural diffusion

The spread of ideas, customs, and technologies from one people to another

Arguments against globalization

1. it has produced uneven results across nations and people

2. deleterious effects on labor and labor standards

3. decline in environmental and health conditions

4. jobs lost to nations that pay employees less

WTO (World Trade Organization)

organization through which member nations negotiate trading agreements and resolve disputes about trade policies and practices

OPEC

An international oil cartel originally formed in 1960. Represents the majority of all oil produced in the world. Attempts to limit production to raise prices. It's long name is the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

Genghis Khan

A Mongolian general and emperor of the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, known for his military leadership and great cruelty. He conquered vast portions of northern China and southwestern Asia.

Mongol Empire

Largest land empire in the history of the world, spanning from Eastern Europe across Asia. Revitalized trade along the Silk Road; controlled the territory and made it safer to travel.

Silk Road Trade

The most famous of the trading routes established by pastoral nomads connecting the Chinese, Indian, Persian, and Mediterranean civilizations; transmitted goods and ideas among civilization.

Gold-Salt Trade

Gold and salt made up trade and wealth in the African kingdoms because the Europeans wanted gold, and the Africans needed salt

West African kingdoms of

Ghana, Mail, Songhai between 1000 to 1500...known for Gold and Salt trade.

The Mali Empire and Trade

Controlled and taxed almost all trade passing through west Africa Enormous caravans linked Mali to north Africa Besides the capital Niani, many other prosperous cities on caravan routes

Mansa Musa

Ruler of Mali (r. 1312-1337). His extravagant pilgrimage through Egypt to Mecca (Islamic Hajj) in 1324-1325 established the empire's reputation for wealth in the Mediterranean world.

Swahili

Bantu language with Arabic loanwords spoken in coastal regions of East Africa.

Indian Ocean Trade

world's richest maritime trading network that was essential for the prosperity of East Africa

Johann Gutenberg (1400-1468)

-He developed the printing press which led to books and media being shared.

-Science, philosophy, exploration, etc. grew massively.

-People began to get Renaissance education and more people were literate (end of the Dark Ages)

Magellan, Ferdinand

Portuguese mariner who commanded the first European (Spanish) fleet to circumnavigate the globe (1519-1521).

Christopher Columbus

He mistakenly discovered the Americas in 1492 while searching for a faster route to India (the Indies).

Vasco da Gama

Portuguese explorer. In 1497-1498 he led the first naval expedition from Europe to sail to India, opening an important commercial sea route.

Charles Darwin

English natural scientist who formulated a theory of evolution by natural selection (1809-1882)

Social Darwinism

The belief that only the fittest survive in human political and economic struggle. Justified by "White Man's Burden" for imperialism.

Berlin Conference

A meeting from 1884-1885 at which representatives of European nations agreed on rules colonization of Africa (Scramble for Africa).

Monroe Doctrine

1823 - an American foreign policy opposing interference in the Western hemisphere from outside powers

Roosevelt Corollary

Roosevelt's 1904 extension of the Monroe Doctrine, stating that the United States has the right to protect its economic interests in South And Central America by using military force

The Spanish American War

In 1898, a conflict between the United States and Spain, in which the U.S. supported the Cubans' fight for independence. The U.S. won, gaining control of several former Spanish colonies like the Philippines, Puerto Rico, Cuba ,and Guam.

The Philippine American War

fought to quell Filipino resistance to American control of the Philippine Islands which America got from Spain after winning the Spanish American War.

Bosnian Genocide 1990s

the "ethnic cleansing" of 100,000 of mostly Muslims killed during Bosnian Independence from Yugoslavia

Rwandan Genocide

The killing of more than 500,000 ethnic Tutsis by rival Hutu militias in Rwanda in 1994. The conflict between the dominant Tutsis and the majority Hutus had gone on for centuries, but the suddenness and savagery of the massacres caught the United Nations off-guard. U.N. peacekeepers did not enter the country until after much of the damage had been done.

African borders

African borders were constructed by European colonial actors during the Berlin conference in 1884. The borders were drawn arbitrarily, grouping many unrelated, often hostile, groups within the same country and separating groups who were related.

ethnic conflict

type of conflict that occurs when different tribes are lumped together to form a country often due to the legacy of imperialism--This is a problem for Africa today.

MAIN causes of WWI

Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, Nationalism

Trench Warfare on the Western Front

Trench warfare is a type of land warfare using occupied fighting lines largely comprising military trenches, in which troops are well-protected from the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery.

Triple Alliance (Central Powers)

Germany, Austria-Hungary,Italy (later leaves alliance) Ottoman Empire joins

Triple Entente (Allied Powers)

France, Great Britain, Russia

Total War

A conflict in which the participating countries devote all their resources to the war effort

Treaty of Versailles (1919)

Treaty that ended World War I; it was much harder on Germany than Wilson wanted but not as punitive as France and England desired. It was harsh enough, however, to set stage for Hitler's rise of power in Germany in 1930s.

Self-determination

the right of people to choose their own form of government

Mohandas Gandhi

The Indian leader who used nonviolent methods to seek independence from Great Britain after WWII.

Civil Disobedience

A form of political participation that reflects a conscious decision to break a law believed to be immoral and to suffer the consequences.

Totalitarianism

A form of government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator (not restricted by a constitution or laws or opposition etc.)

Facism

A political system headed by a dictator that calls for extreme nationalism and racism and has no tolerance for opposition

Allied Powers

Alliance of Great Britain, Soviet Union, United States, and France during World War II.

Axis Powers

Alliance of Germany, Italy, and Japan during World War II.

Blitzkrieg

"Lighting war", typed of fast-moving warfare used by German forces against Poland in 1939

The Holocaust

the Nazi program of exterminating Jews under Hitler

D-Day Invasion

Allied troops landed at Normandy Beach to start liberating France from German control

Yalta Conference (February 1945)

Wartime conference in which the Big Three approved: a Declaration on Liberated Europe, which championed self-determination for liberated nations; the establishment of the United Nations; the partitioning of Germany (and Berlin) into four occupation zones (French would also get a western zone); and, the Soviets agreed to help the USA in the war against Japan

Communism

a political theory derived from Karl Marx, advocating class war and leading to a society in which all property is publicly owned and each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs.

Karl Marx

1818-1883. 19th century philosopher, political economist, sociologist, humanist, political theorist, and revolutionary. Often recognized as the father of communism. Analysis of history led to his belief that communism would replace capitalism as it replaced feudalism. Believed in a classless society.

Proletariat

Marx's term for the exploited class, the mass of workers who do not own the means of production

Joseph Stalin

Russian leader who succeeded Lenin as head of the Communist Party and created a totalitarian state by purging all opposition (1879-1953)

Truman Doctrine (1947)

A policy set forth by U.S. President Harry S Truman stating that the U.S. would support Greece and Turkey with economic and military aid to prevent their falling into the Soviet sphere.

Containment Policy

US policy to stop expansion of Soviet Union and Communism

Domino Theory

A theory that if one nation comes under Communist control, then neighboring nations will also come under Communist control.

Korean War

The conflict between Communist North Korea and Non-Communist South Korea. The United Nations (led by the United States) helped South Korea.

Vietnam War

A prolonged war (1954-1975) between the communist armies of North Vietnam who were supported by the Chinese and the non-communist armies of South Vietnam who were supported by the United States.

Brinkmanship

the willingness to go to the brink of war to force an opponent to back down

NATO

North Atlantic Treaty Organization; an alliance made to defend one another if they were attacked by any other country; US, England, France, Canada, Western European countries

Warsaw Pact

An alliance between the Soviet Union and other Eastern European nations. This was in response to the NATO