Comprehensive Regents Review: Global History and Geography II

NYS Global History and Geography II Exam Structure

│ Exam Component │ Description and Quantity │ │ :--- │ :--- │ │ Stimulus-Based Multiple Choice │ $28$ questions based on documents, passages, quotes, maps, or graphs. Some documents may have multiple questions attached. │ │ Critical Reading Question (CRQ) Sets │ $2$ sets ($6$ questions total). Each set uses $2$ documents. One set focused on Cause and Effect; the other on Similarity/Difference or Turning Points. │ │ Enduring Issue Essay │ $1$ extended essay utilizing $3$ out of $5$ provided random documents to connect to a specific enduring issue. │

10.1: The World in $1750$

• Global Landscape in $1750$:
  • Europe: Transitioning from Absolutism toward the Enlightenment.
  • India: Ruled by the Mughal Empire; growing presence of the British East India Company.
  • Ottoman Empire: A major power in the Middle East and Southeast Europe.
  • Feudal Japan: Ruled by the Tokugawa Shogunate; characterized by strict social hierarchies.
• Historical Transitions:
  • Absolutism (concentrated power in a single monarch) served as the background that led to the Enlightenment, as thinkers began questioning the divine right of kings.

10.2: Enlightenment, Revolution, and Nationalism

• Key Enlightenment Thinkers and Ideas:
  • John Locke: Focused on natural rights (life, liberty, property) and the consent of the governed.
  • Baron de Montesquieu: Advocated for the separation of powers into different branches of government.
  • Voltaire: Promoted freedom of speech, religious tolerance, and the separation of church and state.
  • Jean-Jacques Rousseau: Proposed the idea of the Social Contract and the general will.
  • Mary Wollstonecraft: Focused on women's rights and education equality.
  • Olympe de Gouge: Authored the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen during the French Revolution.
  • William Wilberforce: A leader in the movement to abolish the slave trade in the British Empire.
• Major Political Revolutions ($1789-1890$):
  • French Revolution ($1789-1799$): Driven by inequalities in the Three Estates and the influence of Enlightenment thought. Impacted the global spread of democratic ideals.
  • Latin American Revolutions ($1808-1826$): Led by figures like Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín to overthrow Spanish/Portuguese colonial rule.
  • Unification of Italy ($1815-1871$): Led by Count Camillo di Cavour (Prime Minister of Piedmont-Sardinia) and Giuseppe Garibaldi. Motivated by the desire to elevate the Italian people morally and politically above foreign rule.
  • Unification of Germany ($1862-1890$): Orchestrated by Otto von Bismarck through his "Blood and Iron" policy.
  • Imperial Breakdowns:
    • Division of the Ottoman Empire ($1918-1920$) following World War I.
    • Division of the Austrian Empire ($1867-1914$).

10.3: The Industrial Revolution and Economic Systems

• Prerequisites for Industrialization:
  • Agrarian Revolution: New farming techniques led to increased food supply.
  • Population Explosion: More food supported more people, providing a labor force for factories.
  • Energy Revolution: Shift from animal/human power to steam and coal.
• England’s Leadership:
  • Possessed extensive waterways (rivers) and coastlines, creating an infrastructure for shipping resources.
  • Abundance of natural resources like coal and iron.
  • Led to more efficient imperialism and industrialization compared to other nations.
• Economic Theories:
  • Capitalism (Market Economy): Defined by private ownership and the pursuit of profit.
    • Laissez-Faire: A "hands-off" approach where the government does not interfere in the economy.
    • Adam Smith: Author of The Wealth of Nations ($1776$). Supported by the upper class and bourgeoisie.
  • Communism (Command Economy):
    • Karl Marx: Argued that the Industrial Revolution exploited the lower class (proletariat). Predicted a revolution where workers would own the means of production.
    • Examples: U.S.S.R., Cuba, China, Vietnam, North Korea.
• Impacts on Japan (Meiji Restoration):
  • Response to Western imperialism (specifically Commodore Matthew Perry’s arrival).
  • Four-fold transition: Industrialization, Modernization/Westernization, and Militarization.
• Social Results:
  • Growth of Labor Unions and the passage of protective labor laws.
  • Irish Potato Famine: Resulted in massive migration due to crop failure and lack of British aid.

10.4: Global Imperialism and Resistance

• Key Regions and Events:
  • Africa: The Berlin Conference carved up the continent without African consent. Resistances included the Zulu Resistance and the Boer War. Eventually led to British Apartheid in South Africa.
  • India: Transitioned from British East India Company control to the British Crown after the Sepoy Mutiny. Notable event: Amritsar Massacre.
  • China: Subjected to "Spheres of Influence." Conflict over Opium Wars led to the Treaty of Nanjing. Internal conflicts included the Taiping and Boxer Rebellions.
  • Japan: Became an imperial power itself, winning the Sino-Japanese War and Russo-Japanese War. Executed the Nanking Massacre in China.

10.5: Unresolved Global Conflict ($1914-1945$)

• World War I: Causes included Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, and Nationalism (MAIN). Resulted in the Treaty of Versailles, which left Germany seeking to regain power.
• Totalitarianism: Dictatorships where leaders have total control over all aspects of society. Examples include Adolf Hitler (Nazi Germany, $1932-1945$) and Joseph Stalin (U.S.S.R.).
• Russian Revolution ($1917-1923$): Transition from the Czarist regime to a communist state under Vladimir Lenin, followed by Stalin.
• Human Rights Violations:
  • Armenian Massacre ($1915-1918$).
  • Holodomor ($early 1930s$): Famine in Ukraine caused by Soviet policies.
  • The Holocaust ($1941-1945$): Systematic genocide under Nazi rule.

10.6: The Cold War and Unresolved Global Conflict ($1945-1991$)

• Origins: Discussions at Yalta and Potsdam Conferences led to friction between the U.S. and U.S.S.R.
• Strategic Policies: Formation of NATO; Soviet policies within the Warsaw Pact. Movement for Non-alignment by nations refusing to choose sides.
• Proxy Wars:
  • Korean War ($1950-1953$): Started when North Korean forces crossed the $38th$ parallel. Purpose of UN intervention was to preserve security.
  • Vietnam War ($1964-1973$).
  • Soviet-Afghan War ($1979-1989$): Gorbachev called it a "bleeding wound"; estimated cost of $15\,\text{billion rubles}$. Contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union.
• Collapse of Communism:
  • Arms Race and Space Race drained Soviet resources.
  • Glasnost: Policy of openness.
  • Perestroika: Economic restructuring.

10.7: Decolonization and Nationalism ($1900-2000$)

• Asia:
  • India: Gandhi led nationalist movements ($1916-1945$).
  • Vietnam: Ho Chi Minh led efforts from the $1950s$ to $1970s$.
• Africa:
  • Ghana: Kwame Nkrumah ($1950s$).
  • Algeria: Ahmed Ben Bella ($1950s-1960s$).
  • Kenya: Jomo Kenyatta ($1940s-1960s$).
• Middle East: Establishment of Israel ($1948$) and the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli Conflict. The Arab Awakening ($2010-present$) utilized social media to oppose oppressive regimes.
• China ($1927-1992$):
  • Civil War between Jiang Jieshi (democratic) and Mao Zedong (communist).
  • Mao Zedong: Great Leap Forward (failed industrialization via backyard furnaces/communes) and the Cultural Revolution.
  • Deng Xiaoping ($1977-1992$): Implemented the "Four Modernizations" and incorporated market economy principles into the command economy to speed growth.

10.8: Tensions: Tradition vs. Modernization

• Key Definitions:
  • Industrialization: Development of technology and manufacturing.
  • Urbanization: Migration from rural areas to cities for jobs.
  • Modernization: Moving toward a "present-day" society.
• Case Studies:
  • Iranian Revolution ($1978-1979$): Rejection of Westernization.
  • Kemal Atatürk: Modernized Turkey ($1919-1938$).

10.9: Globalization and the Changing Global Environment

• Economic Interdependence: Countries depend on each other for labor, resources, and goods through organizations like NAFTA, EU, OPEC, and WTO.
• The Computer Revolution: Rapid information distribution. The Internet widens the gap between the Global North and Global South but aids business connectivity.
• Global Health: Infectious diseases (Ebola, HIV, Malaria) spread faster due to cultural diffusion and interconnectedness.
• Environmental Concerns:
  • Global Warming: Trapping of greenhouse gases; addressed by the $1997$ Kyoto Treaty and Rio Pact.
  • Deforestation: Seen in the Amazon Rainforest to create land for agricultural meat production; cows consume corn/soy requiring $1.2\,\text{gallons}$ of oil-based fertilizer per bushel.
  • Desertification: Turning fertile land to desert (Sahara, Gobi).
  • Green Revolution: Attempt to increase agricultural output via pesticides and GMOs.
• International Terrorism: ISIS, Al-Qaeda, and the Taliban use social media to spread fundamentalist ideas and threaten cyber, chemical, or biological warfare.

10.10: Human Rights Violations and International Justice

• Post-War Trials:
  • Nuremberg Trials: Held Nazi leaders accountable for crimes against humanity.
  • Tokyo Trials: Held Japanese leaders accountable.
• Global Violations:
  • Apartheid ($1948-1991$): South Africa, resisted by Nelson Mandela.
  • Khmer Rouge ($1976-1979$): Pol Pot’s regime in Cambodia.
  • Rwanda ($1994$): Genocide of Tutsis by Hutus.
  • Balkans ($1998$): Slobodan Milosevic in Bosnia/Kosovo.
  • Darfur ($1989-present$): Sudan.
  • Augusto Pinochet ($1973-1998$): Chile; used kidnapping of political opponents.
• Influential Figures for Humanity:
  • Mother Teresa.
  • Aung San Suu Kyi (Myanmar).
  • Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo (Argentina).

Global Regents Exam Strategies and Vocabulary

• Vocabulary Definitions:
  • Audience: The intended group for a document.
  • Bias: A one-sided slant or opinion; the opposite of objectivity.
  • Historical Context: The circumstances leading to an event.
  • Geographic Context: Where/Why an event takes place in a specific location.
  • Turning Point: A major event bringing significant change.
• Document Breakdown Strategy:
  1. Read the question first.
  2. Check the source, author, and title.
  3. Jot down outside information (social studies facts not in the doc).
  4. Read the text or analyze the map/chart.
  5. Answer in a formal response ($3-5$ sentences for CRQs).