Exam Notes

Primary vs. Secondary Sources

• Primary Source: First-hand account (autobiography, letter, interview).
• Secondary Source: Generated from primary sources (textbook, biography).

Feudalism

• Political/Social System in Feudal Europe.
• King grants land in exchange for services and protection.
• Serfs bound to land; peasants are not.

Manorialism

• Economic System in Feudalism where land is wealth.
• Bartering/trading occurs on manors run by nobles; peasants/serfs work the land.
• Decline: growth in trade, establishment of cities, and markets.

Crusades

• Wars for Christians to regain the "holy land" from Muslims.
• Motivations: religious duty, salvation, seeing the world.

Commercial Revolution

• Transition from Manorialism to Commercialism (trade cities, guilds).

Christendom

• Europe under Christian ideals.

Charlemagne

• Crowned King and Emperor (Holy Roman Emperor).
• Crowned by the Pope, showing the Roman Catholic Church's influence.

Bubonic Plague

• Spread through trade via infected rats on ships.

Christianity and Islam

• Similar: Both are monotheistic.

5 Pillars of Islam

• Declaration of Faith
• Obligatory Prayer (5 times towards Mecca)
• Almsgiving
• Fasting during Ramadan
• Pilgrimage to Mecca

Caravanserai

• Resting place for merchants/traders along the Silk Road.

End of Islamic Golden Age

• Mongols ended it by destroying Baghdad and the House of Wisdom.
• Mongols failed to take Japan due to a storm.

Song Dynasty Advancement

• Citizens would study classic texts and take civil service exams.

Foot Binding

• Practiced in Song Dynasty starting at age 5-6.
• Indicated social status.
• Led to economic hardships and inequalities for women.