The Ottoman empire held territory mostly in Europe, and Asia. They had Byzantine, Constantinople, and control in the Mediterranean and Black seas. They expanded further into Europe, and within their territories, they created a cultural renaissance and revival of religions in these areas. 

The Safavid empire was located in modern day Iran, with territory in Europe and Asia alongside the territories of the ottomans. They were within such close proximity with other cultures and empires, so it quickly led to cultural diffusion and wars. It also led to the Safavids having easy access to tools, resources, and war techniques. 

The Mughals were based in the Indian sub-continents and Central Asia. They were the only empire in this land, so it led to coastal trade, and land development with how much land they already held. 

The Ming dynasty was located in China's capital, Beijing. They were a Mongol empire, but over time they began to wipe out all traces of the old Mongol empire by execution and isolation. Nobody was allowed in or out of the entire empire’s land. 

All 4 empires relied on gunpowder to expand their empire using cannons and guns to take new territories and to overthrow existing territories. There were trained officials, and a military, all with access to heavy duty arms used for expansion and to consolidate their leader’s power. 

The ottoman takeover of the territory Constantinople was connected to the world through its access to trade networks, religious acces, and cultural revival. It was significant because it led to unmonitored expansion into Europe for the Ottomans in their time period through gunpowder and religion. 

There were strong political and religious rivalries within the gunpowder empires, specifically between the Ottomans, the Safavids, and the Mughals. The ottoman empire were sunni muslims, the safavids were shi’a muslims, and the mughals were islamic. The sunni muslims were focused on the development and conversion within their religion, while the Shia believed the conversion was a religious crime. 

Empires used various forms of recruitment for the government and the military through janissaries, slavery, and taxing. Children were forcefully taken into the military or to protect the sultan in the ottoman empire. In the safavids and the mughal, they used slavery within religious minorities, and taxing to pull in military men to control their populations. 

Rulers used artwork and architecture to consolidate their power by creating portraits to display their power through execution and other forms of control of people both in their community and out. It showed what happened after wars, their control over their people, and their ways sof population control within their empire. 

Rulers used the church and other religious minorities to collect taxes for both the betterment of themselves and the betterment of the empire. They used the millet system, the Citizen taxes, and the Jiaza tax that were all targeting the churches and those practicing religions. 

There was a strong sense of religious tolerance in all four empires. They were both tolerant and against the different religions at the same time. They were open, and allowed to practice their religions, but they also had to pay taxes in order to be left alone and allowed to continue practicing, and to not be discriminated against within their community. 

The ottoman and safavid empires were in a constant war with each other based on their religious beliefs. They were both mainly Islamic, but were split into the sunnis and the shia. The ottomans were focused on conversion and practiced the sunni denomination of Islam, and the safavids were focused on development within themselves, and believed that conversion was a crime. They were heavily against each other, and this led to a further split in both the religions, and the empires 

Hinduism and islam were both very active in south asia through the practices and the intellectual development of the followers. While they were close to each other, they were not very against each other. They had their differences and disputes, but Hinduism and islam remained relatively peaceful in South Asia in this time period.

Confucianism was a heavy influence on the rest of China and its neighboring regions through its success and development of china. Confucianism led to a strong government, and a strong sense of community. It developed social and economical classes, and brought people together. It was based on community and respect, which spread into Japan and vietnam. 

Song China used champa rice, the mandate of heaven, and trade networks such as the silk roads to trade worldwide for goods they couldn't get access to in their areas of the world, and make some money while spreading their culture at the same time. 

The Abbasid Caliphate fell due to large power struggles, and some serious unorganization within their government and the military.there was a mongol army led by Turks and that is how they gained power over the Abbasid caliphate and won territorial disputes under the mongols. 

Muslim states and empires encouraged intellectual innovations like huge trading boats, champa rice, and different government developments.  They encouraged transfer such as trading, and other agricultural developments. 

Interregional contacts encouraged technological and cultural developments and transfers under Zheng He such as other Europeans, India, and even within China such as trade, medicine, and other technologies began to develop and spread into Zheng He’s empire. 

The significance of the trans saharan trade route was bringing trade into the mediterranean, launching the renaissance, and led to a strong development of the modern world and its technologies. 

Trade led to the diffusion of champa rice, fast growing crops, and diseases together. The diseases were spread through both the people, and the crops themselves. People would eat these crops and interact with the people and get severe diseases such as the bubonic plague and the black death. These diseases wiped out over half of the communities they made their ways into.