Aztecs and Incas

Aztecs

• They were a Mexican empire called the Mexica.

• They arrived in central Mexico in the 1200s

• Polytheistic (believed in multiple Gods).

• The main God they worshipped was the sun God known as Huitzilopochtli. (The God of War and Sun)

• Huitzilopochtli instructed them to depart in search of a permanent home, the location was revealed by the appearance of an eagle perched on a nopal cactus with a serpent in its beak

• Approximately 12 million people across the empire

• Mainly slaves and peasants.

• Aztec women were skilled in crafting, making baskets, and weaving

• Even though they had an empire they didn’t have a government, each area was allowed to run itself.

Incas

• They resided in what is now modern-day Peru, but their empire stretched into Ecuador, Chile, Bolivia, Argentina, and Columbia

• Polytheistic and animistic, centered around worshipping natural elements such as the sun, moon, stars, and mountains.

• Inti, the sun god, held a central place in their pantheon.

• They also conducted ritual sacrifice but used animals and material possessions and humans but not on the same scale.

• The Inca people learned to breed stronger and more resilient versions of crops for farming.

• They learned how to keep soil damp during a drought.

• They were able to develop irrigation canals in 1400’s

• They also learned to keep count of crops using a knot system called Quipu

The downfall of the Aztecs and the Incas

• They both fell to the Spanish conquistadors

• Hernán Cortés defeated the Aztecs in the 16th century

• Francisco Pizarro defeated the Inca in the early 16th century

Developments in Asia

Foot binding

• During the Song Dynasty women’s feet were forcefully bound to keep them from growing too large as big feet were seen as masculine and not feminine.

Religion across Asia

• Across China, the spread of Buddhism was popular.

• Both Confucians and Daoists saw Buddhism to be a drain on the supply of workers and finances as it disregarded the pursuit of material possessions.

• Japan followed Shintoism. (Samurai followed the Code of Bushido)

• Ritual suicide, also known as "seppuku" or "harakiri," is a traditional Japanese practice where a person voluntarily takes their own life as a form of honor or punishment for a grave offense or failure. It involves a highly ritualized process of self-disembowelment, typically performed with a short sword. This practice was prevalent among samurai warriors in feudal Japan.

Delhi Sultanate

• India is the birthplace of 2 major religions: Hinduism and Buddhism.

• The Islamic were highly offended by the Polytheistic nature of Hinduism.

Khmer Empire

• It’s a Hindu Empire

• Located in Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand.

• The temple of Angor Wat.

• They eventually fell to the Mongol empire

Religions of the World

Christianity

• Central Figure: Jesus Christ, believed to be the Son of God and the Savior.

• Beliefs: Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit), salvation through faith in Jesus, resurrection, heaven and hell.

• Sacred Text: The Bible (Old and New Testaments).

• Practices: Baptism, Eucharist (Holy Communion), regular worship services

Islam

• Central Figure: Prophet Muhammad, believed to be the final prophet.

• Beliefs: Monotheism (Allah)

• Five Pillars of Islam (faith, prayer, almsgiving, fasting, pilgrimage), emphasis on submission to God's will.

• Sacred Text: The Quran.

• Practices: Daily prayers (Salat), fasting during Ramadan, pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj).

Hinduism

• Beliefs: Diverse beliefs, karma (actions and consequences), dharma (moral duty), reincarnation, multiple gods and goddesses (polytheism), and pursuit of moksha (liberation).

• Sacred Texts: Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita.

• Practices: Meditation, yoga, rituals, devotion to deities.

Buddhism

• Central Figure: Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha), an enlightened teacher.

• Beliefs: Four Noble Truths (suffering, its cause, cessation, the path to cessation), Eightfold Path (right understanding, intention, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, concentration), no-self (anatta).

• Sacred Texts: Tripitaka (Pali Canon), Mahayana sutras.

• Practices: Meditation, mindfulness, ethical behavior, detachment from desires.

Taoism

• Taoism, also spelled as Daoism, is a philosophical and spiritual tradition that originated in ancient China.

• It is characterized by its emphasis on harmony with the natural order, the concept of "Tao" (or "Dao"), and the pursuit of a balanced and simple way of life.

• Tao (Dao): The Tao is the fundamental principle that underlies and unifies the universe. It is an eternal, unchanging force that cannot be fully defined or described.

• Taoism teaches that aligning oneself with the Tao leads to balance, harmony, and a deeper understanding of life.

• Yin and Yang are complementary forces that represent the dualistic nature of the universe.

• Yin is associated with qualities such as darkness, passivity, and receptivity.

• Yang is associated with qualities like light, activity, and assertiveness.

• The interaction and balance of Yin and Yang are essential for harmony and equilibrium.

Judaism

• Beliefs: Monotheism, covenant between God and the Jewish people, moral and ethical principles, Messiah yet to come.

• Sacred Texts: Torah (first five books of the Hebrew Bible), Talmud.

• Practices: Sabbath observance, kosher dietary laws, synagogue services, rituals like circumcision, and bar/bat mitzvah.

Confucianism

• Confucianism places a strong emphasis on moral principles, personal integrity, and virtuous behavior.

• The teachings encourage individuals to cultivate virtues such as benevolence (ren), righteousness (yi), propriety (li), wisdom (zhi), and fidelity (xin)

• Because Confucianism was an ethical, social, and political belief system, rather than a theological system, it was compatible with other religions. In other words, a person could, for example, practice both Buddhism and Confucianism simultaneously (Polytheistic)

• Filial piety, or respect and obedience to one's parents and elders, is a cornerstone of Confucian ethics.

• It has shaped family values, education systems, and bureaucratic structures in traditional Chinese society.

The Abbasid Dynasty

• Reigned from 750-1258 CE (AD)

• The Abbasids built their capital at Baghdad (modern-day Iraq)

• The Abbasids also preserved a lot of knowledge from Europe and Ancient Greece, which Europeans later re-used to contribute to the Renaissance in Europe in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries.

• Algebra was their major contribution to the world of mathematics.

• Arabic numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, ,7 ,8 ,9 ,0

• Developed the idea to have credit to free them of the danger of carrying money.

• They also developed a system for itemized billing and receipts.

• They contributed to great works of art like “Arabian Nights”

Women’s role in Ancient Society

• Women could attain power in ancient society if there was no male air to the throne.

• Women could attain a certain amount of power in certain societies.

• In ancient Egypt women could buy land and inherit property.

• In ancient Greece and Rome, women’s role were still that of a housemaker and limited, however in Rome they could engage in business unlike in Greece.

• In ancient China they rights changed depending on the ruler and how progressive they were but generally the rolls fluctuated.

• Medusa is an example of women who were unfairly portrayed in history

Hatshepsut

• The first female ruler of Egypt

• She held all the rights of a male pharaoh.

• Although she was a woman, she asked to be depicted as a man in her statues, but still referred to herself as a woman

• Her reign was considered one of the most prosperous of all the pharaoh’s through history.

Islam

• Women could inherit inheritance

• Veiling of women

• Limited freedoms

• Freely educated

• Women separated in harem with concubines.

Europe

• Strict monogamy

• Patriarchal society

• Education limited to upper class men

• Women did household duties

• Illegitimate kids not recognised.

India

• Child Marriages

• Women couldn’t marry out of the caste

• Limited education

• Textile work

• Veiling.

China

• Strict Confucians

• Accessed to dowries

• Could own businesses

• Secluded in harems with concubines

• Foot binding

• Limited education dictated by men.

The mongol empire

The rise and the fall

The rise

• Ambitious young Temüjin, emerged as a charismatic and skilled leader among the Mongols in the early 13th century.

• This ambition is what lead him to become the leader of the nomadic nation and to become later known as Genghis Khan.

• The next great feat he accomplished was to unify the scattered Mongol tribes which lead to the nickname “The Great Khan”.

• He was depicted in battle and as a noble person.

• Genghis Khan becomes the leader of the Khan Army, he introduced great military tactics and new strategy.

• The khan also had an incredible cavalry.

• They quickly conquered northern China.

The fall

• After his death in 1227, the empire struggled to gain a proper successor despite all his descendants.

• Despite its decline, the Mongol Empire's impact on history remains profound.

• It facilitated the exchange of cultures, technologies, and ideas, leaving a lasting imprint on the world.

• The empire's legacy can be seen in the spread of the Silk Road, the rise of the Ming Dynasty in China, and the influence on subsequent empires like the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire.

• The ottoman empire was looking to dethrone them.

Height of the middle ages

The birth of scholasticism

• This is when universities were founded, and people began thinking more openly. 

• The idea of studying philosophy, law and medicine.

• The ideas of Aristotle, Ptolemy and other Greeks were brought to Europe.

The crusades

• Military campaigns undertaken by European Christians from the 11^th to 14^th Century to take over the Holy Land and convert Muslims and other non Christians to Christianity.

• The Church justified its actions as it was for the greater good.

The black death

• Also known as The Bubonic plague

• Started in China and spread through commerce and got to Europe in the 14^th century.

• It spread first in port cities and went inland.

• The overcrowded nature of Europe and poor sanitation meant it spread quickly.

• Within 2 years since the outbreak began 2/3 of Europe’s population was dead.

Trade cities

• Because trade was important to make a living a lot of Urban Centres begin to pop up along the trade routes.

Chinese Advancements

The Song Dynasty

• At the height of the Song Dynasty the Chinese had many advancements that made life more convenient for them.

• One of these was paper money, lines of credit, and having an accounting system.

• This was key in helping the spread of the silk road.

• The Chinese also had an anual steel production capacity of 120,000 tons per year in the years 800-1100 AD, which rivaled the British in the 1700’s

• They also invented a crossbow between 300-500 BC.

• They also invented a seismograph, a device to help determine volcanic and earthquake activity. 

Printing

• They invented what they referred to as a moveable type of writing

• Because of that they were able to start printing books and other forms of literature.

• This meant literacy increased among people in the lower classes and many more in China.

• Because of printing agriculture and technological knowledge could be shared across the nation and help others.

Gunpowder

• The Gunpowder was an invention gone wrong.

• Because alchemy and experimentation was big in China, we got gunpowder.

• It has two uses:

  • As a tool of celebration, this Chinese used it in fireworks to light up the night sky in celebration and to be used in festivals.

  • To use it in weapons and bombs to defeat their enemies.

The compass

• This invention aided to their navigation.

• This meant merchants were easily able to find their way around and not having to rely on maps alone or memory.

• The Chinese merchants use this great invention to help spread the Silk Road.

The silk road

• This is the trade route from Asia to Europe which many travelers used to transport goods.

• Examples of the goods would be; silk, porcelain, tea, spices and even precious stones whereas goods coming from Europe would be; horses, glassware, textiles and other manufactured goods.

• The horses that came through the silk road from Europe contributed to the rise of the Mongol empire.

• The Bubonic Plague or Black Death also followed merchants from Asia to Europe which is why it spread across continents. 

• One of the most famous explorers to travel the silk road was Marco Polo.

The Resistance

Cossack Revolts

• This took place during the 17th and 18th century.

• It took place in modern day Ukraine.

• The Russian empire challenged them for their freedom and ultimately won out in the end.

• The Polish-Lithuanian people fought for their autonomy as they signed a deal with Russia in 1654 to be a part of the extended empire but they were meant to keep their autonomy.

Haitian Slave Rebellion

• Haiti in 1791-1804 had the great slave rebellion whereby they challenged France for independence.

• The working class of people known as a franchise were fed up with the racist class system in Haiti and decided to revolt.

• The Haitian slave rebellion is important because it influenced Napoleon to pull out of North America as he sold Louisiana back to the US.

• The Haitian people won and become the first nation to be founded by slaves.

Maratha

• Took place in India between 1680 and 1707.

• This was the Maratha Kingdom decided to defend itself from the incoming Islamic Mughal Empire

• They beat the enemy from the Mughal and protected their people from anymore religious persecution.

Maroon Societies

• This took place in the Caribbean and Brazil.

• During the 17^th and 18^th centuries the slave-owning societies in America were trying to capture more slaves for their trades.

• However in certain cases people did successfully resist capture and escaped to free areas where slavery is not allowed.

• This was a community of runaway slaves that escaped to countries in the Caribbean and Brazil to avoid being forced into slavery and if they made it out they safely would not be taken back into slavery as these societies protected their people.

Metacom’s War

• This was a war between Native Americans and the British colonists which

• Took place between Rhode Island and Massachusetts, or more specifically in New England.

• Metacom was the son of Massasoit, who was a chief that maintained friendly relations with English settlers, but when his son took over as chief things didn’t go as planned.

• The English traded Indian land for guns, ammo and alcohol.

• Metacom wanted to fight back because the English asked him to surrender the British guns.

• After a long battle whereby approximately 3000 native Americans and 600 British soldiers were killed. 

• Metacom realized the battle could not go on any longer and decided to return home where he was betrayed and killed.

• His head was mounted on a spike for 25 years at Plymoth.

Pueblo Revolts

• Modern day New Mexico during the 1680’s.

• The Spanish colonizers were overthrown after 12 years by the Pueblo Indians.

• The colonizers tried them in Spanish courts and often punished by dismemberment or whipping or even lifetime slavery.

• The forced Catholicism on them by burning their religious items and ceremonial pits.

• They eventually overthrew and forcing Spaniards to flee and leaving 400 dead, 21 of which were priests

• They also destroyed Churches and annulling Christian marriages.

• They wanted to wash off the stains of baptism however Spain reconquered New Mexico 10 years later.

Major European Developments

The Byzantine and Islamic Empires

• They contributed a lot the developments in Europe because they save a lot of culture from the Greeks and Romans.

• This contributed to distinct periods in Europe, which were; Renaissance, Protestant Reformation, Scientific Revolution, and the Enlightenment.

The Renaissance

• This means Re-Birth, after the black death affected Europe and the failing colonies in the Americas.

• Due to trade, Europe now had an influx of money.

• So they focused on building art and culture.

• Art also changed they were more realistic and more proportionate.

• Great artists: Michaelangelo, Leonardo Da Vinci, Donatello, Brunelleschi.

The Printing Press

• It was invented in the 1400’s

• Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press.

• This press made printing of books much more easier and more people could afford books.

• The middle class could now afford them.

• This increased the demand for books.

The Protestant Reformation

• This was a religious reform led by Martin Luther and John Calvin, to reform corrupt practices within the church.

• The one practices they opposed was the selling of indulgences.

• Martin Luther opposed the idea of indulgences, he stated that forgiveness could be only be given by God and not the Church.

• He also stated the bible should printed in the language of the disciples and not in Latin so that people could interpret the bible for themselves.

The Scientific Revolution

• Nicolaus Copernicus stated the earth was not the centre of the universe and people didn’t really believe it

• Until Galileo discovered the moons of Jupiter.

• The scientific method was born

• The Church started to lose followers because of the ideas of Copernicus and Galileo, which was proved it took more than a century for it to be widely used.

• Sir Issac Newton took it further by developing calculus to prove the theories of these scientist and discovered gravity.

• Due to the newfound innovations in science some people became atheist and no longer believed in God or some changed to Deism. (They believe God plays a passive role in life)

The Spanish and Portuguese

• The Spanish tried expanding its empire through the New World Conquest.

• The Spanish were looking for new trade route because the British and Dutch controlled the trade routes around the African coast.

• The Portuguese didn’t have much territory but had some colonies in Africa.

• Spain was powerful but was on the decline due to the size of its fleet and empire.

Russia

• Ivan the III or Ivan the great rules Moscow from 1462 to 1505.

• His most notably achievement was getting rid of the Mongols in Russia in 1480 he refused to pay tribute to the Mongols which led to the a bloodless fight whereby the Mongols retreated.

• He was succeeded by his grandson Ivan IV

Ivan the Terrible

• This was the grandson of Ivan the great.

• He was a brutal ruler and executed anyone who threatened his reign. Including his own son. (Executed in 1580)

• While he did expand the Russian boarders he left a mixed reaction.

• Russia used to include Ukraine, Serbia and many other countries.

• After Ivan the Terrible ended his reign, there were problems finding successors.

• Until the election of Mikhail Romanov as Tsar of Russia in 1613.

• The Romanov dynasty gave birth to great leaders such as Catherine the Great, Peter the Great and Alexander the II.

• The rule continued until Tsar Nicholas II in 1917 when him and his family were executed during the Russian Revolution.

Peter the Great

• Ruled from 1682 to 1725, he really bought Russia into the new age he developed their first navy and founded St. Petersburg which was close to the Baltic Sea giving them access to the West.

• He went in to Western Europe and brought back knowledge of new technology and new science and even new art, he recruited Western European scientists to modernize Russia.

• Noble started to dress different under his rule and men had to shave their beards.

• He changed Russia and brought up to modern standards.

Catherine the Great

• She rose to power after overthrowing her husband and claimed the throne.

• She was a very enlightening person and supported the works of Voltaire and wanted cultural and educational reform.

• Russia’s expansion continued under her into Poland and onward towards the black sea.

• She was a tough ruler

The British Monarch

Elizabeth the 1st

• Known as the “Virgin Queen” she never married and she, was crowned at the age of 25 which saw the Elizabethan Era.

• This gave rise to great expansion of the colonies and great cultural advancements.

• Her reign gave rise to great playwrights such as Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, Ben Jonson and more

• She has praised for her intelligence and political acumen.

James I

• James the second ruler of England after the death of Queen Elizabeth I, his most notable achievement was the political union of England and Scotland.

• James the first also continued to support the great playwrights from the Elizabethan Age.

• Other than unifying England and Scotland, James I reign was somewhat unremarkable.

• The most famous historic event from his reign was the Gunpowder plot where a group of Catholics try to blow up the house of parliament to end the protestant rule of England.

Charles I

• Charles the first believed that his power should not be limited by parliament.

• The King agreed with parliament to sign a law called “Petition to Right” which meant no unlawful tax or unfair imprisonment.

• After he gathered enough money from parliament he did what he wanted. (He didn’t call another meeting or parliament for 11 years)

• When Scotland invaded England, he called a meeting that was known as the long parliament which sat from 1640 to 1660, whereby the decided to limit the powers of the monarch.

• Charles I reign didn’t end well, as after he requested funds to fight and Irish rebellion was denied, he arrested members of parliament and civil war ensued.

• Oliver Cromwell defeated Charles’s forces, arrested him, tried him for treason, and he was beheaded, this was the only King to be executed.

• Oliver Cromwell took charge of England as Lord Protector and ruled but he was not liked among the Protestants as he encouraged them to leave England and go to Northern Ireland.

James II

• James II took the throne after his brother Charles II died.

• James II like his predecessors believed his powers should not be limited by parliament eventually fled to France because he believed he would face resistance from the mainly protestant country and he was a roman catholic.

• After he fled, the English Bill of Rights was founded in 1689 which limited the monarch’s power.

France

• Louis XIV was four years old when he was crowned however his mother would rule until adulthood.

• The Palace of Versailles was built for the “Sun King” which is what he referred to himself as.

• His reign was 1643 to 1715.

• He appointed Jean Baptiste Colbert to manage royal funds.

• The minister wanted to grow France by expanding its empire and that meant they were almost constantly at war.

• France was extremely powerful and for it to maintain the King’s lifestyle the minister also increased taxes and needed to expand the empire.

The new world

Hernando Cortes and the Aztecs

• In 1519 Hernando Cortes landed in Mexico and found the Aztecs and discovered wealth here.

• Due to violent nature of the Aztecs that were always gathering people for human sacrifice, when Cortes arrived and wanted to defeat them many neighboring states joined them or were killed by the Spanish.

• The Aztec leader Montezuma sent the Spanish a gift of gold to please the newcomers, however this only fueled their ambition.

• It meant that the Aztec did have what the Spanish were looking for.

• Cortes decided to siege the capital of Tenochtitlan (Mexico City) on horses which they had never seen before.

• Cortes did eventually defeat and overthrow the Aztecs.

• A weapon they had was disease, they brought smallpox with them which decimated the population along with their advanced weapons and assistance from their enemies.

• It is estimated that the Aztec population was well over 19 million people, almost 20 million.

• This was reduced to roughly 2 million people from 1520 to 1580.

• The Spanish took control of the capital city in 1525, they arrived in 1519.

Francisco Pizarro and the Incas

• In 1531, Francisco Pizarro arrived to the Inca kingdom

• Once again with the same tactics of Cortes, Pizarro used their enemies and advanced weapons plus disease to help annihilate that entire population

• By 1535 he was in control of the region.

• Pizarro did however, benefit from a civil war that shook the last leader of the Inca just before his arrival

The Encomienda System

• Once Spain had the control they wanted in the New World, they established a hierarchy.

• At the top were Peninsulares, who were sent to govern colonies.

• After them were Creoles people born in the colonies to Spanish parents, however they were barred from high positions because they weren’t seen as pure, but they were well educated and rich.

• Next were Mestizos who were half European and half Native American.

• Then they were Mulattos people with European and African ancestry.

• Lastly were Native Americans, they had no freedom and worked on estates or in mines as slave labor.

• The Viceroys who ran the empires of New Spain, gave the peninsulares their land and workers, however this eventually lead to the African slave trade.

• Because Christian missionaries saw that these forced laborers were being mistreated, they appealed to the Church to improve the native’s conditions.

• They succeeded but, this meant they agreed they needed more labour for the harder work.

• Therefore, they brought in new slaves from Africa.

Expanding the New World

• In 1497, Vasco Da Gama was the first to sail around the Cape of Good Hope and went to India.

• Although earlier in 1492, Columbus proposed sailing west to get east, no one knew how big the world was, even though we had discovered it was round, we could not conceive of its size as yet, so this how Columbus found what is know as the West Indies and Cuba and with that came the exploration of America.

• In 1494, the Treaty of Tordesillas was drawn up so that Spain and Portugal could stop fighting over who could have what.

• The treaty stated that on the longitudinal line that everything on the east was Portugal and everything on the west would be Spain.

European explorers

• Amerigo Vespucci – Explores South America in 1500 and realized it was bigger than he expected and also was not apart of Asia.

• Ponce de Leon – 1513 explored Florida for the fountain of youth.

• Vasco de Balboa – 1513 explored much of Central American for Spain.

• Ferdinand Magellan – 1519 Sailed around the tip of South America to the Pacific Ocean for Portugal, but died just after the Philippines and his crew finished the voyage to become the first to circumnavigate the globe.

• Giovanni da Verrazano – 1524 Explored North America for France.

• Sir Francis Drake – 1578 Became the first Englishmen to circumnavigate the globe.

• John Cabot – 1497, Explored North America for England.

• Henry Hudson – In 1609 he explored the sea looking for a trade route for the Dutch through the Northwest passage

New innovations

• The Sternpost Rudder – developed by the Han Dynasty. Helped with better direction change.

• Lateen Sails – These sails could face any direction and helped sail any way regardless of the wind.

• The Astrolabe – This was what you can consider to be a compass but instead of pointing North or South it would show the celestial bodies such as the sun and the stars which was developed in ancient Greece to help with navigation.

• The Magnetic Compass – This was developed by the ancient Chinese who helped people navigate without needing landmarks.

• Three-Masted Caravels – Essentially these were just larger storage facilities allowing people to take more provisions with them for longer journeys so that they could sail much further.