AP World History: Modern Review Flashcards

Unit 1: The Global Tapestry ($1200-1450$)

• Overview of the Unit     * Exam Weighting: $8-10\%$ of the AP World History Exam.     * The Global Tapestry serves as a starting line for the course, checking in with major global regions circa $1200$.     * It focuses on six specific sections of the globe: East Asia, Dar al-Islam, South/Southeast Asia, the Americas, Africa, and Europe.

1.1: East Asia

• Essential Question: How did developments in China and the rest of Asia between $1200-1450$ reflect continuity, innovation, and diversity?
• Regional Overview:     * The period is dominated by the Mongol Invasions. Mongols attacked the Western Xia in $1205$.     * Historically, East Asia is defined by Chinese influence, but this period specifically covers the "Fall and Rise" of China and the responses of Korea, Japan, and Vietnam.
• 10 Terms to Know:     1. Neo-Confucianism: A Chinese philosophy combining rational thought with abstract Daoist and Buddhist ideas. It focuses primarily on ethics rather than the mysteries of God and nature.     2. Champa Rice: A fast-ripening and drought-resistant rice strain from the Champa kingdom in Vietnam. It significantly expanded agricultural production in China.     3. Song Dynasty: Replaced the Tang in $960$ and ruled for over three centuries until $1279$.     4. Khanates: States ruled by a khan; refers to the four units into which Chinggis (Genghis) Khan divided the Mongol Empire.     5. Pax Mongolica: Term meaning "Mongolian Peace," describing the era's impact on Eurasian history during the $1200-1300$ centuries.     6. Sinification: The assimilation of Chinese traditions and practices into the cultures of Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.     7. Shogunate: The title held by military dictators in Japan from $1185$ to $1868$.     8. Shinto: The official religion of Japan, centered on the veneration of nature spirits and ancestors. It eventually coexisted with Buddhism.     9. Bushido: The Japanese code of conduct for warriors, similar to European Chivalry, emphasizing frugality, loyalty, martial arts, and honor unto death.     10. Goryeo: A Korean state that existed from $918$ until $1394$.
• People to Know:     * Minamoto Yoritomo: The first Shogun of Japan.     * Genghis Khan: Founder of the Mongol Empire.     * Kublai Khan: Grandson of Genghis Khan and founder of the Yuan Dynasty in China.     * Marco Polo: Italian traveler who visited the Yuan court.     * Ibn Battuta: Moroccan Islamic traveler.     * Zheng He: Chinese Islamic navigator who led massive maritime expeditions.
• Main Takeaways (TL;DR):     * $1200$ finds East Asia in transition: China divided into three (Xia, Jin, Song), Japan united under the Kamakura Shogunate, and Korea ruled by the stable Goryeo.     * Mongol invasions and Khanate rule were universal challenges for the region.     * Japan's Shogunate rule established in this period would persist until the mid-$1800s$.     * Trade was central, represented by the Silk Road and Zheng He's voyages, though China turned to isolation by $1450$.     * Dominant beliefs included Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism (plus Shinto in Japan).

1.2: Dar al-Islam ("House of Islam")

• Essential Question: In the period of $1200-1450$, how did Islamic states arise, and how did major religious systems shape society?
• Regional Overview:     * The era of the great Caliphates is ending; the Abbasids fractured into groups often dominated by the Turks.     * "Dar al-Islam" refers to regions where Islam is a dominant force.     * Rising powers include the Ottomans, Seljuk Turks, and Mamluks.     * The Mongols were perceived as a potential end to the Islamic world, resulting in the establishment of the Ilkhanate ($13th$ century).     * Despite political fracture, the region remained at the global forefront of science, medicine, and culture.
• People to Know:     * Rumi: Persian Sufi mystic and poet.     * A'lsah Bint Yusuf Al-Bauniyyah: Female Sufi writer and poet.     * Ibn Sina: Known as the Father of Modern Medicine.     * Ibn Battuta: Extensive Moroccan traveler.     * Ibn Khaldun: Arab historian and philosopher.     * Nasir Al-Din Tusi: Creator of Trigonometry.     * Al Razi: Persian polymath and doctor.
• 10 Terms to Know:     1. Trans-Saharan Trade: Trading network spanning the Sahara Desert.     2. Caravanserai: Roadside inns for travelers to rest themselves and their animals.     3. Sufism: The mystical branch of Islam focused on a personal connection with Allah.     4. Diaspora: Originally used for the Jewish migration after the fall of Jerusalem in the $6th$ century B.C.E.     5. Qu'ran: Revealed by Gabriel to Muhammad in Mecca and Medina between $610$ and $632$ CE.     6. Sunni vs. Shi'a Islam: A dispute over succession. Shi'a believe leaders must be descendants of Muhammad; Sunni believe the wisest member of the strongest tribe should lead.     7. Caliphate: Political and religious successor states to Muhammad.     8. Sultanate: Rule by a Sultan who claims political territory but not religious headship (analogous to Kings vs. Popes).     9. House of Wisdom: Abbasid intellectual center and library in Baghdad during the Islamic Golden Age.     10. Seljuk Turks: Central Asian Turkish speakers who built an empire in the $11th$ and $12th$ centuries.
• Main Takeaways (TL;DR):     * By $1200$, the Golden Age of Caliphates had ended, fracturing into smaller sultanates.     * The rise of the Ilkhanate under the Mongols was a major disruption.     * The center of Islamic influence shifted away from Baghdad/Mecca/Medina toward Cairo and eventually Istanbul ($1453$).     * The Islamic world shared the title of the world's "brains" with China, leading in innovation despite political disarray.     * The geographic peak of Islamic expansion was mostly reached by $1450$.

1.3: South and Southeast Asia

• Essential Question: How did various beliefs and practices in South and Southeast Asia affect society and the development of states?
• Regional Overview:     * This region is a crossroad for interactions between Islam, Mongols, and trade.     * Rich history of Syncretism (blending of beliefs).     * Area of significant focus for later European powers (Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, etc.).
• 10 Terms to Know:     1. Sultanate: A territory ruled by a Sultan (secular/military leader).     2. Urdu: A literary language influenced by Persian, written in Arabic characters, and based on Hindi.     3. Zheng He: Chinese Admiral presiding over Indian Ocean trade.     4. Angkor Wat: Massive temple complex in Cambodia; started as Hindu in the $12th$ century and transitioned to Buddhist.     5. Tamerlane: Turco-Mongol conqueror who modeled his empire after Genghis Khan.     6. Maharaja: Sanskrit for "great ruler" or high king.     7. Qilin: A legendary hooved creature from Chinese mythology.     8. Battle of Bach Dang: Vietnamese victory against Mongol campaigns.     9. Khmer Empire: Powerful state in Southeast Asia existing from $802$ CE to $1431$ CE.     10. Bhakti Movement: Hindism focus on emotional/personal relationship with God, rejecting formal rituals.
• Main Takeaways (TL;DR):     * The region is defined by the convergence of Islam, Hindism, and Buddhism.     * Uniquely, several areas in South/Southeast Asia defended successfully against the Mongols.     * The Delhi Sultanate established Muslim rule over a Hindu majority in India.     * Major global travelers visited this crossroad (Polo, Battuta, Zheng He).     * Vasco da Gama's arrival in $1498$ signaled the end of long-term independence for the region.

1.4: Americas

• Essential Question: What states developed in the Americas, and how did they change over time?
• Regional Overview:     * The Americas existed in isolation from the Afro-Eurasian networks prior to $1492$.     * Civilizations in this unit are pre-Spanish contact and pre-Smallpox.
• 10 Terms to Know:     1. Aztlan: Ancestral home of the Aztec people.     2. Mexica: Seminomadic people who established Tenochtitlan on Lake Texcoco by $1325$.     3. Tenochtitlan: Capital of the Aztec Empire with $150,000-200,000$ people.     4. Chinampas: Artificial islands in freshwater lakes used for agriculture ("floating gardens").     5. Cahokia: Largest city north of Mexico before Columbus.     6. Tawantinsuyu: The Incan Empire ("Realm of the Four Parts"), spanning Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina.     7. Chasquis: Messengers of the Incan Empire.     8. Quipu: "Talking knots" used by the Inca for record-keeping.     9. Mit'a: Mandatory public service system in the Incan Empire (not the same as the Spanish forced labor system).     10. Pueblos: Stone, adobe, and wood settlements in the American Southwest.
• Main Takeaways (TL;DR):     * Focus remains solely on indigenous societies: Mayans, Aztecs, and Incas (plus Pueblo builders and Cahokia).     * Tenochtitlan is highlighted for its impressive scale and infrastructure.     * Incas utilized Quipu for records, while Mayans had a script; writing was generally rare.     * Polynesians conducted massive maritime migrations, reaching the Americas from the South Pacific.

1.5: Africa

• Essential Question: How and why did states develop in Africa and change over time?
• Regional Overview:     * Sub-Saharan Africa was linked to the world via Trans-Saharan trade (Ghana, Mali, Hausa).     * Southern Africa linked to global networks via Indian Ocean trade (Swahili Coast).     * Europeans (Portuguese under Prince Henry) began exploring the West Coast between $1415-1460$.
• 10 Terms to Know:     1. Trans-Saharan Trade: Trade routes across the Sahara.     2. Caravanserai: Roadside inns.     3. Great Zimbabwe: Ancient stone city ruins in modern-day Zimbabwe.     4. Sundiata: Founder of the Mali Empire.     5. Timbuktu: Major center of Islamic scholarship.     6. Ethiopia: A prominent Christian kingdom in East Africa.     7. Swahili: Language and culture blending Bantu and Arabic.     8. Berbers: Nomadic people who crossed the desert with camels.     9. Bantu Migrations: Spread of Bantu speakers from southern Nigeria/Cameroon across Africa.     10. Hausa Kingdoms: States established between the Niger River and Lake Chad.
• People to Know:     * Sundiata Keita: Founder of Mali.     * Mansa Musa: Extremely wealthy ruler of Mali known for his pilgrimage to Mecca.
• Main Takeaways (TL;DR):     * Africa joined global networks through Trans-Saharan and Indian Ocean routes.     * Islam was dominant except in Christian Ethiopia.     * The Mali Empire is the key state to know for this period.     * The Swahili Coast connected Africa to India, Southeast Asia, and China.

1.6: Europe

• Essential Question: How did the beliefs and practices of predominant religions, agricultural practices, and political decentralization affect European society from $1200-1450$?
• Regional Overview:     * Europe is in the Post-Classical/Medieval period ("Dark Ages").     * Characterized by feudalism, knights, and castles.     * Intellectual center of the region was Cordoba (Spain), not Paris/London.
• 10 Terms to Know:     1. Feudalism: Land ownership by monarchs who grant fiefs to nobles for loyalty and military service.     2. Serfdom: Tenant farmers bound to land.     3. Hanseatic League: Northern European trade confederation ($1358-1800$).     4. Magna Carta: $1215$ document limiting monarchal power in England.     5. Crusades: Military campaigns ($11th-14th$ centuries) to retake the Holy Land.     6. Black Death: Plague killing $1/4$ to $1/2$ of the population.     7. Little Ice Age: Global cooling from approx $1300$ to $1850$.     8. Byzantine Empire: Lasted until the Ottoman conquest in $1453$.     9. Kievan Rus: Early Eastern Orthodox city-state in modern Ukraine.     10. 100 Years War: Conflict between French and English houses for control of France.
• Main Takeaways (TL;DR):     * Europe is characterized by the Feudal System.     * Trade with outside regions was limited (primarily via Venetians).     * The period was defined by the Mongol Invasions, Black Death, Crusades, and the 100 Years War.

1.7: Comparison in the Period $1200-1450$

• Four Types of State-Building:     1. Emergence of New States: Mamluk Empire (formerly Abbasid), Seljuk Empire (formerly Abbasid), Delhi Sultanate (formerly Gupta).     2. Revival of Former Empires: Song Dynasty (based on Han), Mali (based on Ghana), Holy Roman Empire (based on Roman).     3. Synthesis of Different Traditions: Delhi Sultanate (Islam/Hindu), Neo-Confucianism, Japan (Chinese/Japanese).     4. Expansion in Scope: Aztecs (Mesoamerica), Incas (South America), Swahili city-states (East Africa).

Unit 2: Networks of Exchange ($1200-2450$)

• Exam Weighting: $8-10\%$ of the AP Exam.
• Timeline of Key Events:     * $1235$: Sundiata establishes the Mali Empire.     * $1258$: Mongols conquer Abbasid Caliphate.     * $1324$: Mansa Musa's pilgrimage.     * $1325$: Ibn Battuta starts his travels.     * $1347$: Black Death reaches Europe.     * $1405$: Zheng He begins voyages.     * $1440$: Death of Margery Kempe.

2.1: The Silk Roads

• Origin: Started with the Han Dynasty seeking allies against the Xiongnu.
• Key Concepts:     * Samarkand and Kashgar were vital stopping points and centers of scholarship.     * Banking Houses: Issued bills of exchange.     * Pax Mongolica: Facilitated safe trade across Eurasia.
• Main Takeaways (TL;DR):     * Not a single road, but a network.     * Carried goods, religion, technology, and diseases.

2.2: Mongol Empire

• Overview: Largest contiguous empire in history.
• Key Terms:     * Temujin: Genghis Khan's birth name.     * Steppe: Dry grassy plains where Mongol lifestyle originated.     * Yam System: Rapid postal/messenger system.     * Yassa: Oral law code of the Mongols.     * Torogene Khatun: Great Khatun and regent between Ogedei and Guyuk.
• Main Takeaways (TL;DR):     * United Steppe tribes to plunder surrounding societies.     * Created a unified area where ideas and diseases spread easily.

2.3: Exchange in the Indian Ocean

• Overview: Handled higher volume trade than Silk Roads; focused on "bulky" everyday items (textiles, lumber).
• Innovations:     * Dhows/Junks: Improved ships.     * Lateen Sails: Triangular sails.     * Astrolabe/Compass: Navigational tools.
• Main Takeaways (TL;DR):     * The network Columbus and other Europeans tried to reach later.     * Mostly peaceful exchange for millennia.

2.4: Trans-Saharan Trade Routes

• Overview: Linked Sub-Saharan Africa to Dar al-Islam.
• Goods: Salt, Gold, and Slaves.
• Key Entity: Mamluk Sultanate (defeated Mongols, failed to adapt to guns).

2.5: Cultural Consequences of Connectivity

• Key Concept: Syncretism (e.g., Islam in Mecca vs. Timbuktu).
• Key People: Ibn Battuta and Marco Polo (prolific travelers/writers); Margery Kempe (religious pilgrim/first English autobiography).

2.6: Environmental Consequences of Connectivity

• Food Diffusion: Champa Rice (Vietnam to China), Bananas/Citrus (SE Asia to Afro-Eurasia via Islamic trade).
• Disease: Black Death (Yersinia Pestis) spread rapidly via trade routes.

Unit 3: Land-Based Empires ($1450-1750$)

• Exam Weighting: $12-15\%$ of the AP Exam.
• Timeline:     * $1453$: Fall of Constantinople.     * $1521$: Pope excommunicates Martin Luther.     * $1526$: Babur founds Mughal Empire.     * $1644$: Manchu invade China (Qing Dynasty).
• Land-Based Empires and Demise Dates:     * Mughals: $1857$     * Tokugawa: $1868$     * Manchu/Qing: $1911$     * Ottomans: $1919$

3.1 & 3.2: Empire Administrations and Expansion

• Methods of Rule:     * Ottoman Empire: Used Devshirme system (Christian boys taken to serve as Janissaries) and Tax Farming.     * Safavid Empire: Used Shi'a Islam to justify rule; constant conflict with Sunni Ottomans (Battle of Chaldiran, $1514$).     * Mughal Empire: Rule of a Muslim minority over a Hindu majority; utilized Zamindars (tax collectors).     * Qing Dynasty (Manchu): Final Chinese dynasty; established a Dyarchy (ruling with the Han) and required the Queue hairstyle as submission.     * Russian Empire: Ivan III (The Great) kicked out the Mongols; Peter the Great modernized/Westernized Russia and built St. Petersburg.
• Legitimization through Architecture:     * Versailles (France), Taj Mahal (Mughal), St. Basil's (Russia).

3.3: Belief Systems

• Schisms:     * Christianity: Catholic vs. Orthodox ($1054$), Catholic vs. Protestant ($1517$).     * Islam: Sunni vs. Shi'a ($632$).
• New Religions: Sikhism (founded by Guru Nanak in the $16th$ century; elements of Hinduism/Islam).

Unit 4: Transoceanic Interconnections ($1450-1750$)

• Exam Weighting: $12-15\%$ of the AP Exam.
• 4.1: Technological Innovations:     * Ship Types:         * Carrack: $150$ feet, trade-focused (Portuguese).         * Caravel: $75$ feet, fast long voyages (Portuguese/Spanish).         * Fluyt: $80$ feet, cargo-focused, light crew (Dutch).
• 4.2 & 4.3: Exploration and The Columbian Exchange:     * Treaty of Tordesillas ($1494$): Divided the new world between Spain and Portugal.     * The Exchange: Old World sent diseases (Smallpox) and livestock (Cattle, Pigs, Horses) to Americas. New World sent calorically dense food (Maize, Potatoes, Tomatoes) to Afro-Eurasia.
• 4.4: Maritime Empires:     1. Portuguese: Trading Post Empire; dominated Brazil and slave trade.     2. Spanish: Conquered Aztecs/Incas; extracted silver; established Castas (racial hierarchy: Peninsulares, Creoles, Mestizos, Mulattoes).     3. British: Successful via the British East India Company; established 13 colonies.     4. Dutch: Dominated via the VOC (most successful business history); focused on Indonesia (Spice Islands).     5. French: Focused on Canada and parts of India.
• 4.6: Challenges to Power:     * Internal: Cossack rebellions (Russia), Maratha (India), Maroon wars (Jamaica).     * External: Resistance in Ndongo (Queen Nzinga).
• 4.7: Coerced Labor:     * Chattel Slavery: Humans as property.     * Indentured Servitude: Contract-based labor ($1/2$ of European immigrants to US pre-$1776$).     * Encomienda: Spanish crown-granted labor of natives.

Unit 5: Revolutions ($1750-1900$)

• Exam Weighting: $12-15\%$ of the AP Exam.
• 5.1: The Enlightenment:     * Key Philosophers: Hobbes (Leviathan/Strong gov), Locke (Natural Rights: Life, Liberty, Property), Montesquieu (Separation of Powers), Rousseau (Social Contract).
• 5.2: Political Revolutions:     * Order: American ($1776$), French ($1789$), Haitian ($1791/1801$), Latin American ($1810-1825$).     * Key Figures: Toussaint L'Ouverture (Haiti), Simon Bolivar (Latin America), Robespierre (France).
• 5.3-5.5: Industrial Revolution:     * Began in Great Britain due to coal, iron, capital, and river networks.     * First Industrial Revolution: Textiles, Steam Power.     * Second Industrial Revolution: Steel, Chemicals, Electricity, Precision Machinery.
• 5.6-5.8: Responses to Industrialization:     * Meiji Restoration (Japan): State-sponsored rapid industrialization (successful).     * Tanzimat Reforms (Ottoman) and Self-Strengthening (China): Failed or limited success.     * Karl Marx: Published Communist Manifesto, calling for workers (Proletariat) to seize Means of Production.

Unit 6: Consequences of Industrialization ($1750-1900$)

• Exam Weighting: $12-15\%$ of the AP Exam.
• 6.1: Rationale for Imperialism:     * Social Darwinism, White Man's Burden, Missionaries.
• 6.2: State Expansion:     * Berlin Conference ($1884$): Divided Africa among Europeans.     * Congo Free State: Brutally ruled by King Leopold II of Belgium.
• 6.3: Indigenous Responses:     * Ghost Dance (US), Xhosa Cattle Killing (South Africa), Sepoy Mutiny (India, $1857$).
• 6.4-6.5: Economic Imperialism:     * Extraction of raw materials: Rubber (Congo/Amazon), Guano (Peru), Palm Oil (West Africa).     * Opium Wars: Britain forced China to trade opium for silver.
• 6.6-6.7: Migration:     * Push Factors: Irish Potato Famine, Taiping Rebellion.     * Pull Factors: Jobs in Americas/Australia.     * Responses: Chinese Exclusion Act ($1882$), White Australia Policy.

Unit 7: Global Conflict ($1900-Present$)

• Exam Weighting: $8-10\%$ of the AP Exam.
• 7.1: Shifting Power:     * Mexican Revolution ($1910$), Russian Revolution ($1917$), Fall of Qing ($1911$).
• 7.2-7.3: World War I:     * Causes (MAIN): Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, Nationalism.     * Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand ($June 28, 1914$).     * Total War: Mobilization of colonies and home fronts.
• 7.4: Interwar Economy:     * Great Depression ($1929-1939$).     * Stalin's $5$-Year Plans; FDR's New Deal.
• 7.6-7.7: World War II:     * Causes: Appeasement, Nazis, Japan invading China ($1937$).     * New Tech: Firebombing, Atomic Bombs.
• 7.8: Mass Atrocities:     * Armenian Genocide ($1915$), Holodomor, Holocaust, Cambodia (Pol Pot), Rwanda ($1994$).

Unit 8: Cold War and Decolonization ($1900-Present$)

• Exam Weighting: $8-10\%$ of the AP Exam.
• 8.1-8.3: The Cold War:     * US/NATO (Capitalism) vs. USSR/Warsaw Pact (Communism).     * Proxy Wars: Korea, Vietnam, Soviet-Afghan War.     * Non-Aligned Movement: Leaders like Nehru (India) and Sukarno (Indonesia) stayed neutral.
• 8.5-8.6: Decolonization:     * Negotiated: India ($1947$), Ghana ($1957$).     * Violent: Algeria, Vietnam, Angola.     * Partition of India: Split into Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan.
• 8.8: End of Cold War: Collapse of USSR in $1991$ due to economic weakness and reforms like Glasnost and Perestroika.

Unit 9: Globalization ($1900-Present$)

• Exam Weighting: $8-10\%$ of the AP Exam.
• 9.1: Tech Advances: Internet, Green Revolution ($1960s$, GMOs/Fertilizers), Birth Control Pill.
• 9.2: Disease: Curing Polio (Salk), fighting HIV/AIDS, Ebola, and lifestyle diseases (Alzheimer's, Heart Disease).
• 9.3: Environment: Greenhouse Effect, Deforestation, Climate Change.
• 9.4: Global Economy: Knowledge Economies, NAFTA, WTO, Transnational Corps (Nestle, Nissan).
• 9.5: Reform: UN Declaration of Human Rights, Feminism, Civil Rights Act ($1964$), Ending Apartheid (Mandela).
• 9.8: Global Institutions: The United Nations ($1945$).