AP History Notes

Market Revolution Innovations

Machinery

Interchangeable Parts (1801)

Eli Whitney devised a system of interchangeable parts in 1801 to efficiently manufacture rifles. This allowed unskilled workers to produce large numbers of weapons quickly and at a lower cost, making repair and replacement easier. This innovation became the basis for mass production methods in northern factories, leading to the assembly line a century later.

Sewing Machine (1846)

In 1846, Elias Howe constructed a sewing machine. Isaac Singer improved upon it, leading to the widespread use of the Howe-Singer machine in ready-to-wear clothing manufacture.

Agricultural Inventions

The Cotton Gin (1793)

The cotton gin, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793, separated seeds from cotton fibers. This transformed southern agriculture, allowing a slave to clean 50 pounds of cotton a day, compared to just one pound manually. Cotton production increased from 3,000 bales in 1790 to 400,000 bales a year by the 1820s. This supplied the textile industry in New England while increasing the demand for enslaved people in the South.

  • 1800: Cotton was 7% of all U.S. exports

  • 1820: 32%

  • 1840: 52%

Key Takeaways

  • Entrepreneurs helped create a market revolution in production and commerce, with market relationships between producers and consumers becoming prevalent as goods manufacture became more organized.

  • Innovations like textile machinery, steam engines, interchangeable parts, the telegraph, and agricultural inventions increased the efficiency of production methods.

  • Legislation and judicial systems supported the development of roads, canals, and railroads, extending markets and fostering regional interdependence. Transportation networks linked the North and Midwest more closely than they linked regions in the South.

  • Increasing Southern cotton production and the related growth of Northern manufacturing, banking, and shipping industries promoted the development of national and international commercial ties.

Unit 3 Land-Based Empires

Topic 3.1 Empires Expand

Context

Several large, diverse states used gunpowder to exert control, becoming known as Gunpowder Empires. From 1450 to 1750, political and socioeconomic landscapes shifted as gunpowder became a powerful resource for states conquering and controlling other groups.

Europe

After the Black Plague, the Hundred Years’ War, and the development of the printing press, several European countries improved economic progress to become dominant, rich nations.

The main objective for Europe’s new monarchies was to centralize power via regulation of taxes, military, and components of religion. This allowed wealthy powers to pour resources into trading and exploration of the world around them.

With the launching of colonies worldwide, powerful leaders sought to expand their control of new territories they intended to possess.

Russia

Russia's advantageous trading situation with both Europe and Asia allowed it to exchange resources with areas extending beyond the rest of the world’s current boundaries to the East and West.

This can also be attributed to Viking assaults and trading. Even with much Asian influence, Russia itself was bound to Europe as its capitols were all found in the latter.

Ivan succeeded in taking over the khanates of Kazan, Astrakhan, and Siberia and defeating the descendants of the Golden Horde. Russian expansion relied on increasing amounts of gunpowder as it sought to grow under the leadership of crowned Tsar, Ivan IV (called Ivan the Terrible).

Ivan allowed Russian landowners (the Stroganovs) to contract fighters known as Cossacks to march against the Siberian khan.

Flowing into the Caspian Sea, the Volga River allowed Moscow to trade with the territories of Persia and the Ottoman Empire without external interference from Crimea. Their forces were successful, and allowed Russia control and access to the Volga River.

Eastern Orthodox missionaries were able to move into the area and begin their conversion of the locals, but indigenous shamans and religious leaders held influence. Ivan and Russia continued to expand its territory eastward for fur as it defeated local tribes.

They explored what would become Alaska (in 1741) and Californian coasts (in 1814). By 1639, Russia had made it far eastward to the Pacific Ocean.

East Asia

Experiencing growth in both the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty, China also looked to reinforce its defense and emphasized restoration of the Great Wall of China to keep out enemies to the north.

Also enacted during this time was a Chinese initiative to protect Tibet, the mountainous area north of India. One of China’s longest-reigning rulers was Kangxi (ruled 1661 to 1722) of the Qing Dynasty who directed forces to enter and incorporate areas like Taiwan, Mongolia, and Central Asia into its territory.

Another critical leader was Emperor Qianlong (ruled 1736-1796) of the Qing Dynasty, He was a figure who studied poetry, art, and calligraphy. With the help of efficient administration and historically high tax collections, Qianlong initiated expansion campaigns westward of China.

Nepal was defeated leading to its fall to Chinese rule, and Qianlong ensured the installation of the Dalai Lama’s power.

The British were dissatisfied and asked for a revision to the contract, but were sent a letter by Qianlong that the Chinese had no need for British goods. Also needing money, the Qing Dynasty sold temporary trading rights to the European powers but restricted them to Guangzhou.

Later, the Qing Dynasty became corrupt and began levying high taxes against its people. The people responded by forming the White Lotus Rebellion (1796-1804). The Qing Dynasty responded by killing up to 100,000 peasants.

Rise of the Gunpowder Empires

The invasion of Central Asian and Middle Eastern powers by Tamerlane (Timur the Lame, a Mongol-Turkic warrior) set the foundation for the rise of Turkic empires. As European countries fought amongst themselves, some Gunpowder Empires with strong Islamic ties expanded.

Initiating ruthless conquests of Persia, Tamerlane’s military became a template of warrior and examples of the ghazi ideal—nomadic warrior life blended with allegiance as a holy fighter of Islam.

Some historians think Tamerlane and his men massacred upwards of 100,000 Hindus in India. This violence led to new dynasties.

Tamerlane’s rule sheds light on continuous conflict between northeastern Mongols and Arabian forces near the Mediterranean Sea.

The Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire was the biggest and most enduring of all of the Muslim empires, lasting until it was defeated in 1918 by the Allies of World War I. A single dynasty maintained rule for over 600 years.

Mehmed II, called the Conqueror, established the empire’s capital after defeating the Byzantine Empire’s Constantinople in 1453 using cannons ranging from 22 to 26 feet in length.

Controlling the only waterway linking the Aegean Sea with the Black Sea, the city flourished. Mehmed’s rule of the city saw a name change to Istanbul, and it prospered as a result of its strategic location.

He succeeded in garnering a yearly tax from Venice. Mehmed expanded power even farther by building up the Ottoman navy and attacking portion of Italy.

Later when the Mamluk’s Dynasty weakened, Istanbul became an Islamic hub. The 16th century saw the Ottoman Empire add to its territory with areas in modern- day Syria, Israel, Egypt, and Algeria.

However, challenges in defending the Ottoman Empire from invasions led to the defeat and dissolution of the empire in 1922. The Ottoman Empire reached its peak under leadership of Suleiman I (1520-1566).

The Safavids

A 14 or 15-year-old Ismail led to the conquering of a majority of Persia and parts of Iraq. In 1501, the young leader was named shah, equivalent to king or emperor. Established in the northern part of Iran, the Safavid dynasty saw success due to its land military might (as it lacked a real navy).

At its peak, the empire was led by Shah Abbas I (ruled 1588-1629). The Safavid Empire had 2 issues: it possessed no real navy and lacked a natural defense. Still, their might was considerable and was maintained by a land military.

Conflict between the Safavid Empire and the Ottoman Empire was not strictly religious as they fought for control of land trade routes. The latter used trade embargoes, trade bans, as a way to fight the Safavid Empire.

Akbar led one of the wealthiest and most developed states in the world, as it flourished from overseas trade by its merchant castes. A descendant of Tamerlane, Akbar, took advantage of political disarray in India, helping to establish the Mughal Empire.

The caste system divides people of Hindu faith into four categories: Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and the Shudras. Castes, or jatis, are strict social groupings assigned to people at birth.

Thus, the Mughal Empire left behind accomplishments of wealth and complexity. Today, the Indian caste system is an important component of the socioeconomic and political landscape.

Key Takeaways

  • Domination of previously uncontrolled areas coupled with boosted political power led to quick growth for several states and nations globally.

  • The decline of the Islamic-controlled Gunpowder Empires were largely attributed to the lack of a restructure to accommodate the rising use of military to in conjunction with increasingly-influential water-based trade routes.

  • Unlike territories like Russia who modeled their militaries after European armies, these Muslim strongholds did not modernize.