AP World History Semester 1

Part 1 First Things First: Beginnings in History to 600 BCE

Chapter 1: First people; first farmers; most of history in a single chapter 3500 BCE

Chapter 2 First Civilizations

2.1 Landmarks for Chapter

2.2 Something New: The Emergence of Civilizations

Mohenjo Daro: major cities of the Indus Valley civilization, both flourished 2000 BCE

Harappa: sister city; major cities of the Indus Valley civilization, both flourished 2000 BCE

• luxurious + sophisticated + great plumbing system

Teotihuacan

• central Mexico valley

• temples, pyramids, carvings, apartments and palatial homes

cities were super important to early civilizations

• administrative/political, cultural, economic, and manufacturing hubs of the region

• unique + more specialization + inequality

• u dont rlly know ppl unless they around u

2.3 The Erosion of Equality

early urban life

• so much specialization → scribes, priests, merchants, officials, artisans

• farmers carried hard

Hierarchies of Class

• inequality w wealth status power

• wealth piled up, not spread

• as jobs complexified, erosion of equality increased

• normalized

upper class was very blessed

• big land big money

• 0 labor → political, military, religion

• ex: Chinese

  • robes banners chariots weapons

• ex: Code of Hammurabi: series of laws publicized at the order of King Hammurabi of Babylon; reveals much about the social order of Mesopotamian civilization.

  • if ur poor and u beat up jeff bezos ur getting slimed

2.4 Comparing Mesopotamia and Egypt

common features of first civilizations:

• productive agricultural technology

• distinct class and gender inequalities

• growing state power

differences include

• political organizations

• religious beliefs

• women’s roles

civilizations interacted with each other

Environment and Culture

based on river valleys for productive agriculture cs land arid

• Nile predictably brought soil and water annually

• Tigris and Euphrates were NOT predictable

Mesopotamia more vulnerable w open space, Egypt had natural barriers of deserts and water → free security

historians try to avoid environmental determinism, but here, it’s really visible that Mesopotamians struggled → pessimistic

• elite literate Egyptians grew up from a stable, predictable, beneficial environment → optimistic

  • pyramids reflected belief that Pharaohs and elites could make it to the Afterlife → lived morally well

environment:

• Mesopotamia had deforestation and soil erosion that reduced crop productivity, and soil salinization from over irrigation (complex intrusive canals and networks)

  • weakened Sumerian states, conquested by foreigners, center of civilization North

• Egypt had sustainable agriculture less intrusive, stable wheat prediction by river

  • if river pattern cooked, then egypt is cooked

Cities and States

Mesopotamia'

• many separate independent city states ruler by a king each, controlled internal affairs

• one of the most thoroughly urbanized areas

  • however, its due to frequent warfare → rural to urban migration for walled cities, rivalry over land and water

• environmental + political problems tm violence

• Sumerians → Akkadians → Babylonians → Assyrians

Egypt

• pharaohs maintained unity and independence and longetivity

• wind patterns → communication, trade, unity

• cities less important but still political economic cultural hubs, so lived in agricultural villages cs super secure

• pharaohs r a unity symbol, but over time, lost credit to authorities

• focus on Osiris, less pharaoh

Interaction and Exchange

civilizations usually interacted and traded w each other

Egypt’s agriculture drew from Mesopotamia, South Sudan

both carried long-distance trade esp luxury goods for elite

• Mesopotamia → Anatolia Egypt Iran Afganistan

• Egypt → deep into Africa along Nile + East

cultural influence from interactions too

• Mesopotamia

  • Hebrews Old Testament → Mesopotamian Eye for an Eye

  • Phoenicians worshipped similar Mesopotamian Gods + cuneiform (later basis for     greek/latin)

  • syncretism of religions, brought artifacts

• Egypt

  • Nubia sometimes military/political control from Egypt, recruited

  • diffusion of pyramids, religion, hieroglyphics

  • still distinct → unique alphabet, ironworking, political independence

Mediterranean Basin culture

• clear Egyptian art influence

• hot take: ancient Greeks drew from Egyptians and Mesopotamians

• still, influence two-ways → ex: pastorals in southern Russia got chariots for horses, used by Hittites in Anatolia → attacked Babylon and Egypt → both incorporated it into their military → reached China → evidence of interactions bw Afro-Eurasian

Egypt got HUGE migration that threatened security a lil

• adopt more technologies diffused from Asia → new weapons, sewing, instruments, plants

• Egypt later became a crucial bridge bw Africa and Asia, ruling over non-egyptians too

• part of international politics w Mesopotamia, practiced diplomacy, “brothers”, gifts, daughters(?)

Part 2 Continuity and Change in the Second-Wave Era 600 BCE - 600 CE

Chapter 3: State and Empire in Eurasia / North Africa 600 BCE - CE

3.1 Landmarks for Chapter 3

3.2 Empires and Civilizations in Collisions: The Persians and the Greeks

The Persian Empire

• Indo-Europeans on Iranian Plateau, north of Persian gulf

• inspired by Babylonian and Assyrians, esp luxury

Persian Empire: major empire of the second-wave era, expanded from the Iranian plateau to the Middle East from Egypt to India; flourished around 553 to 330 B.C.E.

• LOVED king shave ur when he dies

• kings were insane absolute monarchs, aka Gilgamesh

satraps → effective administration system

• low lvl officials from local aurhotities

• imperial spies reached outskirts of kingdom

• respects outside cultures → let Jews settle back in Jerusalem

• LOVEEE OTHER CULTURES AND RELIGIONS

  • takes luxury of others, now its theirs

noted by bureaucracy, court life, tax collectors, record keepers, translators

insane infrastructure

• coinage

• stable taxes

• canal to link Red Sea and Nile → communication and trade

• great irrigation system → rich agriculture economy despite climate

imperial centers, i.e. Persepolis, r wealth power hubs

• architecture like palaces and monuments reflected imperial authority'

  • workers were drawn tg

The Greeks

• Indo-Europeans, derived from legacy of first civilizations like Egypt

• 750 BCE → 400 yrs later merged to another

Hellenes = Greeks

Smaller than Persia

unique geography

• small peninsula

• steep mountains and valleys, but settled near waters

• smelting silver copper bronze wood → deforestation and soil erosion

independent conflicting city-states → same language, religion, Olympic games

• Athens, Sparta, Thebes, Corinth

expansive through settlement, not conquest → traders and farmers emigrated significantly for iron and food and brought their culture

most distinct thing is PARTICIPATION IN POLITICAL LIFE

• citizenship

• free people manage affairs and equality

at first, only wealthy well-born citizens could have full citizenship rights

• speaking/voting assembly, public office, fighting in army

• over time, smaller classes like farmers gained rights → purchased weapons and armor to help others

tyrants → strong benevolent rulers fight the wealthy w support from the poor

Sparta → political military culture, harsh

Council of Elders, wealthy and influential, had most authority

Athens → distinctive political participation

• Solon pushed Athenian politics towards democracy → no debt slavery, wider public office, all citizens could take Assembly

• later rulers allowed all Assembly members to be paid → Assembly became political life center

Athenian democracy: radical form of direct democracy in which most of the free males of Athens were able to vote in the Assembly and officeholders were chosen by lot

Collision: The Greco-Persian Wars

classical Greece = foundation of Western civilization, ironically that it is built off advancements from the East

Greco-Persian Wars: A half century of intermittent conflict (499–449 B.C.E.) between the Greek city-states and the Persian Empire. During two major Persian invasions of Greece, in 490 B.C.E. and 480 B.C.E., the Persians were defeated on both land and sea.

• Greek settlements came under Persian control as Persia expanded west

• Greeks revolted, supported by mainland

• Persians launched major military expeditions cs they pissed

• Greeks still won ez

embarrassing asf but it didn’t affect Persia, it affected Greece

• huge Greek pride

• values of freedom and courage motivated them to win

sharper divide between East and West

radicalized Athenian democracy b/c the poor supported the war

later, peak of Athenian democracy + Greek golden age

• built Parthenon, Greek theater, Socratic philosophy

Athen’s Golden age = beginning of empire

• Athen solidified efforts to be dominant force among its allies → civil war → Sparta defended independence of traditional Greek city states

Peloponnesian War: Greek civil war (431–404 B.C.E.) after Greco-Persian Wars, with Sparta defending city-state independence against Athenian dominance; the war left the Greeks in a state of distrust and disunity.

• takeover Macedonia

• Greek culture js started

Collision: Alexander and the Hellenistic Era

338 BCE: Philip II of Macedonia unified Greece under his rule at cost of prized independence of various city states

• Alexander the Great: A ruler of Macedonia, unified the Greek city-states and during a ten-year military expedition (334–323 B.C.E.) conquered Egypt, the Persian Empire, and part of northwest India, huge Greek empire.

• set in motion as Alexander was abt to cook the Persians for vengeance and to unify Greeks

10-year expedition was legendary

• Greek empire extended egypt → anatolia → West Afghanistan → east India

• Persia lost ez dubz Persepolis burned Alexander king of Asia

• Alexander celebrated as liberator from Persia in Egypt → anointed pharaoh, Egyptians priests thought “son of Gods”

• died 323 BCE, empire divided to 3 kingdoms, Macedonian generals lead

Hellenistic Era: 323 to 30 B.C.E. ; Greek culture spread widely in the Middle East and parts of India in the cities and kingdoms ruled by Alexander’s political successors

• the cities Alexander established were CRUCIAL

  • Greek monuments, sculptures, theaters, markets, councils, assemblies attracted all sorts of Greek settlers

• Alexandria: cosmopolitan Egyptian city established by Hellenistic rulers, 500k people; major avenue for spread of Greek culture and learning (greeks, jews, babylonians, syrians, persians)

these cities helped the culture spread

• Greek language → power and elite

  • Indian monarch wrote Greek decrees, independent state in Afghanistan

• many young Jews interested in Greek → Pharisees developed own school system bc scared theyll leave

cities v diff from og city states of greece

• cultural diversity, less independence valued by Sparta and Athens

• 2 big conquest states: Ptolemaic of Egypt, Seleucid of Persia

• social order, taxes, monarch authority

Macedonians and Greeks had superiority complex, separated from non-Greeks

• ex: egyptian worker complained his boss hated him and didnt pay cs he egyptian

• periodic rebellions bc of arrogant greeks

still, sm cultural interactions

• Alexander had many Persian wives and encouraged intermarriages bw Asians

• patronized building temples for local gods and supported they priests

• Greek language, education, dressing

• Greeks in caste system (warriors)

• Buddha art school first depicted buddha in greek attire

as hellenistic era ended, influence vanished by 100 BCE

• born: collision of 2 empires and 2 second-wave civilizations

• western Hellenistic, Greek rule replaced by Romans

  • Roman empire, like Alexander’s served as medium to diffuse Greek influence

3.3 Comparing Empires: Roman and Chinese

• similar area, population, giant empires almost half world’s population

• little contact, barely knew each other

Rome: From City-State to Empire

started as small poor city-state on West central Italy → imperial state of europe, mediterranean, britain, north africa, middle east

509 BCE → roman aristocrats threw over monarchy, made republic which wealthy men participated (patricians)

• executive → 2 consuls advised by patrician assembly, Senate

• conflict w plebians affected political life

  • protect from abuse, can congregate to influence some public laws, office of tribune blocks unfavorable shi

• prideful bc more freedom than others

• rule of law, citizens rights, no pretension, morals, and promise when u promise keep them promises

used ts to start empire enterprise

• first controlled neighbors → Italian peninsula → Punic Wars, got North Africa → Mediterranean + Spain, naval power → south, west europe

• greeks, egyptians, mesopotamian under Roman rule

• 2nd century CE → maximum expansion

roman empire didn’t rlly build off of anything, something wholly new

• piecemeal process “defensive”

• new territory = new vulnerability = made up by more conquests

• growth sometimes = opportunity

  • poor hoped for land, loot, or salaries

  • well-to-do wanted public office

• wealth of nearby societies was basically calling their name

location was good launch pad for an empire, but its great army carried

• BRUTAL

• nice to former enemies when necessary tho → grant citizenship, allies

• empire grew → expansion forces did whatever they needed to do

empirebuilding + army influenced roman values and society

• gender roles + social hierarchy   

  • masculinity of upper class = life as soldier + property owner, FULL control over wife and kids and slaves

  • ability of free men to make decisions in public and private

  • women make and raise warriors → ur loved!

empire wealth + imperial state authority + breakdown of old social life → elite women could have a less restricted life

• not secluded → husbands cant control them fully now!

• man of the house lost a little power

• women could marry without giving man all legality, control their own finances, engage in commerce

• property + marriage rights essentially

• lots of women were brought in as slaves to do wtv with

can u still have a roman republic and values w a growing empire?

• wealth only helped few to get more property and slaves, free farmers js poor

• “decline” of republican values → simplicity, service, farmer = army backbone, authority of senate

• authority mainly in emperor

• Augustus: title that implied divine status for Octavian (r. 27 B.C.E.–14 C.E.), who emerged as sole ruler of the Roman state at the end of an extended period of civil

• republic → empire and emperor

many thought rome betrayed its traditions

• still maintained some public consuls but had huge personal power

• conquests = for power of roman people

• still used his army like crazy

provided security, grandeur, prosperity

• pax Romana: The “Roman peace,” a term typically used to denote the stability and prosperity of the early Roman Empire, especially in the first and second centuries C.E.

China: From Warring States to Empire

tryna restore something old

• 2200 BCE Xia Shang Zhang dynasties tried to grow, but 500 BCE they were cooked

• endless rivalries

unacceptable and unnatural, rulers wna fix ts

• Qin Shihuangdi: “first emperor from the Qin”; Shihuangdi (r. 221–210 B.C.E.) forcibly reunited China and established a strong state that governed, often brutally, according to a Legalist philosophy

• bureaucracy, subordinated aristocracy, good weapons, good agriculture and population

• Legalism → clear strict rules and enforcement

• little ambivalence

• laid foundations for unified Chinese state

empire formation was more compressed than Rome

• still military based and brutal

• execute burn ppl and move “anti-centralist” aristocrats to the capital

• slaves build great of wall of china to separate barbarians

• uniform system of weights, measures, currency in chinese

brief superficial domestic reprecussions

• speed and brutality of policies made it a pr short dynasty

• Han dynasty: Chinese dynasty (206 B.C.E.–220 C.E.) that emerged after the Qin dynasty collapsed, establishing political and cultural patterns that lasted into the twentieth century

• Confucianism

• consolidated imperial state

Consolidating the Roman and Chinese Empires

many common features

• defined in universal terms

• invest in public work and infrastructure for military and commercial integration

used supernatural to support rule

• dead emperors = Gods, early christians persecuted for being against ts

earth events linked to “Heaven” in china

• moral force that regulated universe

• rebellions, invasions, floods = bad ruler u lose mandate of heaven

absorbed foreign religion

• Christianity Rome, Buddhism China

  • Rome → small corner, pax Romana roads slowly spread it along poor ppl → persecution → yay evb is christian cs emperors want common religion

  • China → came from India, little support until after Han dynasty where ppl felt misguided → Sui and Wendi dynasty supported for a lil → one of many alt. cultural traditions, unlike dominant Roman christianity

diff relationships w socieities governed

• romans = always small minority cs small city state

• china → grew from hearth → evb ethnically chinese → expanded south and assimilated barbaric ppl W EVERYTHINGGG

romans did diff assimilation

• slowly and ehh granted citizenship to ppl for service or adoption of Roman culture

• hold office, serve in military, toga, LEGAL status not CULTURAL

Roman culture like religion lang city life was super cool, esp to ppl who never heard of cities

• east → greek pride in literature philosophy art

• non-Roman cultural traditions spread thru empire, but not like in China

lang important, diff functions

• Latin gave rise to MANY diff lang → maintain individual cultural identities

• Chinese characters hard to transfer to other languages, understood by all literate ppl

  • elite assimilation

both made centralized control over big regions w big people, but china did better

• imperial academy for Confucianism

• civil service system based on MERIT

• Rome → aristocratic elites and army provided state cohesion, but they made an elaborate body of law that dealt w everything

• Rome = good laws, China = good men

diff effects on environment

• Romans complained of noise smoke urban sprawl

  • mining, smelting, large scale agri = big deforestation and soil erosion

  • lead pollution and poisoning

• big ironworking made pollution in China → intensive agriculture ppl in North China caused deforestation and soil erosion

  • made river YELLOW RIVER cs yellow brown color

  • pasturelands became farmlands

  • collapsed Chinese states → abandoned farms → winds → desert

The Collapse of Empires

Han dynasty collapsed 220 CE, Rome finally disintegrated 476 CE

• western collapsed, eastern Byzantine another 1k years

common factors w end of imperial states

• too big, extended, expensive, unsustainable

• big clout families avoided taxes, free peasants became tenant farmers, less central power

elite faction rivalries = instability

• Chinese court officials glazed emperor vs religious Confucius scholars

• 26 Romans thought they was the Emperor

• disease for both decr people production reevenue

environmental factors too probably

• Little Ice Age of Rome made everything cold wet = soil erosion = less productivity

• soil salinization and desertification

threats from nomadic groups @ margins

• walls, trade, bribing, marriage, military in China worked → dynasty weakened, barbarians were cooking

• ended up becoming chinese tho

big problems from Germanic people

• mercenaries, refugees

• established their own kingdoms within Roman empire → controlled and displaced emperors

• developed individual ethnicities

• fall of West Roman empire produced new culture blend of latin and germanic shi → foundation of hybrid civilization of Western Europe

decline of urban life, cultivation, trade, ppl, security

biggest difference is what happens next

• after han collapse china had 350 years of disunity war and chaos

• imperial system came back under sui tang and song dynasties

• emperor rule exams and confucian ideas returned and lasted to 20th century

europe diff

• after rome fell europe never reestablished a large centralized empire

• many tried to bring back roman unity but failed

• europe became decentralized with nobles knights kings city-states and church leaders in control

comparing post-empire recovery in china and europe

• china had more cultural unity while europe was ethnically and linguistically diverse

• china had a strong bureaucracy and confucianism that supported stable government

• europe lacked bureaucracy had church vs state conflict and fewer resources like less productive farming and weaker metallurgyF

3.4 Intermittent Empire: The Case of India

after demise of Indus → new civilization east over next thousand years along Ganges river of Indian northern plain

600 BCE → new second wave civilization of South Asia

• collection of cities, small republics ruled by public assemblies, regional states by kings

• HUGE everything diversity

• political fragmentation and cultural diversity influenced South Asian history for many centuries, contrasting to Chinese development

  • recognizable identity based off common religious tradition HINDUISM and unique social organization → caste system

Persian and Greek conquering influenced development of new empire   

• Mauryan Empire: first and largest of India’s shortest experiments with a large scale political system; encompassed all but south tip of Indian subcontinent

impressive political structure comparable to china and rome, but not long lasting

• large military, civilian bureaucracy, large amt of spies

• Arthashastra gave political philosopher to rulers

  • all means necessary ahh

• many industries: spinning, weaving, building ships, mining, armaments

• tax on trade, animal, land

Ashoka: most famous ruler of India’s Mauryan Empire; converted to Buddhism and tried to rule peacefully and with tolerance

• moralistic approach → diff from Shihuangdi and Alexander the Great

• enlightened leader moral values and teachings of hinduism and buddhism

• unfortunately, didn’t work for long

Gupta Empire: era of Indian civilization from 320 to 550 C.E.; considerable political unity, cultural flourishing, and thriving trade

• free hospitals, bells to separate untouchable caste, corruption free govt

• flourish of knowledge

• trade w China and also reached Rome

political history resembled Western Europe (after Roman Empire) way more than Rome and China

• imperial/regional states did not command huge loyalty, nor had insane fluence influence

• cultural diversity + invasions from Central Asia prevented nucleus developing

• social structure → caste system linked to occupational groups made intense loyal localties, no wider identity

vibrant economy made active internal commerce + focal point of sea roads

• cotton textile industry carried

• strong merchant artisan guilds = political leadership of cities, wealth towards temples, buildings, festivals

• creativity in religion made penetrating Buddhist and Hindu traditions

• indians cooked in math and science (astronomy)

Chapter 4: Culture and Religion in Eurasia / North Africa 600 BCE - CE

Landmarks for Chapter 4

China and the Search for Order

The Legalist Answer

Legalism: Chinese philosophy distinguished by an adherence to clear laws with vigorous punishments

• amazing rewards, harsh punishments

pessimistic view

• humans r stupid, shortnatured

• state and rulers can help

• farmers and soldiers > merchants and evb else

helped legalism

• played a role in statecraft

• few philosophers supported this as a life thing

• Han and subsequent fw Confucius

The Confucian Answer

Confucius was born to an aristocratic family

• thought he could solve China → went into politics

• Confucianism: Chinese philosophy first enunciated by Confucius, advocating the moral example of superiors as the key element of social order

  • his students collected his teachings into Analects

moral example of superiors restored social harmony

• society is unequal relationships

  • father > son, husband > wife, elder > younger, ruler > subject

  • if the superior acted w benevolence, then the inferior would obey

how was ts human virtue nurtured

• people wanna improve → moral progress = education

  • esp the liberal arts   

• rituals, ceremonies, continuous reflection

Confucianism became synonymous w chinese culture

• center to education, esp exams for govt positions

• Chinese male elites were Confucianists

family = model for political life

• Filial piety = honor ancestors and parents

• STRONGLY patriarchal

• inferior receptive earth (feminine) balanced with superior creative principle of Heaven (masculine)

• Ban Zhao: major female Confucian author of China (45–116 C.E.) whose works explore the implications of Confucian thinking for women

  • called for education to young girls, but so she can serve her husband

  • education for men controlled wives

wen and wu for men

• superior wen = scholarship, literacy, artistic → wu = physical, marital achievements

• only superior men eligible for civil service exams → political office, prestige

• military men & merchants lower in male social hierarchy

ideal good society lay on past

• ideas were reformist, but to restore past golden age

• “democratic” elite culture cs superior men and govt officials

• usually rich can afford tutors for sons to take exams, but some poor ppl were cooking and could climb social ladder

established expectations for the superior

• low taxes, justice, provide resources

• otherwise forfeit mandate of heaven

• husbands should b nice

secular character

• Confucius didn’t discourage religion, in fact he promoted rituals w families, and universe has a character humans should follow

• confucianism itself was practical tho

• elite said it was good for the dumb poor ppl, but elite thought it doesn’t really help u morally

The Daoist Answer

Daoism: Chinese philosophy / popular religion that advocates a simple and unpretentious way of living and alignment with the natural world, founded by the legendary figure Laozi

different Confucius → education, moral improvement, good govt

• Daoists thought that’s retarded

• withdraw to nature → act spontaneous, individual, natural

• Laozi wanders beyond society

dao = way of nature

• governs all of nature

• moves, everything comes from it, nonchalant

yearned for age of perfect virtue, interrupted by Confucius improvement

• PLAY WITH Nature → Confucianism says b orderly in a hostile environment

  • Confucius → humans dispose and tame the wild

• Daoists fled to mountains

get away from political social life and align urself w nature

• simpliciy, self-sufficient, limited govt, give up education and improvement

emphasized family life, but equality of sexes

elite somehow thought it was complementing not contrasting

• yin yang → Confucius by day, Daoist by night = paint, art, mountains

Daoism daily life

• magic, fortune telling, immortality

• inspired Yellow Turbans looking for an ideal society without oppression

Cultural Traditions of Classical India

Toward Monotheism: Search for God in the Middle East

Cultural Tradition of Classical Greece: Search for a Rational Order

tradition

• religion diverse and unpredictable,gods with human-like qualities, fertility cults, oracles, and ecstatic worship, with no single, unified religious tradition of lasting world importance like those of the Jews, Persians, or Indians

intellectual shift

• thinkers moved away from mythological explanations, focusing natural laws and that human rationality could understand these laws and establish ethical principles.

confucianism

• separating science and philosophy from religion → secularism of Confucian thought in China, both emphasizing reason, ethics, and human agency without the divine

The Greek Way of Knowing

greek rationalism: secularizing system of science and philosophy developed in classical Greece during 600 to 300 B.C.E.; emphasized human reason to understand surroundings

• flourish of city states, art, literature, theater

• emphasis on HOW to ask questions, not answers

• argument, logic, questioning; confidence in reason; enthusiasm for puzzling out the world

Socrates: first great Greek philosopher (469 - 399 BCE); constant questioning of conventional thinking led to his death sentence from an Athenian jury

• no writing or lectures

• always questioned assumptions and logics of student’s thinking

• challenged conventions → don’t pursue wealth, pursue intelligence

• didnt fw athenian democracy, complimented sparta

• hes corrupting the youth!

early philosophers applied ts critical thinking to real world

• Thales from Babylonian astronomy → predicted solar eclipse, moon reflects sunlight; first to understand universe basics, elements exist as solid, liquid, gas

• Democritus → uncuttable particles

• Pythagoras → chaotic world, mathematical order

influenced medicine too

• Hippocrates → body has 4 fluids, humors, causing ailments when unbalanced, traced epilepsy

Herodotus

• wrote abt Greco-Persian wars

• reasons for war bc of HUMAN CONFLICT, not whims of Gods → HISTORIAN

ethics and govt important

• Plato: Greek philosopher (429 - 348 BCE) who famously sketched out a design for a good society in The Republic

  • v educated guardians, led by philosophical king → not deceived by world’s illusions, grasp world of forms

  • goodness, beauty, justice, existed unchanged

• if u cant do ts, dont rule

Aristotle: A Greek philosopher (384–322 B.C.E.); student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great.

• complete expression of Greek knowing cs he wrote or commented abt EVERYTHING

• empirical observations → cataloged city state constitutions, identified 100s animal species, wrote abt logic physics astronomy weather

• reflection on ethics → virtue = learned from rational training, cultivated habit

• govt → mixed monarchy, aristocracy, democracy

The Greek Legacy

still, Gods of Mount Olympus believed by many Greeks

death of Socrates → philosophy perceived maybe as a threat

even after glory Athen, literature art theater prospered

Alexander and Roman’s empire spread Greek influence

• ex: lead Romans sent kids to Athens Academy

• emerging Christianity explained w greek philosophy

• after empire collapsed, classical texts preserved by eastern Byzantine

  • West → harder to access cs conditions post-roman europe, Greek scholarship < Christian writing

  • legacy recovered later when scholars gained access 1100s → since then, Greek legacy = central to Western concepts

    • christian theology, scientific revolution, point of departure for philosophy

also entered islamic world

• systematic translate greek science & philosophy into Arabic + Indian Persian learning → stimulated Muslim thinkers in medicine, astronomy, math, geography, chemistry

  • Europe acc became reacquainted w classical greece legacy largely due to arabic translations, 1100s 1200s

tradition still remained in West “an inspiration for those who celebrate the powers of the human mind to probe the mysteries of the universe and to explore the equally challenging domain of human life”

Comparing Empires: Roman and Chinese

Rome: From City-State to Empire

small impoverished city-state → huge imperial state

roman artistocrats overthrew monarchy and made a republic of wealthy patricians

• two consuls advised by Senate of patricians

• conflict w plebeians → protect from abuse, shape policy, tribune

• bragged abt their freedom

launched empire-building enterprise

• gained control over Italy → North Africa → Mediterranean → Spain

• old civilizations under Roman domination

• 2nd century CE → max extension

Romans created something completely new

• more pieces → more vulnerabilities

• opportunities for poor → loot, land, salaries; wealthy → great estates, promotions, public acclaim

army lowkey carried Rome

• well trained well fed well rewarded

• BRUTAL, burned everything enslaved everybody

• sometimes nice to enemies → grant citizenship, allies, etc.

Part 3 Civilizations and Encounters during the Third-Wave Era

Chapter 7: Commerce and Culture 600-1450

Landmarks for Chapter 7

7.2 Silk Roads: Exchange across Eurasia

Silk Roads: Land-based trade routes that linked many regions of Eurasia; named after the most famous product traded along these routes

• relay trade

• unity and coherence to Eurasia

The Growth of the Silk Roads

warm, water → good for agriculture, many civilizations (outer), inner eurasia sucks so pastoralism

• hides, fur, livestock, wool exchanged for agricultural and manufactured shi

• diffuse languages, metalwork, horses

2nd wave civilizations furthered trade

• Persia, Central Turks, Alexander the Great, Han Dynasty

  • Chinese want horses for military

  • thanks to pastoral ppl we got interconnection

prospered when large states provided security for merchants

• good conditions for Roman Chinese traders long-distance west-east

• flourished again during Byzantine, Abbasid, Tang dynasties

• 13th-14th → Mongol empire covered, new vitality for long distance trade

• yokes, saddles, stirrups of oxen and camel helped transport

Goods in Transit

large caramel caravans were the goat

• most goods r luxury cs they r the only ones worth traveling for

silk symbolized Eurasian trade

• chinese monopoly on silk production until 300 BCE, then spread across Afro-Eurasian world

• silk trade controlled by men, but women essential in supply/demand

• Chinese rural women tended mulberry trees, unwound cocoons, made thread, wove textiles

• Chinese homes were the primary site for silk production, with women as the main labor force

• Tang dynasty (618–907 CE) → women contributed to household economy, technological innovation, and state via taxes in cloth

• rural poverty persisted, as noted by 13th-century writer Wen-hsiang

elite Chinese women and their men demanded for these luxurious fabrics → high status

• Chinese officials too so they can get horses against barbarians

• Chinese comfort and fashion

• HUGE demand + cotton textiles

tech and info to make silk extended beyond China 6th century CE

silk supply increases → varieties increased

• Central Asia → wealth, currency

• China + Byzantine → high status, only elite can wear silk

• Buddhism and Christianity → sacred gifts on pilgrimages, clothing, decor

• Europeans bought silk from Islamic world

  • Christians heavily depended on Muslims for silk

  • some of them were sneaky and put Arabic Quranic verses in silk

• African garments

modest trade, mainly luxury for elite, but economic and social consequences

• peasants gave up food production for these luxury goods of the silk road

• merchants benefited

• Ramhist so rich from trading he made a silk cover for Kaaba

Cultures in Transit

Buddhism culture spread

• thru Central and East Asia

• appeal cs universal, no Brahmin caste

• west → Zoroastrianism stopped Buddhism, but some oasis villages got it

• northern China

centrial Asian Sogdians helped exchange trade

• translated Buddhist texts into Chinese

• dominated first millenium, language became a medium of comunication

Buddhism conversion was voluntary

• ppl found Buddhism is linked to prosperous areas in India

• rich Buddhist merchants can built monasteries for religious merit → rest, resupply

• cosmopolitan cities of learning and commerce

outside of oasis communities, buddhism progressed slowly among pastorals

• too oral, cant read + nomadic'

• monasteries hard to establish for nomads, limiting Buddhism’s growth

• pastoralists involved in trade or ruling settled peoples found Buddhism more attractive

• Jie nomads in northern China (4th century CE) converted after ruler Shi Le met Buddhist monk Fotudeng

• Fotudeng’s miracle reputation and military skills helped convert thousands and build many temples

• in China, Buddhism was initially a religion of foreign merchants and rulers, gaining popularity among Chinese slowly

as Buddhism traveled, it changed

• original Buddhism shunned material world, but Silk Road monasteries→secular affairs

• monasteries grew prosperous from gifts by merchants, artisans, rulers

• monks’ begging bowls became symbolic, not daily practice

• monastery art showed wealthy, worldly life: musicians, acrobats, women with makeup, drinking parties

• lifestyle contrasted with traditional Buddhist asceticism

doctrines changed

• Mahayana Buddhism (Buddha as deity, bodhisattvas, compassion, earning merit) flourished on Silk Roads over austere original teachings

• Buddhism absorbed cultural elements along Silk Roads

• in Samarkand (Sogdian city), Zoroastrian fire rituals integrated into Buddhist practice

• Buddha statues in northwest India showed Greek and Roman influences in dress and features

• gods from various Silk Road peoples incorporated as bodhisattvas in Buddhism

Diseases in Transit

diseases had devastating consequences

• individually, developed disease patterns, mechanisms to deal w them, and immunity

• contact w other communities → exposure to unfamiliar diseases → epidemics against evb

widespread diseases from Rome to China

• smallpox, measles, plague

• strengthened religion

534-750 BCE → bubonic plague ruined Mediterranean

• maybe cs infected rats went on ships, fleas ate them, fleas ate us

• recurrence of diseases made it harder for Christians to beat Muslims

Mongol Empire disseminated the disease well

• Black Death: massive pandemic that swept through Eurasia in the early fourteenth century, spreading along the trade routes + Mongol Empire + Middle East +Western Europe by 1347, massive loss of ppl

• permanently altered balance bw pastoral and agricultural Mongols

exchange of diseases lwk benefited Europeans

• exposure over time made them immune to most Eurasian shi

• New World → less animals, interaction, + isolation made them more vulnerable

• perished ez

7.3 Sea Roads: Exchange across the Indian Ocean

silk road linked Eurasia thru land, sea roads linked ppl on the Eastern hemisphere

• Mediterranean sea has always been valuable

• Venice (1000 CE) → major commercial center w ships and merchants for the Mediterranean, Black Sea, Atlantic

• profitable wealth from Asia thru Red Sea and Alexandria, picked up goods, sold thru Mediterranean and Europe

• linked to large trade in Indian Ocean

Sea Roads: world’s largest sea-based system of communication and exchange before 1500 C.E. Centered on India, it stretched from southern China to eastern Africa

• desire for porcelain from China, spices from Southeast, cotton/pepper from India, incense from Arabia

• transportation costs < Silk Road cs ships can take more bulk goads for mass market, so Silk Road is js luxury

monsoons helped

• understand monsoons + naval technology + navigation = yay evb tg

not exchanges bw entire regions

• network of towns and cities that had more stuff in common w e o

• all around Indian Basin, nodes

Weaving the Web of an Indian Ocean World

starts from first civilizations

• Mesopotamia and Indus Valley traded via Persian Gulf

• Egyptians and Phoenicians traded down Red Sea for gold, ivory, frankincense, slaves from East Egypt/Arabia

• mostly coastal, short distances

• Malay sailors (1st millennium BCE) voyaged across open ocean to Madagascar in double-outrigger canoes

• introduced Austronesian language and crops (bananas, coconuts, taro) to Madagascar and African mainland, enriching diets

tempo picked up during Common Era as ppl understood monsoon patterns

• new sails, new CHinese Arab ships, astrolabe, compass

• merchants from Rome made settlements in coastal India and Africa

• introduced Christianity

india had sm goods in ports from west to east

• in touch w Southeast Asia, settled in Egypt

• religion spread to Southeast Asia

3rd-wave civillizations, 2 major events

• 1) economic political revival of China (Tang, Song) → effective unified state encouraged maritime trade, population shifted south towards trade → expansion of trade and products

• 2) sudden rise of islam 7th century CE and spread afro-eurasia

  • friendly to commercial life unlike Confucians

  • Arab Empire politically unified huge range of economies and cultural traditions for Muslim traders

more activity in Indian Basin

• Arab gold and silver for Indian pepper pearl textile gemstones

• Muslims + other minorities made communities along Basin

• sugar and date production from badlands in Mesopotamia → slaves from East Africa

• huge revolt disrupted Abbasid Empire before crushed rebellion

expansion of Islam → international maritime culture in port cities

• prestige power and prosperity of Muslims = widespread conversion and trade

• nonmuslims took Muslim names too

Searoads as a Catalyst for Change: Southeast Asia

Impact of Indian Ocean Trade on Southeast Asia and East Africa

• trade wealth → build larger, more centralized states or cities

• adoption of Confucian, Hindu, Buddhist, and Islamic ideas

• conduit for political and cultural transformation, like on the Silk Roads

geography makes it an important role

• 3rd wave civillizations emerged on islands and mainland

• similar development in Afro-Eurasia

• socieities heavily based off sea trade

Srivijaya: Malay kingdom that dominated critical Straits of Malacca between 670 and 1025 C.E; absorbed various cultural influences from India

• competition to pass thru straits

• Srivijaya won cs gold, access to desired spices, taxes → resources for supporters, fund bureaucracy, naval military for security

inland rice states still were involved

• Funan hosted Chinese Indian merchants

• Roman coins

• Khmer had exotic forest products in exchange for Chinese and Indian products, welcomed Chinese

• Champa (south Vietnam) worked in China, Java, etc. and used piracy when trade was slow

indian culture spread

• sanskrit and pallava wrote many southeast lang

• Ramayana popular

• art influence

southeast elites liked that leaders were god-kings → reincarnation of Buddha, shiva

• Srivijaya rulers hired Indians as advisers, gave Sanskrit titles, capital Palembang was cosmopolitan

• blended indigenous beliefs in chiefs’ magical powers with Indian political and Buddhist religious ideas for prestige

• sponsored Buddha and bodhisattva images resembling deceased kings, inscribed with protective curses

• Srivijaya became major Buddhist center, attracting monks and students globally

• 7th-century Chinese monk Yi Jing recommended studying in Srivijaya before India

more influence in Southeast Asia

• Sailendra kingdom (Java) built Hindu temples and Buddhist monuments (8th–10th c.)

• Borobudur: largest Buddhist monument, mountain-shaped, 10 levels, 3-mile walkway

• carvings depict spiritual journey from ignorance to enlightenment

• monument shows Javanese features and local settings, not Indian

• design connects to Southeast Asian mountain worship and ancestral spirits

• Borobudur exemplifies Buddhism becoming culturally rooted in Southeast Asia

hinduism in southeast asia

• Angkor wat: largest religious structure in the premodern world, built by the powerful Angkor kingdom (located in modern Cambodia) in the twelfth century C.E; a Hindu understanding of the cosmos centered on a mythical Mount Meru, the home of the gods in Hindu tradition; later used by Buddhists as well

Indianization of the region

• spread voluntarily, no imperial control, societies adapted ideas to their needs

• mixed or coexisted with imported religions

• family traced ancestry bilaterally (mother and father), unlike patrilineal india and china

• southeast asian women had more rights: owned property, initiated divorce, active in commerce

• women served as warriors, poets, artists, religious teachers; 1800+ female images at angkor wat

• queen pwa saw of pagan held political and religious power, donated land to buddhist temple

• islam entered southeast asia later through indian ocean trade, adding new cultural influence

Sea Roads as a Catalyst for Change: East Africa

Swahili civilization: East African civilization that emerged in the eighth century C.E. as a set of commercial city-states linked into the Indian Ocean trading network. Combining African Bantu and Islamic cultural patterns, these competing city-states accumulated goods from the interior and exchanged them for the products of distant civilizations

early ancestors small fish and farm, traded w romans arabs greeks, spoke bantu

• rise of islam stimulated growth

• opportunity for wealth and power in demand for East African products in Indian Basin

• gold, ivory, leopard, slaves, animals

• merchant class, larger villages, chiefs → kings

1000-1500 → civilization flourished, very diff from interior

• urban city-states politically independent w own king

• no imperial system ruled all

• none controlled a critical choke point

• commercial centers

• made coastal waterways

• class-stratified urban societies, huge class distinctions

cultural influence

• all welcome permanently

• claimed to be arab/persian for prestige

• swahili spoke but grammatically in arabic

• bronze lion = symbol of swahili x china

rapidly became islamic

• arab trades brought islam, voluntarily spread widely adopted

• linked to indian basin, many masjids built

• religious leaders spoke arabic

• african muslims, not colonies of arabs

islam sharply divided swahili from west civilization

• economically, coastal society was intermediate bw indian basin and interior

• Great Zimbabwe: powerful state in the southern African interior that apparently emerged from the growing trade in gold to the East African coast; flourished between 1250 and 1350 C.E.

7.4 Sand Roads: Exchange across the Sahara

Sand Roads: the routes of the trans-Saharan trade, which linked interior West Africa to the Mediterranean and North African world

Commercial Beginnings in West Africa

rooted in environmental variation

• north africa made cloth glassware books, sahara had deposits of copper and salts + oasis dates

• mostly nomadic, towards south u got agricultural societies w textiles, metal products, gold mining

  • either savanna grasslands for millet and sorghum, or forest areas of root and tree crops yam/kola nuts

• economic incentive for good exchange

earliest long distance trade bw arabs and sudan

• many independent urban clusters formed early Common Era, like Niger River Valley

Gold, Salt, and Slaves: Trade and Empire in West Africa

Arabian camel: Introduced to North Africa and the Sahara in the early centuries of the Common Era, this animal made trans-Saharan commerce possible by 300 to 400 C.E.

arabs wanted gold

• transported by donkeys → points → camels

• ivory, kola nuts, slaves in demand

• Sudanese received horse cloth dates manufactured goods’’

sahara became an international trade route

• trade provided incentives and resources for construction of of better political structures

• west africans in savannahs took advantage esp

• West African civilizations: series of important states that developed in the region stretching from the Atlantic coast to Lake Chad in the period 500 to 1600 C.E. Developed in response to the economic opportunities of trans-Saharan trade (especially control of gold production), it included the states of Ghana, Mali, Songhay, and Kanem, as well as numerous towns and cities

monarchies w elaborate court life, varying administrative complexity and military forces

• wealth of trans-saharan trade → taxed merchants

• Ghana: early and big state; reputation for great riches, flourished between 750 and 1076; later absorbed into the larger Kingdom of Mali

• Mali: big state; established in 1235 C.E; flourished for several centuries; monopolized the import of horses and metals as part of the trans-Saharan trade; it was a large-scale producer of gold; most famous ruler, Mansa Musa, led a large group of Muslims on the pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324–1325

growing integration of international commerce made social complexity and hierarchy characteristics of all civilizations

• west africa had emerging royals/elites, mercantile artisans, military religious, peasants

• gender hierarchies, but less rigid than eurasia

• most job ppl were male, matrilineal lineages died out

• male bards/historians thought powerful women were dangerous, cant be trusted, seductive distraction

• ordinary women for agriculture/weaving, royal women political roles, oral traditions complementary sexes

muslim ruler Ibn Battuta was surprised of casual intimacy bw unmarried men and women even tho committed to islam

west africa had slaves

• mostly women, domestic servants and concubines

• male slaves became state officials, porters, craftsmen, laborers

• slaves from non-islamic states

trans-saharan slave trade: fairly small-scale commerce of slaves; flourished 1100 to 1400, West African slaves across the Sahara for sale in Islamic North Africa

states were important urban centers for congregation and exchange

• centers of manufacturing

• cosmopolitan for court officials artisans scholars students all interacted

7.5 An American Network: Commerce and Connection in the Western Hemisphere

connections were less clearly woven

• llama, potato, maya writing system never diffused

• civilizations had little direct contact w each other

• esp cs less transportation mediums

environmental differences also hindered

• panama has dense rainforests

• difference bw agriculture in north/south slowed agricultural diffusion

• no distinct trade routes or culture or religion diffused

loose web from Great Lakes, upper Missisippi, Andes

• cultural elements

• rubber ball, pottery, architecture

American web: network of trade that linked parts of the pre-Columbian Americas; less densely woven than the Afro-Eurasian trade networks; provided a means of exchange for luxury goods and ideas over large areas

active networks of exchange among densely pop agricultural areas

• caribbean peoples used oceangoing canoes for inter-island trade

• chincha people of coastal peru traded copper, beads, shells via seagoing rafts along pacific coast

• mesoamerican trade (copper bells, macaw feathers, shell) network reached north to southwest u.s. and south to ecuador and colombia

• chaco residents drank liquid chocolate in maya jars with imported cacao beans

• turquoise from chaco region exported south into mesoamerica

best exchange within Mesoamerica and Andes

• Yucatan and Teotihuacan maintained commercial relationships

• seaborne commerce w dugout canoes

mostly for luxury goods, but critical for upholding noble prestige

• cotton, jewel, feathers

• pochteca: Professional merchants among the Aztecs who undertook large-scale trading expeditions in the fifteenth century C.

  • mostly private businessmen, sometimes noble agents

aztec → private traders handled goods, Andean/Inca → state-run operation, no special merchant group

• state storehouses bulged w supplies

• goods transported by caravans

• distributed along borders too

7.6 REFLECTIONS: Economic Globalization—Ancient and Modern

densely connected modern world parallels to ancient world in many ways

• silk/sea/sand roads, loose american web, emergence of new states, sustaining elite privileges

obv networks have been more diff recently

• ancient → mostly for individual consumption, much smaller range of goods exchanged

• less people had to sell their labor for wages unlike now

• trade for luxury

• limited versus global after 1500s

world economy increasingly had a center (industrialized western european countries) dominated world politically economically 19th century

• economic relationships of earlier times were more equivalent units → no one region dominated the whole thing

• no single power exercised control over major networks of world commerce

economic rls of 3rd wave civilizations were more balanced and multicentered than modern

• despite massive inequalities within particular regions, globally equal

Chapter 8: China and the World: East-Asian Connections 600-1450

8.1 Landmarks for Chapter 8

8.2 Together Again: The reemergence of a Unified China

fall of the han dynasty and the rise of buddhism in china

• han collapse led to 300+ yrs of disunity and rise of local aristocrats

• nomadic rulers adopted chinese customs and ruled parts of china

• confucianism weakened, buddhism and daoism gained elite support

A “Golden Age” Of Chinese Achievement

Sui Dynasty: Ruling dynasty of China (589–618) that effectively reunited the country after several centuries of political fragmentation

• unity was solidified through the extension of canals economically linking northern and southern China

• harsh leadership and futile efforts to conquer Korea eventually prompted the overthrow of the dynasty

Tang Dynasty: Ruling dynasty of China (618–907) noted for its openness to foreign cultural influences.

• Together with its successor, the Song dynasty, it represented a golden age of arts and literature and established patterns of Chinese life that endured into the twentieth century

Song Dynasty: Chinese dynasty (960–1279) that rose to power after the Tang dynasty.

• During the Song dynasty, an explosion of scholarship gave rise to Neo-Confucianism

• revolution in agricultural and industrial production made China the richest and most populated country on the planet

• incorporated buddhism and daoism

tang and song dynasty political structure and civil service exams

• built a lasting bureaucracy with 6 ministries and a censorate

• revived and expanded civil service exams, supported by printed books

• schools and exams became key to upper-class status and government roles

limits of meritocracy in tang and song china

• exams challenged aristocratic power but elites still held many positions

• more people passed exams than available jobs

• many scholar-officials used landownership and education to stay influential locally

china’s economic revolution: major rise in prosperity that took place in China under the Song dynasty (960–1279)

• rapid population growth, urbanization, economic specialization

• development of an immense network of internal waterways

• great increase in industrial production and technological innovation

Hangzhou: China’s capital during the Song dynasty, with a population at its height of more than a million people

• busy markets, entertainment, restaurants, and inns

• wealthy culture with services for parties, music schools, and clubs

• marco polo praised it as the finest city in the world

china’s early industrial revolution and technological advances

• iron production boomed, powered by coal, used for weapons, tools, and coins

• printing, shipbuilding, and gunpowder inventions led the world

• growth slowed due to northern invasions and mongol conquest

• gunpowder: Chinese invention that came about during the ninth century.

  • mix of saltpeter, sulfur, and charcoal

  • originally created by Daoist alchemists seeking to discover an elixir of immortality

  • revolutionized global military affairs

• commercialization of song china

  • peasants produced for markets, not just local use, due to wide trade networks

  • taxes in cash pushed people to sell goods or labor

  • use of paper money and credit boosted economic growth and innovation

Women in the Song Dynasty

patriarchy and women’s roles in tang and song china

• tang elite women had more freedom, influenced by nomadic cultures

• song dynasty saw return to stricter confucian gender roles

• economic growth and confucian revival reinforced female submission

confucian gender roles and ideals in song china

• emphasized male dominance and female submission; strict gender separation

• masculinity defined by art and scholarship, not warrior traits

• widow remarriage discouraged and socially condemned

footbinding: Chinese practice of tightly wrapping girls’ feet to keep them small, prevalent in the Song dynasty and later; an emphasis on small size and delicacy was central to views of female beauty

• started with dancers/courtesans, spread to elite and broader society

• emphasized female beauty as small, frail, and submissive

• reinforced women’s confinement to home and status distinctions

women and the changing economy in song china

• men took over weaving in urban factories, reducing women’s textile income

• women worked in restaurants, markets, and as domestic workers in cities

• elite women often became concubines or entertainers, increasing household tensions

women’s property rights and education in song china

• women gained expanded property rights, controlling dowries and inheritance

• officials promoted women’s education to improve family success

• era combined stricter social limits with some new opportunities for women

8.3 China and the Northern Nomads: A Chinese World Order in the Making

china and northern nomads interaction

• nomads lived on steppes, focused on livestock and horse riding

• formed small groups and larger confederations with strong militaries

• traded with china for grain and luxury goods but also raided and pressured china for 2,000+ years

china’s complex relationship with northern nomads

• china often attacked nomads, built the great wall, restricted trade

• china relied on nomads for horses, furs, and control of silk road trade

• interaction blended different cultures, economies, and political systems

The Tribute System in Theory

china’s self-image as the “middle kingdom”

• saw itself as center of civilization, superior to “barbarian” neighbors

• viewed nomads as uncivilized, mobile, and primitive compared to chinese society

• allowed controlled cultural influence on barbarians, expecting them to become “civilized”

tribute system: set of practices that required a show of subordination from all non-Chinese authorities and the payment of tribute –– products of value from their countries –– to the Chinese emperor. In return, China would grant trading rights to foreigners and offer gifts even more valuable than the tribute itself

• required foreigners to acknowledge chinese superiority and submit through rituals

• tribute presented to emperor in exchange for permission to trade and valuable gifts

• regulated relationships with nomads, neighboring states, and later europeans

success and benefits of china’s tribute system

• many foreign rulers willingly participated to access chinese goods

• tribute relations boosted prestige of non-chinese leaders locally

• official titles and gifts from china helped rulers strengthen authority

The Tribute System in Practice

Xiongnu Empire: imperial creation of nomadic steppe peoples who inhabited lands north of China. In the third and second centuries B.C.E., this empire stretched from Manchuria to Central Asia, establishing a model for later Turkic and Mongol empires

• some nomadic empires, like the xiongnu, were powerful equals to china

• han negotiated peace by giving gifts, marriage alliances, and yearly supplies

• agreement aimed to stop nomadic raids but showed limits of tribute system’s assumptions

nomadic relations with tang china and limits of tribute system

• turkic empires in mongolia demanded large gifts from china

• uighurs helped tang suppress revolt and received marriage alliance and silk trade

• tribute system rhetoric didn’t always reflect real power dynamics

nomadic invasions and tribute payments in post-han and post-tang china

• nomads preferred extorting goods over conquering china outright

• khitan and jin established states in northern china after han and tang fall

• song dynasty paid large annual tributes in silk, silver, and tea for protection

Cultural Influence across an Ecological Frontier

nomadic rulers adopting chinese culture

• nomads ruling parts of china used chinese advisers and governance

• elites immersed in chinese culture, language, and religion

• jurchen showed deepest adoption: chinese language, clothing, marriage, buddhism/daoism

limited cultural impact of china on northern nomads

• nomads north of great wall kept own culture, not absorbed like southern peoples

• few nomads lived under sustained chinese rule or practiced chinese agriculture

• ongoing interaction included trade, conflict, politics, and some cultural exchange

steppe and western cultural influences on tang china

• sui and tang founders had mixed nomad-chinese ancestry from border regions

• tang elites embraced foreign culture: music, dance, religion, fashion from central asia and beyond

• southern chinese criticized northern elites for “barbarian” influences and cultural changes

8.4 Coping with China: Comparing Korea, Vietnam, and Japan

korea, vietnam, and japan’s relationship with china

• agricultural, sedentary societies influenced by proximity to powerful china

• borrowed major elements of chinese culture but kept distinct identities

• resisted political domination while valuing chinese wealth and culture

• each responded differently to china’s influence

Korea and China

korea’s early relations with china

• han dynasty briefly conquered northern korea, spreading chinese culture and buddhism

• early korean states used chinese title “wang” but resisted political domination

• silla allied with tang china to unify korea but resisted assimilation efforts

• Silla kingdom: The first ruling dynasty to bring a measure of political unity to the Korean peninsula

• china withdrew troops in 688 and korea became tributary but mostly independent

korea’s cultural changes from chinese influence

• korea kept political independence but copied china’s court and government

• tribute missions boosted trade and brought luxury goods and culture

• korean students and monks studied in china, spreading confucianism and buddhism

korean women under confucian influence

• free-choice marriages and women’s gatherings declined, replaced by strict confucian family rules

• married women had to live with husband’s family, limiting their independence

• remarriage, female inheritance, and plural marriages were restricted, increasing family tensions

korean cultural independence

• chinese culture mainly influenced aristocracy, peasants and slaves unaffected

• korean exam system weaker, aristocrats kept control of government positions

• hangul alphabet created in mid-1400s, spread despite elite resistance, used by commoners and women

• hangul: phonetic alphabet developed in Korea in the fifteenth century in a move toward greater cultural independence from China

Vietnam and China

vietnam and chinese influence

• elite culture borrowed confucianism, daoism, buddhism, exams, arts

• popular culture stayed distinct from chinese

• politically independent but part of tribute system

vietnam under chinese rule

• chinese officials ruled for 111 b.c.e.–939 c.e., pushing assimilation

• chinese agriculture, language, clothing imposed on vietnamese

• many chinese settlers arrived; local resistance included female-led rebellions

vietnam after independence

• rebellion ended tang rule; vietnam became independent but kept tributary ties

• rulers used chinese political ideas: mandate of heaven, court rituals, emperor title

• exam system weakened aristocracy, promoted social mobility, built scholar-gentry

• elites saw vietnam as extension of chinese civilization, not separate nation

vietnamese culture beyond the elite

• distinct language, cockfighting, betel nut chewing persisted despite chinese influence

• women had greater social and economic roles; female leaders and deities honored

• local gender customs resisted confucian norms; women chose husbands, men lived in wives’ homes

• developed chu nom writing, supporting independent literature and educated women’s writing

• chu nom: variation of Chinese writing developed in Vietnam that became the basis for an independent national literature; “southern script

Japan and China

japan’s voluntary adoption of chinese culture

• separated by ocean, no direct conquest or occupation by china

• borrowing was deliberate and systematic, not forced

• aimed to build a centralized bureaucratic state modeled on tang china

• took place mainly during 7th to 9th centuries c.e.

Shotoku Taishi: Japanese statesman (572–622) who launched the drive to make Japan into a centralized bureaucratic state modeled on China

• issued the Seventeen Article Constitution in 604 C.E., which lays out the principles of this reform

• led missions to china sending monks, scholars, artists, and students

• issued the seventeen article constitution in 604 c.e., promoting buddhism, confucianism, and moral rulers

• adopted chinese court rituals, calendar, taxation, law codes, ministries, provincial administration

• built capitals nara and heian-kyo modeled after chang’an

chinese culture in japan

• chinese buddhism influenced japanese art, architecture, education, medicine, views on afterlife, and attitudes toward suffering

• chinese writing system inspired interest in history, calligraphy, and poetry among elites

• without direct threat from china, japan was selective in cultural borrowing

• by tenth century, formal tribute missions stopped but private trade and religious exchanges continued

political differences between japan and china

• japan never built a strong centralized bureaucratic state like china

• real political power in japan shifted to aristocratic families and local military forces (samurai)

• samurai followed bushido: “way of the warrior,” referring to the martial values of the Japanese samurai, including bravery, loyalty, and an emphasis on death over surrender

• china valued intellectual achievements and political office over military power

• chinese saw carrying arms as disgrace, japanese embraced warrior culture

religious distinctiveness of japan

• buddhism adopted but didn’t replace native beliefs called shinto

• shinto centers on kami, sacred spirits linked to ancestors and nature

• shinto gave legitimacy to imperial family through sun goddess descent

• shinto had no complex rituals, so it blended easily with buddhism

• many kami were incorporated into buddhist beliefs as local deities

japanese literary and artistic culture

• unique writing system mixing chinese characters and phonetic symbols

• development of tanka poetry, still popular today

• refined court culture focused on aesthetics, poetry, love affairs

• women writers like murasaki shikibu wrote in vernacular, producing classics like the tale of genji

japanese women and chinese influence

• escaped harsh confucian restrictions like widow remarriage bans and seclusion

• inherited property, marriages flexible, often lived apart or with wife’s family

• women’s loss of status in 12th century tied to rise of samurai warrior culture, not chinese pressure

8.5 China and the Eurasian World Economy

china and eurasian economic interaction

• tang and song dynasties saw huge economic growth affecting all eurasia

• china influenced and was influenced by wider eurasian trade and contact

• economic achievements partly due to connections with larger world

Spillovers: China’s Impact on Eurasia

diffusion of chinese technology

• papermaking spread from china to korea, vietnam, japan, india, islamic world, europe over centuries

• printing also spread, especially to korea and japan; islamic world resisted printing until 19th century

• buddhism helped spread papermaking and printing by valuing sacred text reproduction

• europe reinvented movable type in 15th century, unclear if influenced by asian precedents

chinese tech and innovation in europe and beyond

• gunpowder and firearms in europe sparked the development of cannons by 14th century

• cannons spread to islamic world and china, where cast iron was first used

• competitive european state system accelerated gunpowder tech more than in china

• chinese textile, metallurgy, and naval innovations, like magnetic compass, led to further developments across eurasia

china’s economic impact across eurasia

• chinese demand for goods like silk, porcelain, and lacquerware transformed economies, from japan to africa

• spice islands in indonesia became heavily reliant on chinese consumers

• 100 million chinese in a commercial network created ripple effects, influencing global markets and livelihoods

• china’s prosperity boosted trade, market-based behavior, and connected distant regions economically

On the Receiving End: China as Economic Beneficiary

china’s engagement with the wider world: mutual exchange

• china adopted cotton and sugar cultivation from india, expanding its agricultural base

• fast-ripening rice from vietnam transformed southern china’s agriculture, fueling population growth

• southern migration of han chinese farmers, along with military conquest, overwhelmed non-chinese peoples

• these exchanges marked a turning point, reshaping china’s demographics and agricultural patterns

china’s technological creativity and cross-cultural influences

• persian windmills inspired related innovations in china, showing the impact of global exchange

• buddhist influence led to the development of woodblock printing, enhancing the reproduction of sacred texts

• the diamond sutra, printed in 868 c.e., was china's first printed book, blending spiritual and technological advances

china and indian ocean trade

• southern china became cosmopolitan due to foreign merchants, blending arab, persian, indian, and southeast asian cultures

• trade shifted southern china from subsistence farming to a market economy, boosting merchant status and bureaucratic roles

• indian ocean commerce brought cultural exchanges, including the popular monkey god stories from india to china

8.6 China and Buddhism

china's adoption of buddhism

• buddhism was the most significant cultural influence china received from india, shaping chinese society for centuries

• china became the hub for buddhism’s spread to korea and japan, influencing religious practices in both regions

• buddhism's arrival marked the most notable large-scale cultural borrowing in china's history before marxism

Making Buddhism Chinese

buddhism's early challenges in china

• buddhism arrived through the silk road but struggled to gain acceptance due to cultural differences with chinese traditions

• chinese family values and confucian ideals conflicted with buddhism's monastic lifestyle and individual salvation focus

• buddhism's concepts of infinite time cycles clashed with the chinese preference for finite dynastic histories, limiting its appeal initially

buddhism's growth in china (300–800 c.e.)

• collapse of han dynasty discredited confucianism, opening doors for buddhism's spread

• buddhism's foreign origins appealed to nomadic rulers in northern china, who supported it

• buddhism provided comfort and intellectual appeal during chaotic times, especially in southern china

buddhism's role in chinese society

• monasteries offered services like accommodation, charity, education, and medical help

• buddhism became linked with magical powers, offering cures, miracles, and relief from guilt

• many sought refuge and support during times of social and political upheaval

buddhist adaptation to chinese culture

• buddhist teachings were reinterpreted using chinese concepts like dao ("the way") and filial obedience

• some indian ideas were modified, like changing "husband supports wife" to "husband controls wife"

• scholars worked to make buddhism more relatable to chinese values and beliefs

popular buddhist forms in china

• mahayana buddhism became dominant, with deities, relics, heavens, and bodhisattvas

• pure land school focused on faith, where repeating the name of amitabha ensured rebirth in a heavenly realm

• less emphasis on study, making it more accessible to a wider population in china

buddhism in china under sui and tang

• sui emperor wendi used buddhism to justify military campaigns

• 4,000 monasteries by 600 ce, became wealthy, ran businesses, had many workers

• buddhism never independent, state controlled monk exams and education

Losing State Support: The Crisis of Chinese Buddhism

chinese buddhism: Buddhism was China’s only large-scale cultural borrowing before the twentieth century

• entered China from India in the first and second centuries C.E. but only became popular in 300 to 800 C.E. through a series of cultural accommodations

• first supported by the state, then Buddhism suffered persecution during the ninth century but continued to play a role in Chinese society alongside Confucianism and Daoism

• buddhist wealth seen as challenge to imperial authority

• critics accused monks of being merchants and profiteers

• monasteries criticized for environmental damage, felling trees, obstructing roads

• confucian and daoist thinkers opposed buddhism for undermining family system

buddhism criticism after 800 ce

• resentment of foreign influence grows after an lushan rebellion

• desire to return to "purity" of earlier times

• han yu leads confucian counterattack on buddhism in 819

• buddhism criticized for undermining traditional chinese values

state crackdown on buddhism (841–845)

• 260,000 monks/nuns forced to return to normal life

• thousands of monasteries and shrines destroyed or repurposed

• state confiscates wealth, land, and serfs from buddhist institutions

• buddhist use of gold, silver, gems banned for image construction

post-persecution buddhism in china

• buddhism influenced song dynasty confucian reforms

• buddhism integrated into popular religion alongside ancestor worship, confucianism, and daoism

• temples featured statues of confucius, laozi, and the buddha

• buddhism coexisted with other traditions, unlike in europe where one faith dominated

Chapter 9: The Worlds of Islam: Afro-Eurasian Connections 600-1450

9.1 Landmarks for Chapter 9

9.2 The Birth of a New Religion

The Homeland of Islam

nomadic Bedouins inhabited central Arabian peninsula

• frequent feuds

• polytheistic

• valued bravery, loyalty, hospitality, and oral poetry

• some regions practiced settled agriculture and had small kingdoms

• key trade routes led to wealthy cities with differing values

mecca held the kaaba, major religious shrine with many deities

• key pilgrimage site

• somewhat off main trade routes but still important

• quraysh tribe controlled access to the kaaba

• quraysh gained wealth by taxing pilgrimage trade

religious and cultural shifts in pre-islamic arabia

• contact with byzantine, sassanid, jewish, christian, and zoroastrian influences

• growing recognition of allah as supreme god

• some arabs began rejecting idols, linking allah with yahweh

• outsiders expected arabia to adopt judaism or christianity

The Messenger and the Message

Muhammad: Prophet and founder of Islam whose religious revelations became the Quran, bringing a radically monotheistic religion to Arabia and the world

• orphan from mecca, worked as shepherd and trader

• hated mecca’s corruption and inequality

• received revelation, believed he was allah’s messenger after meditating

Quran: most holy text of Islam, records the words of God through revelations given to the Prophet Muhammad

quran’s message and religious impact

• radically monotheistic, allah as sole creator and sustainer

• muhammad seen as final prophet

• aimed to restore pure faith of abraham, not create a new one

• criticized jewish, christian, and arab deviations from true monotheism

social message of the quran

• submission to allah = building a just society, god-conscious

• condemned meccan greed, corruption, and abuse of the poor

• > social justice, equality, and care for vulnerable groups

• restore older tribal values eroded by wealth and commerce

umma: community of all believers in Islam, bound by common belief rather than territory, language, or tribe

• rejected arab polytheism and meccan social injustice

• opposed tribal feuds and violence

• established the umma

• promoted spiritual equality and honored role for women

Pillars of Islam: The five core requirements of the Quran: the belief in one God, regular prayer, charitable giving, fasting during Ramadan, and a pilgrimage to Mecca

jihad: struggle in islam

• greater jihad: personal spiritual effort against greed and selfishness

• lesser jihad: authorized armed struggle to defend and establish muslim rule

• interpretations and applications of jihad have varied and remain controversial

The Transformation of Arabia

muhammad’s revelations became popular slowly

• relatives, leaders, and lower-class supporters

• strong opposition from mecca’s elite, especially quraysh

• teachings challenged meccan everything

• hijra: The “journey” of Muhammad and his original followers from Mecca to Yathrib (later Medina) in 622 C.E.; the journey marks the starting point of the Islamic calendar

umma in medina and muhammad’s leadership

• faith-based community, membership by belief not birth

• muhammad → political and religious power

• no interest and tax-free markets

• required payments to support the poor

muhammad and relations with jews in medina

• initially expected support from jews and christians due to shared monotheism

• prayed facing jerusalem at first, later switched to mecca

• acted harshly against jewish groups allied with enemies

• declared islam an arab religion with a universal message

spread of islam and consolidation of power

• military victories and diplomacy gained arab tribes’ support

• ended tribal warfare and formed alliances through marriage

• 630, muhammad entered mecca, removed idols from kaaba

• 632, islamic state controlled most of arabia and many converted

birth of islam vs christianity

• jesus’ teachings reflected jews’ minority status under roman rule

• early christians faced persecution for centuries

• developed separate church hierarchy and dual religious/political authority

• islam’s rise involved immediate political power under muhammad

birth of islam vs christianity

• islam began as a unified religious and political state under muhammad

• muhammad was religious, political, and military leader

• no separate clergy or priesthood developed in islam

• sharia: Islamic law, dealing with political, economic, social, and religious life. It literally translates as “a path to water,” which is considered the source of all life

arabian peninsula transformation (610–632)

• islam emerged with roots in jewish, christian, and zoroastrian traditions

• new islamic state unified and pacified warring arab tribes

• distinctive islamic society formed as a lasting model for future communities

9.3 The Making of an Arab Empire

islamic expansion and civilization

• arab empire grew across egypt, byzantine, persia, mesopotamia, india

• islamic faith and arab culture spread widely through migration and conversion

• created a diverse civilization united by faith but varied in culture and politics

War, Conquest, and Tolerance

arab expansion after muhammad

• defeated sassanid empire by 644 and took half of byzantine territory

• expanded across north africa, spain, parts of central asia, and battled china at talas

• conquests included military violence, sometimes affecting civilians

motives for arab empire expansion

• control of trade routes and rich agricultural lands

• military success offered wealth and social advancement

• expansion helped maintain unity of the umma after muhammad’s death

arab empire and religious tolerance

• early empire called followers “believers,” including jews and christians

• rulers tolerated and supported existing jewish and christian communities

• “people of the book” (jews, christians, zoroastrians) (dhimmis) had protected status but paid special tax

• jizya: Special tax paid by dhimmis (protected but second-class subjects) in Muslim-ruled territory in return for freedom to practice their own religion

arab rule and governance in conquered lands

• arab armies stayed in garrison towns, separated from locals to limit disruption

• local elites and bureaucracies were integrated into the empire

• mass conversion to islam became a lasting change by the eighth century

Conversion

conversion to islam

• often motivated by social convenience rather than deep spiritual change

• occurred at different rates and in diverse ways

• over centuries, millions adopted islam, reshaping cultural identity

conversion to islam: reasons and continuity

• islam shared familiar beliefs with jews, christians, and zoroastrians

• living under islamic rule offered social, economic, and legal benefits to converts

• islam supported commerce with clear laws and a vast trade network

conversion to islam: challenges and cultural impact

• resistance delayed conversion in some regions like north africa and among zoroastrians

• arabic language unified the islamic world but wasn’t imposed everywhere

• many persians converted to islam but preserved their language and culture

• arab migration led to arabization in some areas, while others islamized without arabizing

persian influence on islamic civilization

• language and culture deeply shaped islamic lands in iran, central asia, india, and the ottoman empire

• administration, court customs, architecture, poetry, music, and art

• essential to islamic high culture despite arab political dominance

Divisions and Controversies

leadership challenges in early islam

• question of who should be caliph, successor to muhammad, created major conflicts

• tensions arose between early and later converts, different arab tribes, and arabs vs non-arabs

• political and social struggles often expressed through religious interpretations and disputes

early caliphs and civil wars

• first four caliphs known as Rightly Guided Caliphs, chosen by Medina’s elders

• immediate divisions due to tribal rebellions and challenges to authority

• assassinations of Uthman and Ali led to two civil wars, intensifying Muslim internal conflicts

Sunni-Shia Split

• Sunnis believed caliphs were rightful leaders chosen by the community

• Shia believed leadership should come from Muhammad’s family, especially Ali and Husayn

• Shia imams seen as infallible leaders with special religious authority due to their lineage

The Shia Perspective and Legacy

• Shia viewed themselves as defenders of the oppressed and critics of privilege

• Developed a strong martyrdom tradition and belief in a hidden, returning leader (messianic hope)

• The Sunni-Shia split became a lasting division, influencing conflicts and further Shia splits to this day

9.4 Islam and Cultural Encounter: A Four-Way Comparison

Umayyad Caliphate: Growth and Controversy

• Caliphs became absolute monarchs with elaborate bureaucracy and centralized control, establishing hereditary rule and moving the capital to Damascus

• Ruled by an Arab military aristocracy, expanding the empire significantly

• Faced criticism from Shia (who saw them as illegitimate) and non-Arab Muslims (resenting second-class status), as well as Arabs upset by rulers' luxury and corruption

The Case of India

slam in South Asia through Turkic Conquests

• Turkic-speaking Muslim warriors from Central Asia brought Islam to northern India starting around 1000 CE

• Their conquests led to the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate in 1206, marking formal Muslim rule in India

• Early encounters were violent, including destruction of temples and plundering, but Turkic influence remained limited due to their small numbers and internal conflicts

Limits of Islam’s Spread in India

• Islam never became dominant in India, reaching only 20-25% of the population, mainly in Punjab, Sind, and Bengal.

• Strong cultural divides—Islam’s strict monotheism vs. Hindu polytheism, and Muslim equality vs. Hindu caste hierarchy—limited Islam’s appeal.

• Differences in religious practices, like forbidding images of God and sexual modesty in Islam, contrasted sharply with Hindu traditions.

Islam and Hinduism in India: Boundaries and Blending

• Islam’s exclusivity prevented full absorption into Hinduism’s inclusive religious culture, maintaining distinct boundaries.

• Despite differences, interactions and mutual influences flourished—some Hindus served in Muslim political roles, and mystics like Kabir emphasized unity beyond religious divisions.

• Sikhism emerged as a new tradition blending Islamic monotheism with Hindu ideas, promoting religious unity, though Muslims largely remained a distinct minority in India.

The Case of Anatolia

why did islamization in anatolia differ from india?

• anatolia had fewer people but more turkic settlers, leading to stronger cultural impact

• byzantine institutions collapsed under violence and disruption, weakening christian leadership

• india’s decentralized society absorbed invasion better, preserving hindu culture and identity

why did islam spread more in anatolia than india?

• turkic rulers encouraged conversion with rewards and opportunities

• islam and christianity shared monotheism, easing religious transition

• sufis rebuilt social institutions, helping replace those lost from byzantine decline

turkic influence on islam in anatolia

• turkic language dominated instead of arabic

• some sufis practiced rituals from turkic shamanism

• turkic culture gave women more respect and freedom (e.g., no veiling)

The Case of West Africa'

islam in west africa

• spread peacefully through muslim traders, not conquest

• accepted mainly in urban centers like ghana, mali, songhay

• offered merchants trade connections and rulers religious legitimacy

• famous pilgrim mansa musa of mali showed islam’s prestige

Timbuktu: major commercial city of West African civilization and a noted center of Islamic scholarship and education by the sixteenth century

• arabic was important in religion and trade, but not the everyday language

• west africa had little arab migration, so arab culture didn’t dominate like in north africa

limited spread and africanization of islam in rural west africa

• islam stayed mostly among urban elites and spread little to rural areas until the 1800s

• many rulers adopted islam but still respected traditional african religions to keep peace

• islam mixed with local customs, creating a uniquely africanized version of the faith

The Case of Spain

al-Andalus: Arabic name for Spain, most of which was conquered by Arab and Berber forces between 711 and 718 C.E. Muslim Spain represented a point of encounter between the Islamic world and Christian Europe.

cultural and religious flourishing in medieval spain

• spain had europe’s richest agricultural economy and its capital, córdoba, was a major global city

• muslims, christians, and jews contributed to a rich culture in science, arts, architecture, and literature

• by 1000, most had converted to islam, with remaining christians adopting many muslim customs and enjoying religious freedom

decline of tolerance and increased conflict in muslim spain

• golden age was brief; arabized christians still second-class

• tolerance declined as Córdoba fragmented and warfare with christian kingdoms increased

• stricter islamic practices led to persecution and church plundering under al-mansur

• social restrictions on christians ended the era of harmony

end of muslim presence in spain and its aftermath

• christian reconquest gained momentum after 1200, culminating in 1492 with fall of granada

• muslims forced to convert or exile by spanish monarchy in early 1500s; many fled to north africa or ottoman empire

• jews also expelled around same time for refusing conversion

• cultural exchange continued briefly through translation and islamic influence in christian architecture

decline of muslim spain and its legacy

• christian rule was restored, and islam was erased from the iberian peninsula

• muslim spain’s main historical impact was transmitting islamic learning to christian europe

• european scholars came to spain to study arabic and greek knowledge in philosophy, science, medicine, and more

• this transfer helped spark the rise of new european civilization from the 13th century onward

Chapter 10: The Worlds of Christendom: Contraction, Expansion, and Division 600-1450

Landmarks for Chapter 10

Christian Contraction in Africa and Asia

Asian Christianity

many christian groups gone, very few left in arabia after muhammad

• replacement of old religion → demolished cathedral pillars for new masjid

rest of middle east felt impact of islam too

• 638 controlled jerusalem, dome of rock built

• syria and persia → rulers tolerated christians

• voluntary conversion to islam

christian treatment varied per muslim ruler

• some churches/villages burned, plundered, distinct clothes

• syria muslims → built churches and involved in public/political life heavy + army → Church of the East

• second-class though, small communities and stopped offensive paintings

635 → Nestorian Church in China, small creative

• spread christianity thru buddhist+daoist concepts

• Jesus Sutras: written product of Nestorian Christians living in China, these texts articulate the Christian message using Buddhist and Daoist concepts

• “luminous religion” “cool wind” God “bad karma” sin

• end of tang → church gone cs china stopped all foreign religions

African Christianity

churches declined, islam increased everywhere, esp north africa

egypt → majority christian

• Coptic, dhimmis, jizya

• less oppressive than byzantine

• crusades → muslims suspected loyalty of christians, so extra destruction and persecutiuon

• more conversion to islam esp rural, but urban had pockets of educated monastery christians

new african christianity in nubia

• bible translated, writings of old languages, new churches

• king priests, bishop office, ruling class + commoners became christian, often defeating invasions

• 13th century → hostile against christians, so declined

• Nubian christianity: Emerging in the fifth and sixth centuries in the several kingdoms of Nubia to the south of Egypt, this Christian church thrived for six hundred years but had largely disappeared by 1500 C.E., by which time most of the region’s population practiced Islam

christianity in ethiopia is an exception

• adopted by axum rulers in 4th century

• survived islamic expansion due to geography

• isolated from rest of christendom

ethiopian christianity: Emerging in the fourth century with the conversion of the rulers of Axum, this Christian church proved more resilient than other early churches in Africa

• mountainous highlands of modern Ethiopia

• largely cut off from other parts of Christendom

• developed traditions that made it distinctive from other Christian churches

• linked to judaism through solomon/sheba story

• claimed descent from jesus for legit ruling

• built underground churches as new jerusalem

Byzantine Christendom: Building on the Roman Past 

byzantine empire: surviving eastern Roman Empire and one of the centers of Christendom during the medieval centuries

• founded at end of third century, when Roman Empire was divided into eastern and western halves

• survived until its conquest by Muslim forces in 1453

strengths of the byzantine empire, despite no clear starting point

• seen as continuation of rome, lasted 1000 yrs

• wealthier, more urban, better defenses than west

• strong military, navy, trade, and diplomacy

• Constantinople: New capital for the eastern half of the Roman Empire;   

  • highly defensible and economically important site helped ensure the city’s cultural and strategic importance for many centuries

roman legacy in byzantine empire

• preserved roman systems: roads, tax, army, laws, church, admin

• constantinople founded 330 ce as “new rome”; people called themselves romans

• rejected “barbarian” (germanic) customs; enforced roman dress + style

• aimed to protect greco-roman culture, but empire still evolved over time

The Byzantine State

nowhere near original size

• permanently lost to byzantium despite justinian’s efforts to reconquer

• islam expansion = huge loss of many lands

• mostly east mediterranean → greek, balkans, anatolia

• naval and merchant vessels active in mediterranean and black sea

impressive creation

• centralized political authority, emperor is god’s worldly representative

• scholarly aristocrats → administration, elite

• mainly focused on taxes, order, suppressing revolts

• gave local elites autonomy to reduce tension effectively

hard to pick new rulers → civil war

• invasions weakened the empire even w resilience and capacity to revive

• 1085 → slow, terminal decline

• 1453 → ottomans took over constantinople

The Byzantine Church and Christian Divergence

caesaropapism: political-religious system in which the secular ruler is also head of the religious establishment, as in the Byzantine Empire

• western → Roman Catholic Church somewhat independent of authorities, Byzantium → caesar = head of state and church

• picked patriarch, doctrine decisions, church councils

• bishops + monasteries spread christianity, had big influence on society

eastern orthodox christianity: Branch of Christianity that developed in the eastern part of the Roman Empire and gradually separated, mostly on matters of practice, from the branch of Christianity dominant in Western Europe

• subordination of the Church to political authorities, a married clergy, the use of leavened bread in the Eucharist, sharp rejection of the authority of Roman popes

• emperor seen as god’s chosen, church gave him authority

• identity rooted more in orthodoxy than roman-ness

• churches full of relics + icons; religion shaped daily + public life

• even commoners debated theology (e.g. chariot fans)

east-west christian divide

• east (orthodox) + west (catholic) shared roots but grew hostile

• rivalry grew from political split, islam’s rise, and legacy of rome

• rome used latin, byzantium used greek; culture + doctrine shaped differently

• both had jesus’ teachings, sacraments, hierarchy, but saw each other as rivals

theological + practice differences east vs west christianity

• disputes on trinity, holy spirit, original sin, faith vs reason

• icon controversy in byzantium; differing church practices (priest celibacy, beards)

• communion bread: leavened east, unleavened west

• biggest conflict: pope’s authority rejected by orthodox leaders

final schism between east + west christianity

• 1054 mutual excommunications deepened the split

• Crusades: term used to describe the “holy wars” waged by Western Christendom, against the forces of Islam in the eastern Mediterranean from 1095 to 1291 and on the Iberian Peninsula into the fifteenth century

• Further Crusades were also conducted in non-Christian regions of Eastern Europe from about 1150 on

  • declared only by the pope

  • participants swore a vow and received in return an indulgence removing the penalty for confessed sins.

• crusades worsened relations; western crusaders clashed with orthodox

• 1204 fourth crusade sacked constantinople, western rule for 50 years

• after this, christian unity was permanently broken

Byzantium and the World

byzantine relations + conflicts with neighbors

• long conflict with persian empire weakened both before islamic rise

• arab armies conquered persia, pushed into byzantine territory

• byzantium used “greek fire” to hold off arab advances

• delayed islamic expansion into europe until ottomans centuries later

byzantine economy + trade

• key player in eurasian long-distance trade networks

• bezant gold coin used widely, symbol of status in west europe

• famous for luxury goods: jewelry, textiles, purple dye

• silk industry based on chinese tech, supplied mediterranean region

byzantine cultural influence + spread

• preserved greek learning, passed it to islamic world + christian west

• influence sparked debates among scientists, philosophers, theologians

• spread christianity + literacy among balkans + russia via military + missionaries

• cyril + methodius created cyrillic alphabet to translate bible for slavs

The Conversion of Russia

most significant orthodox expansion among slavics in ukraine and russia

• Kievan Rus: culturally diverse civilization that emerged around the city of Kiev in the ninth century C.E. and adopted Christianity in the tenth, thus linking this emerging Russian state to the world of Eastern Orthodoxy

• stimulated by trade along river linking Scandinavia and Byzantium

• princes, slaves/freemen, privileged and commoners, dominant men subordinate women

religion reflects cultural diversity

• before, ancestral spirits, household deities, natural gods

• prince vladimir of kiev: Grand prince of Kiev whose conversion to Orthodox Christianity in 988 C.E. led to the incorporation of an emerging Russian state into the sphere of Eastern Orthodoxy

• sought to unify diverse ppl and link wider communication/exchange

christianity’s spread in rus

• rulers converted first, people followed slowly

• old pagan beliefs (like perun) persisted alongside christianity

• churches built on pagan sites to strengthen new faith

byzantine influence + orthodox christianity in rus

• rus adopted orthodox christianity, separating from islam + catholicism

• borrowed byzantine architecture, cyrillic, icons, monasticism, church-state ideas

• orthodoxy unified rus identity, legitimated rulers

• idea of “third rome” (moscow) as protector of orthodox after fall of constantinople

Western Christendom: Rebuilding in the Wake of Collapse

Western Christendom: Western European branch of Christianity, also known as Roman Catholicism, that gradually defined itself as separate from Eastern Orthodoxy, with a major break occurring in 1054 C.E.; characterized by its relative independence from the state and its recognition of the authority of the pope

Political Life in Western Europe

roman empire gone 476, and no centralized rule large scale

• disease, warfare, less urban, less people, crumbling buildings, barter

• less literacy, germanic peoples r predominant group

• Europe gravity moved towards north and west

classical/roman influence also stayed

• Spain, France, Italy, England replace Roman authority

• germanic people came into roman lands → roman culture

roman things still had high prestige

• germanic rulers embraced roman laws, i.e. penalties, fines, justice

charlemagne: Ruler of the Carolingian Empire (r. 768–814) who staged an imperial revival in Western Europe

• imperial bureaucracy, standardized weights and measures, imperial ruler

• crowned Rokman emperor by pope 800

• holy roman empire: A loose confederation of regional states, centered on what is now Germany but stretching from Denmark to Rome and the borders of France to Poland

  • headed by an emperor, but in practice regional states proved effective in limiting his power

  • established by Otto I

Society and the Church

feudalism: highly fragmented and decentralized society, power was held by the landowning warrior elite

• highly competitive system

• lesser lords and knights swore allegiance to greater lords or kings and thus became their vassals

• frequently received lands and plunder in return for military service

even at bottom of social hierarchy, there existed dominance and subordinance

serfs not property, not discarded, live w families

• peasant laborers that owed money and services to manor lord

• women wove, men worked in fields → received small farm and protectio, appealing cs of violence and uncertainty without roman authority, and less stability of life

the Church filled void

• similar hierarchical organization, Latin is language of church, even if vernacular languages became common

• hallmark of education = literacy in latin and greek

church became wealthy, questionable spiritual mission

• missionaries commissioned throughout europe mto convert

• “superior natural powers” and reported miracles, victory

coercion sometimes used, but softer methods prevail

• amulets → medals w jesus, wells → churches, christmas

• warned against worshipping nature

Church authorities and the nobles/warriors who exercised political influence reinforced each other

• rules protected papacy and faith, Church offered legitimacy and prosper of state

• state and church figures also competed → esp controversial was right to appoint bishops and the pope himself

• compromise to end conflict →church appoint its own officials, secular is informal and symbolic in process

Accelerating Change in the West

post-1000 european stability and growth

• invaders like huns, magyars, vikings absorbed into society, some converted to christianity

• increased peace after 1000 led to faster societal changes

• warming climate boosted agriculture, especially in north and highlands

expansion and environmental impact in the high middle ages

• europe’s population grew millions, new lands cultivated

• forests, marshes cleared for villages; warmer summers enabled highland herding

• heavy deforestation, overfishing, waste, and water mills harmed ecosystems

revival of trade in medieval europe

• agricultural growth boosted long-distance trade, which had declined post-rome

• key trade hubs: northern europe (england to baltic), northern italy (florence, genoa, venice)

• trade goods included asian luxuries; fairs like champagne linked northern and southern europe

urban growth and social change in medieval europe

• towns grew at old roman sites, trade hubs, and near cathedrals

• major cities: london (~40k), paris (~80k), venice (~150k), smaller than non-european cities

• rise of merchants, artisans, professionals; guilds formed; society shifted beyond lord-peasant structure

rise of territorial states and political centralization

• post-roman loyalty shifted from family/religion to emerging states (11th–13th c)

• monarchs slowly built authority; france, england, spain, etc. began forming

• royal courts, bureaucracies, and professional admins emerged; italy had city-states, germany stayed fragmented

impact of economic change on women’s work

• early urbanization gave women roles in trades like weaving, brewing, retail, midwifery

• by 15th c, women’s opportunities declined; guild access restricted, men dominated trades

• tech shifts (mills, large looms) replaced women’s labor; men trained sons, excluded women

religious life as a path for women’s autonomy

• convents gave women escape from marriage/family, esp. aristocrats

• nuns lived under vows but had more freedom, some became abbesses with authority

• hildegard of bingen gained fame for work in theology, medicine, botany, music

decline of women’s religious independence by 1300

• church tightened male control; limited roles like preaching, hearing confessions

• universities replaced monastic education; only ordained men allowed

• sexist beliefs (intellectual inferiority, impurity) used to justify exclusion from priesthood

shifting gender roles and male identity in late medieval europe

• male control over women tightened, similar to song china

• masculinity redefined from warrior to economic provider in urban settings

• by 1450, “husband” meant to save/manage resources; tied to provider role

Chapter 11: Pastoral Peoples on the Global Stage: The Mongol Moment 1200-1450

11.1 The Long History of Pastoral Peoples 

pastoral societies: Based on an alternative kind of food-producing economy focused on the raising of livestock

• emerged where settled agriculture was difficult or impossible

• led their animals to seasonal grazing grounds rather than settling permanently

The World of Pastoral Societies

many important distinguishing factors from permanent settlers

• less productive, large land for grazing, less people

• small, scattered, kinship groups and clans

• equality, individual achievement,

• some clans → socioeconomic stratification, slavery

women had more status, less restrictions, more public life

• productive labor and domestic responsibility, no control own livestock

• remarriage and divorce ok

• political and military advisers

nearby civilizations didnt fw their freedom, women governed

mobility due to changing of environmental conditions

• depended on type of climate, would have to follow seasonal changes impacting vegetation and water supply

• took felt tents w them, gave grass to animals for energy

deeply connected to and depended on farming neighbors

• can’t live solely off own animals → sought manufactured and luxury from neighbors

• desire for fruits → confederations and states to better deal w powerful neighbors

making a large state of pastoralists is lwk hard

• lacked surplus wealth for armies and bureaucracies

• independence of dispersed clans made unity hard, but Chinggis Khan weld some alliances to a state

• military advantages

  • horseback riding, hunting skills

  • sustained states thru raiding, trading, extortion

• cultural interactions → more religions entered, Manichaeism = Buddhist, Zoroastrian, Christian

• top down conversions for political purposes 

dramatic changes in society after art of horseback riding

• herd larger groups of animals, move quickly over territory

• new technology helped their mobility and mastery of environment → complex harnesses, armor, swords

Before the Mongols: Pastoralists in History

horseback riding (later camel) let them onto the global stage

• warfare mastery → series of empires, challenged and influenced neighbors

Xiongnu is large scale empire north of china

• provoked by Chinese penetration into territory → made ts military confederacy

• Modum: Great ruler of the Xiongnu, exacted tribute from other Central Asian pastoral peoples and China → Han Emperor Wen acknowledged was equal

• Xiongnu Empire: imperial creation of nomadic steppe peoples who inhabited lands north of China, later stretching from from Manchuria to Central Asia, establishing a model for later Turkic and Mongol empires

this era → pastoral made their historical mark

• arabs, berbers, turks, mongols

• islam is most expansive religious tradition from arabs, carried by Turks

• great civilizations like Byzantium, Persia, India, China have been controlled by pastorals at least once

• entered world history

first and dramatic incursion from Arabs

• camel saddle → Bedouins fight effectively, military advantage, controlled rich trade routes w incense

• shock troops of islamic expansion → first followers and forces helped to start arab empire

turks were making their path in the north

• various Turkic clans migrated from Mongolia west, very short lasting empires; kaghan → supreme ruler of fragile allied tribes; kaghan supported by faithful soldier wolves (mythical ancestor)

• Turkic peoples: Turkic speakers from Central Asia, originally nomads, who spread westward, creating a series of nomadic empires; Islam between the 10th/14th, carried that faith into new lands and Byzantine Empire, and became a politically powerful presence in the Islamic world

• language and culture spread to agrarians, even China

major turning point for Turks is conversion to Islam

• major faith expansion, new role of 3rd major carrier of Islam (Arabs, Persians)

• first slave soldiers in abbasid, then took military and political power

• Seljuk Turkic Empire: empire of the eleventh and twelfth centuries, centered in Persia and present-day Iraq

  • rulers adopted the Muslim title of sultan (ruler) as part of their conversion to Islam; exercised real power, despite formal by caliph

turkics carried islam to places

• invaded north india, anatolia (prev. Byzantium) got massive infusion of culture and language and created Ottoman Empire

• turkic dynasties governed well almost to modern empire too

• transformed from pastoralists → sedentary farmers, steppe empire creators → rule agrarian civilizations, polythetic ancestral worship → carrying Islam

similar patterns in Africa broadly

• camel introduced pastoral societies, later adopted Islam

• Sanhaja Berber pastoralists reform → recently converted, superficial practice

• Ibn Yasin came from Hajj and wanted orthodoxy

• Almoravid Empire: Emerging out of an Islamic reform movement among the Sanhaja Berber pastoralists in the eleventh century, incorporated a large part of northwestern Africa and southern Spain

  • collapsed by the mid-twelfth century

  • strong efforts against Christian conquering in Spain 

enjoyed prosperity and controlled gold trade and grain produce in Morocco

• brought to Morocco sophisticated southern Islamic spanish culture, Marrakech architecture

• overrun by Atlas Mountain Berbers

• pastorals converted to islam, conflict w agricultural neighbors, short-lived empire, impacts of nearby civilizations

11.2 Breakout: The Mongol Empire 

Mongols breakout from Mongolia helped start largest empire in history

• joined inner pastorals w outer agriculturalists

• brought europe, china, and the islamic world CLOSER than ever

• destructive, but also neetworks of exchange and communication

modest cultural imprint on world

• no new language religion or civilization, but Arabs did

• Mongol religion centered on ancestral rituals

• rulers got advice from shamans, religious specialists

• ts boring to evb, and mongols didnt care to spread ts’

majority of conquered people were defeated, subordinate, exploited

• Turks influence language and culture far away, but Mongol is just Mongolia

• after mongol empire died, evb hated inner eurasian pastoralists, absorbed

From Temujin to Chinggis Khan: The Rise of the Mongol Empire

Temujin, later Chinggis Khan: Birth name of the Mongol leader better known as Chinggis Khan (1162–1227), or “universal ruler,” a name he acquired after unifying the Mongols

• before he united evb, mongols are hella unstable and fractitious

early life of temujin

• father killed, family abandoned by clan, lost livestock and status

• lived by hunting, fishing, gathering under harsh conditions

• temujin showed courage, magnetism, relied on friends not kin

• Chinese fw this and patron him cs they hate pastoralists, allying with a more powerful ruler

• built alliances and gained recognition as a chief with growing followers

insane clutch that surprised evb cs shifting alliances and betrayals

• many military victories cs his enemies r indecisive → reputation as YAY to allies and AHH to enemies

• 1206 → recognized as Supreme Leader of Great Mongol Nation

what did Chinggis do w the big military he made

• no task → dissolve into chaos, no resources to reward followers → can’t stay supreme

• obv expand toward wealthy chinese

mongol world war: half a century of military campaigns, massive killing, and empire building pursued by Chinggis Khan and his successors in Eurasia after 1209.

• china, central asia, russia, islamic middle east, eastern europe

sm setbacks for outer limits of mongol empire

• withdrawal from east europe (1242)

• defeat in palestine by egyptians (1260)

• failed to invade japan cs typhoons

• cant go thru jungles of southeast asia

Examining the Mongol Moment

grew momentum without any plan, like romans

• victories → resources for more war or insecurities for more expansion

lowkey this seemed impossible for mongols

• china had more people, and others had more technological prosperity

• GREAT TIMING when Song Dynasty lost control to north, Abbasid shrunk

• disciplined organized greatly led armies of Mongols clutched

• conquered ppl became part of forcess

huge discipline and loyalty of mongol military leaders

• desert = death penalty

• leaders shared pain w men

• encirclement, retreat, deception proved decisive

• SO much wealth → poor can dress better, own slaves, climb social ladder

mongol use of conquered peoples

• incorporated conquered peoples into army: pastoralists as cavalry, farmers as infantry/artillery

• adopted chinese siege techniques and technology

• forced labor for roads, bridges, and supply transport

• skilled artisans sent across empire for specialized work, sometimes spared from massacre

growing reputation of brutality and destructiveness clutched

• also psychological warfare → induced surrender

good at mobilizing human and material resources

• great census-taking → aware of resources + taxation

• relay system → effective communication

• specialized central bureacraucy @ Karakorum

• scribes translated languages of the empire

other policies appealed to some conquered groups

• offered merchants more than asking price, free use of relay stations for trade

• mongols had highest decision making posts, but chinese and muslims had many advisory and lower level positions in persia and china

• welcomed religions as long as they weren’t politically opposing

  • Muslims can seek converts, Christians have other Christians

11.3 Encountering the Mongols in China, Persia, and Eurasia

China and the Mongols

main target for wealth, difficult extended conquests

• began in Northern China → large destruction and plunder; Southern → Song Dynasty, less violence and more accommodating

• unified divided china → persuaded that Mongols had Mandate of Heaven

• behaved like a good Confucian → tax relief, leniency, less violence

Great Khan Ogodei suggested exterminating every north china for mongol pastureland

• instead, extract every bit of wealth, but also accommodated to Chinese gov and culture

accommodated in many ways 

• administrative: practices like taxation, postal system, Yuan dynastic title started smthing new, capital to Beijing “Khanbalik” → rooted on sophisticated civilization

• Khubilai Khan: Grandson of Chinggis Khan who ruled China from 1271 to 1294

  • Chinese tablets to honor ancestors, Chinese names

  • similar to good Confucian ruler → public works, less taxes, patronized art, prohibit grazing of farmland

• Yuan Dynasty: Mongol dynasty initiated by Khubilai Khan that ruled China from 1271 to 1368

• rituals, temples, attracted to Tibetan Buddhism, calligraphy, poetry

still harsh, exploitative, foreign, resented

• bribes, executions, seized women → hostility

• maintained much of Mongol culture; continued animal steppe life, traditional tent life

• ignore trad exam system → foreigners r officials, themselves r top decision making posts 

• honored bureaucrats and artisans way more, HATE chinese

no intermarriage, Chinese can’t learn Mongol script, no foot binding, women freely mixed w Chinese husbands

• relied heavily on female advisors → Chabi convinced him to maintain farmland bc advantages + tax revenue

• urged for emulation of early golden China for long dynasty

relatively brief rule of china

• factionalism, inflation, epidemics, peasant rebellions forced Mongols out → 1368, rebels won, returned to steppes

• Ming Dynasty → new commitment to Confucianism, restrict gender roles to rid of Mongol practices

Persia and the Mongols

abrupt conquest of Islamic Persia, first led by Chinggis, 30 yrs later assault led by his grandson

• Hulegu: Grandson of Chinggis Khan who became the first il-khan (subordinate khan) of Persia.

• mongols viewed as infidels → huge shock to ppl accustomed to expansive islamic progress

• HUGE ferocity and slaughter → Sacking of Baghdad killed 200k and ended Abbasid Caliphate

damage to agriculture and soil tilling

• heavy taxes forced under whipping → peasants left, in-migration of Mongols turned agriculture into pasture and desert

• fragile water channels underground, little irrigation to neglected fields, good land wasted

• wine production incr, persian silk industry benefited cs china 

Mongols here transformed more than the ones in China

• used sophisticated Persian bureaucracy → govt operations by Persians

• Ghazan reign → rebuilt damaged cities and irrigation systems; Mongols also converted to Islam 1295, unique

• mongol elites learned persian, turned to farming, intermarriage

collapsed 1330 bc lack of suitable heir, but Mongols not driven out → them and turks assimilated 

• “barbarians” civlized, Persians resisted cultural influence, now can become patriarchal again

Russia and the Mongols

1237-40, relatively new civilization on edge of christendom, kievan rus gone, sm un-united independent princes

• ferocity despite large interactions w pastoralists north of black sea → cities fell to Mongols, used catapults and battering rams from Muslims and Chinese

• mass slaughter, rape; evb surrendered, laborers/skilled craftsmen sold as slaves; sm crafts loss, toll on Russia

Khanate of the Golden horde: Russian name for the incorporation of Russia into the Mongol Empire in the mid-thirteenth century; known to Mongols as the Kipchak Khanate

• no garrison cities, permanent stationed officers, settlers cs little to offer → not sophisticated or productive economy, not near big trade routes

• sm empty land → maintain steppe life ez, remain near Russian cities in case of military expedition

exploited russia

• princes paid tribute, heavy taxes on peasants, raids = more slaves

• russian orthodox church flourished cs religious toleration, no taxes

• cooperated cities r good, resisted cities damaged

• Moscow is primary tribute of Mongols → Ivan I rich, great for nucleus of new russian state post-mongol

no direct mongol rule → not as influenced by Russian culture compared to Persia/China, still dominated

• eventually assimilated to Islamic faith of Kipchaks

Mongols impacted Russia A LOTTT despite distance

• Russians adopted their weapons, diplomacy, court, tax system, military draft → facilitated new Russian state as Moscow is core

• Orthodox church penetrates further

• blamed Mongols for backwardness and autocracy

divisions, plague, and Moscow growth led to end of Mongol Russia end of 15th

• mongol war moment now over, but still occassionally attacked

11.4 The Mongol Empire as a Eurasian Network

chinese culture and buddhism provided integration in east; christianity in europe; islam in middle

• mongol empire brought all ts into 1→ circulated goods, info, disease, warfare

Toward a World Economy

mongols didn’t produce goods, didn’t trade, but promoted international commerce largely to tax it and extract wealth from rich nations

• paid more than set price to attract merchants

• financial banking for caravans, standardized weights/measures, merchant tax breaks

made secure environment for risky long-distance trade on Silk Road

• merchants returned w tales of good lands, rich opportunities, but it’s js long-established trading networks europeans ignored

mongol trade circuit was central to linking afro-eurasian world

• connected overland thru Mongol Empire, oceanic routes thru Indian/Chinese ocean

Diplomacy on a Eurasian Scale

promoted diplomatic relationships throughout

• randoms invasion of Russia → mongols slimed polish german hungarian forces, set to west europe

• ogodei died → mongols returned, plus europe not for pasturelands

• fear of mongol return → friars dispatched to learn culture, help in crusades, proselytic, useless

useful information about eastern lands given to europe

• awareness of wider world

• Persian Mongols’ conversion to Islam prevented overthrowing of Jerusalem

mongols close w persian and chinese courts

• exchanged ambassadors, intelligence, trade, skilled workers

Cultural Exchange in the Mongol Realm

forcibly transferred skilled educated people to distant parts, religious tolerance attracted merchants, traders, missionaries

• Karakorum - cosmopolitan city for multiple religions, intermarriage, syncretism

• Prophet drawn in China and in Christian scenes?? WHAT

• entertainment from Byzantium, persian doctors/administrators to China, Chinese physicians and engineers in Persia

HUGE exchange of techniques and ideas

• chinese tech and art - painting, printing, gunpowder, compass, high temp furnaces, medicine

• flowest west cs Chinese pulse method preferable over direct contact in Islam

• muslim astronomers to China reinforced their heavenly signs

• lemons/carrots from middle east to China, il-khan looked for indian chinese stuff

• europeans used to be cut off, but now, new tech crops knowledge WITHOUT bad mongol conquest

Chapter 12: The Worlds of the Fifteenth Century

Societies and Cultures of the Fifteenth Century

Paleolithic Persistence: Australia and North America 

hunter gathering societies still existed 

• australia, siberia, arctic coastlands, part of america and africa

australians persisted hunting/gathering even after europeans came

• overt time, assimilated practices like canoes, fishing, art, rituals

• farming didn’t come to mainland australia still 

still, mastered understanding of the land + firestick farming 

• controlled burns cleared underbush → makes hunting easier, helps grow plants and animals

• exchanged goods with each other,  created rituals, sculptures, and rock painting 

different flourishing society w north american tribes 

• affluent gathering and uniting societies bc variety of animal and fish species 

• permanent settlements, large sturdy houses, economic specialization, ranked societies, chiefdom, excess food 

numbers still plummeted as agricultural societies like russia and china took over

Agricultural Village Societies: The Igbo and the iroquois  

there weren’t many fully agricultural societies who avoided larger empires/civilizations or their own city-state societies

• these people lived in north america, caribbean/south america, southeast asia, and south africa with villages of kinship relations

• each has their own characteristics, just like how an empire has its rise/fall, culture, etc.

igbo: People whose lands were east of the Niger River( now southern Nigeria)

• built a complex society that rejected kingship and centralized statehood, while relying on other institutions to provide social coherence

• title societies → wealthy men w high ranks, women’s associations, ritual experts = mediators, balance among kinship groups

igbo was not an isolated society

• traded w songhay and traded cloth, fish, copper, iron goods

• common artistic traditions, transition to patrilineal descent

• impacted by atlantic slave trading

new york → changing agricultural societies bc of european interference

• Iroquois became fully agricultural (maize and beans), larger settlements, distinct people emerged

• frequent warfare

• agriculture (women’s work) was main economic activity, but war gave more prestige

Iroquois: Iroquois-speaking peoples in what is now New York State

• around the fifteenth century they formed a loose alliance based on the Great Law of Peace, an agreement to settle disputes peacefully through a council of clan leaders

  • loose confederation of five speaking people, including Mohawk

  • suppressed conflicts and coordinated relationships with outsiders

europeans found value in the confederacy’s limited govt, social equality, personal freedom

• rights for women → matrilineal descent, live w women, women control agriculture and property → selected leaders

• men were hunters, warriors, officeholders

increasingly encompassed in expanding trade networks and conquest empires

Pastoral Peoples: Central Asia and West Africa

pastoral people had more direct dramatic impacts on civilizations than agriculturalists

• i.e. mongols

• Timur: Turkic warrior (Tamerlane) whose efforts to restore the Mongol Empire in the late fourteenth /early fifteenth centuries fucked up some of Persia, Russia, and India

  • successors created a vibrant elite culture drawing on both Turkic and Persian elements, especially Samarkand city

  • his conquests are the last major military success of Central Asian pastoral peoples

just as aggressive as chingghis, devastated persia russia india

• conflicts of successors prevented lasting empire

• descendants controlled area around persia/afghanistan after

• sophisticated elite culture of turkic/persian elements → patronized the arts

• pastoralists of inner eurasia swallowed by outer by russia and china

africa → pastorals stayed independent longer than asian pastorals

• fulbe: West Africa’s largest pastoral society

  • members gradually adopted Islam and took on a religious leadership role that led to the creation of a number of new states by the nineteenth century

  • lived in small communities among agriculturals, paid taxes for pasturing as they moved eastward; resented subordination to farmers

  • adopted islam → stopped pastoralism → became big religious figures → jihads made new states

Civilizations of Fifteenth Century: Comparing China and Europe

city-centered and state-based societies were larger, denser, powerful, innovative, and had socioeconomic inequalities

• expanded geographically

• majority of ppl lived in one of these civilizations

• still, many identified w local communities

Ming Dynasty China

china disrupted by mongol rule and the plague

• Ming Dynasty: Chinese dynasty (1368–1644) that succeeded the Yuan dynasty of the Mongols

  • noted for return to traditional Chinese ways and restoration of the land after the destructiveness of the Mongols

  • no mongol names/dress, yes Confucian learning + trad gender roles

  • Emperor Yongle did a lot of stuff

    • sponsored Encyclopedia w a bunch of scholars’ info

    • relocated capital to Beijing, built Forbidden City (palace) + Temple of Heaven

  • socially, past

reestablished civil service exam, created very centralized govt

• emperor held concentrated power + loyal eunuchs exercised great authority

  • official bureaucrats pissed

• restored acres to cultivation, rebuilt canals reservoirs irrigation works, planted billions of trees

• better economy, more trade, good governed and prosperous

went on a huge maritime expedition

• Yongle commissioned a big fleet to launch in 1408 and last 30 ish years

• Zheng He: Great Chinese admiral who commanded a huge fleet of ships in a series of voyages in the Indian Ocean that began in 1405

  • intended to enroll distant peoples and states in the Chinese tribute system, voyages ended abruptly in 1433 and led to no lasting Chinese imperial presence in the region

  • still, many rulers came back w tribute and rituals of submission, offerred stuff in return

abruptly and deliberately ended

• 1433 → just stopped, let everything deteriorate

• emperor Yongle died, main patron of this

• high officials saw this as a waste bc china was already the great middle kingdom → worry abt northern barbarians

• officials viewed ts as the project of eunuchs (despised)

• even without support of govt, people still sailed and traded around

European Comparisons: Statebuilding and Cultural Renewal

demographic recovery and growth in eurasia

• western europe recovered from plague in late 15th c.

• population regrew steadily

• strong infrastructure supported economic + demographic revival

europe joined china in earlier patterns of state building

• Europe was a fragmented system of several separate independent very competitive states

  • effective taxation system → effective administrative structures, raised armies

• Moscow city state ermerged

  • driven by needs of war → frequent

  • eg: Hundred Years’ War

european renaissance: A “rebirth” of classical learning that is most often associated with the cultural blossoming of Italy in the period 1350–1500

• included rediscovery of Greek and Roman learning plus major developments in art, as well as growing secularism in society

  • use these texts alone, without religion, as the cultural standard

• spread to Northern Europe after 1400

• patroned artists made much more naturalistic art, also looked at islamic excellence

religious themes common in art, but also included mythology

• humanists’ study of history, ethics, politics, etc. complemented religion → God made human to learn, take advantage of the ability to learn and improve

  • ex: The Prince by Machiavelli → practical politics, feared > loved, controversial

most artists were men, but one great exception was Christine de Pazan (daughter of Venetian official in Paris)

• City of Ladies → challenged misogyny, argued for women’s education and active roles in society, ALL women of ALL cultures

renaissance focus on individuality and secularism

• inspired by classical models, emphasized unique individuals + real world

• reflected urban, commercial life of italian cities

• secularism + individualism challenged christian otherworldliness, hinted at emerging capitalist economy

European Comparisons: Maritime Voyaging

europe, like china, also launched outward maritime expeditions

• started 1415 in Portugal

• 2 expeditions w/ major breakthroughs

  • 1492 → Christopher Columbus, funded by Spain, went west along Atlantic and tried to reach East, failed

  • 1497 → Vasco da Gama went around coast of Africa to India

europeans had WAY less ships and crewmembers than chinese (columbus had 3 bro)

europeans sought the wealth of Asia and Africa, converts, and allies against Muslim powers

• meanwhile, china doesn’t care → no military threats, few trade needs, no desire to convert foreigners

• chinese fleets avoided conquest and colonies; Europeans monpolized commerce in Indian Ocean and built american empires

china suddenly ended their voyages, while europeans continued and escalated them

• zheng he’s voyages forgotten in china, led nowhere

• european expeditions, though smaller, were first steps toward global power

why did europeans continued voyages?

• 1) no unified political authority to end maritime outreach

• 2) most of elite had interest in overseas expansion

  • merchants sought profit, Church sought conversion, nobles sought fame and fortune

• meanwhile, Zheng He’s voyages were shallow in the official circle

chinese and european worldviews

• china confident in antiquity + cultural superiority, expected others to provide goods

• europeans saw themselves as religiously unique (christianity)

• european expansion driven by desire for eastern riches + threat from muslim powers

chinese withdrawal vs european expansion

• china leaving indian ocean allowed portuguese entry, minimal resistance

• both faced growing populations + land shortages

• china expanded agriculture internally + inland; europe expanded overseas via oceanic exploration

Civilizations of the Fifteenth Century: The Islamic World

transformations in the islamic world

• islamic civilization politically unified into four major states/empires

• long-term conversion to islam continued cultural transformation

• fifteenth–early sixteenth centuries saw notable political + cultural changes

In the Islamic Heartland: The Ottoman and the Safavid Empires

ottoman empire: Major Islamic state centered on Anatolia that came to include the Balkans, parts of the Middle East, and much of North Africa

• lasted in one form or another from the fourteenth to the early twentieth century

ottoman empire in the fifteenth century

• huge, long-lasting, diverse, economically + culturally sophisticated

• rivaled ming china + incas in wealth, power, splendor

• turks became dominant in islamic world, sultans claimed caliph title, sought unity + protector role

Ottoman Seizure of Constantinople: The city of Constantinople, the capital and almost the only outpost left of the Byzantine Empire, fell to the army of the Ottoman sultan Mehmed II “the Conqueror” in 1453

• marked the end of Christian Byzantium

• ottomans reversed roles from crusades, europeans no longer aggressive initiators

• conquest of constantinople 1453 ended byzantine empire, ottomans claimed roman legacy

• expansion continued to vienna 1529, europeans feared “terror of the turk”

Safavid Empire: Major Turkic empire established in Persia in the early sixteenth century and notable for its efforts to convert its people to Shia Islam

• created unique identity of Persian culture

safavid empire and ottoman rivalry

• shia safavid empire contrasted with mostly sunni neighbors

• 1534–1639: periodic ottoman-safavid military conflicts

• conflicts driven by territory + religious differences

On the Frontiers of Islam: The Songhay and the Mughals

songhay empire: Major Islamic state of West Africa that formed in the second half of the fifteenth century

• largest in series of west african states, controlled trans-saharan trade

• islam present mainly among urban elites, monarch sonni ali blended islamic + traditional practices

• became major center of islamic learning + commerce

  • timbuktu: major commercial city of West African civilization and a noted center of Islamic scholarship and education by the sixteenth century

mughal empire: successful state founded by Muslim Turkic-speaking peoples who invaded India and provided a rare period of relative political unity (1526–1707); their rule was noted for efforts to create partnerships between Hindus and Muslims

• governed largely non-muslim population, continued islam-hindu interactions

• established in early 16th century by islamized turkic group, unified most of india

• early emperors used inclusive policies, blended hindu + muslim subjects, similar to ottoman religious autonomy

four muslim empires and second flowering of islam

• ottoman, safavid, songhay, mughal brought political, military, economic, cultural strength

• unprecedented coherence and prosperity in islamic world

• fueled continuing spread of islam to new regions

oceanic southeast asia and islamic trade influence

• by the 15th century, muslim traders controlled much of indian ocean commerce

• hindu and buddhist rulers converted to islam to attract trade and became sultans

• spread of islam occurred through merchants and sufi holy men, not conquest

Malacca: Muslim port city that came to prominence on the waterway between Sumatra and Malaya in the fifteenth century C.E.; it was the springboard for the spread of a syncretic form of Islam throughout the region

rise of malacca as a muslim trade and learning center

• transformed from small fishing village to major muslim port in 15th century

• commerce attracted diverse nations, helped spread islam in region

• blended islam with local and hindu/buddhist traditions, became center of learning

Civilizations of the Fifteenth Century: The Americas

aztec and inca empires are newer, larger, and more politically unified

• marginal people forcibly take over, absorb older cultures

• killed 16th century by conquistadors and disease

The Aztec Empire

the aztec empire: Major state that developed in what is now Mexico in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries; dominated by the semi-nomadic Mexica, who had migrated into the region from northern Mexico

• more mercenaries to protect powerful people, negotiating elite marriage alliances, build capital city Tenochtitlan

• 1428 → Triple Alliance launched aggressive military conquest, bringing chunks of the region under a single political framework

• Aztecs claim descent from elder trads

loosely structured, unstable conquest state, frequent rebellions

• conquered people had to provide labor and deliver bunch of gifts, overseen by local tribute imperial collectors

public works → canals, dikes, bridges

• palaces, temples, artificial floating islands made from swamplands for productive agriculture

• marketplaces → big commercialization

local and long-distance trade

• extent + population growth stimulated market growth and production of crafts

• cities like Tlatelolco had huge marketplaces

• pochtecha → commoners with huge wealth that allowed them to rise in society, land magnates

pochtecha obtained slaves for important sacrifices

• sacrifice BIG part of blood rituals in aztec life

• Tlacaelel developed ideology of state giving human sacrifice importance

Huitzilopochtli deity lost energy against cinstant battle of darkness → Aztecs always near catastrophe

• to replenish energy and delay darkness descent, give human sacrifices (since Gods sacrificed blood for humans) → valued prisoners of war, rulers and priests dependent

• huge rituals + displays of wealth served to impress everyone with the immense power of Aztec culture

poetry of beauty → fragility and brevity of human life

The Inca Empire

the Inca Empire: The Western Hemisphere’s largest imperial state in the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. Built by a relatively small community of Quechua-speaking people (the Incas), the empire stretched some 2,500 miles along the Andes Mountains, which run nearly the entire length of the west coast of South America, and contained perhaps 10 million subjects

• incorporated traditions of older cultures

• larger than Aztec

• encompassed whole of Andean civlization

similar to aztec → quick military conquests brought them from rags to riches

• aztec rulers left subjects alone if they received tribute

• no elaborate administrative system to integrate or assimilate people into Aztec culture

incas were way more bureaucratic

• divine emperor, governors for each 80 provinces

• in theory, govt owned everything, but acc state lands existed alongside temples, elites, etc.

• grouped into hierarchical units, inspectors checked on province officials

quipus (knotted cords) was an accounting device that recorded births, deaths, etc.

• resettlement program moved populations to new locations

• leaders learned Quechua for cultural integration → sons moved to the capital to learn Inca language and culture

diversity in Inca required great flexibility to deal with

• some resistant, some cooperative and benefited

• overlord delegated control to native authorities → always tried to bring local people in lower administrative systems

• acknowledge major deities, but do ur own thing

• fluid → depended on conquered people, and desires and demands of govt

dense and extended network of economic elationships

• demands of conquered expressed in labor service (mita) from every household, not tribute

• EVERYONE had to work for state, even if most productions stayed home

• sun farms, religious institutions, military, mining, etc.

skilled → manufacture textiles, ceramics, metal goods

• chosen women picked from homes, trained w incan ideology, produce corn beer and state cloth at state centers, later wives of Sun to elite men

• state required to provide lots of food and wine and elaborate feasts when disaster struck

aztec and inca have similar gender systems

• men and women are separate but equal → gender paralellism

• Andes → men from fathers, women from mothers; Mesoamerica children from both

• men love the sun, women the moon

• male and female priests and political officials (Aztecs → local authority)

• domestic qualities not hated on

gender complementarity, not equality

• women’s unfaithfulness worse than male’s

• as empires grew, slightly leaned patriarchal

• Aztecs → women’s tools were riutalized as weapons and good luck for war

• Inca had higher parallelism → incan ruler and his female consort, governed jointly

Webs of Connection

most people caught in some form of overlapping exchange and interaction

• Incas diligently tried to integrate diverse peopl

religion linked and divided people

• christianity for europe, but orthodoxy vs catholicism and then the protestant reformation made a fragmented christian region

• buddhism linked a lot of east asia tg even w separate sects

• islam brought tg many diverse cultures, but strong conflicts between sunni and shias

long-established patterns of trade with different goods unique to each environemnt

• siberia traded fur along silk road, Nigeria received horses that flourished there from Africa, Missisippi River and Amazon River facilitated trade

• voyage networks of polynesia

long-distance trading patterns were starting to change

• silk road contracted when mongols fell and plague reduced demand for its products

• ottoman empire blocked trade bw europe and china, but oceanic trade of east asia in indian ocean increased

• larger ships carried bulk goods, sophisticated partnerships + credit mechanisms

• common islamic culture helped

After 1500: Looking Ahead to the Modern Era

ties of empire, culture, commerce, disease linked people, but not on a global scale

• afro-eurasia had no enduring ties w americans, and no contact with pacific oceania

• ts changes as europeans sustained interaction among all regions 16th century, marking the modern age

all regions became more connected than ever

• global empires, economies, cultural exchanges, migration, disease, empire, environmental changes more important

2nd distinctive feature emerged - radically new kind of human society, first in europe 19th century, then elsewhere → industrialization

• more tech innovations, massive consumption of energy and raw materials, scientific outlook, human population growth, powerful and intrusive states, Europeans dominant, balance of global power different

Chapter 13: Political Transformations: Empires and Encounters 1450-1750

Comparing Colonial Societies in the Americas

spanish, portuguese, british, french made new societies when colonizing

• mercantilism: economic theory that governments served their countries’ economic interests best by encouraging exports and accumulating bullion (precious metals such as silver and gold); helped fuel European colonialism

empires formed differently, so different colonies (like protestant english v. catholic spanish)

• also determined settler-based agriculture, slave plantations, ranching, mining

• native american character/culture changed too

men and women experienced colonial intrusion differently

• women were forcibly transferred to new colonial rulers through exchange gifts as slaves

elite native american women married to spanish men

• strongly encouraged to foster good relations

• some of the women benefited a lot too - gained states

• nonelites experienced sexual violence, sex slavery, and abuse → humiliating for native men that failed to protect them

In the Lands of the Aztecs and the Incas

spanish conquest and colonial development

• spain took over rich, urbanized regions of mexico and peru

• built cities, universities, churches, and missions within a century

• set up complex administration and regulated global trade

economic foundations of colonial society

• based on commercial agriculture and precious metal mining using mainly native labor

• coercive systems like encomienda forced natives into near-slavery conditions

• hacienda system kept workers as low-paid peons with heavy taxes and debts

social hierarchy in spanish colonies

• colonial society mirrored spanish class and gender order while adapting to diverse racial groups

• spanish men held political and economic power but were divided among conquistador descendants, creoles, and peninsulares

• women had racial privilege but strict gender limits and were controlled to preserve lineage and purity of blood

mestizo: A term used to describe the mixed-race population of Spanish colonial societies in the Americas, most prominently the product of unions between Spanish men and Native American women

• scarcity of spanish women led to widespread spanish–indian unions

• indian women often sought security in spanish households for themselves and their children

• mestizos expanded into many caste categories and eventually became a majority in mexico

mestizo status in colonial society

• mestizos were culturally hispanic but viewed as illegitimate by spaniards

• grew into a key social group with roles in crafts, administration, and small business

• mestiza women worked in service and crafts, and rare cases like mencia perez showed upward mobility

indigenous life under spanish rule

• indigenous peoples faced heavy labor demands, tribute, and cultural suppression after population collapse

• many adopted spanish language, religion, work patterns, and legal systems

• indian women were treated as legal minors, losing court access and property protections

indigenous persistence and resistance

• local indian authorities, markets, foods, and religious blends endured under spanish rule

• women often kept matrilineal property practices and folk beliefs stayed strong

• revolts like tupac amaru invoked inca memories and gendered political traditions

social categories and mobility in colonies

• spaniards, mestizos, and indians, with fewer africans than elsewhere

• some individuals could move between categories through education, wealth, or cultural adoption

• society showed fluid ethnic mixing and cultural blending compared to british colonies

Colonies of Sugar

sugar colonies in brazil and the caribbean

• developed in lowland regions without major native civilizations or early mineral wealth

• profitability came from sugar, heavily demanded in europe for many uses

• economies focused on export sugar production and imported most necessities

sugar production origins

• pioneered by arabs in the mediterranean

• europeans adopted and transferred it to atlantic islands and the americas

• portugal dominated brazilian sugar market 1570–1670, later challenged by british, french, dutch

impact of sugar in brazil and the caribbean

• sugar was labor-intensive, large-scale, and aimed at global markets

• used european capital and expertise, making it an early modern industry

• relied heavily on african slave labor after native populations declined, most slaves went to brazil and caribbean

slave labor conditions on sugar estates

• worked in extreme heat and dangerous conditions, high death rates 5–10% per year

• constant importation of new slaves required to replace those who died

• described by observers as brutal and deadly

female slaves in sugar economies

• women made up about half of field gangs but rarely did skilled mill work

• worked in domestic tasks in urban areas and were often hired out

• faced family separations and emotional trauma when children were sold

mulattoes: Term commonly used for people of mixed African and European blood

• cross-racial marriages were rare, about 10% of unions

• concubinage and informal relationships created a large mixed-race population

• mulattoes dominated, with around 40 distinct racial categories emerging

plantation society in british north america

• crops included tobacco, cotton, rice, and indigo, with less racial mixing due to early arrival of european women

• sharply defined racial system with black, native american, and white categories

• mixed-race groups largely unrecognized, unlike in spanish and portuguese colonies

slavery and manumission differences

• north american slaves reproduced locally, while latin american colonies continued importing slaves

• more slaves freed in brazil, creating opportunities for free blacks and mulattoes in politics, arts, and business

• some freed people even worked as slave catchers

racism and social mobility in brazil

• racism existed but was based on a flexible system of mixed-race categories rather than strict black/white division

• european traits were valued, but class, wealth, and education could alter racial perception

• light-skinned or successful mulattoes could “pass” as white and gain high social positions

Settler Colonies in North America

northern british colonies and geography

• colonies like new england, new york, pennsylvania seen as less wealthy and developed than spanish or portuguese possessions

• remained minor players on global stage until at least the eighteenth century

• land viewed as unpromising but available for settlement

british settlers and cultural background

• came from a society with religious conflict, rising merchant class, and parliamentary influence

• many sought to escape old european structures rather than replicate them

• outsider status and land availability limited sharp class hierarchies and dependent labor

gender and family in puritan new england

• men became independent heads of family farms, escaping old class restrictions

• women remained constrained by puritan gender norms emphasizing obedience and domestic roles

• few girls attended school and women could not hold ministerial positions despite church membership

demographics of northern british colonies

• british settlers outnumbered spanish five to one by 1750, mostly european

• native american populations largely eradicated by disease and military action

• few african slaves or mixed-race people due to small-scale independent farming economy

• settler colonies: Imperial territories in which Europeans settled permanently in substantial numbers. Used in reference to the European empires in the Americas generally and particularly to the British colonies of North America

religion, literacy, and governance

• protestant colonies less focused on converting natives, church separate from state

• high literacy among white males, unlike latin america

• local self-government strong, assemblies challenged governors

long-term shift in power

• spanish and portuguese colonies initially richer and more advanced

• british colonies later became stable, democratic, economically strong

• latin america remained divided and less prosperous

The Steppes and Siberia: The Making of a Russian Empire

russian empire: A Christian state centered on Moscow that emerged from centuries of Mongol rule in 1480; by 1800, it had expanded into northern Asia and westward into the Baltics and Eastern Europe

• conquered neighboring russian cities and expanded territory

• over three centuries, extended across northern asia to pacific and westward to include many european peoples

security concerns in southeast russia → pastorals raided farmers, sold to slavery

• siberia → scattered people in forests had no threat to russia

• hunting, gathering, herding people in small socieities

• russians want siberia for fur pelts (soft gold) cs Little Ice Age

empire took shape 1500-1800

• wooden forts protected frontier/trading towns and russian farmers

• extensive process w variety of people - adventurers, church, criminal, merchants, peaants, etc.

• offered economic and social improvements

• politically “defend frontiers, enhance state power, bring christianity/civilization/enlightenment to savages”

Experiencing the Russian Empire

despite frequent resistance, russian used modern weaponry + organizational capacity of state to conquer steppes and Siberia

• demanded oath of allegiance to grand tsar/monarch

• yasak: Tribute that Russian rulers demanded from the native peoples of Siberia, most often in the form of furs

• devastating epidemics to locals w little immunity

• intermittent pressure to christian conversions → tax breaks, tribute exemption, land/wealth promise were incentives PLUS mosque destruction and resettlement

• conversion was less intense if it impacted stability → catherine the great gave tolerance to muslims

most profound feature was influx of russian settlers

• hundreds of thousands moved to siberia

• loss of pasturelands → pastorals became dependent on farmers for sugar tea alcohol as their long-standing economies were undermined

• pressured nomads to give up their ways - pay fees, get permission to cross lands

• some mixed off-spring, easily absorbed into russians though

siberia and steppes incorporated into russians state

• not driven into reserves or eradicated, but were Russified

• final triumph of agarians over hunting pastorals

Russians and Empire

russia fundamentally changed

• increasingly ,multiethnic, but russians politically dominant

• rich agricultural lands, valuable furs, mineral deposits made this a great European power 18th century

russian westward expansion and european contact

• acquired baltic, polish, and ukrainian territories through conflicts with regional powers

• peter the great modernized administration, military, education, and industry, promoted western dress and customs

• st. petersburg built as “window on the west,” continued by catherine the great’s europeanization and enlightenment influence

russia as european and asian power

• empire bordered europe and asia, interacting with china, india, persia, ottoman empire

• long-standing identity question: european backwardness vs unique slavic/asian character

• large size fostered militarization and reinforced autocratic monarchy

comparison of russian and western european empires

• russia expanded into adjacent territories while its modern state formed, unlike overseas western european empires

• conquest, settlement, exploitation, conversion, and superiority similar to europeans

• empire lasted much longer, with siberia and steppes still part of russia, unlike former american colonies

Asian Empires

other early modern empires in asia

• chinese expanded into central eurasia, mughal empire unified much of hindu south asia, ottoman empire ruled diverse christian and arab populations

• regional scope, lacked global reach and catastrophic population collapse seen in the americas

• empire-building did not transform homelands as profoundly as american colonies or siberia, but shaped important cross-cultural encounters

Making China an Empire

qing china and frontier expansion

• china abandoned early maritime empire ambitions after 1433, later expanded north and west

• qing dynasty (1644–1912) of foreign manchu origin conquered china during general crisis

• maintained ethnic distinctiveness while adopting chinese language, confucianism, and bureaucracy

qing military expansion and frontier control

• centuries of trade, tribute, and warfare with nomads in mongolia, xinjiang, tibet

• 1680–1760 military campaigns brought these regions under qing control, motivated by security

• tensions with russian expansion resolved diplomatically via treaty of nerchinsk (1689)

qing china as central asian empire

• campaigns against zunghar mongols marked china’s evolution into central asian empire

• chinese viewed it as unification, not empire-building

• historians note similarities and differences with other early modern empires

• qing expansion: The growth of Qing dynasty China during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries into a central Asian empire that added a small but important minority of non-Chinese people to the empire’s population and essentially created the borders of contemporary China

qing administration of central eurasia

• conquest used superior military technology and resources

• ruled separately via court of colonial affairs, relied on local notables to govern cheaply

• local officials sometimes abused power and adopted chinese/manchu customs, causing resentment

qing approach to local cultures

• did not forcibly assimilate mongolian, tibetan, or muslim peoples

• nobles, monks, and monasteries often exempt from taxes and labor

• limited chinese settlement to preserve mongols as military recruits

long-term significance of qing empire

• greatly expanded china’s territory and added important non-chinese minorities

• modern chinese borders largely established during qing dynasty

• tibetans and xinjiang peoples retained identities, some seeking autonomy or independence today

impact of qing and russian expansion on central asia

• transformed central asia from cosmopolitan crossroads to impoverished, backward region

• land-based eurasian trade declined as oceanic trade rose

• mongol nomads lost land, could not herd freely, many became urban poor; nomadic pastoralism ended as major historical force

Muslims and Hindus in the Mughal Empire

mughal empire: A successful state founded by Muslim Turkic-speaking peoples who invaded India and provided a rare period of relative political unity (1526–1707); their rule was noted for efforts to create partnerships between Hindus and Muslims

• founded by muslim turkic central asian warriors, descended from chinggis khan and timur

• controlled a diverse subcontinent of many states, castes, sects, and ethno-linguistic groups

main division is religion cs muslims r only 20%, rest is hindu

• akbar: The most famous emperor of India’s Mughal Empire (r. 1556–1605); his policies are noted for their efforts at religious tolerance and inclusion.

• married rajput princesses, included hindus in elite, supported temples and mosques

• promoted women’s rights among elites: remarriage of widows, discouraged child marriage and sati; nur jahan wielded political power

akbar and religious tolerance

• imposed religious toleration: restrained ulama, removed jizya on non-muslims

• created house of worship for interfaith dialogue, developed state cult blending islam, hinduism, zoroastrianism

• promoted cosmopolitan elite culture: persian and hindu literature and art exchanged, hybrid indian-persian-turkic identity

opposition to akbar’s policies

• shaykh ahmad sirhindi criticized cultural and religious blending

• blamed women for introducing hindu and non-islamic practices

• advocated enforcing sharia, jizya, and excluding non-muslims from high office

Aurangzeb: Mughal emperor (r. 1658–1707) who reversed his predecessors’ policies of religious tolerance and attempted to impose Islamic supremacy

• strictly enforced islamic law and moral codes

• banned sati, gambling, drinking, prostitution, narcotics, and court music/dance

• destroyed some hindu temples and reimposed jizya

• appointed “censors of public morals” to enforce laws in major cities

Aurangzeb’s legacy

• harsh religious policies and heavy taxation antagonized Hindus and other groups

• sparked opposition movements that fractured the Mughal Empire

• weakened the empire, paving the way for British takeover in the 18th century

Mughal India: religious encounter

• early policies promoted multicultural and religious accommodation

• later rulers, especially Aurangzeb, imposed Islamic supremacy, increasing tension

• set a pattern of Hindu-Muslim antagonism that echoed in later centuries

Muslims and Christians in the Ottoman Empire

ottoman empire: Major Islamic state centered on Anatolia that came to include the Balkans, parts of the Middle East, and much of North Africa; lasted in one form or another from the fourteenth to the early twentieth century

• transformed to a powerful, prosperous, cosmopolitan empire

• sultan = turkic warrior prince + caliph + conquering emperor → bore sword of islam

transformation of women’s roles

• conversion to islam and imperial expansion reduced the independence of elite turkish women

• increased use of slave women from caucasus and sudan

• social and religious restrictions limited women’s public and religious activities

women’s agency within constraints

• royal women wielded political influence during the “sultanate of women” (c. 1550–1650)

• islamic law allowed property ownership, enabling women to gain wealth and endow charitable institutions

• women actively used courts to protect legal rights in marriage, divorce, and inheritance

religion and cultural influence

• ottomans assumed responsibility for protecting islam’s holy cities: mecca, medina, and jerusalem

• conflict with safavid persia (1534–1639) highlighted the sunni–shia divide in islam

• persian culture—poetry, painting, and imperial traditions—remained influential among the ottoman elite

expansion and cross-cultural encounters

• conquest of constantinople in 1453 marked the fall of byzantium and establishment of istanbul as the ottoman capital

• large-scale conversion of anatolia’s christian population to islam, with turkic settlement increasing

• ottoman expansion represented a major interaction between the islamic world and christendom

the balkans

• muslim rulers governed a large christian population with relatively few turkish settlers

• ottoman authorities accommodated christian churches, reducing pressure to convert

• by the early 1500s, only about 19% of the population was muslim, while 81% remained christian

christian and jewish populations

• christian communities, including orthodox and armenian churches, had autonomy over social, religious, educational, and charitable affairs

• many christian and jewish individuals gained legal, economic, and political opportunities, with some joining the elite or excelling in trade and banking

• devshirme: term that means “collection or gathering”; it refers to the Ottoman Empire’s practice of removing young boys from their Christian subjects and training them for service in the civil administration or in the elite Janissary infantry corps

threat to europe

• conquest of constantinople and the balkans expanded ottoman power in southeastern europe

• naval strength in the mediterranean challenged european control of trade routes

• sieges of vienna (1529, 1683) symbolized the “terror of the turk” and European anxiety

cultural encounter with europe

• european artists admired the empire’s splendor, depicting it in renaissance art

• thinkers like jean bodin praised ottoman religious tolerance compared with christian europe

• political and commercial cooperation occurred, e.g., france allying with ottomans and merchants trading despite papal bans

cultural encounter with europe

• european artists admired the empire’s splendor, depicting it in renaissance art

• thinkers like jean bodin praised ottoman religious tolerance compared with christian europe

• political and commercial cooperation occurred, e.g., france allying with ottomans and merchants trading despite papal bans

Chapter 14: Economic Transformations: Commerce and Consequence 1450-1750

indian ocean commercial network: The massive, interconnected web of commerce in premodern times between the lands that bordered the Indian Ocean (including East Africa, India, and Southeast Asia); the network was transformed as Europeans entered it in the centuries following 1500

trading post empire: Form of imperial dominance based on control of trade through military power rather than on control of peoples or territories

philippines (spanish): An archipelago of Pacific islands colonized by Spain in a relatively bloodless process that extended for the century or so after 1565, a process accompanied by a major effort at evangelization; the Spanish named them the Philippine Islands in honor of King Philip II of Spain

manila: The capital of the colonial Philippines, which by 1600 had become a flourishing and culturally diverse city; the site of violent clashes between the Spanish and Chinese

british east india company: Private trading company chartered by the English around 1600, mainly focused on India; it was given a monopoly on Indian Ocean trade, including the right to make war and to rule conquered peoples

dutch east india company: Private trading company chartered by the Netherlands around 1600, mainly focused on Indonesia; it was given a monopoly on Indian Ocean trade, including the right to make war and to rule conquered peoples

“silver drain”: Term often used to describe the siphoning of money from Europe to pay for the luxury products of the East, a process exacerbated by the fact that Europe had few trade goods that were desirable in Eastern markets; eventually, the bulk of the world’s silver supply made its way to China

piece of eight: The standard Spanish silver coin used by merchants in North America, Europe, India, Russia, West Africa, and China

potosi: City that developed high in the Andes (in present-day Bolivia) at the site of the world’s largest silver mine and that became the largest city in the Americas, with a population of some 160,000 in the 1570s

fur trade: A global industry in which French, British, and Dutch traders exported fur from North America to Europe, using Native American labor and with great environmental cost to the Americas. A parallel commerce in furs operated under Russian control in Siberia

“soft gold”: Nickname used in the early modern period for animal furs, highly valued for their warmth and as symbols of elite status

transatlantic slave system: Between 1500 and 1866, this trade in human beings took an estimated 12.5 million people from African societies, shipped them across the Atlantic in the Middle Passage, and deposited some 10.7 million of them in the Americas as slaves; approximately 1.8 million died during the transatlantic crossing

african diaspora: The global spread of African peoples via the slave trade

maroon societies / palmares: Free communities of former slaves in remote regions of South America and the Caribbean; the largest such settlement was Palmares in Brazil, which housed 10,000 or more people for most of the seventeenth century

signares: The small number of African women who were able to exercise power and accumulate wealth through marriage to European traders

benin: West African kingdom (in what is now Nigeria) whose strong kings for a time sharply limited engagement with the slave trade.

dahomey: West African kingdom in which the slave trade became a major state-controlled industry

Chapter 15: Cultural Transformations: Religion and Science 1450-1750

protestant reformation: Massive schism within Christianity that had its formal beginning in 1517 with the German priest Martin Luther; the movement was radically innovative in its challenge to church authority and its endorsement of salvation by faith alone, and also came to express a variety of political, economic, and social tensions

Martin Luther: German priest who issued the Ninety-Five Theses and began the Protestant Reformation with his public criticism of the Catholic Church’s theology and practice

Thirty Years’ War: Catholic-Protestant struggle (1618–1648) that was the culmination of European religious conflict, brought to an end by the Peace of Westphalia and an agreement that each state was sovereign, authorized to control religious affairs within its own territory

counter-reformation: An internal reform of the Catholic Church in the sixteenth century stimulated in part by the Protestant Reformation; at the Council of Trent (1545–1563), Catholic leaders clarified doctrine, corrected abuses and corruption, and put a new emphasis on education and accountability

taki onqoy: Literally, “dancing sickness”; a religious revival movement in central Peru in the 1560s whose members preached the imminent destruction of Christianity and of the Europeans and the restoration of an imagined Andean golden age

jesuits in china: Series of Jesuit missionaries from 1550 to 1800 who, inspired by the work of Matteo Ricci, sought to understand and become integrated into Chinese culture as part of their efforts to convert the Chinese elite, although with limited success

wahhabi islam: Major Islamic movement led by the Muslim theologian Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab (1703–1792) that advocated an austere lifestyle and strict adherence to the Islamic law; became an expansive state in central Arabia

wang yangming: Influential Ming thinker (1472–1529) who argued that anyone could achieve a virtuous life by introspection and contemplation, without the extended education and study of traditional Confucianism

kaozheng: Literally, “research based on evidence”; Chinese intellectual movement whose practitioners were critical of conventional Confucian philosophy and instead emphasized the importance of evidence and analysis, applied especially to historical documents.

the dream of the red chamber: Book written by Cao Xueqin that explores the life of an elite family with connections to the court; it was the most famous popular novel of mid-eighteenth-century China

mirabai: One of India’s most beloved bhakti poets, she transgressed the barriers of caste and tradition

sikhism: Religious tradition of northern India founded by Guru Nanak (1469–1539); combines elements of Hinduism and Islam and proclaims the brotherhood of all humans and the equality of men and women.

scientific revolution: The intellectual and cultural transformation that shaped a new conception of the material world between the mid-sixteenth and early eighteenth centuries in Europe; instead of relying on the authority of religion or tradition, its leading figures believed that knowledge was acquired through rational inquiry based on evidence, the product of human minds alone

copernicus: Polish mathematician and astronomer who was the first to argue in 1543 for the existence of a sun-centered, helping to spark the Scientific Revolution

galileo: An Italian scientist who developed an improved telescope in 1609, with which he made many observations that undermined established understandings of the cosmos

newton: English scientist whose formulation of the laws of motion and mechanics is regarded as the culmination of the Scientific Revolution

european enlightenment: European intellectual movement of the eighteenth century that applied the principles of the Scientific Revolution to human affairs and was noted for its commitment to open-mindedness and inquiry and the belief that knowledge could transform human society

voltaire: The pen name of François-Marie Arouet (1694–1778), a French writer whose work is often taken as a model of the Enlightenment’s outlook; noted for his deism and his criticism of traditional religion

condorcet: The Marquis de Condorcet (1743–1794) was a French philosopher who argued that society was moving into an era of near-infinite improvability and could be perfected by human reason