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HIST Exam Review Notes

  • Exam Logistics

    • Date & Time: Wednesday, during regular class time.

    • Location: Regular classroom.

    • Materials: Blue books will be provided; students do not need to bring their own.

  • Impromptu Review Session

    • Organizers: Rogan and Ethan.

    • Date: Tomorrow.

    • Time: 4:00 PM.

    • Location: Regular classroom.

    • Purpose: A final summary review.

  • Exam Format and General Expectations

    • Duration: Full 55 minutes.

    • Format: Essay questions.

    • Length Expectation: Not expected to be particularly sophisticated or long; students are not expected to fill an entire blue book.

    • Writing Style: Answers should be in complete sentences and make logical sense. While not graded on spelling or style per se, efforts to spell correctly and use proper grammar are encouraged.

    • Content: Avoid simply listing facts. Instead, explain terms, identify them, and focus on making connections between different people, events, and overarching concepts discussed in the course.

  • Question 1: Identification and Connection (Majority of Points)

    • Structure: Students will be presented with four sets, each containing three terms (e.g., three people, three events, two people and one event, or two events and one person). Students must choose one of these four sets.

    • For Each Term in the Chosen Set:

      • Identify: Who they were or what the event was.

      • Roughly When: State approximately when they lived/ruled or when the event occurred. Exact dates are not required. For example, for Henry VIII, stating "early to middle part of the 1500s" or "first half of the 16^{th} century" is sufficient, rather than "1509 to 1547". For events, roughly the year suffices. The most crucial aspect of dates is to establish the correct chronological order to understand causality (e.g., an event cannot cause something that happened before it).

      • Why Important: Explain their significance, what they did, and how they affected the course of history, drawing directly from lecture content. For instance, Henry VIII's importance relates to his break from the Catholic Church and establishing England as a Protestant state, not his number of wives.

    • For the Entire Chosen Set:

      • Connection: Explain the fundamental connection or argument linking all three terms within the chosen set. This requires transcending individual lectures and synthesizing information across the course material.

    • Key Connections/Themes to Consider:

      • The Colombian Revolution: This concept, coined by Halford Mackinder, describes a perceived shift in military power, particularly sea power, from the East (e.g., Ottomans) to the West.

      • Examples of Related Figures/Events:

        • Henry the Navigator: Portuguese prince who initiated overseas expansion in the early 1400s, laying the foundation for naval power and symbolizing a wider Western expansion beyond Europe, partly to contain Eastern adversaries like the Ottomans.

        • Charles V: King of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor (a Habsburg). He utilized the wealth generated from New World conquests (Mexico, Western South America) to fund the defense of wider Europe against the Ottomans, thus reinforcing the foundations for Western naval dominance.

        • Battle of Lepanto (1571): A decisive naval battle off the coast of Greece where a Western coalition (primarily led by Spain and Austria) defeated the Ottomans. This battle, though occurring after Charles V's death, was built upon the foundations he laid, marking a significant turning point in the West's naval advantage.

      • The Spanish Armada (1588): This conflict between Spain (Philip II) and England (Elizabeth I) was an attempt by Philip to depose Elizabeth and restore Catholicism in England. Its failure, aided by a storm, bolstered Elizabeth's confidence and led to a strategic shift in English policy, emphasizing sea power as articulated by Walter Raleigh ("He who holds the sea commands the trade; who commands the trade commands the world"). This event is seen as a foundational moment for the British Empire, embodying both Machiavellian strategic calculus and Elizabeth's perception of divine providence.

      • The Protestant Reformation:

        • Martin Luther: Understanding his key ideas is fundamental to grasping the core of the Reformation.

        • Rulers' Engagement: Rulers such as Henry VIII, Elizabeth I, and Charles V each had to contend with Protestantism, either by embracing it (Elizabeth, carefully Henry VIII) or opposing it (Charles V). This constituted a major "internal dimension" or driving issue in Western politics.

  • Question 2: Machiavelli's Perspective on Rulers

    • Structure: Students will identify two rulers from the course's list (excluding figures like Mackinder or Luther, who were not princes).

    • Task: Discuss which of the two chosen rulers Machiavelli would consider the best and which he would consider the worst.

    • Justification: Crucially, students must provide a clear explanation for their choices, drawing upon Machiavelli's core sensibilities regarding virtue, fortune, and the necessity of understanding the world "as it is" rather than "as one wants it to be." There is no single "right" or "wrong" answer, but a well-reasoned and cogent argument based on Machiavelli's principles is essential.

  • Halford Mackinder and Machiavelli's Legacy

    • Mackinder's Significance: Lived in the early 1900s and coined the term "Colombian Revolution." He embodies Machiavelli's idea of seeing the world as it is to make it what one wants it to be. His work, Democratic Ideals and Reality, urged the British state to prioritize reality over ideals in foreign policy, reflecting a direct intellectual lineage from Machiavelli.

    • Machiavelli's Enduring Impact: Many historians and political scientists argue that modern politics, its purposes, and nature, begins with Machiavelli due to his emphasis on a pragmatic, reality-based approach to power.

  • Overall Exam Strategy and Length Guidance

    • Focus on Connections: The core of the exam is making connections between people, events, and big concepts across lectures.

    • Key Themes: The two most prominent themes are the Colombian Revolution (sea power, Ottoman rivalry) and the Protestant Reformation (internal religious shifts and their impact on rulers).

    • Length: The exam will use smaller blue books. While there's no strict length requirement beyond answering the question fully, a general guideline is more than one page in a mini blue book but likely no more than three pages for both questions combined (equivalent to about 5 ext{-} 6 mini blue book pages, front and back). Completing more than six pages in 55 minutes would be an impressive feat and is not expected. The ability to be concise and comprehensive within time constraints is part of the assessment.