AP World History Review - Units 1-5

AP World History Units 1-5 Review Notes

Unit 1: Global Tapestry

Big Idea 1: Song China

• Song China maintained and justified its rule through Confucianism and an imperial bureaucracy.

• Buddhism continued to shape Chinese society, and the Song economy flourished.

State Building in Song China

• Focus of Unit 1: State building, comparing different regions globally.

• Continuities:

  1. Confucianism: A hierarchical philosophical understanding, inherited from the Tang dynasty. During the Song dynasty, it was revived, and the civil service exam was expanded. This promoted order, stability, and meritocracy.

  2. Imperial Bureaucracy: Appointed officials carrying out policies. This had existed for centuries, but the Song expanded it to consolidate power.

Buddhism in China

• Buddhism came from India via the Silk Roads.

• Chan Buddhism: A Chinese innovation melding Buddhism with Daoism.

• Chan Buddhism spread to neighboring regions, an example of cultural diffusion.

Song Economy

• The Song economy flourished due to several innovations.

• Champa Rice: Introduced from the Champa Kingdom (modern Vietnam). It allowed multiple harvests per year, increasing the food supply.

• Grand Canal: An internal waterway acting as a transportation system, helping China become the most populous trading center.

• These innovations led to the commercialization of the Song economy.

Big Idea 2: Islamic States

• As the Abbasid caliphate declined, new Islamic political entities emerged.

• These states expanded and fostered intellectual innovations and transfers.

Rise of New Islamic States

• Examples: Delhi Sultanate (northern India) and Mamluk Sultanate (Egypt).

• These sultanates were Turkic, unlike the Arab or Persian Abbasids.

• Marked the rise of Turkic Islamic empires.

• They relied on similar governing practices as the Abbasids.

• These states formed a cultural region known as Dar al-Islam.

Spread of Islam

• Military Expansion: The Delhi Sultanate is an example.

• Merchants: Revival of trade on the Silk Roads spread ideas and culture. This led to literate officials and religious legitimacy for rulers in West Africa.

• Sufi Movement: A mystical form of Islam that adapted to local cultures, facilitating its spread.

Intellectual Innovations and Transfers

• Innovations: Mathematics (algebra, trigonometry), literature.

• Transfers: Muslims in Spain translated Greek classics (Plato, Aristotle) into Arabic, preserving them for later European rediscovery during the Renaissance. They also transferred Indian mathematics to Europeans and adopted paper-making from China, which later spread to Europe and aided the printing press.

Big Idea 3: South and Southeast Asia

• Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam influenced state building in South and Southeast Asia.

South Asia

• Delhi Sultanate: An Islamic state in northern India, where the majority were Hindus. Hindus paid a tax called the jizya. Conversions to Islam occurred for social mobility from lower to upper castes. The Sultanate lacked an efficient bureaucracy, hindering power consolidation.

• Vijayanagara Empire: A Hindu kingdom in the south, established by two brothers who had converted to Islam for social mobility under the Delhi Sultanate. They later converted back to Hinduism and established a rival empire.

Southeast Asia

• Merchants introduced Hinduism and Buddhism, forming the basis for new kingdoms.

• Srivijaya Empire: A Hindu empire that prospered by taxing ships using its sea lanes.

• Majapahit Kingdom: A Buddhist kingdom that also prospered by controlling sea routes.

Big Idea 4: Civilizations of the Americas

• American civilizations developed strong states, urban centers, and complex belief systems.

Aztec Empire (Mexica)

• Demonstrated continuity with earlier American states like the Maya.

• Capital city: Tenochtitlan, a cosmopolitan urban center with a population of approximately 200,000.

• Tribute System: A decentralized state where local governors extracted tribute from conquered peoples. Allowed Mexica to exercise political dominance without direct involvement. Practiced human sacrifice.

Big Idea 5: African State Building

• African state building was facilitated through trade networks and religion.

Great Zimbabwe

• Prospered due to trade, agriculture, and gold deposits.

• Participated in the Indian Ocean trade network, connecting them to East Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and East Asia.

• Merchants facilitated the development of Swahili, a blend of Bantu (indigenous African language) and Arabic.

• Capital city was Great Zimbabwe, with a population of around 20,000.

Ethiopia

• Emerged in the 12th century as a Christian kingdom.

• Known for monumental architecture, including massive stone churches.

• Ethiopian Christianity developed separately from Roman Catholic and Orthodox traditions.

Big Idea 6: State Building in Europe

• State building in Europe was characterized by religious belief, feudalism, and decentralized monarchies.

Religion

• The Roman Catholic Church provided cultural continuity.

• Muslim presence on the Iberian Peninsula until 1492 (Reconquista), after which Catholicism revived and drove Christian expansion.

• A small but influential Jewish population existed, though it diminished after the Reconquista.

Feudalism and Manorial System

• Decentralized political systems, with feudalism as the organizing principle.

• Kings granted land to lords in exchange for tribute. Lords hired knights for protection. Peasants worked the land and provided produce. Their lives were tied to the land.

• The manorial system organized society, with peasants (serfs) living their entire lives on the manor.

Agriculture

• Three-Field System: Crops were rotated through three fields, with two planted and one left fallow. Enabled more food production, leading to a population increase (population explosion).

Unit 2: Networks of Exchange

Big Idea 1: Expansion of Exchange Networks

• Networks of exchange expanded geographically, increasing interactions between states (1200-1450).

Trade Networks

• Silk Roads: Luxury goods, especially silk, were traded for elite markets. Cities like Kashgar and Samarkand grew in prominence. Transportation innovations like caravanserai (inns) and improved saddles facilitated trade. Commercial technologies included money economies (paper money in China) and new forms of credit (banking houses in Europe).

• Indian Ocean Network: The most significant sea-based trade network until 1500. Driven by demand for goods not found at home (Chinese porcelain, Indian cotton, spices from Southeast Asia) and technological innovations (lateen sails, magnetic compass, astrolabe, new ship designs like Chinese junks and Arab dhows). The spread of Islam facilitated trade by creating connections among Muslim traders.

  • Swahili city-states and the Sultanate of Malacca grew wealthy due to their strategic locations.

  • Effects included establishment of diasporic communities (Arab/Persian in East Africa, Chinese in Southeast Asia) and cultural/technological transfers.

  • Zheng He's voyages during the Ming dynasty increased Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean.

• Trans-Saharan Trade: Connected North Africa/Mediterranean with interior West Africa. Innovations in transportation (Arabian camel, saddles) expanded trade. The Empire of Mali rose due to trade and facilitated further trade under Mansa Musa.

  • Mansa Musa facilitated trade during his rule, contributing to the economic and cultural prosperity of the Mali Empire. His famous pilgrimage to Mecca also showcased the empire's wealth and influence, further encouraging trade and diplomatic ties with other Islamic states and regions.

Big Idea 2: Cultural Diffusion

• Growth of trading routes led to cultural diffusion.

Cultural Transfers

• Religion: Buddhism spread from India to China (Chan Buddhism) and then to Japan (Zen Buddhism). Hinduism and Buddhism spread in Southeast Asia. Islam spread throughout Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. Swahili became a trade language.

• Scientific and Technological Innovations: Champa rice led to population explosion.

• Rise and Fall of Cities: Samarkand and Kashgar flourished on the Silk Road. Baghdad declined after being sacked by the Mongols in 1258.

• Travels and Travelers: Ibn Battuta traveled throughout Dar al-Islam, documenting cultures and societies due to trade routes and interconnectedness.

Big Idea 3: Environmental Consequences

• Increasing interconnectedness facilitated by trading routes led to significant environmental consequences.

Spread of Crops and Diseases

• Bananas in Africa led to the rise of powerful chiefdoms and kingdoms.

• Champa rice in East Asia fueled population growth.

• The bubonic plague (Black Death) spread due to increasing connectivity.

Big Idea 4: The Mongols

• The Mongols created the largest land-based empire in history, facilitating further interconnection across Afro-Eurasia.

Mongol Impact

• They facilitated trade by controlling the Silk Road network, ensuring safety and continuity.

• Mongols encouraged international trade and extracted wealth as facilitators of commerce.

• They increased communication and cooperation across Eurasia, with Persian and Chinese courts working together.

• The transfer of skilled people across the empire led to technological and cultural transfers. Scientific advances occurred in the Ilkhanate region (astronomy, calendars, astrolabe).

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

Big Idea 1: Development and Expansion of Land-Based Empires

• Land-based empires developed and expanded using gunpowder.

Gunpowder Empires

• Ottoman Empire: Expanded using gunpowder weapons, conquering Constantinople in 1453. Janissaries were enslaved Christians trained as elite fighters using gunpowder.

• Safavid Empire: Established in 1501 by Shah Ismail as a Shiite Islamic dynasty. Shah Abbas built up the military with gunpowder weapons. Recruited enslaved Christians into the army.

• Mughal Empire: Established in 1526 by Babur after displacing the Delhi Sultanate, using gunpowder. Akbar expanded Mughal rule and was religiously tolerant.

• Qing Dynasty: The Manchu people from the north raided China and established the Qing dynasty in 1636. The Qing rulers were Manchu, leading to tension with the Han Chinese population.

Conflicts Between Empires

• Safavid-Mughal Conflict: Wars between the two Muslim empires in the 17th century due to territorial ambitions and religious differences (Shia vs. Sunni). Led to inconclusive wars.

Big Idea 2: Power and Control in Land-Based Empires

• Rulers gained and maintained control by establishing bureaucracies, sponsoring art, centralizing tax collection, and developing large militaries.

Legitimizing and Consolidating Power

• Large Bureaucracies: Ottomans used the devshirme system to staff their bureaucracy with trained individuals.

• Military Professionals: Janissaries in the Ottoman Empire. Samurai in Japan's Tokugawa Shogunate became salaried warriors and bureaucrats.

• Religious Ideas and Art: European monarchs claimed rule by divine right. Louis XIV of France used the Palace of Versailles to control the nobility.

• **Religious Practices}: Aztecs used human sacrifice to display wealth and legitimize power. The Inca built the Sun Temple at Cusco, with walls covered in gold.

Public Relations

-Kangxi (Qing ruler) portraits displayed imperial portraits to convey Confucian wisdom.

• Tax Collection Systems: Mughal Empire used the zamindar tax collection system. Ottomans used tax farming.

Big Idea 3: Belief Systems and Their Roles

• Belief systems played different roles; shared beliefs bound people together, while conflicting beliefs caused conflict.

Impact of Belief Systems

• Europe: Christianity was a shared belief, but the Protestant Reformation caused division between Catholics and Protestants. This led to religious wars until 1648.

  • The Catholic Church responded with the Catholic Reformation, addressing issues but reaffirming ancient doctrines.

• Islam: The Sunni-Shia split intensified conflicts between the Mughal, Safavid, and Ottoman empires.

• New Belief Systems: Sikhism in South Asia emerged as a syncretic blend of Hindu and Islamic doctrines.

Unit 4: Maritime Empires (1450-1750)

-Note: Maritime means sea-based empires.

Big Idea 1: Maritime Technology

• Updated maritime technology facilitated trans-oceanic trade and sea-based empires.

Borrowed and Updated Technology

• Europeans borrowed from classical, Islamic, and Asian worlds: astrolabe, magnetic compass, lateen sail.

European Innovations

• Portuguese developed the Caravel, a small, nimble, and fast ship.

• Dutch developed the Dutch fluyt, a trading ship with large cargo space.

Big Idea 2: European Exploration

• European state-sponsored exploration led to trade expansion and transatlantic contact.

Reasons for Exploration

• Gold, God, and glory: wealth building, spreading Christianity, and competition with other states.

• Portuguese: Established a trading post empire around Africa and into the Indian Ocean.

• Spain: Sponsored Christopher Columbus to find a new water route to Asia.

• Increased interest in transatlantic sailing as other European states sought a sea route to Asia.

Big Idea 3: The Columbian Exchange

• The Columbian Exchange transferred animals, foods, and diseases between Europe and the Americas, leading to European colonization.

Transfers

• American crops into Europe: potatoes, maize.

• European crops into the Americas: wheat, rice.

• Animals transferred: turkeys, llamas (Americas to Europe); cattle, pigs, horses (Europe to Americas).

• Spread of diseases from Europe to Americas (smallpox, measles) devastated indigenous populations.The spread of Smallpox had devastating effects.

Colonization

• Portuguese colonized Brazil, focusing on cash crops, especially sugarcane. Initially, they used forced indigenous labor, but diseases led to the increased demand for enslaved labor from Africa.

Big Idea 4: Maritime Empires and Labor Systems

• European states established empires fueled by mercantilist economic policy and coerced labor systems.

Interactions Between Europe, Africa, and the Americas

• Portuguese established trading posts around Africa; some African kingdoms grew as a result, like the Asante Empire.

• British took over India, establishing trading posts under the British East India Company and taking advantage of tensions between Muslims and Hindus.

• Spain colonized the Americas, leading to the collapse of the Aztec and Inca empires due to diseases.
  -The treaty of Tordesillas between Spain and Portugal divided the Americas.

Labor Systems

The silver mita system forced work in silver mines. Europeans turned to Africa for enslaved laborers due to indigenous populations dying off, leading to population decline in some African states.

• They also influenced the societies of Americas with food, language, and tradition.
  The encomienda and hacienda systems, transforming them into systems of coerced labor.

Mercantilism

• Mercantilism drove colonial efforts to enrich the homeland and amass wealth by getting a bigger piece of the world's limited wealth pie. They were there to enrich the homeland.

• Spain mined silver for this reason.

Big Idea 5: Changing Economies and Societies

• Development of maritime empires significantly changed economies and societies.

Joint-Stock Companies

• The Dutch, English, and French developed joint-stock companies (British East India Company, Dutch East India Company) that allowed continued exploration and colonization with limited investor risk.

Economic Disputes and Rivalries

• Moroccan conflict with the Songhai Empire.

Triangular Trade

• Manufactured goods from Europe to West Africa for enslaved people, transported to the Americas for raw materials (sugar, molasses) sent back to Europe. Long distance states became interdependent.

Religious Shifts

• The triangular trade contributed to the growth of interdependent distance states.

• Syncretism blended indigenous religions in the Americas with Catholic Christianity. Conflicts based on the Sunni-Shia divide.

Big Idea 6: Resistance to Colonialism

• Imposition of cultural, political, and economic dominance faced resistance from colonized and enslaved people.

Examples of Resistance

• Maratha rebellion in the Mughal Empire, with Hindu warriors rebelling against perceived invasions of their beliefs, leading to the end of the Mughal Empire.

• Pueblo revolt in the Spanish colonies of North America, with Pueblo and Apache Indians rising up against Spanish attempts to force conversion to Christianity.

Big Idea 7: Social Categories and Change

• Social categories, roles, and practices were both maintained and underwent significant change.

Continuity and Change

• The Qing dynasty maintained Chinese institutions like the civil service exam but imposed restrictive policies on the Han Chinese.

• The Spanish imposed the casta system in the Americas, organizing society based on ancestry and race.

Unit 5: Revolutions (1750-1900)

Big Idea 1: The Enlightenment

• New ways of thinking (Enlightenment) created the occasion for reform and revolution.

Enlightenment Ideals

• A shift from religious belief to empirical data and observation.

• Natural rights (monarchs don't grant rights; creator does) and social contract (government exists by the people's consent). John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau are names associated with those ideas.It shifted focus from belif to data and observation

Reform Movements

• Movements for women's suffrage (Seneca Falls Convention in 1848) and abolitionism (ending slavery). Serfdom abolished in Russia in 1861.

Big Idea 2: Revolutions and Nationalism

• Enlightenment ideas combined with rising nationalism led to various revolutions.

Revolutions and Key Documents

• Nationalism: A people's sense of belonging based on common language, religion, social customs, and state/territory; pride in being who we are.

• American Revolution: Declaration of Independence. Inspired French/Haitian revolutions and Latin American independence movements.

• -Enlightenment ideals, combined with nationalism due to Britsh opposition led to the Americans to have a Revolution

Signifigant documents

-Declaration of Independence is a significicant doucment.
-Decaration of Rights of Man is a significant document.
-Simon Bolivar's letter from Jamaica is a significfant docyument.

Big Idea 3: The Industrial Revolution Begins

• The Industrial Revolution began in Britain and transformed the world.

Origins in Britain

-Shift in how things are made for sale. It shifted from being manually done, to a factory

• A change in how stuff was made for sale (machines instead of by hand).

  • Britain had proximity to waterways, raw materials (coal, iron, timber), urbanization due to enclosure movement, and improved agricultural productivity.

  • Rise of the factory system, powered by the water frame/steam engines. Factories mass-produced goods, especially textiles. Specialization of labor and rise of unskilled laborers.

Big Idea 4: Global Manufacturing Shifts

• As Western industrialization spread, Middle Eastern and Asian countries' share in global manufacturing declined.

Expansion of Industrialization

• Steam power helped European countries dominate manufacturing, spreading to continental Europe, the US, Japan, and Russia.

• US industrialized due to immigration, leading to sufficient human captial.

• Russia industrialized- The trans-Siberian railroad, which knitted everything together.

• Japan industrialized as a defesive movement to pretect domestic influence.
  In India, taxation of Indian texitliles led to a signfigant decreasze because the British didnt want to be threatened. The economic output decreased.
  Trans-Siberian Railroad in Russia knitted culture and economy together. Meiji Restoration in Japan protected domestic institutions.
  British taxation of Indian textiles decreased India's share of global manufacturing.

Big Idea 5: New Manufacturing Technologies

Technology shifts

• The big one was when textiles were emphasized during the revolution.
  They shifted between two stages, 1750-1830, and 1830-1930, and the biggest difference was the resources they used. The main resource used in the first revolution was coal the the other was oil. Railroads also helped consolidate power. Electricity helped with this as well.

Big Idea 6: Economic Shifts

They shifted form free market capitalism to transnational buisnessesto an incresed standar of libving.
Western Nations replaced mercantilism with free market captialism, thanks to Adam Smith and what he wrote. There was also transnaional corporations starting up as well.
The Unilever Corporation focused on household goods and had factories across the world.It was an English - Dutch corporation. It also icreased standards of living due to goods at cheaper prices

• Adam smith and his publication, the wealthy nation helps government make a laissez-faire, and that governments should take their hands off the government. This would ensure that consumers can make their own choices and that the "invisible hand" leads to prosperity.
  There were also trasnational cooperations that operated across the world. One example is the unilever coorporation. This resulted in the increase od the standards of living of a lot of people since they needed goods to keep these factoiries running. This lead to the rise of the middle class.

Big Idea 7: Reforms and Ideologies

• As industrialization spreads, it led to some political reform.

Reforms and Criticisms

Labor unions started to show up, because workers in facory would have bad or dangerous experiences.
Some reforms are to start the work day at 5 days a week, with minimym wage requirements, etcc…
Another form of criticizm came from Karl Mark,who said and outlined the COmmunish manifesto, that the world goes through a period of socialism and eventually communism. The problem is that these bourgeouise (business owners) make their money off of their backs.
They could not keep the tensions of an enroaching Western world, from the Ottomans entering their territory