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AP World History Review - Units 1-3

May 14, 2024

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AP World History Review - Units 1-3 (1200-1450)

General Information

  • Review session before the exam, covering Units 1-3
  • Another session tomorrow for Units 4-6
  • Final session the night before the exam for Units 7-
  • Each session about 90 minutes long
  • Videos will be posted on the channel after the session

Unit 1: The Global Tapestry (1200-1450)

Big Idea: State Building

  • Emphasis on state building globally: continuity, innovation, diversity
  • Examine how states relate to their predecessors

Song China (

Strength Sources:

  1. Confucianism
  • Hierarchical societal order
  • Revival from Tang dynasty
  1. Imperial Bureaucracy

Civil Service Examination

  • Reintroduced and expanded
  • Created meritocracy for bureaucratic jobs

Buddhism

  • Outside influence from India
  • Innovation: Chan Buddhism (blend of Daoism and Buddhism)

Economy

  • Flourished due to innovations
    • Champa rice
    • Grand Canal expansion
  • Led to commercialization and becoming a populous trading center

Islamic World

Abbasid Caliphate Decline (

New Islamic Entities

  1. Delhi Sultanate (India)
  2. Mamluk Sultanate (Egypt and the Levant)
  • Turkic, not Arab or Persian

Islam Spread

  1. Military Expansion
  2. Merchants and Trade
  3. Sufis (mystical sect adaptable to local cultures)

Intellectual Innovations and Transfers

  • Mathematics: algebra and trigonometry
  • Literature: long-form poetry
  • Translations of Greek Classics into Arabic in Muslim Spain
  • Papermaking technology from China adapted by Muslims, influenced European print and ideas

South and Southeast Asia

Key Examples: Delhi Sultanate (North India)

  • Islamic influence in dominantly Hindu region
  • Difficulty in consolidating power

Key Examples: Vijayanagara Empire (South India)

  • Hindu kingdom founded by brothers from Delhi Sultanate
  • Converted back to Hinduism and established the empire

Southeast Asia

  1. Srivijaya Empire (Hindu, taxed ship trade)
  2. Majapahit Kingdom (Buddhist, controlled trade routes)

The Americas

Key Example: Mexica (Aztec) Empire

  • Continuity with Maya in architecture and urban centers
  • Tribute system for decentralized control

Africa

State Building Examples

  1. Great Zimbabwe

    • Prospered through trade, agriculture, and gold deposits
    • Swahili language blending Bantu and Arabic

  2. Ethiopia

    • Christian kingdom, building massive stone churches
    • Distinct syncretic Christianity

Europe

State Building Characteristics

  1. Religious Influence (Catholic Church)
  2. Feudalism
    • Decentralized political system
    • Loyalty between varying classes (Kings, nobility, knights, peasantry)
  3. Three-field system: agricultural innovation that increased food supply

Political Developments

  1. Rise of monarchies consolidating power
  2. Establishing bureaucracies and standing armies

Unit 2: Networks of Exchange (1200-1450)

Big Idea: Expansion of Trade Networks

Significant Trade Routes:

  1. Silk Roads: luxury goods (mainly for elite markets like silk)
  2. Indian Ocean Network: larger geographical range; more common goods
  3. Trans-Saharan Trade: connected North Africa and Mediterranean with Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Introduction of camels and later saddle innovation increased load capacity

Facilitation of Commerce:

  1. Innovations in Transportation

    • Caravanserai: inns providing safety and cultural exchange
    • Animal Technology: yokes, saddles, stirrups

  2. Innovations in Commercial Technology

    • Money Economies: paper money in China
    • Credit Systems: banking houses based on Chinese models

Indian Ocean Trade

  1. Significance: Most significant sea-based network
  2. Technological Innovations
    • Latteen sail, magnetic compass, astrolabe
    • New Ships: Chinese junks, Arab dhows
  3. Expansion Influence: Spread of Islam
    • Swahili City-States: Brokers for African interior goods
    • Sultanate of Melaka: Controlled Strait of Malacca

Cultural Diffusion

Religious Spread

  1. Buddhism: China (Silk Roads) → Chan Buddhism → Japan (Zen Buddhism)
  2. Hinduism and Buddhism: Southeast Asia (Srivijaya, Majapahit)
  3. Islam: Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia; Swahili, Timbuktu (Islamic education center)

Literary and Artistic Transfers

  • Islamic scholars: Translated Greek Classics

Scientific and Technological Innovations

  • Champa rice: Boost in Chinese food supply and population growth

Environmental Consequences

Agricultural Spread

  1. Bananas: Introduced to Africa via Indian Ocean trade, boosted diet and population growth

Disease Spread

  1. Bubonic Plague (Black Death): Via Silk Roads and Indian Ocean Network, devastating population losses
    • Middle East: ~1/3 of the population
    • Europe: ~1/2 of the population

Mongol Empire (Pax Mongolica)

Key Contributions

  • Control of Silk Roads enhanced trade and safety
  • Encouraged international trade, skilled artisans, and cultural exchanges
  • Scientific and Technological Transfers (Astronomy, Calendars, Astrolabe)

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

Big Idea: Development and Expansion

Significant Empires

  1. Ottoman Empire: Strategic control of Dardanelles, gunpowder weapons, Janissaries (elite force of enslaved Christians)
  2. Safavid Empire: Shiite dominance, gunpowder weapons, enslaved Christians in the military
  3. Mughal Empire: South and Central Asia, established by Babur, religious tolerance under Akbar
  4. Qing Dynasty: Manchu rulers over Han majority, established after Ming dynasty's decline

Rivalries and Conflicts

  1. Safavid-Mughal Conflict: Religious and territorial
  2. Songhai-Moroccan Conflict: Moroccan invasion using gunpowder

Legitimize and Consolidate Power

Methods

  1. Bureaucracies: Devshirme system (Ottoman)
  2. Military Professionals: Salary-based samurai (Tokugawa Shogunate)
  3. Religious Ideas and Art: Divine Right of Kings (Europe), human sacrifice (Aztec)
  4. Monumental Architecture: Palace of Versailles (Louis XIV)

Tax Collection Systems

  1. Zamindar System (Mughal Empire): Landowners collect taxes
  2. Tax Farming System (Ottoman Empire): Rights to tax awarded to highest bidders
  3. Tribute List (Aztec Empire): Conquered regions pay tribute

Belief Systems

Roles in Empires

  1. Europe: Christianity as a unifying and divisive force (Protestant Reformation)
  2. Sunni-Shia Split: Intensified conflicts between Muslim empires (Safavid, Ottoman, Mughal)
  3. Syncretic Religions: Sikhism (blend of Islam and Hinduism)

Conclusion

  • Units 1-3 provide the foundation for understanding the nuances of state-building, trade networks, cultural diffusion, environmental consequences, and the role of the Mongol Empire from 1200-1450.

Tips

  1. Focus on key examples like the Ottoman Empire, Champa Rice, and the Safavid-Mughal conflict.
  2. Understand big ideas such as the impact of trade networks, the use of gunpowder, and methods of consolidating power.

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