Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
In order to take this course, you must:
√ Have access to a computer
√ Have continuous broadband internet access
√ Have the ability/permission to install plug-ins or software (e.g. Adobe Reader or Flash)
√ Have the ability to download and save files and documents to a computer
√ Have the ability to open Microsoft files and documents (.doc, .ppt., .xls, etc.)
√ Have competency in the English language
√ Have read the Saylor Student Handbook.
Welcome to HIST102. Below, please find some general information on the course and its requirements.
Primary Resources: This course is composed of a range of free, online materials. However, the course makes primary use throughout of Dr. Steven Kreis’s lectures in The History Guide series. Sections of the course dealing with events in Asia also make frequent use of materials from Columbia University’s Asia for Educators website and video lectures from Harvard University’s Extension School.
Requirements for Completion: In order to complete this course, you will need to work through each unit and all of its assigned materials. Please give particular thought to the reading questions posed in each unit. These questions are intended to highlight some of the main historical issues addressed in each unit, as well their connections with the larger themes of the course.
Finally, in order to earn a passing grade for this course you will need to obtain a score of 70% or higher on the final exam. Your score on the exam will be tabulated as soon as you complete it. If you do not pass the exam, you may take it again.
Time Commitment: This course should take you a total of approximately 78 hours to complete. Note that the time advisory for each unit contains an estimate of the number of hours required to complete the work assigned in that unit.
Tips/Suggestions: It is extremely important that you give each assignment the amount of reading and review necessary to grasp the main points and lines of enquiry. Also, on completing the assignments in each subunit, take a moment to consider how the materials you have just studied relate to the topics covered in previous sections of the course.
The resources in this short, introductory section will discuss some of the meanings and developments associated with the term globalization and the manner in which they have been used by historians to account for changes in the lives of peoples throughout the world over time. One of the major insights to be gained from these resources is that the cultural and political practices (laws, languages, religions, etc.) of any given society tend in some measure to reflect the effects of interactions with the larger world, whether brought about by migration, trade or conquest. Students should keep the concepts found here in mind as they progress through the course. The following units will in fact present numerous examples of the diverse forms of encounter and “interconnectedness” described in the resources below, as well as their many causes and consequences.
Unit 1 Time AdvisoryUpon successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Link: YouTube: Professor David Northrup’s The Worlds of Marco Polo: towards a History of Globalization (YouTube)
Instructions: Please watch the short video by Professor David Northrup of Boston College on Marco Polo, a figure who we will surface again later in the course. Give particular attention to the manner in which Professor Northrup uses Polo’s life and experiences to illustrate some of the general concepts and implications of globalization. These subjects are addressed again in the following two readings.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of Pennsylvania: Professor David Ludden’s “A Quick Guide to the World History of Globalization”(HTML)
Instructions:Please read Professor Ludden’s linked article. Consider the way in which he argues that globalization has changed over time. As you will find, several of the events that Professor Ludden calls “landmarks in the history of globalization” are covered in our course.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Yale Center for the Study of Globalization: Professor Nayan Chanda’s “Globalization in the Mirror of History” (Adobe Flash)
Instructions: Please click on Part One of “Globalization in the Mirror of History” by Professor Nayan Chanda of the Yale Center for the Study of Globalization and watch all of the following presentation. This resource offers some additional insights into the ideas associated with the term globalization as well as a collection of images that may prove helpful in visualizing the concepts introduced and discussed throughout the unit.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 1.1" (PDF)
Instructions: Please complete the assessment linked above. When you are finished, compare your response to the Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Subunit 1.1 Reading Questions." (PDF)
In the wake of the collapse of the Roman Empire, two major civilizations emerged in Europe during the early medieval period. The Byzantine Empire, which encompassed territory in the Balkans, the Middle East, and the eastern Mediterranean, maintained a highly advanced political, cultural, and economical system between 500 and 1450 C.E. Orthodox Christianity defined characteristics of Byzantium and helped expand the empire’s influence in eastern Europe, Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia. Meanwhile, another form of Christianity that had no imperial center, Catholicism, developed in western and central Europe. Although areas of small kingdoms diffused in the early Middle Ages, the fiefdoms of western Europe had shared some common ground—Latin as lingua franca, the Catholic Church, and feudal society.
In this unit, we will first study a broad overview of Byzantine civilization before looking at its more specific components—Orthodox Christianity, imperial law and government, and Byzantine society. We will then turn our attention to an examination of medieval western Europe, beginning with the historical context of the medieval era and the definition of the term “Middle Ages.” We will then study the emergence of the powerful Carolingian Empire, the expanding scope and power of the medieval Catholic Church, the significance of feudalism and manorialism in medieval society, and the devastating impact of the Black Death.
Upon successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Link: Boise State University Professor: E.L.S. Knox’s “The Fall of Rome” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read links 1-7 on the left hand-side of the page. These texts describe the events surrounding the division of the Roman Empire, the eastern half of which later became known as the Byzantine Empire, and the collapse of Roman power in the west. In addition to providing an overview of the major events of the era, Professor Knox describes some of the ongoing debates between historians concerning the factors most responsible for the fall of the Roman Empire.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Yale Open Courses: HIST 210: The Early Middle Ages, 284 -1000: Professor Paul Freedman’s “Lecture 18 – The Splendor of Byzantium” (YouTube)
Instructions: Listen to this lecture (48 minutes) which concerns the history and culture of Byzantium from the seventh through the eleventh century. In the last section (chapter 5), Professor Freedman discusses the spread of Orthodox Christianity to the Slavs which you will learn more about in section 2.1.3 below.
Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States license. It is attributed to Yale University and the original version can be found here.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Ancient and Medieval European History: “Byzantine Civilization” Lecture 17 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a good overview and the historical context of the Byzantine Empire.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of Oregon: Professor Robert Kimball’s “Olga, Anna and the Christianization of the Rus” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read all of this text, which describes the key roles played by the Russian princess Olga and the Byzantine Princess Anna in the spread of Orthodox Christianity among the Rus. In addition to providing an introduction to the lives and experiences of these interesting figures and the “nuptial diplomacy” of the day, the author describes the larger geo-political context in which this important episode of cultural transfer took place. Finally, please give some thought to the manner in which the events described here reflect the processes or patterns of globalization described in the resources from Unit 1.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 2.1" (PDF)
Instructions: Please complete the assessment linked above. When you are finished, compare your response to The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Subunit 2.1's Reading Questions." (PDF)
Link: California Institute of Technology: Professor Warren C. Brown’s “What’s ‘Middle’ about the Middle Ages?” (PDF)
Instructions: We turn now from Byzantium to Western Europe and consider developments in that part of the continent during the so-called “middle ages.” Please use the pdf link to the article at the center of the page and read all of this text. As you will find, the author provides an engaging introduction to medieval European history, as well as the manner in which our perceptions of the era often conflict with what scholars have learned through careful research and analysis of the surviving sources.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: “Charlemagne and the Carolingian Renaissance” Lecture 20 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of Charlemagne’s rule and the period known as the “Carolingian Renaissance.”
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Virginia Tech: Joseph J. Duggan’s “The Hero Roland and the Question of Intentionality” (PDF)
Instructions: Charlemagne’s efforts to expand his power into the Iberian Peninsula were the inspiration for The Song of Roland, one of the most famous works of literature from the medieval era. In this article, Joseph Duggan provides some valuable context for the events portrayed in the poem, as well as the manner in which Charlemagne’s actions and campaigns were “remembered” or heralded by succeeding generations of Europeans.
Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. It is attributed to Joseph J. Duggan and the original version can be found here.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: “Heretics, Heresies, and the Church” Lecture 27 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of how the medieval Church defined “heretic” and why heresy was such an important feature of early European Catholicism.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: “Early Medieval Monasticism” Lecture 19 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of the central role that monasticism played in shaping early European civilization.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: “The Holy Crusades” Lecture 25 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of the intended and unintended consequences of the Crusades—rescuing the Holy Land from Islamic encroachment and coming into contact with Islamic technologies, goods, and commerce.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: “Feudalism and the Feudal Relationship” Lecture 21 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of how and why feudalism developed in western Europe.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: “European Agrarian Society: Manorialism” Lecture 22 (HTML).
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the lecture in order to better understand the importance of system of manorialism, also known as serfdom, to the economy and society of western Europe.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 10, Multiple Choice Quiz” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order to assess your understanding of the early medieval period in western Europe. Click the “Submit Answer for Grading” button at the bottom of the page to obtain your grade and see the answer key for the quiz.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: “Satan Triumphant: The Black Death” Lecture 29 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the lecture in order to get a sense of the devastation unleashed in Europe as a result of the onset of the Black Death, also known as the bubonic plague.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 2.2" (PDF)
Instructions: Please complete the assessment linked above. When you are finished, compare your response to The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Subunit 2.2's Reading Questions." (PDF)
When Christopher Columbus landed in the New World in 1492, he mistakenly referred to the native inhabitants as “Indians,” thus implying that all peoples in the Americas shared the same identity. But that was not the case. During the postclassical era, also known as the medieval period, civilization in the Americas was comprised of many diverse societies that developed largely in isolation from the rest of the world. However, two major centralized civilizations emerged during this period: the Aztecs and the Incas.
In this unit, we will begin by studying a broad overview of the Aztec Empire, which emerged in what is now called Central America. We will then examine more specific aspects of the Aztecs—their religion, society, and culture, as well as their great city at Tenochtitlan. We will then examine the emergence of the Inca Empire in the Andes Mountains of South America.
Upon successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Link: Boundless: “Tenoctitlan” (PDF)
Instruction: This article discusses the emergence of the Aztec Empire in Mexico and describes its great capital city of Tenochtitlan.
Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. It is attributed to Boundless and the original version can be found here.
Link: Connexions: Jack E. Maxfield’s “A Comprehensive Outline of World History: America: AD 1401 - 1500” (PDF)
Instructions: Please read this select section and study the culture of the Aztec Empire of Mexico at its greatest extent.
Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license. It is attributed to Jack E. Maxfield and the original version can be found here.
Link: Metropolitan Museum of Art: Heidi King’s “Tenochtitlan” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage in order to get a sense of the scale and sophistication of this prominent Aztec city.
Note on the Text: This article is written by Heidi King, who is the Research Associate in the Department of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 3.1" (PDF)
Instructions: Once you have worked through all of the assigned resources in the subunit above, please open the linked PDF and respond to all questions. When you are done--or if you are stuck--please check your work against The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Reading Questions for Subunit 3.1" (PDF).
Link: Boundless: “The Incas” (PDF)
Instructions: This article will discuss three important aspects of Incan culture: Machu Picchu, which was the administrative and religious center for the Inca Empire; the production of textiles among the Inca and the influence of earlier cultures on Inca art; and the Inca craft production and the cultural significance of metals.
Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. It is attributed to Boundless and the original version can be found here.
Link: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of Pedro de Cieza de Léon’s Chronicles of the Incas (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire excerpt to get a sense of Léon’s descriptions of the Incas.
Note on the text: In this 1540 text, the conquistador Pedro de Cieza de Léon describes the nature of the Inca economy. Less directly, the author illustrates the hierarchy of Inca society.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above
Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 11, Multiple Choice Quiz” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order to assess your understanding of Americas on the eve of European invasion. Click the “Submit Answers for Grading” at the bottom of the page to go to the answer key for the quiz.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
After the fall of the Han dynasty in 589 C.E., China descended into political and cultural turmoil. The bureaucracy collapsed and a “foreign” religion—Buddhism— replaced Confucianism as the primary force in cultural life. Decline was evident in most aspects of Chinese society—including in technology, the economy, and urban areas. But beginning in the latter sixth century, two successive dynasties restored the Chinese bureaucracy and economy. As we will see in this unit, the Tang and the Song reinvigorated the Chinese political system and revived the Confucian order. In fact, these influential dynasties ushered in China’s “golden age.”
In this unit, we will begin by examining the downfall of the Sui dynasty and the subsequent emergence of the Tang and Song dynasties. We will then turn our attention to the changes and developments in government, society, the arts, and the economy during this “golden age.”
Upon successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Link: Harvard Extension School Distance Education: “China: Traditions and Transformations: Lecture 12: The Universal Empire: Cosmopolitan Tang” (Adobe Flash)
Instructions: Please scroll down and click on the link to “Lecture 12: The Universal Empire: Cosmopolitan Tang.” In this video lecture, Harvard Professor Peter Bol provides an expanded treatment of the subjects presented in the Hooker reading, as well as an analysis of the numerous developments in thought, culture, and politics stemming from the interactions of Tang society with the larger world.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 4.1" (PDF)
Instructions: Once you have worked through all of the assigned resources in the subunit above, please open the linked PDF and respond to all questions. When you are done--or if you are stuck--please check your work against The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Reading Questions for Subunit 4.1" (PDF).
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators: “The Song Dynasty in China” (HTML)
Instructions: In this section of the unit we begin a study of the Song dynasty in China. In doing so, we will make particularly heavy use of a course of readings on Columbia University’s Asia for Educators site. Please use the link below to access and read the entire first page in this program. As you will find, the authors provide some key dates in Song history, a geographical depiction of the dynasty’s power, and a few reflections on its historical “significance,” subjects that will be explored in greater depth in the sections that follow. Please give some thought throughout to matters of continuity and change in the social, economic and political affairs of Song and Tang era China.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators: The Song Dynasty in China: “Economic Revolution” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this page on the “population boom” coinciding with the economic development of China during the Song era before continuing on to the pages entitled “Commercialization,” “Paper Money,” “Iron & Steel,” “Textiles & Silk,” and “Ceramics.”
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columba University: Asia for Educators: “Technical Advances during the Song” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this page on rice cultivation in the section on “Technical advances during the Song” before continuing on to the pages entitled “Printing & Movable Type,” “Shipbuilding & the Compass,” “Gunpowder,” and “Scientific Experimentation.”
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators: The Song Dynasty in China: “Cities” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this page on the growth of cities during the Song period before continuing on to the pages entitled “Hangzhou & the Urban Elite,” “Temples & Religious Life,” and “The Rainbow Bridge.”
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators: The Song Dynasty in China: “Confucianism” (HTML)
Instructions: Read all of this text on the Scholar-Officials whose training provides an important illustration of what the authors have called the “Song Confucian Revival.” Continue on from here to the pages entitled “The Three Perfections & Su Shi,” and “Neo-Confucianism: Family, Women, Children.”
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University: Asia for Educators: The Song Dynasty in China: “Song Engagement with the Outside World” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read all of this text on the Song’s “Northern Rivals” before continuing on to the page entitled “International Trade, Overland and Maritime.”
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pennsylvania State University’s East Asian History Textbooks: Topics in Pre-Modern Chinese History: “Chapter 8: The Middle Dynasties” (HTML)
Instructions: Click the link on the left marked “Rise of the Scholar-Gentry Class.” Please read the section entitled “Rise of the Scholar-Gentry Class” in this chapter to get a sense of the “scholars” of the Middle Dynasties period in China and why they were designated a distinct social class.
Note on the Text: This website is authored and maintained by Dr. Gregory James, who teaches History and East Asian Studies at Penn State University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pennsylvania State University’s East Asian History Textbooks: Topics in Pre-Modern Chinese History: “Chapter 8: The Middle Dynasties” (HTML)
Instructions: Click on the link on the left entitled “Structure of Government.” Please read the section entitled “Structure of Government” in this chapter to learn about the hierarchy of government officials during the Middle Dynasties period in China.
Note on the Text: This website is authored and maintained by Dr. Gregory James, who teaches History and East Asian Studies at Penn State University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pennsylvania State University’s East Asian History Textbooks: Topics in Pre-Modern Chinese History: “Chapter 8: The Middle Dynasties” (HTML)
Instructions: Click the link on the left entitled “Demographic Changes.” Please read the section entitled “Demographic Changes” in this chapter to get a sense of the population and migration patterns during the Middle Dynasties period in China.
Note on the Text: This website is authored and maintained by Dr. Gregory James, who teaches History and East Asian Studies at Penn State University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Washington State University: Arthur Waley’s version of Li Po's "Drinking Along by Moonlight" (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire poem, paying attention to the poet’s emphasis on nature—a hallmark of Tang poetry.
Note on the text: This poem is thought to be Li Po’s most famous work. Li Po wrote over a thousand poems during the Tang era and is considered one of China’s most famous poets. However, he was a Daoist and received criticism from Confucian supporters during the Tang and Song eras. His poetry influenced many later Western artists, including Gustav Mahler and Ezra Pound.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 12, Multiple Choice Quiz” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order to assess your understanding of the “golden age” of
China—the Tang and Song dynasties. Click on “Submit Answers for Grading” at the bottom of the page to link to the answer key for the quiz.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
The Mongols—nomads of central Asia—dominated world history during the thirteenth century. The Mongols invaded many postclassical empires and built an extensive cultural and commercial network. Led by Chinggis Khan and his successors, the Mongols brought China, Persia, Tibet, Asia Minor, and southern Russia under their control. Often portrayed as barbarians and destructive warriors, most of the peoples conquered by the Mongols lived in relative peace, enjoyed religious tolerance, and had a unified law code. The Mongol empire also opened trade routes and communication between different regions in Asia. As will see in this unit, the Mongols presented a formidable nomadic challenge to sedentary, civilized societies throughout Asia.
In this unit, we will begin by examining who the nomadic Mongols were and what motivated their ambitious expansion. We will then turn our attention to specific Mongol rulers, the Mongol military machine, and the nature of the Mongol imperial system. We will also examine Mongol rule in China, called the Yuan Dynasty, and its impact on Chinese culture. Finally, we will study outsiders’ perceptions of Mongol rule and conquest.
Upon successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Link: Harvard Extension School Distance Education: “China: Traditions and Transformations”: “Lecture 17: The World Empire of the Mongols” (Adobe Flash)
Instructions: Please watch the entirety of this lecture by Harvard University Professor Peter Bol for an introduction to the rise of the Mongol Empire. Consider how the Mongol Empire compares to others that have been studied to date as well as the manner in which this material illustrates some of the processes of globalization cited in earlier resources.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquests”: “What Led to the Conquests?” (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 7-8) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and scroll down to page 7)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this section to get a sense of what motivated the Mongol conquest of Asia.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquests”:
Tribal Group vs. Mongol Identity under Chinggis Khan (HTML)
Chinggis’s Mastery of Organization and Military Tactics (HTML)
Three Invasions Led by Chinggis (HTML)
Chinggis’s Successor and Further Expansion of the Empire (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p.8-10) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and scroll down to page 8)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of these four sections in order to get a sense of Chinggis Khan’s vision of Mongol identity, his military strategy, the many battles he fought, and those Mongol leaders who succeeded him.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquest”: “How a Small Group of Mongols Conquered Such a Vast Domain” (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p.10-11) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and scroll down to page 10)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this section to learn of how and why the Mongols were able to bring so much territory under their control.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Silkroad Foundation: Professor Daniel C. Waugh’s The Pax Mongolica (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage, which discusses Waugh’s contention that relative peace characterized the Mongol Empire in the wake of their military conquests.
Note on the Text: Author, Daniel C. Waugh, is a professor at the University of Washington, Seattle.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquest”: “The Collapse of the Empire” (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p.11-12) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and scroll down to page 11)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this section in order to get a sense of how the struggles among Mongol leaders led to a breakdown in power in the empire.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 5.1" (PDF)
Instructions: Once you have worked through all of the assigned resources in the subunit above, please open the linked PDF and respond to all questions. When you are done--or if you are stuck--please check your work against The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Reading Questions for Subunit 5.1" (PDF).
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquest”: “What was the Mongols’ Influence on China?” (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 12-13) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and scroll down to page 12)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this section, which questions whether the Mongols’ influence on imperial China was destructive or beneficial.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquest”: “Kubilai Khan in China”(HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 13) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and scroll down to page 13)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this section on Kubilai Khan’s rule in China.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquest”: Selections from “Life in China under Mongol Rule”:
For Peasants (HTML)
For Artisans (HTML)
For Merchants (HTML)
Legal Codes (HTML)
Civilian Life (HTML)
Religion (HTML)
Culture(HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 13-18) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and scroll down to page 13)
Instructions: Please read all of these links to get a sense of the way of life in China during Mongol rule.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Mongol Conquest”: Selections from “Beginnings of Mongol Collapse”:
Military Successes and Failures (HTML)
Public Works Failures (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 18-19) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and scroll down to page 18)
Instructions: Please read both of these links to learn about the internal and external pressures that drove the Mongol Empire toward collapse.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Selections from Columbia University’s “The Mongols in World History: The Pastoral Nomadic Life”
Introduction (HTML)
Sheep: A Source of Bounty (HTML)
Goats (HTML)
Survival of the Flocks (HTML)
Yaks and Oxen (HTML)
Camels (HTML)
Horses (HTML)
Mare’s Milk (HTML)
Traditional Clothing and Jewelry (HTML)
The Portable Home: The Ger (HTML)
Also available in:
PDF (p. 25-29) (At the bottom of the right column, select link "Transcript (PDF)" and scroll down to page 18)
John Masson Smith, Jr., “Dietary Decadence and Dynastic Decline in the Mongol Empire,”Journal of Asian History, vol. 34, no. 1, 2000 (PDF)
Also available in:
HTML
Morris Rossabi, “All the Khan’s Horses,”Natural History, 1994 (PDF)
Also available in:
HTML
Instructions: Please read all of these links to get a sense of the features that defined Mongol nomadic life. You will need to download the PDFs of the two articles by John Masson Smith, Jr. and Morris Rossabi, respectively. Click the link on the title of each article to download these. Please read these articles, one about the Mongol diet and one about the importance of the horse in Mongol culture.
Note on the Text: This text was created by the Asia for Educators Program at Columbia University under the direction of Professor Morris Rossabi, who teaches Chinese History at both CUNY and Columbia University. This project was funded by The Freeman Foundation.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Michigan State University: David Morgan’s “Persian Perceptions of Mongols and Europeans” (HTML)
Also available in:
Google Books
Instructions: Please read this entire text for information on how the Persians perceived Mongol invaders.
Note on the Text: This excerpt is from Chapter VI of Stuart B. Schwartz’ (ed) Implicit Understandings: Observing, Reporting, and Reflecting on the Encounters Between Europeans and Other Peoples in the Early Modern Era, which is published by Cambridge University Press (1994).
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Michigan State University: Robert Marshall’s Selections from Storm from the East: from Genghis Khan to Khubilai Khan (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire webpage to get a sense of how medieval European Christians perceived the Mongol conquests of Asia and the Middle East.
Note on the Text: These selections from “Chapter 5: From Prester John to Cultural Strangers” comes from Marshall’s textbook Storm from the East: from Genghis Khan to Khubilai Khan, which is published by University of California Press (1993).
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Stetson University: “Correspondence between Roman Pope and Great Khan” (HTML)
Instructions: By the middle of the Thirteenth Century Mongol armies had penetrated into Central Europe. These events inspired a response from Pope Innocent IV who dispatched emissaries to the Great Khan in 1245. As you will find in the subsequent exchange of letters included on this page, Pope and Khan appeared to have very different views on how one should interpret the“commands of Heaven.”
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 14, Multiple Choice Quiz” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order to assess your understanding of the empire built by the Mongols. Click the “Submit Answers for Grading” at the bottom of the webpage to link to the answer key.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
By 1400, a fundamental shift was occurring among the world’s civilizations. Chinese and Middle Eastern empires had been at the forefront of civilization for hundreds of years; sophisticated methods of governance, trade systems, and technology allowed them to exert near-global influence. But Mongol invaders from the East undermined the preeminent role of the Islamic and Chinese empires. For a time, the Ming dynasty of China attempted to fill the power vacuum that appeared when the Mongols conquered eastern Europe and Asia Minor. Meanwhile, internal and dynastic struggles continued to upset affairs in western Europe, where some states and kingdoms nevertheless experienced a rise in political and commercial power.
In this unit, we will examine world civilizations in a comparative light to see how and why western European society eclipsed other powerful civilizations in Asia. We will first examine the transition from an Asian-dominated world economy to a European-dominated one. We will then consider the two emerging European empires—Spain and Portugal—who spearheaded trade and conquest in the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and the New World. Finally, we will study the Age of Discovery and its impact on native peoples, Europe, and the balance of world trade.
Upon successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Link: Hartford Web Publishing: Andre Gunder Frank’s “Asian-based World Economy 1400-1800: A Horizontally Integrative Macrohistory” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this entire article and consider the arguments given by the author concerning the prominence of Asia in the world economy during the period 1400-1800 and the manner in which he believes this subject has been obscured by subsequent historians. The author provides critical reflections here on the sources of economic wealth and power in the early modern era and the way in which European states and traders ultimately succeeded in obtaining a larger measure of both.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s “Summary of Wallerstein on World System Theory” (HTML)
Instructions: Instructions: Please read the entirety of this selection to get a sense of Immanuel Wallerstein’s world system theory. Give particular thought to how his arguments compare and contrast with those of Andre Gunder Frank above. Finally, which of the events and developments featured thus far in our course loom particularly large in Wallerstein’s explanation of Asia’s downfall and the subsequent rise of Europe?
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Concepcion Saenz-Camba’s “The Atlantic World, 1492-1600” (PDF)
Instructions: Please read the sections titled “Introduction” and “The First Atlantic Encounters” in their entirety. These readings will help you gain an understanding of the circumstances that led to one of the momentous times in history, the opening of the Atlantic World, and the subsequent discovery of the New World.
Terms of Use: The linked material above has been reposted by the kind permission of Concepcion Saenz-Camba. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: “The Age of Discovery” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of why European explorers took to the high seas in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of Calgary: Applied History Research Group: The European Voyages of Exploration: “Portugal” (HTML)
Instructions: Portugal was one of the major powers in the European Age of Discovery. Please read this page, which describes the state of kingdom at the beginning of this period. At the bottom of the page, use the “proceed with tutorial” link to read the sections on “Prince Henry the Navigator,” “Prince Henry the Navigator: The Lure of Trade,” and “Prince Henry the Navigator: An Assessment.” We will return to the subject of Portuguese exploration and empire-building in section 8.2 of the course when we deal with the colonization of Brazil.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of Calgary: Applied History Project: The European Voyages of Exploration: “Spain” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire text, which describes the political situation in Spain during the first stages of the “Age of Discovery” and, specifically, the unification of Aragon and Castile. Use the “proceed with the tutorial” link at the bottom of the page to read about early Spanish exploration in the Western Hemisphere (do not continue beyond this page). We will return to this subject in section 8.1 when dealing with the rise of the Spanish empire in the Americas.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History: Laurence Bergreen’s “Magellan: Missing in Action” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire article, which describes the exploits of Ferdinand Magellan—a native of Portugal whose voyages were nevertheless sponsored by the Spanish monarchy. In addition to providing some basic facts about Magellan’s aims and experiences, the author offers further reflection on the factors that have affected the way he has been treated in history.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Connexions: James Ross-Nazzal’s “Ch. 3 British Colonial America (1588 – 1701)” (PDF)
Instructions: This article concerns the establishment of the first English colonies in North America in the early 17th century.
Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license. It is attributed to James Ross-Nazzal and the original version can be found here.
Link: Concepcion Saenz-Camba’s “The Atlantic World, 1492-1600” (PDF)
Instructions: Please read the section titled “The English in North America” in its entirety. This reading will offer you an overview of the early English exploration and their “fledging settlements” in North America.
Terms of Use: The linked material above has been reposted by the kind permission of Concepcion Saenz-Camba. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder.
Link: Boundless: “The Dutch Empire” (PDF)
Instruction: This article examines the establishment of Dutch colonies in North America.
Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. It is attributed to Boundless and the original version can be found here.
Link: Boundless: “Englishmen and Native Americans” (PDF)
Instructions: The European exploration and settlement of North America devastated the Native American population. This article examines the impact of English colonization on the Native Americans living along the Atlantic seaboard in North America.
Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. It is attributed to Boundless and the original version can be found here.
Link: Concepcion Saenz-Camba’s “The Atlantic World, 1492-1600” (PDF)
Instructions: Please read the section titled “The Columbian Exchange: Humanity, Identity, and the Loss of Indigenous Naivety” in its entirety. This reading will address how the Opening of the Atlantic changed the lives of the Native Americans and Europeans forever.
Terms of Use: The linked material above has been reposted by the kind permission of Concepcion Saenz-Camba. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder.
Link: Boundless: ““The Clash of Culture” (PDF)
Instructions: This article discusses the impact of the introduction of new epidemic diseases to native populations with the European colonization of the New World.
Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. It is attributed to Boundless and the original version can be found here.
Link: University of Minnesota’s James Ford Bell Library: Carol Urness’s “Trade Products in Early Modern History” (HTML)
Instructions: Please click on each of the links at the left-hand side of the webpage; read each link in its entirety.
Note on the Text: Each of these short articles offers an excellent overview of specific trade goods that became centrally important in linking Europe to the Americas, Asia, and the Far East. Goods, such as brazilwood, cod, tobacco, and tea, became valuable trading products that rapidly transformed the world economy.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 16, Multiple Choice Quiz” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order to assess your understanding of the changing world economy in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Click “Submit Answers for Grading” at the bottom of the page to link to the answer key for the quiz.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Concepcion Saenz-Camba’s “The Atlantic World, 1492-1600” (PDF)
Instructions: Please read the sections “Disease” and “Ecological Impact” under the heading “The Columbian Exchange” in their entirety. These readings will address the importance of the “Columbian Exchange,” arguably, the starting point of real worldwide globalization. Pay special attention to the different ways the consequences of this global exchange still affect our world today.
Terms of Use: The linked material above has been reposted by the kind permission of Concepcion Saenz-Camba. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 6.3" (PDF)
Instructions: Once you have worked through all of the assigned resources in the subunit above, please open the linked PDF and respond to all questions. When you are done--or if you are stuck--please check your work against The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Reading Questions for Subunit 6.3" (PDF).
Beginning in the fifteenth century, western Europe underwent a number of profound changes. First, Europe developed many commercial and manufacturing centers that encouraged contact with other civilizations, primarily in Asia. Second, quarrels within the Catholic Church resulted in a new division among Christians along Catholic or Protestant lines. In addition, the rise of rational scientific ideas and new political philosophies shaped European government and society.
In this unit, we will begin by studying the advent of the European Renaissance. We will define what “Renaissance” actually meant and how it differed from the medieval period; we will examine influential Renaissance thinkers and their ideas, as well as the larger impact of the Renaissance on European civilization as a whole. We will then turn our attention to the fundamental changes occurring in the religious landscape of this era: namely, the Protestant Reformation. Finally, we will take a look at the early scientific revolution and new approaches toward art and architecture.
Upon successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Link: Boise State University Professor E.L. S. Knox’s “History of the Idea of the Renaissance” (HTML)
Instructions: The Renaissance represents one of the most celebrated and written about subjects in European history. Please read all of this text, in which Professor Knox discusses the history of how the Renaissance emerged as a concept in European literature and the many meanings that have been attributed to it over time.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Modern European Intellectual History: “The Medieval Synthesis and the Discovery of Man: the Renaissance” Lecture 4 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire lecture about how and why the medieval period paved the way for the emergence of the Renaissance.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Early Modern European History: “Renaissance Portraits” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire lecture in order to get a sense of how Renaissance thinkers and modern-day scholars interpret the period known as the age of “rebirth.”
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 7.1" (PDF)
Instructions: Once you have worked through all of the assigned resources in the subunit above, please open the linked PDF and respond to all questions. When you are done--or if you are stuck--please check your work against The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Reading Questions for Subunit 7.1" (PDF).
Link: University of Massachusetts, Lowell: Dr. Liana Cheney’s “Humanism and the Renaissance” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage in order to better understand one of the defining characteristics of Renaissance thought—humanism.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of Massachusetts, Lowell: Dr. Liana Cheney’s “Neo-Platonism” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the whole article on this webpage, which provides a working definition of “Platonism” and discusses how Renaissance philosophers inflected Platonic principles to develop their own ideas.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of Massachusetts, Lowell: Dr. Liana Cheney: “Pico della Mirandola” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the whole webpage in order to get a sense of Pico della Mirandola’s philosophy, which synthesized classical, medieval, and Renaissance ideas.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University: The Institute for Learning Technologies’ version of Niccoló Machiavelli’s The Prince(HTML)
Also available in:
Google Books
PDF
Instructions: Please read the entire text, paying special attention to the manner in which Machiavelli separates ethics from political pragmatism. See, for example, chapters 15 to 21 for the author’s specific advice on the principles that should guide “the prince’s” exercise of state power.
Note on the text: This political treatise was written by Niccolò Machiavelli, a Florentine political theorist, in the sixteenth century. In an era of constant conflict among Italian city-states, Machiavelli asserts that the greatest moral good is a virtuous and stable state. Even if actions taken to preserve the state are immoral, Machiavelli argues, they remain justified. The text, with its “end justifies the means” pragmatism, had a deep impact on Western philosophy.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Reading: Stanford University Encyclopedia of Philosophy: “Machiavelli” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the opening paragraph on this page followed by the sections entitled “1. Biography” and “2. The Prince: Analyzing Power.” These passages will give you an introduction to the life and work of the Florentine philosopher Machiavelli, author of one of the most influential and widely read treatises on government, The Prince.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of Rochester Library Bulletin: “The Life of Leonardo da Vinci” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the whole article on this webpage in order to get a sense of the famed Renaissance thinker, artist, inventor, writer, and scientist.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Early Modern European History: “The Protestant Reformation” Lecture 3 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire lecture on the Protestant Reformation—one of the most pivotal events in European history.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: iTunes U: Frank A. James III’s “Martin Luther” (iTunesU Audio)
Instructions: Listen to the lecture using iTunes U to get a sense of who Martin Luther was and how he led the movement to reform the Catholic Church.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Early Modern European History: “The Impact of Luther and the Radical Reformation” Lecture 4 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the whole lecture, which outlines the struggles between Luther (and his followers) and other radical groups during the Reformation.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Boise State University: Professor E.L. S. Knox’s “The Council of Trent” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read all of this text in which Boise State Professor E.L. S. Knox describes the Council of Trent (1545-1563), an event that the author terms “one of the foundations of the Counter Reformation.” Professor Knox goes on to identify some of the steps taken by those participating in the Council to reform the Catholic Church.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Dr. Steven Kreis’s The History Guide: Lectures on Early Modern European History: “The Scientific Revolution, 1543-1600” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of how scientific revolutionaries attempted to explain man’s role in the natural world, which was a major shift from the former medieval emphasis on man’s role in God’s world.
Note on the Text: This online text was developed by Dr. Steven Kreis as an open educational resource for use in undergraduate history courses. Dr. Steven Kreis teaches history at American Public University.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University: Department of Art History and Archaeology: “Renaissance Architecture” (Adobe Flash)
Instructions: Please read the introduction to Renaissance architecture on this site and then proceed to the extensive photo gallery on the right-hand side of the screen. These images will illustrate the points made in the introduction concerning the northern and southern European iterations of Renaissance architecture as well as provide panoramic views of some of the most iconic structures from the period.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 17, Multiple Choice Quiz” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order to assess your understanding of the European Renaissance and the Protestant Reformation. Click on “Submit Answers for Grading” at the end of the webpage to access the answer key for the quiz.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Beginning in the fifteenth century, the empires of Portugal and Spain founded large colonies in Latin America. As a result of these conquests, disease and warfare destroyed or transformed many of the native peoples who lived there. Gradually, a new syncretic civilization emerged in the Americas and became an integral part of the world market. Societies comprised of Africans, Spanish, Portuguese, and native peoples developed a sophisticated market economy driven by gold and silver mining as well as plantation agriculture. We will see how the colonial systems implemented by the Spanish and Portuguese in the New World had roots in the political and religious institutions of Europe.
In this unit, we will begin by examining the founding of Spain’s first New World colony—New Spain—in an area now known as Mexico. We will study how the Spanish defeated the Aztec empire and subsequently erected a colonial government and economy. We will then turn to Portugal’s main colonial enterprise in the Americas—Brazil. We will study Brazil’s indigenous population and the effects of Portuguese colonization, as well as the evolution of Brazil’s economy from plantation agriculture to mining.
Link: MexConnect: Dale Hoyt Palfrey’s “The Spanish Conquest (1519-1521)” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage in order to get a sense of the Spanish conquistadores’ defeat of the Aztec Empire.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Canadian Libraries Internet Archive’s version of Bernal Diaz del Castillo’s True History of the Conquest of Mexico(HTML)
Also available in:
Kindle
Google Books
eBook
PDF
Instructions: Please read chapters seven and eight for Castillo’s description of the Aztec capital city as well as the course of negotiations between Montezuma and the Spanish force.
Note on the text: You may view this text online, or you may choose to download the PDF version, by clicking on the links on the left side of the page. This account, written around 1568, describes the invasion of Mexico by Don Hernando Cortes and his 600 Spanish conquistadors in 1519. Despite their advanced society, the Aztecs were no match for European disease and warfare; three years later, in 1521, the Aztec capital surrendered to Cortes. Written from the perspective of the European conquerors, this document is one of only a few texts that elucidates the collision of Spanish and Aztec cultures in the New World.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: MexConnect: Dale Hoyt Palfrey’s “Mexico’s Colonial Era, Part 1” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage.
Note on the Text: This article will help you get a better sense of the establishment of the Spanish colony of New Spain.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: MexConnect: Dale Hoyt Palfrey’s “Mexico’s Colonial Era, Part 2” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage.
Note on the text: This article will help you get a sense of how and why the Spanish crown’s wanted to convert the indigenous inhabitants of New Spain to the Catholic faith.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: MexConnect: Dale Hoyt Palfrey’s “Mexico’s Colonial Era, Part 3” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage in order to get a sense of New Spain’s raw materials—predominantly silver and gold—that fueled the wealth of the Spanish Empire.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link:Swarthmore College: Bartoleme de Las Casas’ Brief Account of the Devastation of the Indies (1542) (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage.
Note on the Text: Reading this primary source will help you gain an understanding of the conquistadores’ system of oppression and exploitation of native peoples—encomienda—and how the Spanish missionary Bartholomé de las Casas worked to eradicate it.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 8.1" (PDF)
Instructions: Once you have worked through all of the assigned resources in the subunit above, please open the linked PDF and respond to all questions. When you are done--or if you are stuck--please check your work against The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Reading Questions for Subunit 8.1" (PDF).
Link: Country Studies US: Rex A. Hudson’s (ed.) Brazil: A Country Study: “The Indigenous Population” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this excerpt in order to get a sense of the indigenous peoples who made Brazil their home on the eve of the Portuguese invasion.
Note on the Text: This website contains electronic texts of previous publications printed by the Library of Congress and sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Army from 1986-1998.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute: Jeannette Gaffney’s “Dividing the Spoils: Portugal and Spain in South America” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read Part I, Part II, Part III, and Part IV in order to get a sense of how and why Spain and Portugal vied for control of South America in the fifteenth century.
Note on the Text: This webpage provides an excellent overview of the reasons for and consequences of Spanish and Portuguese colonization of the Americas.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above
Link: Country Studies US: Rex A. Hudson’s (ed.) Brazil: A Country Study: “Frontier Expansion that Shaped Brazil” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage in order to learn about Portugal’s early exploration of Brazil.
Note on the Text: This website contains electronic texts of previous publications printed by the Library of Congress and sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Army from 1986-1998.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Country Studies US: Rex A. Hudson’s (ed.) Brazil: A Country Study: “Early Colonization” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the whole excerpt in order to get a sense of early contact between indigenous peoples and the Portuguese settlers.
Note on the Text: This website contains electronic texts of previous publications printed by the Library of Congress and sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Army from 1986-1998.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Country Studies US: Rex A. Hudson’s (ed.) Brazil: A Country Study: “French and Dutch Incursions” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage, which explains how Portugal fended off military and commercial threats from the Dutch and French in Brazil.
Note on the Text: This website contains electronic texts of previous publications printed by the Library of Congress and sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Army from 1986-1998.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Country Studies US: Rex A. Hudson’s (ed.) Brazil: A Country Study: “Gold Mining Displaces Cane Farming” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this whole section for information on how the discovery of gold in colonial Brazil began supplanting the sugar economy.
Note on the Text: This website contains electronic texts of previous publications printed by the Library of Congress and sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Army from 1986-1998.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 19, Multiple Choice Quiz” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order to assess your understanding of Spain and Portugal’s New World colonial pursuits. Clicking on “Submit Answers for Grading” at the end of the webpage will redirect you to the answer key for the quiz.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
The Mongol invasions of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries broke apart a unified Muslim world. But in the wake of these invasions, three new dynasties rose to power and paved the way for the emergence of an Islamic renaissance. The greatest of the three, the Ottoman Empire, ruled most of Asia Minor. The Safavids ruled Persia and Afghanistan, while the Mughals dominated India. All three empires originated from Turkic nomadic peoples who embraced Islam and Islamic conversion efforts.
In this unit, we will begin by studying the Ottomans. We will consider their origins, their methods of conquest, as well as the unique features of their society. We will also examine the reasons for the decline and reform of the Ottoman Empire. Then, we will turn our attention to the Safavids, studying both their society and religion—Shi’a Islam. Finally, we will focus on the Mughals—including their origins, reasons for their wealth, the formation of their empire, and outsiders’ cultural and economic interests in the Mughals.
Link: University of Calgary: Applied History Project: Rise of the Great Islamic Empires: “The Ottoman Empire” (HTML)
Instructions: The Ottoman Empire played a dominant role in the history of the Middle East, Caucasus, Asia Minor and parts of Europe from the period covered here to the twentieth century. Please read all of this text which describes events in the 13th Century before continuing on to the links entitled “Empire Building, 1301-1402,” “Recovery and Renewed Conquest, 1402-1480,” “Relations with the Islamic World, 1480-1520” and “Suleyman I.” These readings will provide you with an introduction to some of the major milestones in the early history of the Ottoman Empire and the lands brought under its rule.
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Link: VirginiaTech: Bryan Gilkerson’s “The Siege of Constantinople” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of the Ottomans’ siege of the city of Constantinople.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Michigan State University: Steven S. Sowards’ Twenty-Five Lectures on Modern Balkan History: Lecture 3: “The Principles of Ottoman Rule in the Balkans” (HTML)
Instructions: The Ottoman Empire encompassed a diverse population of subjects. Please read all of this text, which provides greater detail on the Ottoman conquest of the Balkans and proceeds from here to discuss the empire’s policy towards the non-Muslim inhabitants of the region.
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Link: Selections from The Applied History Research Group’s “The Islamic World to 1600”: “The Safavid Empire”:
Beginnings to 1501 (HTML)
Shah Ismail 1501-1526 (HTML)
Chaos in the Empire, 1524-1587 (HTML)
Abbas I, 1587-1629 (HTML)
Instructions: Please read all of the above webpages to get a good overview of the Safavid Empire and its main leaders. Please also read the links embedded in the text; they will provide you with good historical context of the period.
Note on the Text: The Applied History Research Group is affiliated with the University of Calgary.
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Link: Iran Chamber Society’s “History of Iran”: Shapour Ghasemi’s “Safavid Empire, 1502-1736” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage to learn about the Safavid Empire’s origins, the significance of Sufism and Shi’a Islam, and
the nature of Safavid society and government.
Note on the Text: This article is hosted by the Iran Chamber Society, which is a good resource for historical and cultural information about Iran.
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Link: Country Studies US: Helen Chapin Metz’s (ed.) Iran: A Country Study: “The Safavids, 1501-1722”(HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this webpage to get a sense of the internal and external challenges that faced the Safavid Empire.
Note on the Text: This website contains electronic texts of previous publications printed by the Library of Congress and sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Army from 1986-1998. This particular text was printed in 1987.
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Link: Country Studies US: Helen Chapin Metz’s (ed.) Iran: A Country Study: “Shi’a Islam” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the whole webpage to get a better understanding of the tenets of Shi’a Islam—the official religion of the Safavid dynasty.
Note on the Text: This website contains electronic texts of previous publications printed by the Library of Congress and sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Army from 1986-1998. This particular text was printed in 1987.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Country Studies US: James Heitzman’s and Robert L. Worden’s (editors) India: A Country Study: “The Mughals” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the website in order to get a good overview of the Mughal Empire.
Note on the Text: This website contains electronic texts of previous publications printed by the Library of Congress and sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Army from 1986-1998. This particular text was printed in 1995.
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Link: University of Washington: Daniel C. Waugh’s “Mughal India’s Timurid Heritage” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire webpage in order to get a sense of the influence of Central Asia—including the Silk Road—on the Mughal Empire. Please also click on the Mughal art featured on the far left-hand side of the webpage and read the descriptions.
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Link: Columbia University: Professor Frances Pritchett’s “The Mughals and the Arts” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this entire webpage to get a sense of how the unified political environment of Mughal India created the conditions for artistic achievement.
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Link: Columbia University: Professor Frances Pritchett’s “Religion at Akbar’s Court” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this webpage in order to get a sense of the religious policy of the Mughal emperor Akbar.
Note on the Text: Islam was central to the Mughal kingdom, but the manner in which leaders embraced it or imposed it on the population was constantly changing, as this article shows.
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Link: Country Studies US: James Heitzman’s and Robert L. Worden’s (editors) India: A Country Study: “The Marathas” (HTML) and “The Sikhs” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of these two links to get a sense of two challengers to Mughal rule—the Sikhs and the Marathas.
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Link: Fordham University’s Internet Indian History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of François Bernier’s Travels in the Mughal Empire (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire excerpt to get a sense of Europeans’ perceptions and impressions of the Mughal Empire.
Note on the Text: Written in the mid-seventeenth century by a French doctor, this text gives a detailed account of the powerful and extensive Mughal Empire. Bernier was the first European to describe the region of Kashmir and his position as a medical doctor in the court of Aurangzeb, the last of the great Mughal emperors, provided an unprecedented window into Mughal culture and customs.
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Link: James Country Studies US: James Heitzman’s and Robert L. Worden’s (editors) India: A Country Study: “The Coming of the Europeans” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this link to get a sense of the relationship between European traders and Mughal rulers.
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Link: Columbia University: Frances Pritchett’s “A Century of Political Decline: 1707-1803” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this webpage in order to get a sense of the reasons for political decline of the Mughal Empire during the eighteenth century.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 21, Multiple Choice Quiz” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order to assess your understanding of the Ottoman, Safavid and Mughal empires. Click on “Submit Answers for Grading” at the bottom of the webpage to link to the answer key for the quiz.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 9.3" (PDF)
Instructions: Once you have worked through all of the assigned resources in the subunit above, please open the linked PDF and respond to all questions. When you are done--or if you are stuck--please check your work against The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Reading Questions for Subunit 9.3" (PDF).
While much of Africa followed its own trajectory of progress in the post-medieval period, the rise of European trade and influence still had a profound impact upon African societies. Perhaps the greatest—and most horrific—effect upon Africa was the Atlantic slave trade. The forced removal of Africans to the New World was first started by the Portuguese in what is now Sierra Leone in the 1400s. Soon after, English, Dutch, Portuguese, and French traders began to enslave and sell Africans to benefit New World plantation societies. The result was an incredibly profitable system of enslavement that transformed European empires, colonial societies, and the world economy.
In this unit, we will examine the impact of the many—and complex—facets of the Atlantic slave trade. We will examine how the trade came into being, who was involved, why it was so profitable and so deadly, how it affected Africa and Africans, and why it ended.
Link: HowStuffWorks, Inc.: “Assignment History: The Atlantic Slave Trade” (HowStuffWorks Video)
Instructions: Please enter Atlantic Slave Trade in the search field and watch all of this video (approximately 4 minutes) in order to get an overview of the complex and exploitative nature of the African slave trade.
Note on the Media: This video segment was produced by Cosmeo, which is a website containing educational videos as supplemental resources. Cosmeo is a division of Discovery Communications, Inc., which produces the Discovery Channel.
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Link: Concepcion Saenz-Camba’s “The Atlantic World, 1492-1600” (PDF)
Instructions: Please read the sections titled “The Atlantic Slave Trade: Logic of Enslavement” and “The Atlantic Slave Trade: Global Consequences of the Atlantic Slave Trade” in their entirety. Pay special attention to how the Slave Trade affected not only the Americas but also Europe, Africa, and Asia.
Terms of Use: The linked material above has been reposted by the kind permission of Concepcion Saenz-Camba. Please note that this material is under copyright and cannot be reproduced in any capacity without explicit permission from the copyright holder.
Link: iTunes U: Arizona State University History Department’s The Slave Trade Part 1 (iTunes Audio)
Instructions: Please listen to the entire audio lecture using iTunes U.
Note on the Media: An Arizona State University History professor discusses the origins and development of the transatlantic slave trade.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture’s “The Transatlantic Slave Trade”: “The Development of the Trade” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage plus the links embedded in the text; these sources will provide you with a good overview of the beginnings of the slave trade.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: iTunes U: University of Glasgow: Dr. Simon Newman’s Working the Slave Trade in the British Atlantic World (iTunes Audio)
Instructions: Please listen to the entire lecture using iTunes.
Note on the Lecture: Dr. Simon Newman of the University of Glasgow gives a fascinating lecture on the slave trade along the Gold Coast of Africa. He describes the relationship between British traders and African canoe-men.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture’s “The Transatlantic Slave Trade”: “Traders and Trade” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage plus the links embedded in the text; this material will introduce you to the motivations of European traders and nature of the African trade.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of Houston’s Digital History: Fray Tomas de Mercado’s “A Critique of the Slave Trade” (HTML)
Also available in:
Google Books
Instructions: Please read the entire excerpt on the webpage in order to get a sense of early opposition to the trade in human beings on the African coast.
Note on the Text: In this 1587 document, a Spanish cleric proclaims that “a thousand acts of robbery and violence are committed in the course of bartering and carrying off Negroes” in the slave trade. As European powers were becoming increasingly involved in buying and selling Africans, Mercado dismisses the trade as the product of robbery, deception, and violence.
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Link: Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture’s “The Transatlantic Slave Trade”: “The Middle Passage” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage plus the links embedded in the text.
Note on the Text: This material will provide you with modern-day analyses and first-person accounts of the slaves’ horrific journey from Africa to the New World.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of North Carolina Library’s “Documenting the American South”: Boyrereau Brinch’s and Benjamin F. Prentiss’s (Benjamin Franklin’s) “The Blind African Slave, or Memoirs of Boyrereau Brinch, Nick-named Jeffrey Brace (HTML)
Instructions: Please read Pages 1-94 of this incisive tale of Brinch’s horrific journey from his native Africa to the New World.
Note on the Text: This slave narrative, while published in 1810, is Boyrereau Brinch’s description of his journey across the Atlantic in 1758 and 1759. Originally from Mali in western Africa, Brinch arrived in the port of Barbados aboard a slave ship and lived as a slave in the Caribbean and the United States for most of his life. Although not often read by modern day readers, Brinch’s memoir offers a horrifying view of the Middle Passage that other writers merely gesture toward.
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Link: University of Calgary: The Applied History Research Group’s “African Migration to the New World”: Resistance to Slavery, the Anti-Slavery Movement, and Abolition (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of Africans’ resistance to the slave trade and slavery as well as Euro-American efforts to end the trade.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of Calgary, “Forced African Migration,” “The Impact of the Slave Trade”:
Demographic Impact (HTML)
Economic Impact (HTML)
Cultural Impact (HTML)
Instructions: Please read all sections: “4.5a Demographic Impact,” “4.5b “Economic Impact,” and “4.5c Cultural Impact.”
Note on the Text: These articles will help you gain a better understanding of how the slave trade affected Africa and the world.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 10.1" (PDF)
Instructions: Once you have worked through all of the assigned resources in the subunit above, please open the linked PDF and respond to all questions. When you are done--or if you are stuck--please check your work against The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Reading Questions for Subunit 10.1" (PDF).
Link: History World International: R.A. Guisepi (ed.) “Africa and Africans in the Age of the Atlantic Slave Trade” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire webpage to get a sense of the political environment in Africa and the highly varied nature of slaving practices within Africa.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture’s “The Transatlantic Slave Trade”: “Capture and Enslavement” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage plus the links embedded in the text.
Note on the Text: Reading this material will give you a sense of the nature of the process of enslavement of Africans within Africa.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: University of Calgary: The Applied History Group’s “African Migration to the New World”: “The Nature of the African Diaspora” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of the diaspora created by European traders through the slave trade.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: History World International: Peter N. Stearns’, Michael Adas’ and Stuart B. Schwartz’s “Africa and Africans in the Age of the Atlantic Slave Trade”: “African Diaspora”(HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of the webpage in order to get a sense of where African slaves landed in the New World as well as what kind of lives they led there.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 20, Multiple Choice Quiz” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order to assess your understanding of Africa and Africans in the age of the Atlantic Slave Trade. Click on “Submit Answers for Grading” at the bottom of the webpage to redirect to the answer key.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
The pre-modern world of South and East Asia was a diverse one linked together by commerce. Most politically and culturally independent Asian states, including India, China, and Japan, were only marginally affected by the arrival of European traders in the fifteenth century. Although the voyages of the Portuguese explorer Vasco de Gama had opened up the East to Europe, the power of Asian states and commerce prevented European nations from dominating lucrative trade networks. Still, the strength of European sea power allowed traders to influence many aspects of the Asian spice trade.
In this unit, we will begin with an examination of the Asian trading world. We will ask what this world looked like and why Europeans were so attracted to it. In particular, we will study how Portugal, Holland, and England extended their commercial empires to South and East Asia. We will then turn our attention to China and Japan. We will explore the unique characteristics of the powerful Ming state in China as well as the tumultuous era of medieval and pre-modern Japan.
Link: History World’s “History of the Portuguese Empire” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entirety of this article to get a sense of Portugal’s efforts to insert itself into Asia’s lucrative trading networks.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Fordham University’s Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of Vasco de Gama’s “Round Africa to India, 1497-1498 CE” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read the entire excerpt of Vasco de Gama’s account of his voyage around the Cape of Good Hope to the port city of Calicut, in what is now present-day India.
Note on the text: In this account, the Portuguese explorer Vasco de Gama describes his journey to the cosmopolitan port of Calicut. Sent by the Portuguese crown, Vasco de Gama’s discoveries opened up the east to European trading interests.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Gresham College: Dr. Thomas Crump’s “The Dutch East Indies Company—The First 100 Years” (RealPlayer Video or Audio)
Also available in:
mp3
Transcript (HTML)
Instructions: Please download the video and/or audio of the lecture; you may also consider reading the transcript of the lecture.
Note on the Media: You will get a sense of how the Dutch East Indies Company operated in parts of what is today China, Japan, and Indonesia. Lecturer Dr. Thomas Crump is a published author of several texts on history and science.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Internet Archive: Shafaat Ahmed Khan’s The East India Trade in the XVIIth Century (HTML)
Also available in:
Google Books
Instructions: Please read Chapter I, pages 1-92, in order to get a sense of Dutch, Portuguese, and then English efforts to cultivate trade networks with Asian merchants in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Harvard Extension School Distance Education: China: Traditions and Transformations: Lecture 18: “Social Policy and Social Practice in Ming and Qing” (Adobe Flash)
Instructions: Mongol rule in China was overthrown by the founders of the Ming dynasty. Please watch this entire lecture from a leading authority in Chinese history, which describes the values and policies prized by Ming rulers and elites, as well as some of the major developments in culture and thought from the time period.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Asia Society: “Chinese Trade in the Indian Ocean” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this article, which describes the remarkable efforts made by Ming rulers, beginning in 1403, to expand the empire’s maritime trading capacity and network. The author provides an overview of the motivating factors as well as several of the great “voyages” that followed from these initiatives.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: YouTube: University of California: Professor Kenneth Pai’s “Introduction to ‘Peony Pavilion’” (YouTube)
Instructions: Please watch this short video, in which University of California Professor Kenneth Pai discusses a recent production of the Ming dramatist Tang Xianzu’s (1550-1616) “Peony Pavilion,” a premier example of Chinese Kunqu Opera. Pai’s discussion of the plot and historical context is accompanied by footage of the 2006 performance at UCLA. For an English language translation of the piece, please go to Peony Pavilion (HTML). Proceed from here to the link for “Excerpts from famous scenes” under the heading “The Opera.”
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Link: University of Oregon: China: The Ming and Qing Dynasties: “From Ming to Qing” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this text, which provides an overview of the internal and external factors that played a role in the final crises and collapse of the Ming state.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Japan 101’s “Sengoku Period: Japan 1467 AD to 1615 AD” (HTML)
Instructions: Please read this short article to get a sense of the Sengoku or “warring states” era in Japan.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University: Asian Topics: “Medieval Japan: A Time of War: Parallels with Feudal Europe” (Adobe Flash)
Instructions: Please watch these excellent video lectures, in which leading authorities on Japanese history discuss various aspects of political, social and cultural life during the medieval era. Proceed from the first video presentation to the links marked “Feudalism in Japan,” “Kinship Aspect of the Lord-Vassal Relationship,” “The War Tales of the Samurai,” “The Mongol Invasions,” and “Country at War: The Sengoku Age, 1467-1568.” As you will find throughout the course of lecturers used here and in the following sections of this unit, the speakers often seek to relate developments in Japan to those occurring elsewhere. How, for example, do some of the scholars compare Japanese and European “feudalism”?
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Link: Columbia University: Asian Topics: “Medieval Japan: Seeking Solace in Religion: The Spread of Buddhism” (Adobe Flash)
Instructions: Please watch these short presentations which describe the manner in which Buddhism spread and was practiced in Japan during the medieval era. As you will find, the lecturers describe some of the ideas and concepts from this imported tradition of thought and spirituality that appeared to most strongly attract Japanese artists and writers. Proceed from the opening video presentation to “Seeking Solace in Religion: The Spread of Buddhism,” “Emergence of Popular Buddhist Sects,” “Account of My Hut” “Kenko’s Essays in Idleness” “The Desirability of Impermanence,” and “The Beauty of Simplicity.”
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Link: Columbia University: Asian Topics: “Medieval Japan: Zen Buddhism” (Adobe Flash)
Instructions: Please watch these short video presentations on the development and practice of Zen Buddhism in Japan. Proceed from the introductory video to “Chanoyu: The Tea Ceremony” and “The Tea Room.”
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: Columbia University: “Asian Topics: Tokugawa Japan” (Adobe Flash)
Instructions: Please watch all of the short lectures given by Professor Carol Gluck and other eminent historians found on this site. Give particular attention to the evolving political and social challenges faced by Tokugawa leaders, their comparison with those confronted by other Asian societies, and the actions taken to resolve them.
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Link: Pearson Education’s World Civilizations: AP Edition: “Chapter 22, Multiple Choice” (HTML)
Instructions: Please take the assigned multiple choice quiz on this webpage in order to assess your understanding of the Asian trading world as well as Ming China and pre-modern Japan. Please click on the “Submit Answers for Grading” button to link to the answer key for the quiz.
Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "Reading Questions for Subunit 11.3" (PDF)
Instructions: Once you have worked through all of the assigned resources in the subunit above, please open the linked PDF and respond to all questions. When you are done--or if you are stuck--please check your work against The Saylor Foundation's "Guide to Responding to Reading Questions for Subunit 11.3" (PDF).
Link: The Saylor Foundation's "HIST102 Final Exam"
Instructions: You must be logged into your Saylor Foundation School account in order to access this exam. If you do not yet have an account, you will be able to create one, free of charge, after clicking the link.