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European History

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European History
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http://course-notes.org/European_History

Africa

  • AFRICA
    • Influence of Geography
      • Divided nearly in half by the equator-central portion of Africa lies within the tropics
      • Series of plateaus
      • Smooth coastline limits the number of good natural harbors
      • Deserts isolated Africa south of the Saharaàhelped to create cultural diversity
      • Falls and rapids near the mouths of riversàinterior navigation difficult
      • Thanks to the falls and rapids, Africa has great hydroelectric power potential

Asia

  • Geography:
    • Vietnam is in southeastern Asia, it borders China to the north and Cambodia to the west. To the south and east it is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean.
    • Korea is next to China and Japan. It is a peninsula which extends southward.
    • Indonesia is in southeastern Asia and is an archipelago between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.
  • Terrace Framing- a series of step-like benches supported by either sod or stone walls.

Japan

  • Geography
    • Used selective borrowing from China.
      • Confucianism
      • Japanese students sent to China to study religion, philosophy, art architecture and government
      • Writing system à Japanese adapted writing system to fit their own language.
    • Because of lack of natural resources, traded a lot with China and Koreaà land is very mountainous (about 73%), volcanic activity and occasional earthquakes don’t make it very suitable for farming.

China

  • Geography
    • Isolationism
    • The main focus during Mongol rule was becoming a great military land power, and most people had very little concern for naval developments. After Mongol rule in China, leaders were eager to restore pure Chinese culture, therefore outlawing large trade-ships from leaving the country.
  • Ethnocentrism

India and South Asia

  • Geography: The Indus River Valley Civilization depended on the unpredictable flooding of the Indus and Ganges Rivers.  Fertile plains allowed for prosperity.  Monsoons (seasonal winds sometimes accompanied with heavy rain).  The Hindu Kush Mountains provided protection as well as isolation.
    • Major cities were Mohenjo Daro and Harappa.  Cities were centralized and grid-like. They had plumbing, sewage systems and were built from oven baked bricks.

Latin America

geography:

  • Much of Brazil is made up of low mountains and plateaus. These occupy two-thirds of Brazil.  Forested lowlands basically cover the rest.  There are thousands of rivers of which the largest are the Amazon, Parana, and Sao Francisco.
  • Panama Canal – the Panama Canal connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, it was built in 1914 by the U.S. and extends 50 miles across the Isthmus of Panama. It uses a system of locks that move ships from one level to another.

Middle East

Geography

  • Ancient river valleys such as Mesopotamia à land between Tigris and Euphrates (Sumer)
  • Sahara Desert à largest desert in the world, encompasses much of northern Africa
  • Suez Canal à very important economic presence and trade route between Mediterranean Sea (Europe) and Red Sea (Asia, Africa, etc.), runs through northeast Egypt, finally completed in 1869
  • Dardanelles Straits à 28 mile long strait between Europe and Asiatic Turkey
  • Peninsulas à Arabian Peninsula, Sinai Peninsula, etc

Europe

Periodization-
Ancient Greece—Archaic Greece: 1650 BC-700 BC
“Hellenic” (classical) Greece: 700 BC-324 BC
“Hellenistic” Greece: 324 BC-100 BC

Ancient Rome—Roman Republic-
509 BC-27BC
Civil War and Dictators: 200 BC-45 BC
Pax Romana (Peace of Rome):27 BC-140 AD
Empire in Crisis: 3rd century

Middle Ages—
Early Middle Ages: 500-1000
High Middle Ages: 1000-1250
Late Middle Ages: 1250-5000

Russia/USSR

  • Mongol Domination -early to mid 1200’s, they introduce “oriental despotism” to Russia, and during this period Moscow grows and flourishes.
  • Peter the Great – ruled from 1696 t0 1725, during which time he initiated many internal reforms in order to westernize Russia. He defeated the Swedes in the battle of Poltava and is responsible for building St. Petersberg
  • Tsarist Russia – the Romanovs ruled as tsars of Russia from 1613 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. They exercised complete power

Important Historical Figures

Jomo Kenyatta (Africa)

  • Nationalist who after WWII demanded from Britain independence and a self-government
  • Became president of first the Kenya African Union (KAU)
  • Became the first prime minister then the first president of Kenya in 1964

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (Turkey)

  • Founded the Republic of Turkey and was its first president
  • Modernized the country
  • Social and political rights
  • Made the country secular
  • Industrialized Turkey

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