WHAP: AP Review

KBP 1

Period IV 1450 -1750

20% of the AP Exam
Overall Changes:
World Becomes Global
- The western hemisphere came into continued contact with the eastern

hemisphere. Technological innovations, strengthened political organization, and economic

prosperity all contributed to this change that completely altered world trade patterns.
Maritime trade dominated the world
- Technological advancements and willingness of
political leaders to invest in it meant that the sea-based trade became much more important. As a
result, old-land based empires lost relative power to the new sea-based powers.
European kingdoms gained world power
- The relative power and prosperity of Europe
increased dramatically during this time in comparison to empires in longer-established civilization
areas.
Labor systems were transformed
- The acquisition of colonies in North and South America led
to major changes in labor systems. After many Amerindians died from disease transmitted by
contact with Europeans, a vigorous slave trade from Africa began and continued throughout most of
the era. Slave labor became very important all over hte Americas.
Gunpowder Empires emerged in the Middle East and Asia
- Empires in older civilization
areas gained new strength from new technologies in weaponry. Basing their new power on
gunpowder, they still suffered from old issues that had plagued land-based empires for centuries:
defense of borders, communication within the empire, and maintenance of an army adequate to
defend the large territory. By the end of the era, many were less powerful than the new sea-based
kingdoms of Europe.

Middle East/Asian Empires

Empire

Area

Political System

Culture

Impact

Ottoman
(1299 - 1923)

At the height
of power:
Middle East,
Eastern
Europe,
North Africa

Sultanate
Bureaucracy
Janissaries

Sunni Islam
Hagia Sophia
Astronomy, medicine
Istanbul

Caused the fall of the

Byzantine Empire
(1453)
Part of the balance of
power in Europe

Safavid
(1501 1722, 1729 1736)

Middle East

Shah
Bureaucracy
checks and
balances
Qizilbash
Slave soldiery

Shiite Islam
Sufi
Persian rugs
Isfahan

Spread of Shiite Islam

Mughal
(1526
- 1857)

Indian
subcontinent

Emperor
Division of the
empire into sarkar
raj

Islamic emperors
over Hindu
population
Taj Mahal
Astronomy

Sikhism
Led to British control of
India

Tokugawa
Shogunate
(1600 - 1868)

Japan

Shogun
Daimyos required
to attend Shoguns

Neo-Confucianism,
Buddhism, Shinto
Samurai

Closed Japan
Outlawed Christianity
Matthew Perry forces


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KBP 2

court
Emperor
ceremonial leader

Geisha

open Japan

Ming
(1368 1644)

China

Emperor
Provincial
administration
Bureaucracy
Civil service exams

Porcelain, vases,
lacquerware
Confucianism,
Daoism, Buddhism

Zheng Hes voyages

Completion of the Great
Wall
Last ethnic Han
dynasty

Qing
(1644 1912)

China

Emperor
Provincial
administration
Bureaucracy
Civil service exams

Poetry
Calligraphy
Painting
Confucianism,
Daoism, Buddhism

Last imperial dynasty

First Manchu dynasty
European intervention
will ultimately cause the
fall

African Empires

Kongo
(West Africa, 1390 - 1914)
African merchant princes connected to Atlantic trade network economy
Women traders used marriage to European merchants to ensure power
Set up trade with Portuguese
Converted to Christianity
Became a major center of the slave trade
Benin
(West Africa, 1440 - 1897)
Trade economy
Palace in walled city
Skilled in bronze work
Songhai
(Southern border of Sahara, 1340 - 1591)
Trade city controlled salt, gold and copper
Once controlled by Mali
Timbuktu and other trading cities under their control

European Empires

Portugal
Power came from exploration and colonization
Important in the early slave trade
First to set up trading centers along Africas coast and to trade directly with India and China
through maritime trade
Spain
Unified by the marriage of Isabella and Ferdinand
Wealth came from exploration and colonization
Expelled Muslims and Jews
Spanish control of Latin America
Decimation of the Native Americans and began American slave trade
England
Power from trade and colonization
Mercantilism
Constitutionalism (later part of time period)
Tudor dynasty (Henry VIII, Elizabeth I) bring England to its height in power and prestige
Church of England
France
Power from trade and colonization


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KBP 3

Louis XIV - absolutism

Russia
Many changes occured during this time period in Russia. In 1613 the Romanov dynasty will take power
under Mikhail and will remain in power until 1917. Russia begins to westernize (be more like Western
Europe) under Tsar Peter the Great who will mandate western style clothing, education and military
structures. Under Peter the Great Russia will begin to become a major power in world affairs.

Exploration and Colonization of the Americas

Upon arrival of the Europeans, the Americas had millions of inhabitants. The Aztecs and Incas had unified
large segments of land and people under their control. The Europeans, primarily the Spanish began the
systems that would decimate the populations of the Amerindians and set in motion the eventual Atlantic
Slave Trade.
Columbian Exchange
The Age of Exploration marks a turning point in World History and one of the most influential events to
come out of this time period is the Columbian Exchange. The Columbian Exchange will led to population
decline, due to disease, as well as population increase, due to high caloric foods like maize and potatoes that
will spread to Africa, Europe and eventually Asia. The Columbian Exchange will restructure social systems
most notably with the introduction of the horse to the Americas. A few notable exchanges (keep in mind
there are numerous items not listed for a more comprehensive list check you Age of Exploration portfolio):
smallpox, tuberculosis, measles, influenza, pigs, cows, horses, maize, squash, beans, tomatoes, potatoes, and
Christianity.

Environmental Changes

Deforestation: The Spanish first cut down forests in the Caribbean to make pastures for the cattle
they brought, and the deforestation accelerated when more areas were cleared for plantations. In
North America, shipbuilding in the northern English colonies took its toll on forests. In Europe,
timber was needed for ships, buildings, wagons, barrels and many other items. The Little Ice Age
that began in Europe during the 1590s made wood shortages worse, People burned wood to keep
warm, and by mid-17th century, forests were growing scarce and wood prices skyrocketed. This
wood shortage encourage the use of coal for fuel and since England had coal in great supply,
deforestation almost certainly helped their economy grow.
Little Ice Age: Led to food shortages as winter became longer and colder thus reducing the growing
season. The introduction of crops from the Americas helped keep Europe fed during this time
period.
Soil Exhaustion: Plantations in the Americas tended to rely on single crops, a process that depletes
the soil of nutrients.

Labor Systems
Labor System

Location

Characteristics

Free/Coerced/Unfree

Indentured Servitude

British
North America
Caribbean

In exchange for
transportation to the
colony a person would
work a set amount of time
with no wages to repay the
debt and once the debt
was repaid they were free.

Free

Encomienda

Spanish
North and South
America

Spanish crown granted a

person some number of
Amerindians to work for
them providing they

Coerced


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KBP 4

convert the Amerindians

European manorialism
transplanted in the
Americas
Mita

Spanish
South America

Amerindians forced to
work 6 months in the
mines for the Spanish
Corruption of Incan mita

Coerced

Serfs

Europe

Serfs worked the land

owned by the lord in
exchange for protection

Coerced

Plantation Slavery

British, French,
Spanish and
Portuguese
Empires
Caribbean, North
America, South
America

Africans brought over

from Africa through the
slave trade
Middle Passage

Unfree

Mamluks/Janissaries

Abbasid and
Ottoman Empire
Middle East,
Eastern Europe,
North Africa

Slave soldiers
Janissaries: Eastern
European Christian boys
recruited under the
devshirme
Mamluk: Turkic or
Eastern European origins

Unfree

Cultural and Intellectual Developments

Developments

Famous People

Content of Idea or
Movement

Diffusion

Renaissance

Michelangelo
Leonardo da Vinci
the Medici
Dante

Humanism
Art moved from its
focus on the Church
Focused on
Greco-Roman art,
literature

Throughout Europe and

American colonies

Protestant
Reformation

Martin Luther
John Calvin
John Knox
Henry VIII

Reform of the Catholic

Church
Breakaway churches Lutheran, Presbyterian,
Church of England

Throughout Europe and

American colonies

Scientific Revolution

Copernicus
Galileo
Francis Bacon
William Harvey
Isaac Newton

World could be
explained through
natural laws rather than
superstition
Heliocentric universe
Scientific Method
Questions traditional

Throughout Europe and

American colonies


WHAP: AP Review

KBP 5

church teachings
The Enlightenment

John Locke
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Charles de Montesquieu
Thomas Hobbes
Voltaire

Natural Rights - life,

liberty and property
Right of people to revolt
and overthrow
government
Freedom of speech,
press, and religion

Europe and American

colonies