-Went place to place following food so they could survive
-Secured their food supply by growing it instead of following it
-Started domesticating animals
Neolithic Revolution
-Town & city life (not full blown civilizations)
-Cultivated plants
-Made simple tools
-Domesticated animals
-Had a stable source of water
-People were tied to one area of land and began to thing of property in terms of ownership which brought conflict with other settlers
-Had specialized jobs because they no longer needed to worry about when their next meal was coming. Farmers could grow enough food for his community
-Organized economies
-Governmental Structures
-Religious organizations
-The above 3 things were created to keep things as orderly as possible. It's considered to be the beginnings of a society or civilization.
-Inventions of irrigation techniques led to more farmland which led to more food which created a surplus. Surpluses led to more growth and complexity which led to more agricultural advancements and the cycle started all over again.
Agriculture on the Environment
-Diversion of water
-Roads were built
-Clearing land for farming led to land and resources being reconfigured to fit the needs of the people
-Animals began to be used (ex. oxen for plows) which enabled larger plots of land to be farmed
Technology
-Hard stones were used as farming tools
-Pottery made for cooking
-Weaving was invented to make baskets and nets
-Clothing was designed more complex and comfortable
-Wheels and sails were invented for use on carts and boats
-Knowledge of metals used to make weapons and tools
-Combined tin and copper to make bronze
-Iron was later discovered
Rivers Deliver
-Most great civilizations formed near rivers. There was enriched soil good for growing, transportation and animals
City-States
-City-states were developed near each other but also competed with each other because they liked to be independent
Mesopotamia-Fertile Crescent
-Land between the rivers (the Tigris and Euphrates)
-Built canals and dikes to control the direction of the water and to irrigate crops
-Built houses up on hills so not to be washed away
-By 3000BCE Ur, Erech and Kish were the major city-states of the 1st major civilization: Sumer
-Sumer: 1st Mesopotamian civilization (southern area)
-Cuneiform was developed
-Trade was enhanced by the invention of the wheel
-12 month calender was made
-Created a math system based on units of 60
-Geometry was used (arches and columns)
-Polytheistic (worshiped more than one God)
-Each city-state had its own God but there were many Gods that the city-states worshiped together
-Temples (called ziggurats) were built for Gods because they thought that the Gods controlled the weather. (ex. when disaster struck, they thought the Gods were angry)
Invasions of Sumeria
-Akkad dominated and contributed code of laws
-Babylon: Hammurabi Code of Law (beginnings of rule of law that we use today)
-Kassites and Hittites conquered Babylon but by 1500 the Hittites dominated the region
-Hittites became a military super power because they learned to use iron in their weapons
-Information was passed via the trade route
-In this way, the Assyrians had learned to use iron as well and established a capital at Nineveh. They built an empire that covered most of the Fertile Crescent. Eventually, Assyrian authorities were challenged by many because they were hated due to being highly disciplined but cruel.
-Assyrians were finally defeated by Medes and the Chaldeans and as a result, Babylon was rebuilt to show architecture and culture extended empire over Fertile Crescent.
-Persians overtook Chaldeans's Empire to become a major world force
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*Code of Hammurabi (Law)
*Growing use of iron (Technology)
These 2 things are important because they both represent things that have stayed present in all civilizations
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Persians
-Persians established a huge empire by 500 BCE from Nile River to present day Afghanistan
-Long roads were built and some were as long as 1600 miles
Lydians, Phoenicians and Hebrews
-Near the Persian Empire but able to keep their own identities
-Lydians: invented coined money which led to the monetary system
-Phoenicians: naval cit-states, created a 22 letter alphabet
-Hebrews: Religious beliefs were Judaism and they were monotheistic (believed in one God), remained free and developed their own culture which later led to other major religions
Ancient Egypt
-Developed along the Nile River where there was rich soil
-Constructed towns and cities
-3 Kingdoms:Old
Middle
New (reached it's height 800 miles upstream)
-Achievements: King Menes from Memphis was wealthy and powerful
Constructed pyramids and obelisks
Hieroglyphics (writing)
Astronomy (calender)
Trade: timber and stone needed/ traded gold and spices
-Believed in life after death
-Created mummification
-Queen Hatshepsut ruled for 22 years during the New Kingdom
-Developing Women's Rights: Buy and sell property
Inherit property
Will property as they pleased
Annul marriages
-Social Structure: Pharaohs
Priests
Nobles
Merchants, Skilled Workers
Peasants, Slaves
Fall of Egypt
-1100BCE through 100BCE Egypt fell to a decline and was eventually taken over by the Persians and the Assyrians
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Empires became so big that they couldn't provide enough protection to keep it from being overtaken.
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Indus Valley
-It was built along the banks of a river system near many mountains. The cities were master-planned, uniformly constructed and had good wastewater systems. This indicated a strong government.
Early China
-Shang developed in the Wang Ho River Valley
-Walls were built around the cities for protection
-Considered themselves superior to all others because they had horse drawn chariots, spoked wheels, they produced pottery and silk, devised a decimal system and had a calender.
-Multiple generations lived in one household
-Zhou Dynasty overtook Shang Dynasty
Zhou Dynasty
-Developed a Feudal System
-Had a Bureaucratic Form of Government
-Fighting among feudal systems brought down the Dynasty in 256BCE
Mesoamerica & Andean South America
-2 early civilizations: Olmec and Chavin
-Olmec: urban society, mastered irrigation, polytheistic beliefs, developed a form of writing and a calender
-Chavin: urban society, polytheistic beliefs, lived by the coast, developed ways to use metals for tools and weapons, lamas were their main "work mules"
-Patterns of development were the same even though they were seperated from the rest of the of the world. Patterns of development can occur indepently
-These 2 civilizations did not development near water sources. They are unique & didn't develop in river valleys.
West Africa
-1500BCE Niger & Benue River Valley began to move east
-Called the Bantu Migration: Caused by climatic changes, although not everyone moved away. Some villages remained
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Why do people migrate?
-To find food: following seasons, to avoid climate changes and other natural disasters. Also due to human causes that ruined food supply.
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Mayans
-Pyramid builders
-Wrote using hieroglyphics
-Produced many great works of scholarship
-Tikal was an important political center
-Had many beliefs about the Gods
-Warfare was conducted to obtain more slaves to be used for large-scale buildings
-Kings, priests and nobility were at the top of the social structure. Merchants came next followed by the peasants and slaves which made up most of the population
-Advanced agricultural techniques
India and China
-4 major empires: Maurya (India)
Gupta (India)
Qin (China)
Han (China)
-Maurya: Alexander the Great was emperor and conquered the Persian Empire before moving onto India
-Mauryan Empire was founded by Chandragupta Maurya who unified the smaller kingdoms into a civilization
-Ashoka Maurya (Chandragupta's son) was who made the Empire great.
-2 reasons for greatness: Trade (traded silk, cotton and elephants)
Powerful Military
-Military strength caused dramatic changes in Empire. Ashoka felt guilty for a bloddy victory that he converted to Buddhism and preached non-violence and moderation.
-Buddhism spread into Asia after Ashoka's death
-His Empire began to decline rapidly after his death due to pressure from attacks in the northeast.
Gupta Dynasty
-Under the rule of Chandra Gupta
-Advances in Arts and the sciences
-Mathematicians developed pi and zero and a decimal system that used 1-9
-Iron was used for weapons
-Hinduism was the major religion
-Caste System: women were increasingly losing rights
-Dynasty collapses under pressure from the White Huns in 550CE
Qin Dynasty
-Strong economy based on agriculture
-Iron for weapons
-Conquered surrounding territories and unified the region under a single emperor
-Connected the separate fortification walls that are now known as the Great Wall of China
-Well organized, centralized and territorial
-Qin Shihuangdi was the first Emperor. He re-centralized various feudal systems
-Considered a strong leader but wanted to control everything
-Empire fell one year after his death due to peasants resenting his "heavy-handedness"
Han Dynasty
-Huns were a group of nomads that invaded eastern Europe
-Wu Ti was called the Warrior Emperor who enlarged the Han Empire into Central Asia
-Trade thrived
-Buddhism spread
-Civil service system was developed on Confucius (only the wealthy could rule)
-Invented paper, sundials, calenders and expanded the use of metals
Mediterranean
-Greece traded by boat because of location and used money instead of bartering system
-Powerful Military
-Strong Government
-2 major city-states: Athens
Sparta
-Social Structure: Citizens
Free-people
Non-citizens
-Started democracy but only allowed adult male citizens to participate
-Went through different types of government before settling on democracy
-Draco and Solon worked hard to create democracy in Athens even though they were aristocrats
-Many Gods
-War with Persia united Greece to fight against Persia
-Pericles made Athens a cultural powerhouse and made democracy for all adult males
-He was responsible for the reconstruction of Athens and created the Pathenon (big pillar building)
-Delian League: an alligiance against agression from its common enemies
-Philosophy and the arts thrived
-The Fathers of Rational Thinking: Socrates
Plato
Aristotle
-Many men who contributed to the arts and sciences, making Greece famous even in today's world. They influenced later Europeans
-Athens and Sparta were jealous of each other so they went to war (Peloponnesian War in 431BCE)
-Athens lost die to the plague and their navy was defeated. Sparta dominated the region until the Macedonians (under the rule of Phillip) came and took over. Phillip continued the Greek customs
-Macedonians continued to take over other empires like the Persian and the Indus. They had created the largest empire of the time.
-The empire was so big that Phillip's son, Alexander the Great, had to split it into 3 smaller empires: Antigonid (Greece and Macedon)
Ptolemaic (Egypt)
Seleucid (Bactria and Anotolia)
-When Alexander died so did all his empires
Rome
-Social Structure: Patricians
Plebeians
Slaves
-The 12 Tables of Rome: Rome's Law
-Carthage was Rome's first enemy. They had many on/off Punic Wars over control of land
-The first Triumvirate: Pompay
Cruassus
Julias Ceasar (assinated)
-The second Triumvirate: Mark Antony
Octavius (became emperor)
Lepidus
-Octavius established: Rule of Law
Common coinage
Civil Service
Secure travel for Merchants
-Arts and sciences grew
-Paganism and Christianity spread throughout Rome
Empires Collapse
1. Maya: many possible reasons
2. Han China: poor decisions by Wang Mang (emperor)
3. Gupta: invaded by the Huns
4. Roman Empire: empire too big
Major Belief Systems
This part explained all the different belief systems and the impact they had on social, political, military and cultural developments. It told where each belief system started and where it spread. As people moved, so did their religion.
Developing Technologies and Innovations through 600CE
-Farming Tools: Plows
Hoes
Rakes
Wheel (which led to the cart)
Pottery
-Weapons: Iron technology
Wheeled chariots
Stirrups
Spears
Bows and Arrows
-Inventions: Dikes
Canals
Sewage Systems
Buildings (pyramids, walls, roads, etc.)
-Trade Items: Silk
Cotton
Wool
Gems
Jewelry
Olive Oil
Spices
-Communication and record kepping
-Calenders (only Maya had a 365-day solar calender)
-Concept of zero
-Army
-Windmills, Wheelbarrows
-Gunpowder
-Distilled Alcohol
-Paper
-People invented things as there came a need for them
Changes and Continuities of Women's Rights
| Women’s Status in Ancient Societies | ||
| Rome/Greece | | |
| Strict and patriarchal social divisions | Strict patriarchal caste system | Strict Confucian social order and guidelines for virtuous behavior |
| Little land ownership | Women were not allowed to inherit property | Only sons inherit property |
| High literacy among upper class | Forbidden to read sacred texts | Upper classes educated in arts and literature and all educated in virtues |
| Spartan women were citizens | | |
| Women could awn businesses (especially widows) | Needed large dowry and no remarriage for widows | Arranged marriages though widows were allowed to remarry |
| Women could be priestesses or later nuns | Women could not achieve moksha | Buddist convents and Daoism balances male and female |
The Big Pictures
Civilizations: agriculture, written language and the use of metals all had a part in the makings of early societies. They grow when people don't have to worry about where their next meal is coming from. They spread new discoveries via trade route. When societies become dominant enough to have no enemies, they can spend their time and money on the arts and sciences. Civilizations fall apart becuase they get too big or their own people get sick of the regular routine or other societies get more powerful.
Sources of Change: When one civilization invented something it was spread throughout other civilizations where it would be changed to fit the needs of that particular society. When something was invented, its use would change over time (ex. the wheel and the use of iron).
Humans vs Nature: Humans changed their surroundings to fit their needs. Digging of canals or stone-cutting are 2 prime examples. They also created calenders so that the natural/climatic changes were more predictable. Because they could predict what was going to happen with the climate and nature, the reason for empires falling apart was usually because of other empires gaining power. Religion also played a big part in why some civilizations came down. They were more concerned with finding inner peace than with their own protection.
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