State-Building Efforts in Major Civilizations: AP World History Unit 1 Overview

The time period for unit one is Circa 1200 to 1450. The focus is on major civilizations worldwide and how they build and maintain their states. The goal is to understand the concept of a state as a territory politically organized under a single government.

The AP World History Heimler Review Guide offers unit review videos, note guides, practice questions, exams, and answer keys to help students prepare effectively for the course and exam.

The Song Dynasty ruled from 960 to 1279. They maintained and justified their rule by emphasizing Confucianism, specifically Neo-Confucianism. Neo-Confucianism sought to revive Confucian thought while reducing the influence of Buddhism.

Confucianism in the Song Dynasty emphasized hierarchy in society, with prescribed orders for relationships. Filial piety was crucial, emphasizing children's obedience and honor towards parents and ancestors.

In Song China, women were placed in subordinate positions due to the revival of Confucianism. They lost legal rights and faced social restrictions, highlighting the patriarchal nature of society during that period.

Women in Song China faced severe restrictions, where a woman's property became her husband's property, and widowed or divorced women were prohibited from remarrying. Additionally, women endured social limitations such as limited access to education and the practice of foot binding, where young girls had their toes bent under their feet and bound with cloth, preventing them from walking easily.

The Song rulers maintained and justified their rule through the expansion of the Imperial bureaucracy, a government entity that carried out the emperor's will. To secure a bureaucratic job, eligible men had to pass a civil service examination heavily based on Confucian classics, ensuring that the most qualified individuals, regardless of social status, obtained positions within the bureaucracy.

During the Song Dynasty, neighboring kingdoms like Korea, Japan, and Vietnam were influenced by Chinese traditions. For instance, Korea adopted a similar Civil Service examination system and Buddhism, showcasing how Chinese tactics for maintaining rule spread to neighboring states.

Buddhism played a significant role in Song China, with teachings centered on the four noble truths and the Eightfold Path. Buddhism in East Asia, particularly the Mahayana branch, encouraged broader participation in Buddhist practices and emphasized the role of bodhisattvas in helping others attain enlightenment, contrasting with the more solitary approach of Theravada Buddhism in Sri Lanka.

During the Song dynasty, State Building in China was influenced by a belief system that interacted with various Asian cultures. The rulers inherited prosperity and population growth from previous dynasties, leading to a population explosion between the 8th and 10th centuries. The economy thrived through commercialization, with manufacturers producing more goods than consumed, trading porcelain and silk across Eurasia. Agricultural innovations like Champa rice, which matured early and could be harvested multiple times a year, led to significant population growth. Transportation innovations, including the expansion of the Grand Canal, facilitated trade and communication among China's regions.

In Dar al-Islam, which refers to places where Islamic faith was prominent, various Muslim empires rose to dominance across Afro-Eurasia before 1200. The Abbasid caliphate, located in Baghdad, was significant but began to decline by 1200. New Islamic political entities led by Turkic people emerged, replacing Arab dominance. The Seljuk Empire, Mamluk Sultanate, and Delhi Sultanate were examples of these new empires. These changes marked a shift in power dynamics within the Muslim world.

The Seljuk Empire was established in the 11th century in Central Asia by Turkic pastoralists known as the Celtics. The Seljuks were brought in by the Abbasids to assist in territorial expansion and maintaining control over diverse people groups in their empire.

The Seljuk Empire did not entirely displace the Abbasid Empire, but they gained significant power in the region. The Mongols eventually sacked Baghdad in 1258, leading to the decline of the Abbasid Empire.

Between 1200 to 1450, Arab Muslim empires started fading while Turkic Muslim empires rose to prominence. The new Turkic empires continued some practices from the former Arab empires, such as military administration and the use of Sharia law.

During this period, Muslim scholars like Nasir al-din al-tusi made significant advances in mathematics and trigonometry. Arab scholars in Baghdad's House of Wisdom preserved and translated Greek and Roman works, contributing to the Golden Age of Islam.

Muslim rule expanded through military conquest, trade facilitated by Muslim merchants, and missionary activities of Sufis. The Seljuk, Mamluk, and Delhi Sultanate were established through military expansion, while Sufis played a key role in spreading Islam in regions like South Asia.

In South and Southeast Asia, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam competed for dominance, shaping the societies profoundly. The conversion to Islam in regions like South Asia was influenced by Sufi missionaries who adapted to local beliefs.

By 1200, Buddhism in South Asia had declined, with Buddhists mainly in monastic communities in Nepal and Tibet. Hinduism remained the predominant religion in India, while Islam became influential with the Delhi Sultanate. The Bhakti movement in southern India emphasized devotion to one Hindu god, challenging traditional hierarchies.

The Muslim Delhi Sultanate ruled Northern India but faced resistance from Hindu kingdoms like the Rajput Kingdom. The Vijayanagara Empire in the South emerged as a counterpoint to Muslim rule. Emissaries from the Delhi Sultanate who converted to Islam in the South later reverted to Hinduism, establishing a rival empire.

Southeast Asia saw diverse sea-based and land-based empires interacting with China and India. The Majapahit Kingdom in Java was a powerful Buddhist state controlling trade routes. The Khmer Empire, initially Hindu and later Buddhist, built Angkor Wat with elements of both religions, showcasing religious continuity and change over time.

The Aztec Empire, founded in 1345 by the meshika people, was a vast and powerful civilization in Mesoamerica. Their capital city, Tenochtitlan, was the largest city in the Americas before European arrival. By 1428, the Aztecs formed an alliance with other Mesoamerican states, expanding aggressively to establish a massive empire.

The Aztecs administered their empire through an elaborate system of tribute states. Conquered people were required to provide labor, goods like food and animals, and building materials as tributes to the Aztec rulers. Enslaved individuals from conquered regions were also used for human sacrifices, a significant aspect of Aztec religion.

In the early 1400s, the Inca Empire emerged in the Andean civilization, stretching across the Andean Mountain Range. Unlike the Aztecs, the Incas were highly centralized and intrusive in governing the conquered territories. They implemented the Mit'a system, requiring labor contributions for state projects like farming, mining, and construction.

The Mississippian culture was the first large-scale civilization in North America, centered around the Mississippi River Valley. Known for their focus on agriculture, large towns, and Monumental Mounds, the Mississippian culture thrived with political organization and monumental structures like burial mounds, such as the Cahokia people's hundred feet tall mound.

The Swahili Civilization was a network of cities along the east African coast, primarily focused on commerce and trade in the Indian Ocean. These independent cities shared a social hierarchy with merchant elites at the top. Influenced by Muslim traders, the Swahili civilization saw the emergence of Swahili language and cultural practices.

The Swahili States in East Africa developed a hybrid language influenced by indigenous African Bantu languages and Arab culture. This hybrid language showcased the intermingling of various cultures. Due to Muslim influence, the Swahili States rapidly embraced Islam, enhancing their integration into the Islamic trade network.

Powerful and centralized civilizations like Ghana, Mali, and the Songhai Empire emerged in West Africa, driven by trade. These civilizations, similar to those in the East, saw growth through trade, leading to the adoption of Islam by elite members and government officials. However, the majority of the population retained their indigenous beliefs and traditions.

The Hausa Kingdoms in West Africa were city-states that shared a common language and culture. They thrived through trade, particularly as brokers of the trans-Saharan trade route. Unlike the Swahili States, their trade was not sea-based, but they played a crucial role in facilitating trade across the Sahara.

The Great Zimbabwe, with its capital city built between 1250 and 1450, was a powerful African state known for its massive structures and large population. It relied on farming and cattle herding for its economy but transitioned to gold trade due to increasing African and international commerce. Unlike other African states, the rulers and people of Great Zimbabwe maintained their indigenous shamanistic religion instead of converting to Islam.

Ethiopia flourished through trade with the Mediterranean and Arabian Peninsula, standing out as a Christian state amidst predominantly Islamic and indigenous belief systems in Africa. Despite being Christian, Ethiopia had a hierarchical power structure with a monarch at the top, resembling other hierarchical states in Africa.

Europe was predominantly Christian, with two main branches: Eastern Orthodox in the Byzantine Empire and Roman Catholicism in Western Europe. The Byzantine Empire, in its decline, passed on Eastern Orthodox Christianity to the Kievan Rus, integrating them into a larger trade network. In Western Europe, Roman Catholicism played a unifying role among decentralized states, exerting significant influence over society, culture, and politics.

Muslims conquered much of the territory of the Iberian Peninsula during this period, while Jews lived in smaller pockets throughout Europe. Strong anti-Semitism and Jewish persecution often marginalized them from European life.

European states were organized around feudalism, where powerful Lords and Kings gained allegiance from lesser Lords and Kings known as vassals. Vassals received land in exchange for military service, leading to a decentralized and politically fragmented system.

Feudalism and manorialism were the main social, political, and economic orders in Europe. Feudalism involved powerful Lords granting land to vassals in exchange for military service, while manorialism centered around large pieces of land owned by Lords and rented out to peasants who worked the land.

Peasants bound to the land of powerful landowners were known as serfs in European society. While not personal property, serfs were tied to the land and provided labor in exchange for protection. The political and economic power in Europe was concentrated in the hands of land-owning Lords.

After 1000 CE, monarchs in Europe began to grow in power, leading to highly centralized states that diminished the influence of the nobility. This process of centralization would take several more centuries to complete, shifting political power away from the nobility.