Early World History

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Early World History

• Indo-Europeans to the Middle Ages

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Indo-European Invasions
Triggered by Flooding of Black Sea 5600 B.C.
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Indo-European Invasions
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Indo-Europeans

• Indo-Europeans (Aryan language)
• Nomadic tribes
• From Steppes of Asia
• Herders and Grazers
• Warfare using horses
• Swept into Old Europe, Middle East, India
• starting about 5,000 BC

Hittites
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Indo-Europeans

• Religion of war and male domination
• Male gods of sky, thunder, war and mountains
• Warrior Priests
• Imposed ideology
• Male dominance
• Hierarchy

Thor
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Indo-European Conquerers

• Aryans in India
• Hittites and Mittani in the Fertile Crescent
• Luians in Anatolia (Turkey)
• Kurgans in eastern Europe
• Battle-Axe People
• Achaeans, Dorians in Greece

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Diffusion of Indo-European Languages
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Language Family Tree
thebrain.mcgill.ca/.../i_10_s_lan_1b.jpg
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Before Indo -Europeans

• Sedentary agrarian society
• Fertility and nature worshiped
• Goddess gave birth to
• World
• Agriculture
• Priests male and female
• Womens status similar to mens
• Graves equal

Fertility Figurine
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After Indo-Europeans

• Herding introduced
• Warfare, war culture dominates
• Fortifications built
• Male War Gods worshiped
• Male dominated society, religion
• Goddess loses status
• Killed or raped by male god
• Becomes consort of male god
• Becomes goddess of war
• Women lose status in society
• Owned by fathers then husbands
• Graves unequal

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Early Civilizations
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Early Civilizations

• City states
• Elites
• Religion
• Crop domestication
• Animal agriculture
• Trade
• Metallurgy
• Population explosion

Bronze Age weapons
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Mesopotamia

• Flooding of Tigris and Euphrates fertilized soil
• Irrigation, drainage produced early abundance
• Competition and warfare between city states
• Ur
• Uruk
• Nippur
• Babylon
• Kish
• Nineveh
• Assur, etc.

Fertile Crescent
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Mesopotamia

• Over-salinization reduced wheat productivity in
  south by 2,000 B.C.
• political power shifted north
• Eventual large scale ecological destruction
• Fields and pastures worked until barren
• Forests destroyed for
• Fuel
• ship building

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Egypt

• Relative geographical isolation strong central
  government, religion
• Unification of North and South Nile by 3,500 B.C.
• 2,000 year dynasty ended in Persian conquest 500
  B.C.

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Egypt

• Yearly flooding of Nile fertilized soil.
• Irrigation, drainage controlled by Pharaoh
• Abundant crops wheat.
• Later would be conquered for its productivity

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Indus Valley Civilization

• Arose 3000 BC
• Contemporary of Egypt, Mesopotamia
• Lasted longer
• 1500 years
• Conquered by Aryans from north

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Aryan Invasion of India

• Aryans invaded 1750 BC
• Indus, then Ganges valleys
• Horse and herding culture
• Vedas and Caste system
• Foundation of Hinduism
• Feudal Kingdoms spread through India
• ruled by Brahmins (Priests)

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Assyrian Empire 600 B.C.
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Assyrian War Bulletin (1000 B.C.)

• Asshur my Lord commanded me to go forthI
  covered the regions of Saraush and of Ammaush
  with ruinsI proved myself against their armies
  at the mountain of Aruma, I chastised them, I
  strawed the earth with their bodies as they had
  been beasts of the field I took their cities in
  possession, I carried away their gods, I led them
  away captive, them and their goods and their
  treasures

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Assyrian War Bulletin

• I burned the cities with fire, I destroyed them,
  I made them even with the ground, I made of them
  heaps and a desolation I laid upon them the
  grievous yoke of my dominion, and in their
  presence I gave thanks unto Asshur my Lord.
• I slew two hundred and sixty fighting men I cut
  off their heads and made pyramids thereof. I
  slew one of every two.

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Assyrian War Bulletin

• I built a wall before the great gates of the
  city I flayed the chief men of the rebels, and I
  covered the wall with their skins. Some of them
  were enclosed alive in the bricks of the wall,
  some of them were crucified on stakes along the
  wall I caused a great multitude of them to be
  flayed in my presence, and I covered the wall
  with their skins. I gathered together the heads
  in the form of crowns, and their pierced bodies
  in the form of garlands.

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Biblical Warfare

• Saul instructed by God to destroy the Amelekites
  (1000 B.C.)
• Spare no one put them all to death, men and
  women, children and babes in arms, herds and
  flocks, camels and asses.
• -- I Samuel 153

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Persian Empire 525 B. C.
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The World 500 B.C.
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Empire of Alexander the Great323 B. C.
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Greek Influence

• Alexander the Great conquered the Achaemenid
  Persian Empire 323 B.C.
• Introduced Hellenistic culture to the mideast
• Maintained by subsequent Greek rulers until 130
  B. C.
• Greeks colonized southern Italy and Sicily for
  grain growing

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Roman Empire

• Romans conquered Italy and Sicily,
• Romans then conquered the entire Greek world
  (except for Persia)
• Asia Minor
• Mesopotamia
• Egypt
• Much of Europe

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Roman Empire Wheat Empire

• Roman empire dependent on wheat to feed soldiers,
  populace of Rome
• Roman forts were granaries designed to hold a
  year supply of wheat in case of siege
• Soldiers rations were 3 pounds of wheat a day.
• Barley was punishment rations
• The Roman garrison in Britain consumed 1,277.5
  tons of grain/yr
• Much of it was brought by ship from supply depots

Roman Fort
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Trade Routes of First Century A.D.

• Persians never conquered by Romans
• Persians established silk trading routes to China

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Roman Trade

• A fleet of specialized grain carriers was used to
  import wheat from Egypt to Rome
• Huge food giveaway program for citizens
• Romans depleted their treasury importing luxury
  items and spices from India
• Could no longer support food giveaways or army
• Led to collapse of Empire in West

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Roman Inheritance

• Romans inherited 3000 years of Mid East Culture
• Writing
• Art
• Math
• Science
• Agriculture
• Religion
• Romans passed this culture on to Europe

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The World 500 B.C.
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Shang Dynasty in China

• 1700-1000 BC
• First Chinese dynasty
• Yellow River Basin

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Zhou Dynasty in China

• 1000-221 BC
• Yellow and Yangtze river basins
• Great Wall started in north

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Chin Dynasty

• 221-206 BC
• Warring states of China united
• Includes Yellow, Yangtze, and Xi River Basins

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Han Dynasty

• 206 BC-220 AD
• Western expansion opens Silk road
• Southward expansion for rice production
• Central control of dams, canals, irrigation

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Tang Dynasty

• 580-907 AD
• Grand Canal Opened
• Links Yellow and Yangtze river basins
• 1100 miles long

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Trade Routes of First Century A.D.
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Expansion of Islam 632-1000 A.D.
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Arab Empire

• Islam swept through Arabia, Egypt, Mesopotamia,
  Persia 632-660 A.D.
• Much of Hellenistic culture of Greeks and Romans
  lost
• Islam moved through North Africa, reaching
  Iberian Peninsula

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Religions of Europe 1100-1200 A.D.

• Islam was a leader in science, math, and
  technology
• Taught Europe during the Middle Ages
• Christianity in Europe split
• Roman Catholic
• Eastern Orthodox
• Crusades against Islamic control of Holy Land
  1095-1291 A.D.

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Mongol Empire
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Mongol Empire 1279-1378 A.D.

• Mongols conquered most of Asia
• China, Central Asia, Persia, to Danube River
• Great Military Achievement
• Mobile army on Horseback
• Trade within China restricted
• Treasury Depleted
• Foreign trade welcomed
• Marco Polo visits China

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Ottoman Empire 1300-1699 A.D.

• Roman/Byzantine empire in Asia Minor conquered by
  Ottoman Turks 1176 A.D.
• Ottoman Empire expanded 1300-1699 A.D.
• Trade routes to China and India controlled by
  Islamic/Ottoman rule
• Forced Europeans to explore alternate routes
  around Africa

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Islamic World
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Europe 1400 A.D.

• Many warring countries and city states
• Many languages
• Culturally unified by Catholic Church
• Roman Catholic church in West
• Eastern Orthodox in East
• Effort to push Moslems out of Iberia
• Venice a center of trade with Moslems