I.

River Valley Civilizations a. Locations and Rivers Running Through Them i. Mesopotamia 1. Between the Tigris and the Euphrates Rivers. 2. Modern-day Iraq, N Syria, SW Iran, SE Turkey ii. Egypt 1. Nile River 2. Egypt area. N of Sahara. iii. Indus Valley 1. Sind region of N Pakistan 2. Hakra River, the Punjab Region, and the Indus delta region b. Types of Writing Systems Used i. Mesopotamia 1. Cuneiform a. Use of pictures to represent sounds of words or parts b. Later used to write Sumerian, Akkadian, and other Semitic and non-Semitic languages. ii. Egypt 1. Hieroglyphics a. Later simplified into Hieratic Script (Widespread Use) 2. Cursive Script (2) iii. Indus Valley 1. Writing System a. Unable to decipher however c. Governing Systems i. Mesopotamia 1. City-States a. Relied on each other (villages and cities) to supply each other 2. Land-Owning Class and Priests a. Much power 3. 3 Millennium BCE: Secular Leadership a. Lugals: Big men a. Generals of armies who ruled from palaces and took over religious institutions ii. Egypt 1. Fragmentation Large, Unified Empire 2. Divine Kingship a. King/pharaoh was god/divine. Abs. power. 3. Bureaucracy under Pharaoh a. Kept track of land, labor, taxes, and people. Etc. b. Used collected resources to support central gov. institutions 4. Central vs. Local Government

II.

iii. Indus Valley 1. Authoritarian Central Government? d. General Philosophical and Religious Beliefs of Each Region i. Mesopotamia 1. Amalgam of Sumerian and later Semitic Beliefs and Deities a. Anthropomorphic b. Each city had its own tutelary god. c. Specialized hereditary priesthood served gods. d. Temples: walled compounds w religions and functional buildings a. Highset/Most visible: ziggurat 2. Little Known a. Magic b. Use of magic to influence Gods ii. Egypt 1. View of Universe a. Orderly, regular place 2. Cyclical View of Nature a. Sun-god Re b. Osiris, god of the underworld a. Represents renewal and life after death iii. Indus Valley 1. N/A Greece a. Impact of Geography i. Made traveling harder ii. Unnavigable rivers. iii. Depended on rainfall for irrigation. No large river iv. Limited land, thin topsoil. Could not sustain large population v. Good for sea transportation vi. Hard for invaders b. Philosophical Ideas i. Various combos of elements form compounds and numerous different substances ii. Primitive Atom Theory c. Governing Systems i. Polis headed by leader ii. Tyrants iii. Oligarchy (Wealthy Families) iv. Democracy. v. Sparta: Council of Elders and two kings d. Athens vs. Sparta i. Spartans

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. ii. Athens 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. III.

Military-like. Hoplite tactics Invaded and abused Messenians. Trained 24/7 Males devoted to state Foreign policy of cautiousness and isolationist. Allianced with Peloponnesian League Large territory Fertile plains (olive trees) Large land area = buffer Not democracy. Became open to all males could hold offices/ Solon Pisistratus (Tyrant) Family (Tyrant) Pericles Pots? Effective democracy.

IV.

Persia a. Type of Government i. Monarchy of united people/tribes (2 tribes: Persians and Medes) b. Alexander the Greats Role i. Macedonian defeated Persian Empire. Used Persians and Iranians in court and army and as officials. c. Legacy i. One of the best empires to live in at the time ii. Zoroastrianism iii. Abolished slavery iv. Allowed conquered kingdoms to retain elites and kings v. Large empire Rome a. Rise i. Three Popular Myths 1. Founded by Romulus 2. Troy refugees 3. Formed by groups of indigenous people at Palatine Hill 4. Republic of Farmers b. Role of Senate i. Big Center of Power. ii. Technically advisory council to Kinds and later officials. iii. Hereditary nomination iv. Made policies. c. Julius Caesar and Augustuss roles in changing Rome to an Empire i. Julius: by consolidating power into him, one person. Altered powers of elite

V.

ii. Augustus: Reformed realities of powered but retained Republic classes and forms. Dictator like Julius. Established bureaucracy through the equites d. Social Issues i. Poor vs. Rich ii. Romanization of other citizens iii. Pax Romana iv. Rise of Christianity e. Role of Engineering Feats i. New structures ii. More sturdier and durable. Last longer. iii. Helped warfare (siege and ballistic machines) iv. Aqueducts: Carries water f. Beliefs of Christianity i. Personal Faith ii. Spirituality of an Earlier Age iii. Monotheistic iv. Judaism Reform g. Impact of Christianity i. Lower class and women uprising/upbringing Sense of respect and movement ii. Roman-Judea Revolt iii. Disloyalty to Emperor, b/c Christians would not worship. iv. Persecution at first then none. h. Reasons for the Fall of Rome i. Christianity ii. Bad Economy iii. Burden of political and military endeavors iv. Devaluations of currency and precious metals. v. Peasant and Lower Class Revolt(?) vi. Shift of ppl out of city and into countryside. Classical China a. Han and Qin Governing Policies i. Qin: Absolute Power of Emperor. Legalist. Harsh rules and punishments for society and people. Collective responsibility ii. Han: Legalist and Confucian mix. Gov = good b. Social Structures i. Extreme Hierarchy ii. VERY PATRIARCHAL iii. Each class had its own role and was expected to submit to higher classes. c. Gender Structures i. Women hardly any freedom. ii. Arranged marriages. Competition. iii. Extreme pressure on women

VI.

d. Legalism vs. Confucianism vs. Daoism e. Reasons for Beginning of the Silk Road i. Zhang Jian/China looks for better horses to match Huns horses. ii. Trade develops. Silk in high-demand etc f. Impact of the Silk Road i. Long-distance trade ii. China got Western goods iii. Middle East got Chinese goods i.e. silk iv. Large profits for China g. Technology i. Perfection of iron metallurgy ii. Crossbow iii. Calvary Units iv. Extensive Road Network v. Horse-collar vi. Watermill vii. Silk Classical India a. Governing Theme that Defined Classical China? b. Buddhism vs. Hinduism i. Caste System (Hinduism) ii. Karma and Dharma (Both) iii. Religious Texts iv. Reincarnation v. 8 Fold Path and 4 Noble Truths vi. Vedas c. d. Impact of the Indian Ocean trade routes on Politics, Society, and Religion i. Family became multilingual and multicultural. ii. Religion shared. iii. Spread of ideas and innovations/inventions iv. Political alliances? e. Impact of Geography i. India is separated N and S. ii. Hard for conquerors to invade both sections f. Ashokas Stone Pillars i. Assert Kings responsibilities, benevolence, and necessity to dole out punishment even if unwanted by King g. Differences between the Mauryans and Guptans i. Guptan Empire not as centralized ii. Modeled after Mauryans iii. Theater-State

VII.

h. Reasons for the fall of both Classical Indian Civilizations i. Mauryan 1. Pressure from attacks from NW India 2. Dynastic disputes 3. Fragmented ii. Guptan 1. Pressure from Huns Weaken 2. Bad Econ. And No money of Treasury from defense Trade Routes a. Where were they? i. Silk Road 1. (W) Parthian State India China ii. Indian Ocean Network 1. Persian Gulf/East Africa to West India East Coast of Indian to Southeast Asia Islands South China Sea iii. Sahara 1. Sahara Desert b. What was being traded? i. Pistachios, Pomegranates, Sesame, Coriander, Spinach, alfafa, grapes, jasmine oil, oak galls, sal ammoniac, copper oxides, zinc, precious stones, peaches, apricots, cinnamon, ginger, other spices, silk, pottery, and paper. c. Why were they important? i. Spread new food and culture to different areas d. Impact on Classical Civilizations i. Encouraged trade ii. Helped civilizations obtain items not native to their homeland(s)