Dhruba Roy, Andy Tso, Ivan Lin,
Brian Dong, Lance Lepelstat, Amir Perk

• Controlling of fire
• Invention of stone tools (axes, spears, etc.)
• Hominids began to migrate from Africa into the northern part of the world, beginning with the Middle East
• Society was made up of small nomadic hunter-gatherer tribes
• Many paintings and carvings were created during this period
A Paleolithic cave painting found in present-day Oman

• Happened around 12,000 bce
• Change: People started to settle down in fixed communities rather than living a nomadic lifestyle because of the development of agriculture (10,000 bce) and
domestication of animals for food and work
• These developments also gave rise to pastoralism
• Agriculture led to food surpluses, which allowed specialization of labor
• Had a large environmental impact – water was irrigated, land was cleared for farming etc. People altered the environment to fit their needs
• led to an increase in population and larger communities, which gradually led to the formations of villages
• Led to many technological advances such as weaving, pottery, and the use of metal
• Oral tradition

• “Land between the rivers” – located by the Tigris and Euphrates
Rivers
• Part of the Fertile Crescent, a large piece of arable land which stretches from Mesopotamia to the Mediterranean
• Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization
• wheel was invented in 3500 bce
• Civilizations included: Sumer, Babylonia, and Assyria
• Mesopotamian-Indian trade – connected by the Indian Ocean
Basin, traded goods such as pottery.

• Was the first major Mesopotamian civilization
• Had many city-states such as Ur, Uruk, and Akkad
• Developed cuneiform, an early form of writing, which was used to record laws, transactions, etc
• Epic of Gilgamesh written around 2000 bce, one of the earliest know works of literature
• Developed a 12 month calendar and base-60 math system
• Were polytheistic and built ziggurats, pyramid-like structures used to worship the gods
• It fell because there was no centralized system of defense. Each city-state was left to fend for itself, whether it was through armies or city walls. A series of invasions severely undermined it, and it was constantly threatened by the Semitites from the north

• Code of Hammurabi (written 1750 bce) – Babylonian code consisting of 282 laws written by King Hammurabi. Basis for
Western legal system. Significant because it applied to nearly everyone, although the laws were harsh and favored the elite
• It fell to the Hittites by 1500 bce because the invaders had superior weapons, which were made of iron whereas the
Babylonians had softer bronze weapons
• Rebuilt by Chaldean king Nebuchadnezzar
• Babylonain Captivity (~600 bce) – Jews were held captive in
Babylonia

• Ancient Egypt was blessed with natural resources due mostly to its location around the Nile river and its delta
• The pharaohs were seen as links between man and god, and were justly rewarded with lavish tombs
• The hieroglyphic writing system was very useful in Egyptian society
• Egyptian women were relatively well treated when compared to Mesopotamian women
• The practice of mummification, the building of pyramids, and the Book of the
Dead all represent a strong idea of the afterlife
• Egyptians made great advances in the fields of medicine, mathematics, astronomy, and engineering
The Great Pyramid of Giza

• Cyrus the Great founded the Persian Empire in 549 BCE
• Known for military conquests, promotion of human rights
• Did not impose Persian culture or religion (Zoroastrianism) onto his conquered subjects – was religiously tolerant
• Permitted some 40,000 exiled Jews from Babylonian Captivity to return to Jerusalem in 539 BCE. Made them very grateful, and Zoroastrian philosophy influenced Judaism
• His son Cambyses conquered Egypt

• Darius the Great was another Persian ruler. He was known for military conquest and organization of the empire
• Divided empire up into about 20 large provinces (satrapies) and assigned them governors (satraps).
• Made sure satraps didn’t rebel by sending spies called “King’s Ears” to check up on them
• Created the Royal Road, a highway which connected Persia
• He was a master of propaganda, and used Zoroastrianism to justify his empire by stating that he had a god-given right to rule

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Before Islam, the Arabian peninsula was a crossroads of ideas home to caravan traders and nomadic pastoralists
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The prophet Muhammad experienced revelations and called people to believe in Allah and no other god
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He and his followers fled Mecca for Medina in a migration known as the Hijra and established the umma (Islamic Nation)
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Muhammad later returned to Mecca and successfully began the spread of Islam before dying.
The Qur’an, a sacred
Islamic book.

• After Muhammad’s death, Abu Bakr became his first caliph, or successor, and endorsed the
Five Pillars of Islam (Faith, Prayer, Alms, Fasting, and Pilgrimage) and ordered the composition of the Qur’an
• Bakr and the next three elected caliphs (Umar, Uthman, and Ali) had all known Muhammad and made great progress in spreading Islam and unifying the Middle East
• Civil war within the umma later resulted in the Sunni/Shi’ite division and the foundation of the Umayyad Caliphate
• The Umayyads’ lavish lifestyle and seizure of power caused great conflict in the Muslim community
• Eventually, they were defeated by rebels and fled to al-Andalus in Spain
• The Abbasid Caliphate took over and moved the capital to Baghdad
• During their rule, the Islamic world flourished spiritually, intellectually, and artistically
• Many smaller groups appeared during this time, such as the Fatimid Caliphate
Artwork from the time of the Abbasid Caliphate

• Urbanization and religious conversion reinforced each other and prompted the expansion of agriculture, trade, science, and technology
• Most women were highly regarded under Islamic law, but some urban women were secluded
• Homosexuality was regarded with mixed feelings in the Islamic world, while slavery was accepted
• In the House of Wisdom, scholars of many different backgrounds combined forces in their studies
• Because Islam discourages images of living beings, the art form of calligraphy, or beautiful handwriting, was popularized
An image of
Islamic calligraphy

• Turks had been migrating from Central Asia to the Middle East for centuries and acting as Arab soldiers
• Seljuk leader Tughril Bey freed the Abbasid caliphate from the control of the Buyids, taking on the Persian title of sultan in 1056
• Turks encountered the
Crusaders first in 1097 and lost territory in the Holy
Land that was later regained
• A growing trade between the
Middle East, Europe, and Asia which would continue to prosper during the
Mongol Peace. This trade lead to the spread of beliefs, knowledge, and technology.

• When the Mongols swept across Asia and Europe in the thirteenth century, they attacked Baghdad and killed the caliph. The caliphate was re-established in Egypt under the control of the Mamluks
• Although the Mongols had devastated the cities and populations, they left little significant cultural reform
• The Ottoman Empire was established and came to power in the fourteenth century by aggressively expanding using the new technology of gunpowder weapons
• The Ottomans expanded into Europe via the Dardanelles strait and were poised to capture Constantinople (Istanbul) by mid-century

• The Turks(Ottomans) dominated most of what is now modern-day Turkey and by
1453, laid siege to Constantinople (led by Sultan Mehmed II, “The Conqueror”), ending the 1100 year old Byzantine Empire.
• They renamed Constantinople, Istanbul and made it there capital city.
• Christians and Jews were allowed to practice their religions, Hagia Sophia had become a mosque and the empire in general became more tolerant.
• Selim “the Grim” conquered Egypt and Syria in 1516 and 1517, the Red Sea becomes the Ottoman’s Southern Frontier.
• Suleiman the Magnificent comes to power in 1520 and leads many great battles.
• He presided over one of the greatest Ottoman assaults on Cristian Europe, conquered Belgrade in 1520, expelled the Knights of the Hospital of St. John from the island of Rhodes and laid siege to Vienna in 1529. Suleiman basically developed the Ottoman military and expands the Ottoman territory.
• The Ottomans also tried to push into Europe through Hungary and tried to take control of Austria but were unsuccessful when they laid siege to Vienna.

Hagia Sophia

• The Janissary Corps were a military class of highly trained Christian boys who were recruited from their villages in a system called devshirme , the children were sent to a Turkish family to learn their language and then were sent to the Sultan’s palace for an educated which included instruction in Islam, military training and for the talented, liberal arts. They widely contributed to the Ottoman military and were heavily equipped with up-to-date weapons.
• The economy started to decline with the flood of cheap silver(New World) and landholders who were turning bankrupt. This resulted in revolts, leaving Anatolia in chaos between 1590 to 1610.
• Ottoman Empire lacked wealth and inclinations to match
European economic advances.

• Ismail at the age of 16, proclaimed himself shah of Iran and his realm would be devoted to
Shi’ite Islam.
Shi’ites- A branch of Muslims who believe that God vests leadership of the community in a descendant of Muhammad’s son-in-law Ali.
• Shah Abbas I made Isfahan capital of Safavid Empire (modern day-Iran).
• Women were extremely restrained, they were seldom seen outside their home (anderun) and they had to be completely covered from head to toe (this included men too) . It was a man dominated society where women could not participate in art and poetry either.
• The Safavids had difficulty paying for their troops as they had a shortage in money, they could not pay for updated firearms needed to hold off against the Ottomans and other neighboring empires/tribes.
• By 1722, Safavid rule ended because the government had become weak. They were facing outside threat from nomads and pressure from the center. An invading army of marauding
Afghans were able to capture Isfahan ending Safavid rule.

Addressing Key Concepts
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The Two Empires (alongside the Mughal) are also classified as the “Gunpowder
Empires” because each of their armies had always tried to have the best firearms at the time to defend themselves against mostly external threats like nomads. However, this technology was very costly and took a big toll on the empires.
Ottoman-Safavid Wars- As mentioned before, the governments of these two started to decline due to military technology they had been buying, this was because of the conflicts that took place between these two empires. The conflicts were either because the Ottomans were Sunni and the Safavid were Shi’ite or just for territorial expansion. They fought in around 7 huge wars and many smaller conflicts as well.

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Persian miniature paintings were highly sought after in the west for their level of detail and rich scenery, first made in the 13 th century however, it really gained its fame in the 15 th and 16 th centuries. The Persian miniature was the dominant influence on other Islamic miniature traditions, like the Ottoman Empire.
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The Middle East due to trade by the Europeans had begun to experience products such as maize, corn, potatoes and other new foods from America.
 Coffee was a big Arabian product that spread to Europe and was exported by way of
Egypt, Muslim merchants were charged 15 percent in duties and fees, while European traders only paid around 3 percent, this was called capitulation. At the time Europe was discovering new trade routes with their new maritime technology and the Columbian
Exchange had also been taking place during this time period.

• The Ottoman Empire reached its peak in the late 17 th century, but it started to decline after 1700 partly due to military setbacks and defeats
• Karlowitz (1699) and Passarowitz (1718) – Ottoman Empire lost land due to military defeat
• 1700’s to 1710’s – struggle against Peter the Great and
Catherine the Great of Russia resulted in more territorial loss

• Janissaries (soldiers) became backward, refusing to adapt new
technology and tactics in 1700’s and early 1800’s
• Selim III tried to modernize the army and navy but the janissaries
murdered him in 1807, fearing loss of privileged position
• In late 1820’s Mehmet III successfully modernized the army and
navy, modeling it after European armed forces
Selim III Mehmet III

• Religion – religious tolerance for non-Muslim millets (social group categorized by religion)
• Education – emphasis on teaching Western science and technology
• Women – Women entered public life in late 1800’s, public schools founded for them
• Establishment of national telegraph, discussion of a possible constitution, and others
Mahmud II, one of the
Sultans who implemented
Tanzimat reforms

• Upsurge of nationalism in 1800’s and political turmoil caused by Napoleonic Wars led to uprisings. In 1807, Serbs revolted but failed.
• Greek War of Independence – Greece, supported by Russia,
Britain, and France, gains independence from the Ottoman
Empire

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Ottoman Empire was positioned at crossroads of Europe and Asia. If one European country were to seize territory, the balance of power would be upset.
The complexity is demonstrated by the fact that Europeans helped Greece gain independence from the Ottomans but later helped the Ottomans contain Muhammad Ali’s revolution. The purpose was to keep the Ottoman Empire intact while also countering the expansion of the Russian empire. They also intervened in the Balkan peninsula for the same reason.

• A group of pro-Western army officers organized to form a group called Young Turks, with a common goal of modernization and secularization.
• 1908 – Young Turks come to power after last sultan flees
• Italians seize Ottoman provinces in North Africa
• Ottomans defeated in two Balkan Wars
• Ottomans defeated by Allies in WWI and the empire was replaced by the modern Turkish state

• 1805 – Muhammad Ali freed Egypt from Ottoman rule
• Modernization under Ali – Western style military, modernized agriculture (cotton), industrialization, and many Europeans professionals brought into the country to teach western ways
• Expansion – captured Sudan, Sinai, Syria, parts of Arabia, and
Northern Iraq. However, his expansion into Ottoman lands was
stopped by other European powers that feared the fall of the
Ottomans would break the balance of power (considered in the
Eastern Question).
• Once the parts of North Africa were cut off from the Ottoman
Empire, European imperialists were able to colonize the area

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Construction of the Suez Canal made Egypt sought after by
European powers in 1869
Britain interfered in local politics and assumed control over Egypt, to control the Suez Canal. Egypt became a vassal state.
Egypt continued to remain in
European hands until the end of
WWII

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Once mighty, like the Ottomans, Persia (Safavid state) lost land to Russians who were expanding their borders
Qajar Dynasty (1794-1925) – Persia was unable to resist foreign control. Britain and Russia divided Persia into northern
(ruled by Russia) and southern (ruled by Britain) zones.
Russians waged campaigns to control Caucasus and Central
Asia. This was due to nationalistic pride, desire for natural resources, and to obtain strategic positions

1900 - present

• Until World War I, the Middle East was still part of the Ottoman Empire, but the Empire was not in control
• The British were in control of the Empire, which the Ottomans had welcomed near the end of the 19th century
• At the end of WW1, the empire fell and the League of Nations was put in charge of the
Ottoman lands. The central territory of the empire became Turkey.
• France was put in control of Syria and Lebanon; Britain of Palestine, Jordan and Iraq.
• Countries in the middle east slowly gained independence one by one
• Now, over two thirds of the world’s oil is in the middle east

• Zionism
• In 1917, the Balfour Declaration gave Jews the right to live among Palestinians in Palestine.
• 500,000 Jews immigrated to Palestine, in the years leading up to WWII due to anti-Semitism
• Two Palestines – Israel and Palestine created by the UN in 1948
• Six Arab countries attacked Israel the day after it officially becomes independent this is known as the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
Israel defeated the attackers and ultimately gained more territory
• Jews continued to migrate, and wars continued to occur
• Six-Day War (1967) --> total victory for Israelis
• Yom Kippur War (1973) --> Arabs won (invaded on the holiest day in Judaism)
• Camp David Accords (1977)
Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and President Anwar El Sadat.
Israel pulled out of Sinai and Egypt.
Sadat was assassinated.
• Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) formed on May 28 th 1964
• Ongoing unrest and conflict regarding the Israeli state since

• In 1925 Reza Shah Pahlavi took power and began to modernize and westernize Iran
• Lost power due to fundamentalism, but returned in the 1953 Iranian Coup
• The Shah reminiscently implemented land and education reform along with increased women’s rights.
Islamic Fundamentalists were angered by these changes
In 1979 the Shah was ousted by Fundamentalists in the Islamic Revolution
Iran returns to a theocracy when Ayatollah Khomeini takes power.
• Iranian hostage crisis (subject of Argo) during revolution (52 Americans held for 444 days)
• 1980 war with Iraq spanning 8 years over land – nothing really changes.
Cease-fire in 1988
• Khomeini is succeeded by Ayatollah Khamenei in 1989
• CONTINUITY: Struggle between reformists and fundamentalists since Pahlavi
• Mostly Fundamentalists took power.

• Declared independence from British in 1919
• Mujahideen, or “holy warriors” resisted the Communist faction that seized power during the Cold
War
• Soviet Troops invade in the end of 1979 forced to withdraw in 1982 because of Western intervention.
• Rival factions at war in Afghanistan for 14 years, 2 million casualties
• Taliban emerge victorious in 1996, capturing capital of Kabul
• The Taliban ruled with an Islamic Fundamentalist regime (Note that Islamic Fundamentalism is the most organized and stable leadership in many Muslim countries.) brought stability to Afghanistan housed Osama Bin Laden and many other members of Al Qaeda
• After 9/11, the UN removed the Taliban from Afghanistan (2002)
• US then proceeded to occupy Afghanistan.

• In 1947 Iraq and Jordan became independent from Britain
• In 1979 Saddam Hussein came to power
Hussein used brutal dictatorship - Ba’athist ideology (strongly resembles fascism)
Invaded Kuwait in 1990 to increase oil reserves
Intended to eventually invade Saudi Arabia, which would also increase Iraqi control of oil
• In 1991 in the Persian Gulf War, the UN put down the Iraqi invasion
• In 2003 Hussein was captured.
• Hussein’s ruthless dictatorship had forcibly kept the country unified, but now rival factions started to fight (Sunni, Shi’ites, and Kurds)
•Most US troops withdrew by 2011 but Iraq is still far from totally stable

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1997. Print.
• "The Rise of the Turks and the Ottoman Empire." The Rise of the Turks and the Ottoman
Empire. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 May
• "A Brief Chronology of Muslim History." A Brief Chronology of Muslim History. N.p., n.d. Web.
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"The Archaemenian." BBC News. BBC, n.d. Web. 13 May 2014.
Armstrong, Monty, David Daniel, Abby Kanarek, and Alexandra Freer. Cracking the
AP World History Exam. New York: Random House, 2013. Print.
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