ERA
WORLD
HISTORY
Increased Hemispheric Interaction
500ish - 1500
WORLD HISTORY ERA 5: INCREASED HEMISPHERIC INTERACTION
Introduction
In this era the various regions of Eurasia and
Africa became more firmly interconnected
than at any time in history. The sailing ships that
crossed the wide sea basins of the Eastern
Hemisphere carried a greater volume and
variety of goods than ever before. In fact, the
chain of seas extending across the hemisphere
came to form a single interlocking network of
maritime trade.
WORLD HISTORY ERA 5: INCREASED HEMISPHERIC INTERACTION
Introduction
In the same centuries caravan traffic crossed the
Inner Asian steppes and the Sahara desert more
frequently. As trade and travel intensified so did
cultural exchanges and encounters, presenting local
societies with a profusion of new opportunities and
dangers. By the end of this era, the Eastern
Hemisphere constituted a single zone of
intercommunication possessing a unified history
of its own. Our global view presents three areas of
focus for this time:
WORLD HISTORY ERA 5: INCREASED HEMISPHERIC INTERACTION
Introduction
The Emergence of Europe
After the fall of Rome, Europe experienced
remarkable growth. Western and Central Europe
emerged as a new center of Christian civilization,
expanding in agricultural production, population,
commerce, and military might. Powerful European
states presented a new challenge to the civilizations
in the Mediterranean world. At the same time Europe
was drawn into the commercial economy and cultural
interchange of the hemisphere.
WORLD HISTORY ERA 5: INCREASED HEMISPHERIC INTERACTION
Introduction
The Resurgence of the Orient
At the opposite side of the hemisphere, the Orient,
especially China, experienced a burst of
technological innovation, commercialization, and
urbanization, emerging as the largest economy in
the world. The prosperity and success of China
drew the attention of Europe, linking the two
regions across the hemisphere.
WORLD HISTORY ERA 5: INCREASED HEMISPHERIC INTERACTION
Introduction
The Mongol Dominance
The Mongols under Chinggis Khan created the largest
land empire the world had ever seen. The Mongol
warlords intruded in one way or another on the lives of
almost all peoples of Eurasia. The conquests were
terrifying, but the stabilizing of Mongol rue led to a
century of fertile commercial and cultural interchange
across the continent. Eurasian unification, however,
had a disastrous consequence in the 14th century—the
Black Death and its attendant social impact on the
two continents.
Population Growth & Migration
WORLD HISTORY ERA 5: INCREASED HEMISPHERIC INTERACTION
Introduction
1. Population growth in specific locales negatively
impacted the environment; many people migrated to
new locations
2. Migrating groups moved into other groups’ territories,
forcing them to go elsewhere
3. Migrating groups introduced new plants and animals
into their new homes
4. Migrations diffused technologies for farming, warfare,
and crafts
5. Migrations diffused languages, styles of living, and arts
Vikings
Mongols
Germanic Tribes
Turkic
Groups
Chinese
Arabs
Bantu-Speaking People of
Africa
People of Oceania
States & Empires
WORLD HISTORY ERA 5: INCREASED HEMISPHERIC INTERACTION
Introduction
1. New ruling groups built on the foundations of earlier
states and empires
2. Wars led to destruction but also produced new inventions
3. Strong governments protected trade routes and
stabilized economies
4. Royal courts were patrons of science, religion, and the
arts
5. Large states brought together many ethnic, language,
and religious groups
Frankish
Kingdoms
Avar Kingdom
Parhae
Byzantine Empire
Sassanid
Empire
Sui China
Harsha’ Empire
Chalukya
Ghana
Axum
States and Empires in 600 CE
Silla
Yamoto
Japan
Carolingian
Cordoba Caliphate
Parhae
Byzantine
Gurjara-PratiharaTang China
Heian Japan
Abbasid Caliphate
Ghana
Axum
Srivijaya
States and Empires in 800CE
Silla
Scandanavian
Kingdoms
Russia
England
France
Spain
Portugal
Poland
H.R.E.
Mongol Empire
Hungary
Rum
Almohad
Caliphate
Koryo
Sung China
Ayyubid
Caliphate
Delhi
Sultanate
Mali
Ethiopia
Oyo
Angkor
Benin
Zimbabwe
States and Empires in 1237 CE
Kamakura
Japan
Union of Kalmar
Russian
States
Scotland
England
PolandHoly Roman
Lithuania
Empire
Hungary
France
Portugal
Castile
Khanate of the
Golden Horde
Jagatai
Khanate
Ottoman Emp.
Timurid Empire
Granada
Korea
Ming China
Marinids Hafsids
Mamluk Sultanate
Mali
Oyo Benin
Ethiopia
Zanj City-States
Vijayanagara
Siam
Majapahit
Zimbabwe
States and Empires in 1400 CE
Ashikaga Japan
Trade Networks
WORLD HISTORY ERA 5: INCREASED HEMISPHERIC INTERACTION
Introduction
1. As cities grew, so did the trade networks between them
2. Trade helped spread religions, languages, ideas, and arts
3. Trade stimulated the use of natural resources
4. Banks, credit, and money systems encouraged regional
and long distance trade
Ideas & Beliefs
WORLD HISTORY ERA 5: INCREASED HEMISPHERIC INTERACTION
Introduction
1. Universal faiths gave members a sense of community
beyond political, class or ethnic identities
2. Religious scholars gathered and recorded knowledge and
founded institutions of learning
3. The spread of religions stimulated production and
exchange of arts, literature, philosophy, and the science
Agricultural & Technical Diffusion
WORLD HISTORY ERA 5: INCREASED HEMISPHERIC INTERACTION
Introduction
1. The pace of innovation increased—both in depth and
breadth
2. Manufacturing and farming productivity increased
3. People’s diets and health improved
4. Sea travel and transport webs became thicker
Lateen sail
Astrolabe
Stirrup
Text and Images for Introduction Slides 1-18 adapted from Cohen, Sharon and Douglass, Susan. “Panorama Teaching Unit: Patterns of Interregional
Unity, 300-1500 CE.” World History for Us All. San Diego State University in collaboration with the National Center for History in the Schools.
http://worldhistoryforusall.sdsu.edu/.