The Global Tapestry
This East Asian philosophy, emphasizing filial piety and social harmony, was the foundation of Chinese governance during the Song Dynasty.
What is Confucianism?
This vast trade network connected Eurasia and facilitated the exchange of goods, ideas, and technologies.
What is the Silk Road?
This Ottoman leader conquered Constantinople in 1453, marking the end of the Byzantine Empire.
Who was Mehmed II?
This Portuguese explorer was the first to sail directly from Europe to India in 1498.
Who was Vasco da Gama?
This revolution, beginning in the late 18th century, marked the transition to new manufacturing processes and urbanization.
What is the Industrial Revolution?
This Islamic empire, centered in West Africa, grew wealthy from trans-Saharan trade and was known for its ruler Mansa Musa.
What is the Mali Empire?
This Mongol leader founded the largest contiguous empire in history, stretching from Asia to Europe.
Who was Genghis Khan?
This Mughal emperor is known for promoting religious tolerance and commissioning the Taj Mahal.
Who was Akbar the Great?
This economic system encouraged colonization and the accumulation of wealth through a favorable balance of trade.
What is mercantilism?
This Enlightenment thinker wrote The Social Contract and argued for the concept of the "general will."
Who was Jean-Jacques Rousseau?
This Mesoamerican civilization built the city of Tenochtitlan and practiced human sacrifice to honor their gods.
Who were the Aztecs?
This disease, spread along trade routes, killed millions during the 14th century and is also known as the Black Death.
What is the bubonic plague?
This Russian tsar expanded the empire and modernized the military, earning the title "the Great."
Who was Peter the Great?
This "middle leg" of the triangular trade involved the transportation of enslaved Africans to the Americas.
What is the Middle Passage?
This 1789 revolution led to the abolition of the French monarchy and the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte.
What is the French Revolution?
This decentralized political system in medieval Europe was based on land ownership and loyalty between lords and vassals.
What is feudalism?
This West African kingdom became wealthy through its control of gold and salt trade routes.
What is the Kingdom of Ghana?
This Chinese dynasty, established in 1368, is known for its restoration of Confucian governance and the construction of the Forbidden City.
What is the Ming Dynasty?
This Spanish conquistador defeated the Aztec Empire in 1521.
Who was Hernán Cortés?
This Latin American leader led independence movements in Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador.
Who was Simón Bolívar?
This Chinese innovation, developed during the Tang Dynasty, allowed for the mass production of texts and the spread of knowledge.
What is woodblock printing?
This Indian Ocean trade route connected East Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.
What is the Indian Ocean Trade Network?
This system of forced labor in Spanish colonies required indigenous people to work on plantations or in mines.
What is the encomienda system?
This crop, native to the Americas, became a staple food in Europe and helped fuel population growth.
What is the potato?
This 19th-century ideology emphasized national identity and the unification of people with shared culture and history.
What is nationalism?