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Period: 618 to 1278
Tang and Song Dynasty
These two dynasties are what are often referred to as China's golden age. They brought many new innovations to society in China as they turned the region into one of the most powerful areas in the world. They innovated many things such as the mass production of champa rice, the use of paper money, printing, and gunpowder usage. The era would eventually end with the Song Dynasty when it would collapse due to political instability and constant invades by neighboring tribes like the Jin Dynasty. -
Period: 750 to 1258
Abbasid Caliphate
The Abbasid Caliphate was considered the golden age of Islamic Culture. It was responsible for a mass spreading of knowledge across the empire, with subjects such as math and science being developed while farming technology such as improved methods of irrigation were developed. They also showed increase trade with nearby regions, trading crops and other goods frequently. The empire would eventually be one of the many dominated by the Mongols and their superior military technology. -
Period: 800 to 1400
Feudalism in Europe
Feudalism was a structure that dominated Europe during the 12th century and was built on the idea that society was structured on relationships. Land would often be gifted to others in exchange for goods and services. A common example of this practice would be a king giving up land to lords, in exchange for soldiers should a war break out. This would allow nobility to have a greater control over the common citizens of countries. -
Period: 1206 to 1555
Delhi Sultanate
The Delhi Sultanate is significant for being the shift towards Muslim rule being a prominent force in India. It saw the beginning of a blending of Hindu and Islamic culture, in all forms ranging from music to architecture. Many great buildings were built during this time such as the Great Mosques, as well as many different colleges and hospitals. India would receive protection from the strong Mongol army as well, which would eventually be broken with the eventual rise of Mughal India. -
Period: 1206 to 1368
Mongol Empire
The Mongol Empire is to this day the largest land empire to ever exist in the world. It was responsible for numerous innovations in many different fields such as technology, war strategy, education, and heavily influenced Asian culture at the time. They were lead by Genghis Khan, a leader recognized for his extraordinary military achievements and brutality. The empire would be brought down by factors such as the rising Ming Dynasty and the black plague which heavily weakened the population. -
Period: 1235 to
Mali Empire
The Mali Empire was known for its extreme wealth, as well as its heavy influence on the surrounding culture of Africa. It had a dominant control over the gold and salt market of Africa. It also had control over the important trade routes all across the Sahara Desert which lead to Europe and the Middle East. The empire would eventually begin to decline due to the rise of the Songhai Empire, and lost control of many of its borders. -
Period: 1279 to 1368
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty was a period of time where China was under the control of the Mongols, and it was established by Kublai Khan of the Mongol Empire. The establishment of the Yuan Dynasty was important because this was the first time China as a nation was unified under one leader. This unification allowed for many aspects of China to develop such as culture and education. The period of peace would eventually end with a peasant uprising, and the nation would fall into a state of constant rebellion. -
Period: 1299 to
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire was the most powerful Muslim empire in history. They were a very powerful military threat, and controlled many of the trade routes from Europe to Asia, and influenced a lot of the goods that were allowed to come in and out of the Middle East. They had many achievements in the fields of art and science and other technology, and were a very intelligent empire as a result. The empire was one of the main gunpowder empires during this time, attributing to their military success. -
Period: 1300 to
European Renaissance
The European Renaissance would begin an age of great innovation within Europe. It was the rebirth Europe in art, technology, culture, and many more as people began to rediscover classic European culture and innovate on it. The discover of math and science and logic allowed people to think more freely and saw the separation of attachment from people to religion. The renaissance would pave the way for the Age of Exploration as Europe used this newfound knowledge to expand out into the world. -
Period: 1345 to 1533
Mesoamerican Empires
Both the Aztecs and the Incas were very influential as they were the last dominant native empires before the invasion from European nations. They greatly influenced the culture of Mesoamerica by introducing new styles of architecture, art, music, and technology. They were also unique in their religious beliefs, as they were polytheistic and practiced human sacrifice in order to appeal to their gods. Both would eventually be conquered by Spanish explorers due to their weakness to disease. -
Period: 1347 to 1350
Bubonic Plague
The Black Death was responsible for wiping out over a third of the world population in the mid 14th century. It resulted in a massive economy drought, as trade was prevented from happening, and much of the working class was killed. It was largely caused by a lack of sanitation in large cities, and little medical technology was unable to prevent it from spreading. It can be seen as similar to later outbreaks from later in history, although more extreme, such as the Spanish Flu and COVID-19. -
Period: 1368 to
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty conquered the previously Yuan Dynasty before it, and controlled a majority of China until the mid 17th century. They were known for expanding China's trade ties out to the west, giving them access to brand new resources. They were also known for their heavy influence on Chinese history, and did many great things such as build the Wall of China and develop the idea of printing. The empire would eventually fall due to internal rebellion, as well as a lack of economic stability. -
Period: 1400 to
Age of Exploration
The Age of Exploration marked the discovery of many new locations in the world for Europeans. Many previously unknown regions were now being mapped and studied, and many innovations in navigation were now being made. It gave way to new products being introduced into Europe, and encouraged trading of new goods between nations that had previously had little to no contact with each other. The human race would now be better connected, and the world was now much more knowledgeable of each other. -
Period: 1450 to
Atlantic Slave Trade
The Atlantic Slave Trade began in the 15th century, after the Portuguese exploration of the West African coast. The Atlantic Slave Trade was spawned and multiplied due to the discovery of America with the Age of Exploration. It involved the trade of African slaves across the Atlantic Ocean so that they could work on the plantations in the Americas. The slave trade typically used the triangular route for trading, going between America, Europe, and Africa. -
Period: 1492 to 1537
Spanish Colonial Empire
The Spanish began the conquest of America, in search of gold and silver to make Spain a more powerful country. Labor systems were created to exploit the native people. When they died of diseases such as smallpox, they sent over African slaves to replace them instead. While their primary goal was to extract resources for profit, they were also attempting to spread Catholicism to the native people and convert them to the religion. -
Period: 1500 to
Portuguese Trading Post Empire
Trading post empires began in the 16th century, and was started by Portugal. Rather than conquering a whole nation, these posts would be established around the world in multiple different countries. Their purpose was to control trade routes by forcing merchant vessels to pay duties at the sites. These empires set up controlled trade throughout the Indian ocean by the Portuguese in the 16th and 17th century, and resulted in massive profit for the Portuguese. -
Period: 1517 to
The Reformation
The Reformation would began the foundation for Protestantism as a new branch of Christianity. It began the point where people were becoming more independent from the Catholic Church, and began to think more freely from Catholicism. This can be connected with the Renaissance, as it encouraged the idea of more free thinking and that not everything was based around the information that the church gave. -
Period: 1526 to
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire ruled India during most of the 16th and 17th century, while also being Muslim rulers and Hindu dominate nation. They had an extremely powerful army for the time, and were one of the first empires to utilize gunpowder. It also heavily impacted the culture of India, creating structures such as the Taj Mahal and improving other aspects like art, technology, and education. The empire was a prime example of gunpowder empires having dominance during this time like the Ottoman Empire. -
Period: to
Tokugawa Shogunate
The Tokugawa Shogunate marks the last period of a traditional Japanese government. It saw the isolation of Japan, and an attempt to keep Christianity and missionaries out of the country so that Japan could stay united under traditional customs. They aimed to prevent westernization so that Japan could keep its sense of cultural identity. This would later be challenged however with the Meiji Revolution, where Japan would then start to westernize in order to keep up with the world. -
Period: to
Qing Dynasty
The Qing Dynasty would be the last imperial empire in China, and greatly expanded both the regions borders and population. They managed to unite many parts of China all under one name, while also establishing a national economy for the nation. They also benefited from the trade routes with the rest that had been established by the Ming Dynasty before them. The empire would fall due to rebellion in 1912, marking the end of the imperial age for China. -
Period: to
The Enlightenment
The Enlightenment was a late 17th and 18th century intellectual movement. The thinking emphasized skepticism, individualism, science, and reason. It was thought during this time period that humans could discover the truth of the world, and many different technological advancements were made with this new found idea. Ideas from the enlightenment affected future governments, such as the separation of powers in office to maintain checks and balances. -
Period: to
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution saw a shift in the focus of the global economy from primarily agriculture based to now focused on industry. Many new factories and machines were made in order to help streamline production processes and increase efficiency. While these processes greatly improved the overall economy and offered many new jobs, they also came with the drawback of many new sicknesses and poor living conditions being encouraged throughout the world. -
Period: to
American Revolution
The American Revolution was a rebellion against the overbearing British rule of the colonies. It heavily influenced many of the revolutions that would follow it such as the French and Haitian revolutions. It inspired people to now object rule that they saw as unjust. Many of the ideas of the revolution were encouraged by the Enlightenment, which encouraged all people to think freely and independently from monarchs. -
Period: to
French Revolution
The French Revolution caused the end of many traditional customs in France like monarchy and feudalism, while also taking much power from the Catholic Church. It was mainly caused by economic struggles in the country due to poor wealth management by the nobles. It set the foundation for other revolutions in Europe, and encouraged nationalism across all of Europe. It influenced revolutions such the Haitian Revolution, who would rebel against France as a slave colony due to unfair treatment. -
Period: to
Haitian Revolution
The Haitian Revolution is important due to how it is the only successful slave revolt in the world's history. The slaves in Haiti were able to gain independence from France due to the leader of the revolt, Toussaint-Louverture, who helped lead Haiti to eventually become an independent nation. The revolution further continued to embrace the ideas of the Enlightenment, which encouraged free thinking and free will from monarchy. -
Period: to
Tanzimat Reforms
The Tanizmat Reforms were a series of reforms in the Ottoman Empire. Their goal was to westernize the empire in regards to education, politics, and social aspects in order to keep up with the rest of the world. The Ottoman empire had been experiencing a decline in power during this time, and they had to reform in order to keep up with the west. This is similar to how Japan reformed in order to keep up with the European countries, however Japan was much more successful in reforming. -
Period: to
Opium Wars
The Opium Wars were conflicts between China and British merchants who were exploiting them by selling them a highly addictive drug. This would result in China getting angry at the British use of them, and it would arise to two wars in which the British both won. The result of the wars were the British winning, and Chinese governments would be weakened as a result. China would be forced to open treaty ports after losing the wars, and allow them to handle trade with all imperial powers. -
Period: to
Taiping Rebellion
The Taiping Rebellion was a rebellion that took many lives in China and would be the result of the end of imperial rule in China. It would be caused by leader Hong Xiuquan and issues with China's social classes. The rebellion would last 14 years and result in many casualties, many of whom were civilians. The rebellion would set the foundation for eventual communist rule in China, and resulted in a change in social and economic structures. -
Period: to
Sepoy Mutiny
The Sepoy Mutiny was an unsuccessful attempt by Indians to rebel against British rule in the country. It would then cause a split between Muslim and Hindu soldiers, and the conflict between the two would last for years afterwards. What did result is that while the East India Company was abolished in India, it was replaced with direct rule of India by the British government. This is an example of an attempt at the ideas encouraged by the Enlightenment, however was deemed a failure and backfired. -
Period: to
Meiji Restoration
The Meiji Restoration was Japan's way of reforming in order to westernize and keep up with European countries. They began to modernize the entire country, from economy to government to education. It is important due to the sheer speed at which Japan was able to develop from a country built on tradition to one of the world's greatest powers. This continued ideas built on from the Industrial revolutions where economy was all about making as many products as fast as possible. -
Period: to
Scramble for Africa
The Scramble for Africa was a race between various European countries to claim territory in Africa. All of the countries wanted African territories for their vast amounts of resources that were not available in Europe. The more territories one country had, the more power they would have over the others. However, sometimes the territories would be cost ineffective due to their expensiveness. The scramble would eventually be one of the causes for World War I due to the fight for African land. -
Period: to
Berlin Conference
The Berlin Conference was held in order to discuss African colonization, and how the region would be divided up between the European powers. It was to ensure that no conflict would arise between the countries, as tensions were already growing from the Scramble for Africa. It's important to note that no African leaders were present at the conference, meaning they had no say in how the territories were shared. There was no consideration for native tribes in Africa when dividing the territories.