REV: Overview

Depiction of a phoenix by Bertuch. A phoenix is a mythical fire creature that is born and reborn out of ashes.Revitalized Empires: 1350 - 1600 CE

Introduction

The last module ended with a lot of death – the Crusades, Peasant Revolts, the Mongols, and especially the Black Plague. This Module is all about “revitalized” empires, or how parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa “bounced back” from those catastrophic events. They came back stronger, like a Phoenix that rises from the ashes (the image to the right is a depiction of a phoenix by the artist Friedrich Justin Bertuch, created in 1806). Since the Black Plague was the result of international trade and Mongol conquest, some areas preferred to reduce their trade and warfare. But other groups saw the Crusades as an example of the unintended good consequences of outside influence and used the mayhem as an opportunity and risked their older values for the chance to grow.

But all choices have consequences – revitalized empires attract attention, and sometimes attention can lead to an attack. Which ones will lose everything they worked for? Which empires will continue to rise? And how might this set the stage for an even larger, even more impactful series of interactions: the Age of Exploration?

Essential Questions

  • What caused the development and decline of the West African kingdoms, the Swahili Coast, and the Gunpowder Empires?
  • How did outside ideas influence life in Africa, Europe, and Asia?
  • What aspects of life stayed the same in Africa, Europe, and Asia?
  • What cultural contributions did these empires produce?
  • How did governmental policies in Asia and Europe affect the social hierarchies?

Module Lessons Preview

In this module, we will study the following topics:

Key Terms

Great African Empires: Ghana and Mali

Great African Empires: Songhai and the Swahili Coast

Religious Syncretism in Africa

The Ming Dynasty of China

The Gunpowder Empires: Ottoman and Mughal

The Gunpowder Empires: Safavid

The Renaissance: Florence and Italy

The Renaissance: Central Europe, France, and England

The Protestant Reformation

The Protestant Reformation: Outcomes

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