Summary
Summary Global History
- Course
- Institution
Summary of all Global History lectures, best used as a study guide! Using this to study, I earned an 8.5 on the exam!
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
yvakapashi
Reviews received
Content preview
LECTURE 1: WHY STUDY GLOBAL HISTORY?Approaches to history in IR – a spectrum
• The “closet of facts approach”
• Which theory?
• Main ideas?
• “shopping list approach”
• Middle way approaches
Essential tools for studying history
• History- the general study of the past
• Metahistory – emphasis on patterns and regularities over time
o Longue durée – taking a long view of history in order to identify longterm trends and patterns and
distinguish the accidental from the permanent
• Antihistory – when talking about history, non-fiction and fiction are the same thing
o Closely related to relativism = all narratives are equal
• Big history – all of the history of the world since the big bang
Global history and IR
• Crucial insight: human world is made up of a multiplicity of coexisting societies
• 5 implications of multiplicity
o Coexistence = the intl arises from the fact that multiple distinct societies coexist
o Difference = societies based in different environments develop differently
o Interaction (between different societies)
o Combination = societies are created based on the combination of identities and past societies
o Dialectical change = synthesis of seemingly different things leading to new things
▪ E.g. Bacon: printing press, gunpowder and compasses taken to Europe from China and then
developed into new things
LECTURE 2: THE RISE & FALL OF EUROPEAN EMPIRES
Imperial expansion processes
• Process of destruction (of precolonial societies), creation (new cities, commerce)
The geographical scope of European empires
• Dutch empire: was one of the smallest European empires
• British empire: biggest empire in history (the empire on which the sun never set and blood never dried)
o Last colony gained independence in 1997
o Queen is still HOS of 16 countries & reunited, the British empire would encompass 64 countries
• Few countries have never fallen under European rule or been influenced by it & it played big role in shaping
the world as we know it
The chronological scope of European empires
• Begin of European imperialism in 1492 with ‘discovery’ of the Americas
• From then on, various parts of the world are colonised until decolonizaiton (big phase post ww2 (50-70s), but
LatAm in early 1800s)
• Imperial expansion and collapse happened very suddenly
Broadening the focus of IR
o Basic unit in IR = the state
o Basic unit in modern IR (1400-now) = empire
o → focus on relationships between empires rather than between states
Empire – a large composite, multiethnic or multinational political unit, usually created by conquest and divided between
dominant center and subordinate, sometimes distant peripheries
, • Mix of direct/centralised and indirect/decentralised rule
• Established and maintained by violence (genocides, mass murders)
• Normally involves a dominant core economically exploiting the periphery
• Sense of cultural difference between people at the core and periphery (belief in superiority of core)
o Debate of whether to leave the periphery to their own culture but exploit them, or to teach them the
“civilized” way of life
• (European empires specifically) associated with racial hierarchies and racist beliefs
o Related: white man’s burden (Kipling): moral burden of civilizing and ruling over the non-white
population
• Mass movement of people through voluntary (e.g. settler colonialism) and involuntary (e.g. slave trade)
migration
Imperialism – actions and attitudes that create or uphold large political units, or less obvious kinds of control/ domination
Colonialism – systems of rule by one group over another, where one claims the right to exclusive sovereignty over the
other and to shape its destiny
Colonization – largescale population movements, where migrants maintain strong links with ancestors’ former country
and by doing so, gain significant privileges over other inhabitants of the new territory
Neo-imperialism/ neo-colonialism – postcolonial situations where an outside power still exercises great, but half-hidden
influence in ways that greatly resemble old patterns of more open domination
The post-colonial world – the parts of the world once under colonial rule
LECTURE 3: EUROPEANS FAR BEHIND
Eurocentrism – a point of view that places Europe at the centre of everything, esp modernity and progress and sees the
rest of the world as historically backwards
5 assertions about the pre-modern world
• World was stuck in stagnant traditions undermining econ development
• World was divided into insular regions (so no interconnection btwn societies)
• Governance by irrational despots
• Which is also why interdependent world was impossible
• World was connected through the European age of discovery from 1500s on
Why they are wrong
• Global economy already existed during Afro-Asian age of discovery from 500s on
• Terms by which Europe could join the economy and trade networks were dictated to them by Middle Eastern
Arabs, Persians and Africans
• Pre-1500s: considerable eastern econ progress
The oriental globalisation (500-1800)
• Middle Eastern Muslims, & North Africans begin creating a global econ after 500, which is maintained until ca
1800
Key facts about oriental globalization
• Begin in 500 with revival of the camel as a mode of transport for overland routes in central Asia
• 500-1000: connection of 2 main centres of civilization (Middle East + China)
• Mainly pacified relations btwn empires → extensive trade
3 main empires: T’ang China (618-907), Islamic Umayyad/ Abbasid empire in Middle East/ Sunni caliphate (661-1258),
Fatimid empire in North Afric/ Shia Islamic caliphate (909-1171)
The silk roads
• Network of roads enabling inter-regional trade = world’s first global supply chain
, • More developed areas of Europe became connected to the system and Eastern ideas began emerging there
To the west: Islamic global pioneers
• Why Islam was central to globalization
o Religion had a penchant for trade
o Unity through Islam in a previously fragmented region
• Famous cities in the Islamic world: Baghdad, Samarkand, Ifsahan
o Commercial hubs, movement of ideas and people
• Trade with Africa
o Muslims were particularly dependent on African trade
o Was one of the most profitable branches of trade (gold and copper)
o Accessible through the revival of the camel as a mode of transportation
o Egypt was a critical junction
o Africa traded with India and as far away as Polynesia even prior to Muslim arrival
• Explorers
o Marco polo (venetian): inspired others with his travels to India and China
o Columbus: ‘discovery’ of Americas
o Ibn Battuta: can compare to MP, but more extensive travels and documentation
To the east: Chinese pioneers and the industrial revolution from the 1100s
• 1100: became more internally powerful than Islamic counterparts
• By 1400s: begins influencing global econ even more than Islamic empires
• Why was china so powerful?
o Enormous wealth bc of the 1st industrial mmiracle during the Song period (960-1279)
o Developed characterics normally associated with the GB industrial rev.
• What was the Chinese industrial revolution about?
o Revolution in steel and iron: Figured out how to cast iron → faster production and allowed for steel
production
o Taxation system which forced all members of society to engage in the economy bc it was cash-based
o Agricultural innovation (higher yield ratios)
o First military revolution incl development of huge navy
o Revolution in navigation techniques (invention of compass & new ships)
• 1433: China renounces imperialist expansion at sea and sinks fleet (despite potential to rule world)
o New emperor who embraced Confucian identity = emphasis on isolationism and cost concerns
o Remained open to intl trade and continued development, remained an example and model of advanced
civilization to Europeans until ca. 1800s
From silk roads to Indian Ocean trading network
• Silk roads = essential for connecting main empires during oriental globalization
• 13-1400s: trade on land replaced by trade at sea in Indian Ocean
• Europeans not yet involved but wanted to from late 1400s
LECTURE 4: LAND VS. SEA EMPIRES
The mongols
• Rise and fall betwn 12-1300
o Genghis Khan = 1206 became leader and created largest continuous land empire in world history
o Connected china, Silk Roads & Middle East to Europe
o Factors in their success: brutality and specially bred horses (stamina, speed & sturdiness)
o After conquest: religious tolerance, trade, diplomacy and travel, opened cities in Asia to intl exchange
o Decline begins ca. 1350
• Tamerlane/ Timur The Lame
o Stepped into the void left behind by Genghis Khan’s death
o Undefeated commander & last great nomadic conqueror who tried to rule entire ‘world island’
o Died in 1405, on his way to China →turning point
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller yvakapashi. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $6.43. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
67474 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now