APWH – Chapter 14 Review – Flashcards

There were many factors that enabled Europeans to carve out huge empires an ocean away from their original homeland. First off, a very important factor was that the Europeans were extremely motivated to build more empires. The Europeans also did a lot of trading which enabled a profit and transportation of human and material resources. When the Europeans were on the go, they became much closer to the Americas than Asians. The Asians were highly competitive with the Europeans, but the Europeans had the upper hand due to distance. One last thing that enabled Europeans to carve out huge empires was the disease in the Americas. The Europeans had certain immunities which benefited them during their expansion.

The European empires generated multiple large-scale transformations. For example, a very important transformation that the European empires caused would be the collapse of the Native American societies. Another very important transformation would be trade. The Europeans were able to exchange plants and animals which allowed for better crops in the Americas. Along with these crops, the Europeans needed more plantation workers. With a larger amount of plantation workers, Europe was able to link together with Africa and the Americas to produce sugar and cotton trade.

Commercial agriculture was the economic foundation of colonial rule in Mexico and Peru. The economic foundation of colonial rule in Mexico and Peru was also silver and gold mining. This economic foundation greatly shaped the kinds of societies that arose because there was a very distinct social order in the society. The social order accommodated Indians, Africans, and racially mixed people. This was very similar to the Spanish class hierarchy.

Brazil and the Caribbean plantation societies greatly different from the southern colonies in British North America. For example, a very large difference revolved around race. North America did not have a lot of racial mixing and did not include a mixed race in their society. North America also was less harsh on their slaves. However, Brazil was more likely to voluntarily set their slaves free than North America. North America was very strict on their races. For example, even the slightest bit of African ancestry mad a person "black". no matter the amount. Brazil was less strict and allowed for this to change their education and economics for certain individuals.

The British settler colonies of North America were quite different from their counterparts in Latin America. For example, The British settler colonies wanted to recreate the old European society and get rid of the old aspects. The British had a tradition of self-government and opposed royal governors. The British were also much more literate. Another difference was that the British colonies also did not have racial mixing like the Spanish and Portuguese. The British colonies were pure settler colonies.

The Russian empire building was greatly motivated by the Mongols. The Russians greatly feared the Mongols which caused the Russians to conquer the Siberian Plain and improve the defense for Russian frontiers. This defense boost enhanced the power of the Russian state. The Russian expansion into Siberia was also driven by trade. The world market greatly demanded pelts of fur and agriculture. Christianity also motivated the Russians because they could convert many of the native Siberians.

The Russian Empire caused a large transformation in the lives of the people they conquered. A large transformation was the requirement to pay a tribute. Another transformation would be the outbreak of infectious disease due to the lack of immunity. The Russian's also converted many people to Christianity after conquering their land. The Russian Empire's homeland also became a highly militarized state.

There were many major features of the Chinese empire building in the early modern era. For example, the Chinese empire was driven by a very high security concern. The Chinese empires controlled and administrated their conquered regions separately from China. Another example would be that the Chinese empire greatly increased in size. This transformation brought in more people who were not Chinese.

The Mughal attitudes and policies toward Hindus went through a great change from the time of Akbar to that of Aurangzeb. During the time of Akbar, laws were tried to be made more secular. Also, there was a policy that imposed toleration and limited the power of the Ulama. Also, the tax on Non-Muslims (Jizya) was removed. During the time of the Akbar, a House of Worship was constructed and used for discussions between many different religious people. During the time of Aurangzeb, the Mughal attitudes and policies shifted a bit. For example, they imposed Islamic supremacy and had a very high tax (Jizya), which was used to support wars and expansions.

The Ottoman Empire was very important for Europe in the early modern era for many reasons. First off, the Ottoman Empire's military threatened Europe. The Ottoman Empire was also very important for trade. For example, Europe needed the Ottoman Empire as a trading partner because they controlled the access to Eastern goods. Since Europe required the Eastern goods, they had to become partners with the Ottoman Empire.