Their History & Their Culture
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STORY LINES
¦ The Mongol Empire widened channels of communication, commerce, and cultural exchange between Europe and the Far East. At the same time, Europeans were extending their reach into the Atlantic Ocean.
¦ Western civilizations' integration with this wider medieval world led to new ways of mapping, measuring, and describing that world.
¦ Despite these broadening horizons, most Europeans' lives were bounded by their communities and focused on the parish church.
¦ Meanwhile, the growing strength of the kings of France and England drew them into terminal disputes that led to the H undred Years' War.
¦ As global climate change affected the ecosystems of Europe and caused years of famine, the integrated networks of the medieval world facilitated the rapid transmission of the Black Death.
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CHRONOLOGY | |
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1206-1260 |
Rapid expansion of the Mongol Empire under Genghis Khan and his heirs |
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1240 |
Kievan Rus' is taken by the Mongols; Khanate of the Golden Horde established |
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1260-1294 |
Reign of Kublai Khan, Great Khan and emperor of China |
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1271-1295 |
Travels of Marco Polo |
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1309 |
"Babylonian Captivity” of the papacy in Avignon begins |
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1315-1322 |
The Great Famine in Europe |
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1320 |
The Declaration of Arbroath proclaims Scotland's independence from England |
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1326-1354 |
The travels of Ibn Battuta |
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1337 |
Beginning of the Hundred Years' War |
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1347-1353 |
Spread of the Black Death |
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1352 |
Mandeville's Book of Marvels is in circulation |
CORE OBJECTIVES
¦ DESCRIBE the effects ofthe Mongol conquests.
¦ IDENTIFY the key characteristics ofthe medieval world system and the responses to it.
¦ DEFINE the concept of sovereignty and its importance in this era.
¦ UNDERSTAND the reasons for the papacy's loss of prestige.
¦ EXPLAIN the rapid spread of the Black Death in this historical context.
World History
