Table of Contents

Unit 1

Saturday, 1 May 2021
3-minute read
452 words

Process of State Building Across States

Song Dynasty

The Chinese during this period greatly flourished due to cultural and technological advancements.

  • Technological Advancement

    • Gunpowder
    • Grand Canal
    • Champa Rice

  • Cultural Advancement

    • Revival of Confucianism
    • Revival of Civil Service Exam

Delhi Sultanate

  • Established by Muslim Turks
  • Had a difficult time converting Indian society to Islam

Mamluk Sultanate

  • Formerly a slave empire
  • Non-Muslims were enslaved by the Egyptians and forced to serve in the military
  • Mamluks then overthrew the government and established the Mamluk Sultanate

The Vijayanagara Empire built their states and expanded their influence by means of trade.

Kingdom of Mali

  • Centralized powers to a much greater extent than their predecessor, Ghana
  • Enormously wealthy

Aztec Empire

The Aztecs built an empire and ruled remotely through systems such as the Tribute System.

  • Tribute System was where the conquered people had to pay a "tribute" or tax to their conquerors.
  • Tributes could either be goods or services.
  • Enforced system through a powerful military

Incan Empire

The Incans, unlike the Aztecs, used the Mit'a System.

  • Under the Mit'a system, the citizens were required to perform public service works

European States

European states were locked into a more regional system known as Feudalism.

  • Feudalism structured a decentralized society with rigid class layers
  • Feudal lords soon lost most of their power to more powerful, centralized monarchs

Religion

In all parts of the world, religion was key to state building.

  • Islam was able to create a system of shared beliefs and language which was able to unite regions throughout Afro-Eurasia.
  • Confucianist principles were used to justify the rule of dynastic rulers. The Civil Service Exam tested on Confucianism which led to a Confucianist Bureaucracy in the Song Dynasty.
  • South and Southeast Asian rulers used Hinduism and Buddhism to consolidate power in their states. Hinduism's caste system was especially important in building social classes.
  • European states alone were especially weak, but Catholicism was able to organize and unite society. Religion was important as religious leaders were often competing with the state's secular authority.

Religious Conversion

All major world religions were conversionist religions during this time period which weakened indigenous religions.

  • The three major religions sent out missionaries to different regions.

  • Other states used military invasions in order to convert the masses.

    • Populations converted to avoid paying the jizya, or tax on non-Muslims
    • Populations converted for greater economic or government opportunities
  • Merchants also spread religion and culture along trade routes.

Technological Advancements

  • Champa rice from Vietnam helped grow the Chinese population
  • Paper from China increased literacy rates
  • Increased literacy encouraged learning
  • House of Baghdad

Nomadic People

  • Nomadic people in Afro-Eurasia did not have a permanent home and moved around often
  • Huge, vast empire
  • Political stability and safety
  • Increased trade and cross-cultural exchanges

NEXT: Unit 3