- absolute monarchy
- government in which the king or queen has total control over his or her subjects
- agriculture
- the science or practice of cultivating the soil
- alliance
- a bond or connection between countries, families, states, parties, or individuals
- Allied Forces
- World War I: Russia, Great Britain, France, Italy, United States, Romania, Serbia, and Belgium
- appeasement
- the act of buying off (an aggressor) by concessions usually at the sacrifice of principles
- aristocracy
- government by the "best" individuals or by a small privileged class
- aristocrat
- a member of a class of wealthy people who wield a large amount of power and influence, typically based on the ownership of land
- artistic
- relating to creative fields such as painting, sculpture, architecture, etc.
- Aryan
- used in Nazism to designate a supposed master race of non-Jewish Caucasians usually having Nordic features
- assassination
- the murder of a political leader or public figure by sudden or secret attack
- barter
- to trade by exchanging one commodity for another
- The Black Hand
- a Sicilian and Italian-American secret society of the late 19th and 20th centuries
- Bolshevik
- a member of the extremist wing of the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party that seized power in Russia through the Revolution of November 1917
- Buddhism
- a religion based on teachings of Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha) that evolved from Hinduism in northern India and Nepal and diffused from this core area (563 BC-483 BC)
- buffer zone
- a neutral zone between two hostile nations
- bureaucracy
- a multi-layered group of officials that run a large organization, such as a government
It typically has a fixed set of rules and a hierarchy of authority.
- caliph
- a successor of Muhammad as temporal and spiritual head of Islam
- Carthage
- an ancient city-state on the coast of Northern Africa
- casualty
- the victim of a fatality or serious injury lost through death, wounds, injury, sickness, internment, or capture
- Central Powers
- World War I: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, and Bulgaria
- Christianity
- a monotheistic religion based on the teachings of Jesus Christ
- citizen
- a native or naturalized person who owes allegiance to a government and enjoys all the rights and privileges that government provides
- civil service exam
- an exam taken by people who are interested in getting a job in the government
- civilization
- an advanced state of development in human society, marked by division of labor, forms of government, and a surplus of food
- coinage
- the act or process of coining (making coins)
- Columbian Exchange
- the large scale exchange of slaves, goods, plants, animals, and diseases that took place between the Europe and the Americas following Columbus's voyage
- commonwealth
- a group of people linked by something that they have in common
- communism
- a political and economic system in which factors of production are collectively owned and directed by the state
- Confucianism
- a philosophy that adheres to the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius (551 BC-479 BC) and emphasizes worship of one's ancestors, obedience, loyalty, education, and respect for others
- Confucius
- a Chinese philosopher who lived from 551 BC - 479 BC and who established rules for conduct that would govern China's culture for thousands of years
- conquistador
- a leader in the Spanish conquest of North and South America
- consent of governed
- political theory that the power of a government is justified by the will of the people over which that power is held
- conscription
- the compulsory enrollment of persons especially for military service
- contractual
- legally binding according to written agreement
- cottage industry
- industry of people producing goods by working in the home
- culture
- the customary beliefs, social forms, characteristic features of everyday existence (as diversions or a way of life), and material traits of a racial, religious, or social group
- Declaration of Independence
- document signed on July 4, 1776, that provided justification for breaking ties between colonial Americans and the King of England
- democracy
- a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation, usually involving periodically held free elections
- democratic
- of, relating to, or favoring democracy; or
relating to, appealing to, or available to the broad masses of the people
- dictatorship
- a system in which a leader holds absolute power over the people of a country, usually by force
- direct democracy
- system in which citizens vote directly on issues (for example, whether or not to go to war)
- disarmament
- the reduction or removal or military forces and weapons
- domesticate
- to adapt (an animal or plant) to life in close association with, and to the advantage of humans
- dynasty
- a succession of rulers of the same descent
- economic
- related to production, distribution, and trade of goods and services
- Erasistratus
- a Greek anatomist and royal physician under Seleucus I Nicator of Syria
- escalate
- to increase in extent, volume, number, amount, intensity, or scope
- factors of production
- any commodities or services used to produce goods and services, specifically stocks including land, labor (the ability to work), and capital goods applied to production
- Ferdinand de Lesseps
- (19 November 1805 – 7 December 1894) the French developer of the Suez Canal
- feudalism
- a political system based on the rule of local lords bound to a king by ties of loyalty; developed in western Europe during the Middle Ages as a system of local defense against invaders
- Fourteen Points
- proposal for ending the war put forth by President Woodrow Wilson in a speech on January 8, 1918
The proposal established the basis of a peace treaty and the foundation of a League of Nations.
- genocide
- the mass-murder of people based on ethnicity
- ghetto
- a quarter of a city in which Jews were formerly required to live
- globalization
- a process by which regional economies, societies, and cultures have become integrated through a global network of communication, transportation, and trade
- Han Dynasty
- Chinese Dynasty that ruled from roughly 200 BC to 200 AD (around the same time as the Roman Empire in Europe), considered one of the high points of Chinese civilization
- Hannibal Barca
- 247–183 B.C. Son of Hamilcar Barca Carthaginian general
- Hanseatic League
- an economic alliance of trading cities and their guilds that dominated trade along the coast of Norther Europe in the later Middle Ages
- Harappa
- one of the oldest cities in the world, founded by the Harappan people around 2600 BCE in the Indus River Valley (around the present-day border between India and Pakistan)
- hierarchy
- the prescribed order of social, economic, or professional standing
- hieroglyphs
- pictorial characters used in a system of writing
- Hellenism
- a. devotion to or imitation of ancient Greek thought, customs, or styles; b. Greek civilization especially as modified in the Hellenistic period by influences from southwestern Asia;
c. a body of humanistic and classical ideals associated with ancient Greece and including reason, the pursuit of knowledge and the arts, moderation, civic responsibility, and bodily development (merriam-webster.com)
- Hellenistic Age
- the time after Alexander’s death (323 BCE) to approximately 30 BCE in which Greek culture and power extended itself across the known world
- Hinduism
- a religion which evolved from an ancient Aryan religion and blended the beliefs of peoples conquered by the Aryans
Hinduism is a religion and philosophy based on one supreme
force, Brahma, and other gods including Vishnu and Shiva.
- Hormuz
- ancient town in southern Iran on Strait of Hormuz (strait connecting Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman
- Horn of Africa
- the easternmost projection of Africa —variously used to refer to the region including Somalia, southeastern or all of Ethiopia, often Djibouti, and sometimes Eritrea, Sudan, & Kenya
- imperialism
- the domination by one country of the political, economic, or cultural life of another country or region
- individual rights
- the right to life, liberty, and property
- infrastructure
- (1) the underlying foundation or basic framework (as of a system or organization); (2) the system of public works of a country, state, or region; also: the resources (as personnel, buildings, or equipment) required for an activity
- instability
- the quality or state of being unstable; especially: lack of economic or political stability
- intellectual
- related to academic, technological, or scientific achievements
- irrigation
- the watering of land by artificial means to foster plant growth
- Islam
- a religion based on the teachings of the prophet Mohammed which stresses belief in one god (Allah), (followers of Islam are called Moslem (Muslim)
- joint-stock company
- a company or association consisting of individuals organized to conduct a business for gain and having a joint stock of capital represented by shares owned individually by the members and transferable without the consent of the group
- Judaism
- a religion and philosophy with belief in one god (monotheism); originated with Abraham and the Hebrew people
- jury
- a group of citizens who decides whether someone is guilty or innocent during a trial
- laissez-faire economy
- an economy in which the government is not involved in private business
- League of Nations
- political organization established by the Allied powers at end of World War I; replaced by United Nations 1946
- levee
- continuous dike or ridge (as of earth) for confining the irrigation areas of land to be flooded
- Locke, John
- an English philosopher and physician regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers, widely known as the Father of Liberalism and for contributions to classical republicanism and liberal theory that are reflected in the American Declaration of Independence
- Lusitania
- British ocean liner, the sinking of which by a German submarine on May 7, 1915, contributed indirectly to the entry of the United States into World War I
- mandate
- an authoritative command; especially: a formal order from a superior court or official to an inferior one: an authorization to act given to a representative (accepted the mandate of the people)
- manorialism
- an economic system based on the manor, lands including a village and surrounding acreage which were administered by a lord; developed during the Middle Ages to increase agricultural production
- manuscript
- any text written out by hand before the beginning of the printing press in the mid-15th century
- Marx, Karl
- (May 5, 1818 – March 14, 1883) a German philosopher, sociologist, historian, political economist, political theorist and revolutionary socialist, who developed the socio-political theory of Marxism
- Medieval Europe
- from 400 A.D. to 1400 A.D. when there was no centralized power and feudal lords were the authorities in each region of Europe
- mercantilism
- an economic system developing during the decay of feudalism to unify and increase the power and especially the monetary wealth of a nation by a strict governmental regulation of the entire national economy usually through policies designed to secure an accumulation of bullion, a favorable balance of trade, the development of agriculture and manufactures, and the establishment of foreign trading monopolies
- meritocracy
- a system in which those who perform the best are given promotions or rewards
- migration
- moving from place to place and following the food and resources
- militarism
- predominance of the military class or its ideals b: exaltation of military virtues and ideals
- Mohenjo-Daro
- one of the oldest cities in the world, founded by the Harappan people around 2600 BCE in the Indus River Valley (around the present-day border between India and Pakistan)
- monarchy
- government controlled by a single leader
- Muhammad Ali
- (4 March 1769 – 2 August 1849) an Albanian commander in the Ottoman army who is regarded as the founder of modern Egypt
- nationalism
- loyalty and devotion to a nation; especially: a sense of national consciousness exalting one nation above all others and placing primary emphasis on promotion of its culture and interests as opposed to those of other nations or supranational groups
- navigation
- the science of getting ships, aircraft, or spacecraft from place to place; the method of determining position, course, and distance traveled
- Neolithic Age
- era relating to the latest period of the Stone Age characterized by polished stone implements
- Neolithic Revolution (Agricultural)
- the New Stone Age (Neolithic) began about 10,000 BC and lasted until about 3,500 BC, and was marked by a change from hunting and gathering food to domesticating animals and cultivating land as farmers
- nomadic
- roaming from place to place
- occupation
- the holding and control of an area by a foreign military force
- Paleolithic Age
- era relating to the earliest period of the Stone Age characterized by rough or chipped stone implements
- Pan-Slavism
- a political and cultural movement originally emphasizing the cultural ties between the Slavic peoples but later associated with Russian expansionism
- Paris Peace Conference
- meeting of the Allied victors following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for Germany and other defeated nations
- patriarchal
- based on the patriarch, or the father of the family
- petition
- a written request signed by many people demanding change from their government
- petroleum
- an oily flammable bituminous liquid that may vary from almost colorless to black, occurs in many places in the upper strata of the earth, is a complex mixture of hydrocarbons with small amounts of other substances, and is prepared for use as gasoline, naphtha, or other products by various refining processes
- philosopher-king
- the Platonic ideal of a ruler, philosophically trained and enlightened; an elite or wise person whose knowledge enables them to rule justly
- political
- related to the structure of government including who controls power and how decisions are made
- popular sovereignty
- rule of the people
- printing press
- invention that increased the output of printed material and made such material available to much of the population
- purpose of establishment of government
- to protect people’s individual rights
- religious
- refers to a society’s spiritual beliefs and practices
- Renaissance
- time of great change in society and religion characterized by great achievements in arts, literature, science, and classical learning (literally translated means "rebirth")
- reparations
- the act of making amends, offering expiation, or giving satisfaction for a wrong or injury
- representative democracy
- system in which citizens vote for politicians who make decisions, such as in the modern United States
- right of citizens to abolish an oppressive government
- John Locke’s reasoning for abolishing existing government as described in the Declaration of Independence
- self-evident
- obvious to oneself
- serfs
- peasants who were bound to the land that they farmed for wealthy land owners
- social
- refers to the different groups of people in a society and how they relate to each other
For example, gender relationships between men and women, or the relationship between different racial groups. These are what we call “social” differences.
- social contract
- when individuals give up their rights in order to be protected
- socialism
- an economic system in which government owns some factors of production and participates in answering the four economic questions of “what to produce,” “how to produce,” “how much to produce,” and “for whom to produce”
- standarization of money
- setting a standard for the value of money
- state of nature
- no government, no rules, absolute freedom
- subjugation
- overthrow by conquest
- theocracy
- government controlled by a religious organization or representatives of a religious organization
- trade
- the business of buying and selling or bartering commodities
- trade fairs
- large gatherings where goods and services from many regions were bought and sold
- Treaty of Versailles
- the formal agreement to end World War I
- tyrant
- a ruler who has absolute power
- urbanization
- the growth of cities and towns
- ultimatum
- a final proposition, condition, or demand; especially: one whose rejection will end negotiations and cause a resort to force or other direct action
- unalienable
- not able to be taken away
- unrestricted submarine warfare
- a type of naval warfare in which submarines sink military ships without warning
- urban
- refers to cities; for example “urban lifestyle” can be understood to mean “city lifestyle”
- war of attrition
- strategy of weakening or exhausting by constant harassment, abuse, or attack
- weapons of war
- weapons used by combatants to wage war
- Yalta Conference
- a meeting of Great Britain, U.S., and the Soviet Union to decide the fate of Germany
- ziggurat
- an ancient Mesopotamian temple tower consisting of a lofty pyramidal structure built in successive stages with outside staircases and a shrine at the top; also: a structure or object of similar form
- Zimmermann Note
- a telegram from German Foreign Minister Arthur Zimmermann to the German Minister to Mexico, von Eckhardt, offering United States territory to Mexico in return for joining the German cause
This message helped draw the United States into the war and thus changed the course of history.