Final terms Flashcards
Tamerlane (Timur Lenk)
r. 1369-1405 in Central Asia during the Chagatai Khanate. The last great nomadic conqueror. He was not the “official” ruler, but pulled all the strings and controlled the army. The Timurids were his descendents.
Yasa
Began during the rule of Genghis Khan in 1206-1227. The compilation of decrees and laws. Many other used this book as the basis for their laws.
Chinggisid
Descendents of Genghis Khan, the only peoples with the authority to rule, which is why Tamerlane could never officially rule. After the reign of G. Khan which ended in 1227-Tamerlane’s rule which ended in 1405.
Chagatai Khanate
1225-1360s. One of the four khanates established by the Mongols. This was the smallest and poorest, and by the time of Tamerlane it had split in east and west (had more cities). Because of the weakness of this khanate Tamerlane was able to rise to power, unite the two halves with his military power, and take control of the whole khanate as the puppet master of the real khan.
Ankara
- This is where Tamerlane’s forces destroyed the Ottoman Turks and took the sultan, Bayezid I. The Ottomans were Tamerlane’s only real threat, and he crushed them, which temporarily shattered Ottoman power.
Samarkand
1369-1405. The capitol chosen by Tamerlane for his empire. There were many great monuments built here.
Timurid
post 1405. Tamerlane’s descendants, part of his legacy., especially for art culture in Central Asia.
Ottoman Turks
1300-1922. An originally small group of Asian Muslims in NW Turkey. Because of their location they were able to expand their control in two directions, Asia and Europe. Gained control of the Byzentine empire and the Balkans.
Edirne
- The new Ottoman capitol on the European side of Turkey.
Bayezid I
r. 1389-1402. One of the Ottoman rulers. In 1400 besieged Constantinople and lost when Tamerlane appeared and captured him and the battle of Ankara.
Mehmed II
r. 1451-1481. Ruler of the Ottomans that also wanted to take over Constantinople. In 1453 he succeeded. Spent the rest of his reign taking over Christian states in Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria, and Serbia. His reign marks the end of the Byzentine empire. He also changed the status and function of sultan, making him more distant from the common people.
Timar
This is the system that the Ottomans used to pay their cavalry. The cavalry fought at their own expense, and so to compensate the sultan would grant them tax revenue from certain areas. This was not a grant of power or control over the area, they just got the money. Of course there was not an endless amount of land and tax revenue, so this gave the sultan incentive to expand the territory.
Millet
A system of community organization based on one’s religion. There were Muslims, Jews, Orthodox Christians, and Armenian Christians. Non-Muslims were not persecuted, but they did have to pay a special tax and were considered second class. These communities were self-governing and religious leaders were the buffer between the community and the sultan.
devsirme
A tax paid in children. Every five years tax collectors would go to Christian Balkan villages to take 1 boy per 40 houses, between the ages of 8-20. These boys would then be taken to Constantinople and raised, became the Ottoman infantry or other officials. The only official that was not a former Christian was he sultan himself.
Janissaries
The Ottoman infantry who received paid salaries. The infantry was completely made up of the boys taken from the devsirme. An interesting example of social mobility; a poor boy in a Balkan village can rise up to be an elite janissarie by his own merit.
Ming Dynasty
1368-1644. The dynasty that rose up after the rebellions following the fall of the Mongolian Yuan dynasty. Marked the restoration of native Chinese rule, brought back the exam system and focus on Confucianism.
Zhu Yuanzhang (Hongwu emperor)
r. 1368-1398. A peasant who was orphaned at a young age and sought refuge in a Buddhist monastery. He later joined a rebellion group (that fought other rebellions as well as Mongols). Became the leader of his group, beat all the other groups, and became the emperor
Law of avoidance
A set of laws confining scholar officials in the Ming dynasty to certain areas. Officials could not serve in their home province, officials served for three years and then were sent to a new province. This kept officials to build up a power base pf his own and avoid favoritism to friends and family.
Outer court
One of the two groups of central officials in the Ming dynasty capitol. They were ministers that oversaw various departments (education, war, etc.). All officials were recruited through the examination system and was completely merit based, so there was some chance for social mobility.
Inner court
One of the two groups of central officials in the Ming dynasty capitol. This was the imperial court that served as advisers to the emperor, also did his paper work and controlled the flow of documents to and from the emperor.
Zhu Di (the youngle emperor)
r. 1402-1424. The third emperor of the Ming dynasty, took the title “Yongle” (perpetual happiness). He moved the capitol from Nanjing to Beijing, ordered an encyclopedia of all knowledge that was 11 thousand volumes. Commissioned many voyages, and so China developed the greatest naval fleet of the 15th c. Showed that the China had a lot of wealth, power, and technology.
Zheng He
A Turkik Muslim who was a eunuch and a powerful general for Zhu Di. He was the one commissioned to make voyages. Led 7 voyages between 1405-1433; each voyage took about 2 years because of the monsoon season.
Tribute system
The Chinese thought themselves to be the greatest society, wanted to give lesser people a chance to become more Chinese. This is why Zheng He was commissioned for voyages, he was a diplomat to other countries; would announce the new Yongle emperor and bring lavish gifts to the rulers, and if they wanted to trade with China would have to go and give a gift to the emperor in return. This was not about conquest or exploration, it was about showing the world how great China was and for the emperor to be legitimized.
Koryo Dynasty
918-1392. The Korean dynasty that preceded the Choson. Fought with the Mongols, but in 1259 became a part of the Mongol empire and were vassals of the Yuan emperor. The Mongols used Korea and Korean soldiers to launch two invasions into Japan, which failed. After the fall of the Mongols the kings were independent, seized Chinese territory. Eventually ended when Yi Song-gye led a coup and named himself emperor.
Choson Dynasty
1392-1910. Translates to “Fresh dawn.” Changed the official state doctrine from Buddhism to Confucianism, lessened the power of the aristocracy, implemented a civil service exam (but was restricted to the Yanglan class). Essentially mimicked a lot of Chinese customs, wanted to be as similar as possible to the great Chinese nation.
Yi Song-gye
r. 1392-1398. Was a general in the Koryo dynasty and was pro-Chinese relations. 1388 the Hong Wu emperor demanded back the Ming territory Korea had seized. The Koryo king wanted Yi to lead an invasion into China, Yi refused and staged a coup instead. For four years he ruled as the puppet master until he named himself the first king of the Choson dynasty.
yangban
The elite class in the Choson dynasty that were the only ones allowed to sit for the civil service exam, so even with the exams there was no chance for social mobility. If a family did not produce an official for three generations they would lose their title, so there was a lot of incentive to study and take the exams.
Sejong
r. 1419-1450. The greatest king of the Choson dynasty, became a cultural hero. He standardized measurements, ordered cartographic surveys to make maps, built an observatory and made star maps, invented the rain gauge, which was used along with the map data to see where the best areas for agriculture were, issued taxes accordingly. During his reign printing became more sophisticated (movable type), and developed Han’gul so that even commoners could learn how to read and write.
Han’gul
The Korean alphabet that Sejong developed in 1443 and was officially implemented in 1446. Very simple an efficient, looks like Chinese characters. However, educated wrote and spoke Chinese, so this language was looked down on for a while.
Punch’ong ware
A type of pottery developed during the Choson dynasty. Was not restricted to special classes, used by ordinary and elite people. Links Koryo celadon to white porcelain.
Muromachi Shogunate (Ashikaga)
1333-1573. Followed the Kamakura shogunate after a revolt started by Go-Daigo and Ashikaga Takauji. The Shogun still has a lot of power, but they give more power to the shugo (milirary police). Eventually the structure splinters and the shugo become even more powerful, but at the same time the daimyo, local strong men, are gaining more power of their own. The Onin war breaks out and the daimyo are able to assert their own power, so control devolves down the local level. Still a creative time, territory is surveyed and mapped , helps with agriculture. Zen Buddhism spread and Noh dramas.
Shogun
Commander of the Japanese emperor’s army, but like Tamerlane was the real ruler, the emperor was just a figure head. The emperor appointed the shogun, which gave him authority (except this was also just a show for the people).
Bakufu
The military government in Japan. The emperor was in charge of appointing officials and the shogun appointed the bakufu, so they were loyal to him. The Shogun would divide up land rights between them and give them the revenue (taxes went to the emperor) in order to pay them for their service. During the Muromachi period were given a lot more power.
Kamakura shogonate
1192-1373. There were a lot of stresses that contributed to its fall: the land was severely fragmented because property was distributed to all sons, and the Mongols led two invasions into Japan in 1274 and 1281. This really strained the bakufu and put them under enormous economic stress. Eventually the emperor plotted with officials to take power from the shogun and won, thus beginning the Muromachi shogunate.
Go-Daigo
r. 1318-1339. The emperor of the Kamakura shogunate who wanted to actually rule and started a rebellion against the shogun. Received help from Ashikaga, who wanted to be shogun. Go-Daigo fled from Kyoto while Ashikaga stayed.
Ashikaga Takauji
r. 1336-1358. Rebelled against Go-Daigo in order to become the shogun. After Go-Daigo fled Kyoto there was a civil war between 1336-92 between the two sides. Eventually Ashikaga won.
Shugo
Aristocratic provincial military officials/governors of appointed by the shogun. Under the Kamakura, they were only in charge of military and police actions. Under the Muromachi, their power expanded: in addition to military and police actions they: collect taxes; hear all judicial matters. The Shoguns tried to rule in coalition with the shugo—the shogun is first among many. The shoguns during the Muromachi gave them too much power, so the shogun didn’t allow them to rule in their own province.
Onin war
1467-1477. A war over the succession of the shogun during the Muromachi shogunate. Because of all the chaos the power devolved down to the local level of the daimyos. The was still an emperor, a shogun, and shugo, but they didn’t really have any power anymore.