UNIT 1. The World and the West, 1500–1900 1. Aztecs: A New Perspective, John M.D. Pohl, History Today , December 2002 Who were the Aztecs? What were their accomplishments? What caused their downfall? For centuries, the answers to these questions were shrouded in mystery and misinterpretation. John M.D. Pohl offers a fresh interpretation of the Aztecs and their civilization , written from the perspective of our twenty-first century world. 2. The Peopling of Canada, Phillip Buckner, History Today , November 1993 Canada was the creation of two imperial powers —France and England—during two distinct time periods. At first a French colony and later a British one, Canada… experienced dramatically different immigration patterns. During the earlier French phase, emigration to Canada was painfully slow. However, during the later British phase, the emigration rate rose dramatically, creating a cultural dichotomy that still affects Canada today. 3. 400 Years of the East India Company, Huw V. Bowen, History Today , July 2000 Elizabeth I granted a charter to the East India Company in 1600, and in the two centuries to follow it became a powerful vehicle for economic and imperial expansion. It was important for extending British influence into China and India, and it even played a role in starting the American Revolution. 4. The Ottomans in Europe, Geoffrey Woodward, History Today , March 2001 In its contacts with the non-Western world , Europe usually gained the upper hand. However, one non-Western power was able to fight Western Europe to a standstill and sometimes threatened its very existence. For a few centuries, the Ottoman Turks were a problem that Europe couldn’t ignore. 5. The Potato Connection, Alfred W. Crosby, Civilization , January/February 1995 Although the New World offered an opportunity for conquestand conversion to Christianity, the acquisition of new foodcrops, especially corn and white potatoes, had the greatestglobal impact. Foods from the Western Hemisphere spread worldwide andare a part of a “Columbian Exchange” that continuestoday. 6. Coffee, Tea, or Opium?, Samuel M. Wilson, Natural History , November 1993 The transport of opium to China gave the British merchants a favorable trade balance for the purchase of tea and other Chinese goods. Threatened with the moral destruction of their people, the Chinese government tried to stop the drug trade, but superior British warships enforced the trade and won five ports and Hong Kong for British control. 7. After Centuries of Japanese Isolation, a Fateful Meeting of East and West, James Fallows, Smithsonian , July 1994 The arrival of Matthew Perry at the head of a U.S. naval squadron in 1853 forced Japan out of two centuries of isolation. Although the outside intrusion was unwelcomed, the Japanese suffered no defeat and in the next half-century successfully melded their culture with Western technology to become the most powerful nation in the Far East. 8. Chinese Burns: Britain in China, 1842–1900, Robert Bickers, History Today , August 2000 The Boxer Rebellion began in 1899 in northern China and was based upon Chinese resentment of foreign intrusion and domination. It attracted the support of the Qing government and resulted in the killing of hundreds of missionaries, Chinese Christians, and foreigners. Western retaliation was swift and effective, but when Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997, the Western emphasis was upon forgetting, the Chinese emphasis upon remembering. 9. The Zulus and the Boer War, Jabulani Maphalala, History Today , January 2000 In South Africa, the Zulus were defeated by both the Boers and the British as the Europeans pushed into Zulu territory. When the British fought against the Boers at the end of the nineteenth century, they recruited Zulus to fight for them. After the war, the British were more concerned with reconciliation with the Boers than with reward for the Zulus. Despite British promises, the natives were worse off after the conflict. UNIT 2. The Ferment of the West, 1500–1900 10. The First Feminist, Shirley Tomkievicz, Horizon , Spring 1972 She did not hate men, nor did she deny the traditional roles of women as wives and mothers. However, in the late eighteenth century, Mary Wollstonecraft pursued a successful writing career and argued that the female had as good a mind as the male. 11. George Mason: Forgotten Founder, He Conceived the Bill of Rights, Stephan A. Schwartz, Smithsonian , May 2000 He thought public service was a duty, supported the American Revolution, and believed in the natural rights of people. He participated in the writing of the Federal Constitution , yet refused to endorse it because there was no Bill of Rights . George Mason thus sacrificed his public reputation, and he remains a "forgotten founder." 12. This is Not a Story and Other Stories, Eugen Weber, The New Republic , February 1, 1993 Denis Diderot was an 18th century French thinker/writer/editor who was responsible for creating the Encyclopedia , the largest compendium of written knowledge in the western world to that date. The world he and his colleagues—Voltaire, Rousseau, Montesquieu—described became a key text of the Age of Enlightenment , which paved the way for the creation of our modern world. 13. From Mercantilism to ’The Wealth of Nations,’, Michael Marshall, The World & I , May 1999 Jean-Baptiste Colbert developed mercantilist economic ideas under Louis XIV in an attempt to create a favorable balance of trade for France. His ideas clashed with the later free trade thoughts of Adam Smith of Scotland. The controversy continues today because nations still worry about unfavorable trade flows. 14. The Return of Catherine the Great, Tony Lentin, History Today , December 1996 Catherine the Great of Russia (1762–1796) was one of a group of national leaders known as enlightened despots , rulers who governed with an iron fist, but tried in varying degrees to initiate reforms to help their people. A fascinating character, she ultimately failed to bring Enlightenment values to Russia. 15. As Good as Gold?, T. J. Stiles, Smithsonian , September 2000 Wampum, bales of tobacco, coins, paper, and gold have all been used as money —a “medium of exchange” as the economists call it—in the United States. Now, paychecks are issued electronically and money is an electric current. 16. A Woman Writ Large in Our History and Hearts, Robert Wernick, Smithsonian , Decem