The Mesopotamians, The Civilization That Started It All The Mesopotamian Civilization is what began it all.

This is the first civilization ever in our world's history. Mesopotamia began in what is today Iraq. The origins of Mesopotamia are found all around the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers at the Fertile Crescent. Mesopotamians began as hunters and gatherers who eventually learned to use land, animals, and plants. They began to cultivate wheat and barley. Plant domestication seems to have occurred independently in various regions of Mesopotamia posing favorable to certain environmental conditions. This includes a diversity of habitats in a relatively small area, mild climate, abundant water, and wildlife. It is to be believed that in a certain rich flood plain in the center of Great Mesopotamia was the origin of wheat, barley, and oats. A civilization within Mesopotamia was the Sumerians. These people were the first people to live in villages. Their geographical location was between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. Sumer is the birthplace of the first civilization. In this civilization there was settled down city dwelling where people possess stable agriculture, domesticated animals, a hierarchical system of social classes with priest-kings, slaves, scribes, advisers, doctors, merchants, fishermen, blacksmiths and masons. The Sumerian economy was mainly based on agriculture. A significant invention that has remarkable influenced the entire world was the wheel. The first wheel was made out of complete solid wood. The Sumerians had no money system, except for the exchange of precious and semi-precious metals. Sumerians wrote on clay tablets with the writing system called cuneiform. Sumerians were a polytheistic civilization. The number of gods they worshipped was innumerable. Anu was the father of all gods and the lord of the heavens. In addition to gods of rivers, mountains, sun, moon, winds, storms, and planets, there were also individual personal gods. Sumerians built these very tall religious structures, these extremely high structures were known as ziggurats. Ziggurats were the homes for the gods to live in. Some few Sumerian women were married to the gods of the temples and ziggurats and therefore could not celibate. Others were prostitutes, and their children were legally adopted.

The Egyptians, The Pyramid Makers The Egyptian Civilization was one of the longest thriving empires the world has ever seen. The only other civilization that can compare is China, which is still around today. Egypt was a thriving civilization from its begin in 3000 BC to the last temple was closed in 537 AD. The Egyptians built structures, and made achievements a tremendous deal ahead of their time. The history of Ancient Egypt covers a period of over three thousand years. The major crop of Egypt was barley. Egypt was a huge fishing and trading civilization, using boats for transportation and economy. Egyptians believed animals to be sacred creatures, especially the cat. A great amount of Egypt's recognition is based on their structural achievements. They are probably most well known because of their pyramids, and mummies. The Egyptians were highly advanced in their architecture. They built huge structures far ahead of their time, all done with just manpower. Perhaps another big reason Egypt is so famous is one of the most basic things we take for granted-language. The Egyptians invented hieroglyphics, which was their form of writing. They was also one of the first civilizations to start an organized form of language. The history of Egypt has been divided up into 9 periods, also known as Kingdoms. These periods have been sub-grouped by historians into 3 periods known as the Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, and New Kingdom. During the Old Kingdom was when most of Egypt's technology and architectural achievements began. They started work on the pyramids and statues in the Old Kingdom as well as making new technologies. After the Old Kingdom, Egypt had a civil war, but was unified by Mentuhotep II, who unified Egypt again, started the Middle Kingdom, which would become Egypt's classical period. The Middle Kingdom is when the Egyptians began their arts and culture. The final kingdom, the New Kingdom was popular because of the Egyptian expansion. This is the period when Egypt made conquests and increased its size and strength. This is the period where Egypt acquired most of its great wealth. Then they begin building their largest pyramids and statues to honor their gods. After all these periods Egypt was later conquered by Rome and eventually lost its status as a world power. Egypt is also popular for several more things. Some of these are Egypt's great amount of wealth, riches, and jewels. They are also highly known for their worship of the gods. They believed that there were gods for most natural things, and they also believed in the afterlife, which is why they mummified themselves in tombs, which was for the afterlife.

Egypt is one of the best known civilizations ever and probably because of the magnitude of their accomplishments. Some of the Egyptian's beliefs and practices still baffle historians today, and there are still many artifacts and things to be found about Egypt.

The Chinese, Longest Surviving Civilization Ever China has the longest running civilization ever. The Chinese are still around today, and began somewhere around 2200 BC. In fact, most historians never thought Chinese culture went back as far as it did but archeological records have proven them wrong. And there are no known pieces of writing from China's first dynasty still around they without a doubt had a system of writing. The Chinese have many qualities about them. The Shang dynasty, which was one of the longest running Chinese dynasties, has a few things to remember about culture. The Chinese were tremendously good at working with tools especially bronze. The Shang dynasty also gives us the most complete record of Chinese writing. The Chinese are also quite well known for their fantastic work in the fields of mathematics and astronomy. Another important thing to know about them is their love for human sacrifice. They would sacrifice hundreds of people if a King died. The Chinese had a usual system for passing the throne of king from person to person. Instead of passing the throne from father to son , kingship was passed from oldest brother to youngest brother and then given to the oldest maternal nephew when there were no more brothers left. The Chinese thought their kings were decided upon by their ancestors in what was called a Mandate of Heaven. The Shang dynasty was responsible for many technological enlightenments, some of these being an aristocratic government, great artistry and excellent work in bronze, a writing system the Chinese still use today, and armies of thousands. The Shang dynasty eventually came to an end when it was over-taken by the nomadic people known as the Chou from northwestern china. The Chou began a feudal system of work in China. The dynasty where the western world discovered China was that of the Ch'in dynasty. It was at this time when China was unified and set up a strong government thanks to the teachings on Confucius. The leaders of the Ch'in dynasty clearly set up and made laws. They also developed weights and measures and made irrigation projects. The also setup a feudal type system and gave peasants land to work/live on. This dynasty is the period

where the Great Wall was built to keep the nomadic Mongols out of China. They were also credited with the invention of gunpowder and a 30-day 12-month calendar. The last part of China's ancient history is the Han dynasty, which was from 202 BC to 220 AD. Confucius taught people and the government was ran by his teachings. This is when China was a powerful civilization. During this dynasty there were more important things invented, such as the invention of paper, and the Chinese first learned of Buddhism. China is the longest running civilization ever, and the exact beginnings of it are unknown, but we do known it has been around for a long time and is still around today.

The Greeks, Pioneers In Science, Art, and Literature Ancient Greece is probably the most well known early civilization ever. They are well known for their advances in arts, sciences, math, and technology. The beginnings of Greece are unknown, and can be traced back all the way to Stone Age hunters and gatherers. One of the most well known technological advances of the Greek civilization was its practice in the field of medicine. Throughout literature it has been proved that the Greeks had highly advanced practices in surgeries, and medical practices. One of the other huge Greek advances was in the field of philosophy. Some of the best-known and studied philosophers ever were from ancient Greece, including Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. They were also highly advanced in mathematics, which they worked with mathematical problems and found solutions far ahead of their time. Greece was a very high-class civilization, where the government was based on citystates. Perhaps their greatest invention of all was the form of government they came up with, which we still use today-democracy. However these Greek democracies are nothing like our democracy today. The Greek commerce and trade by sea is what made all of the Greek city-states as wealthy and important as they were. Another reason behind Greece's power was its terrific warfare ability. Greece was in many wars throughout its history, and was the victor in most of these wars. Some of these wars include the Trojan War, and the Peloponnesian War. The most famous city-state for warfare was Sparta. The Spartans taught their children to fight around the age of eight.

While the other famous city-states like Athens were mostly known for the decadence and royalty. The probably most well known ruler of Greece was Alexander The Great. He was the leader of Macedonia, the city-state that took control over Greece, and he eventually gained control over Greece as a whole. Alexander The Great was probably the best leader of all time in Greece. He conquered new lands, but he was the first person to adopt the new land's customs, instead of forcing his customs on the new territory. This is why many of the civilizations he conquered actually were glad he took them over. He also encouraged his soldiers to marry the women from the new territories to show cultural intertwinement. Another very important thing of the Greeks was their starting of the Olympic games, which are currently still practiced today after being brought back in 1896. The winners of the Greek Olympics didn't win prizes, they simply did it for honor. Most of the Olympic games at the times of the Greeks did not include actual sports but more like competitions such as javelin throwing, or wrestling, or boxing, etc. The Greeks, like the Romans, believed in gods. They believed there were gods for almost every naturally occurring thing. The Greek gods are also more well known than the Roman gods. The Greeks had the more famous gods such as Zeus, and Poseidon. This also brought about a great deal of literature, which is very famous from the Greek Periods. Some of the better-known works are the Odyssey and Iliad by Homer. All of these factors together is probably why the Greeks are one of the more famous civilizations ever. They were highly advanced in their ways and a very refined civilization with extravagant wealth.

The Romans, The Most Famous Ancient Civilization As the legend goes, two twins named Romulus and Remus were born to the war god Mars and a Latin princess. The Latin king was afraid these boys would take his throne so he sent them floating down the Tiber River, thinking they would die. However a female wolf found these boys, and a shepherd found them and raised them. The boys later vowed to build a city where they were born. Eventually each of them chose a hill, and they began to quarrel. These quarrels led to Romulus killing Remus, and leaving Romulus's hilltop, Palatine, which was the center of the new city-Rome. Rome is

probably the most well known civilization of all time, and with good reason, because the Romans were highly sophisticated, and very ahead of their time.

The truth of this legend cannot be proved, but what is certain is that villages in the area of Rome began around 753 BC and started settling around the Tiber River. These areas slowly built up and by 200 BC Rome had become a powerful empire. This is right around the time the Punic Wars began. Carthage and Greece broke into war and Greece asked Rome to join its side. This would begin the first of three Punic Wars. The First Punic War (264-241 BC) was fought for control of Sicily, the Carthaginians wanted the Greek city Sicily. These battles took place over land and sea, and the Carthaginians were better sea fighters but the Romans won. In the Second Punic War (218-201 BC) Hannibal decided to invade Italy. He marched to Rome with 90,000 infantry, 12,000 cavalry, and 40 elephants, and over half of his soldiers died on the way. At the end of this war Hannibal lost 8,000 men in the fighting, and Rome lost 70,000. Hannibal won this fight. In the Third (149-146 BC), and final Punic War, the Roman army defeated Hannibal. After this war the Carthaginians were either killed or sold as slaves. After all of this fighting Rome had become the most powerful civilization in the world, and decided to become bigger, so they began to conquer land. This is when Caesar took power and expanded the borders of Rome, and Rome's power also expanded. After his conquests Caesar was killed, and willed Rome to Octavian. However, Marc Antony also wanted power of Rome and they became Rivals. Eventually Antony committed suicide leaving Octavian, who would later rename himself Augustus, in power. Rome went through a state of peace for over 200 more years, and had few problems, but when Marcus Arelius died in 180 AD, Rome was ruled by decadence. Then eventually Rome was split into Rome and Byzantium. Rome eventually fell to the army of the Alaric. There are probably two things that set the Romans apart from the other civilizations. These things are most likely the Roman architecture and their worship of the gods. The Romans, like the Greeks, believed there was a god for every natural thing around. Some of the Roman architecture is very world famous. Perhaps one of the most famous buildings is the Coliseum. They are also famous for their statues, and decadence, extravagant money spending, and elaborate possessions. Rome was also a large civilization in area and wealth, making it one of the more famous.

Middle Ages The Period in western European History between the fall of the Roman Empire and the fifteenth century Gothic An architectural style developed during the middle ages in western Europe; featured pointed arches and flying buttresses as an external support on main walls Vikings Sea-going Scandinavian raiders who disrupted coastal areas of Europe from eighth to eleventh centuries; pushed across the Atlantic to Iceland, Greenland, and North America Manorialism System of economic and political relations between landlords and their peasant laborers during the Middle ages; involved a hierarchy or reciprocal obligations that exchanged labor for access to land Holy Roman Emperors Rulers in northern Italy and Germany following break-up of Charlemagne's empire; claimed title of empire but failed to develop centralized monarchy Feudalism Relationships among the military elite during the middle ages greater lords provided protection to lesser lords in return for military service Vassals Members of the military elite who received land or a benefice from a lord in return for military service and loyalty Capetians French dynasty ruling from the tenth century; developed a strong feudal monarchy

William the Conqueror Invaded England from Normandy in 1066; established tight feudal system and centralized monarchy in England Magna Carta Great Charter issued by King John of England in 1215; confirmed feudal rights against monarchical claims; represented principle of mutual limits and obligations between rulers and feudal aristocracy Parliaments Bodies represented privileged groups; institutionalized feudal principle that rulers should consult their vassals Peter Abelard Author of 'Yes and No' Scholar who applied logic to problems of theology; demonstrated logic contradictions within established doctrine St. Bernard of Clairvaux Emphasized role of faith in preference to logic; stressed importance of mystical union with god; successfully challenged Abelard and had him driving from the universities Thomas Aquinas Creator of one of the great syntheses of medieval learning; taught at university pf Paris; author of 'Summas'; believed that through reason it was possible to know much about natural order, moral law, and nature of god Scholasticism Dominant medieval philosophical approach; so-called because of its base in the schools or universities; based on use of logic to resolve theological problems Black Death Plague that struck Europe in the 14th century; significantly reduced Europe's population; affected social structure