İSTANBUL ŞEHİR UNIVERSITY

FALL 2018
UNI 221
Midterm I Study Guide
October 25, 2018 (09:00-10:00) #2301

The first midterm exam will be a 60-min exam covering all the reading assignments, and
lectures delivered till the end of the 5th week: While Chapters 1 and 2 are fully included,
Chapter 3 is partly (until page #100, Nomads and the Indus River Walley)

There will be two parts in this exam:

Part I
In this part, you will be asked to identify and explain the historical significance of three
keywords from a list of five. The keywords will come from the list given below. (10 points
each)

Example:
Shang Dynasty?
The first known dynasty which ruled the Yellow River valley civilization in China in the
second millennium B.C.E. Their state, society and military power were based on agriculture
and animal husbandry. They are also known for their mastership in bronze-casting, ancestral
worship, and divination with oracle bones. They were overthrown by the Zhou Dynasty at
the end of the second millennium B.C.E.

Part II
In the second part, you will be asked to write a total of three answers. There will be five
possible topics, out of which you will choose the three you wish to write on. (23 points each)

Possible Question:
What were the two most vital breakthroughs that the nomadic and transhumant migrants
transmitted to the settled people? What kind of an impact did these breakthroughs
eventually make in the military-political history of Eurasia? Explain with a specific case. 

Possible answer should include:

-       The two vital breakthroughs were the harnessing of the horse and the invention of
the horse chariot
-       The harnessing of the horse provided a new draft animal, whereas the chariot
shortened the travel time between capitals as well as it overturned the machinery of war. 
-       The horse chariot had a driver and an archer, thus when it charged into the battle
with lethal precision and ravaging speed, it easily overrun the slow-moving infantry. The
mobility, accuracy and shooting power of chariot warriors soon tilted the political balance.
They challenged the political systems of Mesopotamia and Egypt while affecting war-
making in distant regions such as present-day Greece, India and China. Overall, for much of
the 2nd millennium BCE, charioteer elites prevailed in Afro-Eurasia.
-       A telling example in this regard is ancient Egypt. The pharaohs of the Middle
Kingdom learned the chariot and its technology from the Hyksos, who invaded northern
Egypt around 1640 BCE. Egyptians adapted not only the horse chariot from the Hyksos, but
also some other weapons, such as the composite bow and the scimitar. These weapons
(which the Egyptians further perfected) then transformed the Egyptian army from a
standing infantry to a high-speed, mobile and deadly fighting force. As a result, a new, much
powerful kingdom was established in Egypt, stretching from the Mediterranean shores to
Ethiopia.

Chapter 1: Homo sapiens, Transhumance, Domestication, Steppe, Bipedalism

Chapter 2: Epic of Gilgamesh, Bell Beakers, Troy, River basins, Stamp Seal, Ma’at,
Chapter 3: Territorial State, Vassal State, Amarna Letters