Era 1 at a glance: c. 1200 to c. 1450 (Units 1 and 2)

Era 1 is where the course starts, and it sets up everything after it. Unit 1, The Global Tapestry, looks at how states in East Asia, Dar al-Islam, South and Southeast Asia, the Americas, Africa, and Europe got and kept power. Unit 2, Networks of Exchange, shows how those states connected through trade, and what that trade spread: goods, religions, technology, and disease. Each unit is worth about 8–10% of the AP exam.

Here's how to use this section:

Notes: the full slide presentations for each topic, plus shorter "snippets" you can get through in one sitting.

Maps: where everything is. Start here if the place names aren't sticking.

Key Terms and Important People: quick definitions to review before a quiz.

Videos and Illustrative Examples: extra explanation, plus the specific examples the course framework names, which make great essay evidence.

Keep the two essential questions in mind: How did states establish and maintain power? and How did the exchange of goods and ideas affect the development of states?

Teaching Units 1 and 2? I've built each unit as a complete lesson pack with a 12-day teacher guide and every handout, ready to print.

Teaching Unit 2? Unit 2 complete lesson

Unit 1 complete lesson

APWH Era 1 Notes

APWH Era 1 Key Terms

APWH Era 1 Maps

APWH Era 1 Important People

APWH Era 1 Videos

APWH Era 1 Illustrative Examples

Era 1 Notebook: a short version of the content

AP World 1200-1450 unit 1 global tapestry summary APWH

A "tapestry" is a textile art, like a very decorative curtain or rug. It has a lot of detail to it, different areas of design, but all one big cloth creation. That is the World as we see it when we start the course--lots of diverse, colorful things to see on one big canvas. We have to zoom in on different parts to see all the intricate details within, and can also zoom out to see the whole tapestry.

This era is essentially all about the foundation of state power--how States (governments, empires, dynasties, etc) GET power, how they EXPAND power, how they KEEP power, and how they govern diverse populations.

Notice that every unit is "Developments in..." It's catching you up on what is happening in the major civilizations in the world. It's a broad view with a general focus on the list above: how do governments get, keep, and maintain power?

This involves SOCIAL STRUCTURES as well as CULTURAL TRADITIONS. It requires ECONOMIC ACTIVITY, and results in various INNOVATIONS to make things work well. That is why we use an organizing strategy called SPICE-T in this course.

The essential question to keep in mind (and try to answer) is: How did states establish and maintain power?

AP World 1200-1450 networks of exchange summary APWH

This era is related to the first unit because it deals with the connections between those places across land and sea. That means it's almost all about TRADE - the economic events that gave governments power, as well as the motivation and/or ability to expand and strengthen their empires.

Here's a tip: when you're writing essays and you get a prompt you aren't sure about, you can almost ALWAYS make a good response center on trade. When in doubt, go with either TRADE or TECHNOLOGY, both of which are in this unit!

The big feature is the MONGOLS, who are really the reason we start our study in this course in the year 1200--they changed the world.

The rest of the unit is either about how people connected across the Earth (by land, by sea, across desert), WHY they did it, and HOW they did it. It also deals with the CONSEQUENCES (good and bad) of the growth of trade networks.

We will see how this all works out in the next era...

The essential question to keep in mind is: How did the exchange of goods and ideas impact the development of states?