Question

Unit 3 Study Guide
1. What disagreement led to the original split between Sunni and Shia Muslims?
2. Who did Shia Muslims believe should have succeeded Muhammad as leader?
3. What title was given to the rulers of the Islamic Empire after Muhammad’s death?
4. After the death of Genghis Khan, how was the Mongol Empire divided?
5. What law code served as the foundation for Justinian’s Code?
6. Who was Justinian’s wife, and why is she remembered as influential
7. What skills did the Mongols develop that made them such successful warriors?
8. What is the pilgrimage to Mecca called, and who is required to make it?
9. What is the holiest city in Islam?
10. What major church was built under Justinian that still stands today?
11. Under which ruler did the Byzantine Empire reach its greatest size?
12. What was the Pax Mongolica, and how did it affect trade?
13. What was the official religion of the Byzantine Empire?
14. What did Constantine do that helped create the Byzantine Empire?
15. Why did Marco Polo’s travels have such a big impact on Europe?
16. What usually happened to towns and cities that resisted Mongol conquest?
17. Why did Muhammad consider himself the messenger of God
18. What long-term conflict arose within Islam after Muhammad’s death?
19. What is the Hijrah, and why is it important to Islamic history?
20. Name two differences between the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church.
21. What event in 1054 permanently split Christianity into two branches?
22. Why did Justinian’s Code matter to the preservation of Roman culture?
23. What role did Hammurabi, Moses, and Justinian each play in the development of law?
24. What were the Five Pillars of Islam? (List all five.)
25. What made the Byzantine Empire important for preserving Roman and Greek learning?
26. How did the Mongols encourage trade across Asia and Europe?
27. Who united the Mongol tribes in 1206?
28. Why was Constantinople an important city for trade and defense?
29. What language was primarily spoken in the Byzantine Empire, and what language was used in the Western Roman Empire?
30. What are two examples of how Justinian tried to restore the greatness of Rome in Constantinople?
summarize answers as short as possible

Answer 1

1. A dispute over who should succeed Muhammad as leader of the Muslim community.
2. Ali, Muhammad’s cousin and son‑in‑law.
3. Caliph.
4. Split into separate khanates (e.g., Golden Horde, Ilkhanate, Chagatai, Yuan).
5. Earlier Roman law (esp. the Twelve Tables / Roman legal tradition).
6. Theodora — powerful adviser who influenced policy and defended women’s rights.
7. Exceptional horseback riding, composite bow archery, mobility, discipline and siege tactics.
8. Hajj — required of every able-bodied, financially able Muslim once in their life.
9. Mecca.
10. Hagia Sophia.
11. Justinian I.
12. Period of Mongol peace and stability that made long‑distance trade (Silk Road) safer and more active.
13. Christianity (Eastern Orthodox).
14. Moved the capital to Byzantium (Constantinople) and legalized/promoted Christianity.
15. He brought back knowledge of Asian goods, riches and routes, boosting European interest in trade and exploration.
16. They were usually destroyed, sacked, and their populations often massacred.
17. He received revelations from Allah (via the angel Gabriel) and claimed to be God’s messenger.
18. The Sunni–Shia split over legitimate leadership/succession.
19. Muhammad’s migration from Mecca to Medina (622 CE); it established the Muslim community and starts the Islamic calendar.
20. Examples: Roman Catholic accepts papal supremacy; Eastern Orthodox rejects it. West used Latin liturgy; East used Greek.
21. The Great Schism of 1054.
22. It preserved and organized Roman legal principles that shaped later European law.
23. Hammurabi: codified Babylonian law; Moses: delivered Mosaic law/Ten Commandments; Justinian: codified Roman law (Corpus Juris Civilis).
24. Shahada (faith), Salah (prayer), Zakat (almsgiving), Sawm (Ramadan fast), Hajj (pilgrimage).
25. It preserved Greek and Roman texts, education and scholars who transmitted classical learning.
26. By securing the Silk Road (Pax Mongolica), providing safe passage, relay stations and stable rule.
27. Genghis Khan (Temüjin).
28. Located between Europe and Asia on key trade routes, highly defensible peninsula with strong walls and harbors.
29. Byzantine Empire: Greek; Western Roman Empire: Latin.
30. Reconquered parts of the West (military campaigns) and rebuilt Constantinople (e.g., Hagia Sophia) and codified Roman law.