This project is a 5 – 10 page double spaced paper in which you will critically analyze, using historical evidence, three major turning points in world history before 1500. Your paper should be divided into three sections each of which is devoted to the critical analysis of one turning point. You must choose one early, one middle, and one late turning point. You must use historical evidence and cite your sources. You must use sources. You should select the three turning points you think had the most historical impact and your paper should successfully argue why the three you chose changed history the most. You need a thesis paragraph. Each turning point should have its own section each of which should be more than one paragraph. Then you need concluding paragraph. You should focus on explaining how each turning point changed history and then try to find a common overall theme like “revolutions” or “technology” to link them together in the concluding paragraph. Early The collapse of the Bronze Age in the Near East 1200-1000 B.C. The failure of Persia to conquer the Greek city states 495-475 B.C. The Hellenistic Age 334-130 B.C. The unification of China by Qin Shihuangdi 221 B.C. Middle Constantine legalizes Christianity 321 A.D. The Fall of Rome 476 A.D. The Islamic conquests 631 A.D. The battle of the Talas River 751 A.D. Late Al Mamun’s minha and the mu’tazilah 833 A.D. The fall of Constantinople 1453 A.D. The Discovery of the New World 1492 A.D. The publication of Luther’s 95 theses 1517 A.D.
