Ap Euro Dbq Essay

Many of the qualities of the New World were greatly affected by the people of historical Europe. The people of the Greek and Roman Empires, the Dark Ages, and the Renaissance helped establish what is now our government, economic system, and social structure.
In historical Europe, many of the countries were ruled by tyrants who dictated the citizen’s daily lives. In Ancient Athens, a new system arose that would greatly impact the course of history. ““In the year 507 B.C., the Athenian leader Cleisthenes introduced a system of political reforms that he called demokratia, or “rule by the people.” The Athenians established a direct democracy where the people voted directly on the matter at hand.” (Ancient Greek Democracy, History.com) “The Romans then created their own type of democracy, where the citizens elected leaders to represent the people’s opinion.” (Crabill, Ancient Rome) While neither the Athenian nor the Roman democracies were perfect by any means, they both

“For example, the only people who were allowed to vote in Athens were male citizens of Athenian descent who were age eighteen or older, meaning that only approximately 40,000 out of the approximate 260,000 people could vote.” (Ancient Greek Democracy, History.com) The Dark Ages were defined by serfs who worked the land; nobles, the upper class citizens; and vassals, loyal followers of the noble. “Feudalism is the social system that existed in Europe during the Dark Ages in which serfs and vassals worked and fought for nobles who gave them protection and the use of land.” (Merriam-Webster, Feudalism) “Social divisions also appeared during the Renaissance and consisted of five classes that varied in nature and number.” (Cheney, Italian Renaissance Art: Historical Background) Social classes were evident in all periods of historical Europe and continued to be into the New