Students will answer one of the following questions in a comprehensive essay. Include a source page. The essay should be factual and written to answer the specific references in the question.
1. Discuss the history of Ancient Rome. Explain the reasons for its longevity as a worldwide empire and the relationship between the patricians and the plebeians in their attempts to share political power. Discuss the legacy of the Roman Empire and the three channels that legacy was passed to the modern age.
2. Discuss the rise of Islam. Discuss the essence of this religious philosophy and its impact on Western Civilization. Discuss the consequences of and motives for the Crusades of the Eleventh century.
3. Discuss the impact of the Viking Invasions of the 9"' century AD. Detail the specific consequences of the intrusion of the Norsemen into Western Europe. Discuss the makeshift form of government referred to as feudalism as a reaction to the Vikings forays.
4. Discuss the impact of the Hundred Year's War and the great Plague of the 13th and 14th centuries on Western Society.