AP European History
Mr. Thomas
AP European History Summer Assignment: 2016
PART ONE: Read A World Lit Only By Fire and prepare for a class
discussion and possible in-class writing assessment by taking notes (see page 2 for
required format). This book can be borrowed from the library, purchased online, or
purchased at a local bookshop.
Title: A World Lit Only By Fire
Author: William Manchester
Length: 290 pages
Brief Description (from amazon.com): It speaks to the failure of medieval
Europe, writes popular historian William Manchester, that "in the year 1500, after a
thousand years of neglect, the roads built by the Romans were still the best on the
continent." European powers were so absorbed in destroying each other and in
suppressing peasant revolts and religious reform that they never quite got around to
realizing the possibilities of contemporary innovations in public health, civil
engineering, and other peaceful pursuits. Instead, they waged war in faraway lands,
created and lost fortunes, and squandered millions of lives. For all the wastefulness
of medieval societies, however, Manchester notes, the era created the foundation for
the extraordinary creative explosion of the Renaissance. Drawing on a cast of
characters numbering in the hundreds, Manchester does a solid job of reconstructing
the medieval world, although some scholars may disagree with his interpretations.
Disclaimer: Although recommended by the College Board and used as summer
reading at high schools throughout the country, A World Lit Only By Fire contains
one section with explicit content (pages 71-86). If you are uncomfortable with this
section, please skip over pages 71-86.
PART TWO: European Geography- Study the political map of Europe (page
3) and the list of capital cities (page 5-6). On Wednesday, September 7 you will take a
geography test that requires you to identify each European country and its capital on a
blank political map of Europe (page 4). You are only required to identify the
countries and capitals listed on pages 5-8. Spelling counts.
QUESTIONS: Email me if you have any questions regarding Parts I or II.
Feel free to send me a sample of your notes to be sure you are on the right track. It’s
better to check with me over the summer than to come to school on Wednesday,
September 7 unprepared. ([email protected])
Taking Notes in European History
You will quickly master two different types of note-taking in European History. We will save the
first—taking notes on textbook readings—for September. We will start the second—taking
notes on non-fiction books, primary sources, and other non-textbook readings—this
summer. As you read A World Lit Only By Fire, model your notes on the following example.
You will submit these notes on Turnitin.com on Wednesday, September 7. Please be advised
that you must take and submit your own, original notes. Copying or sharing of notes is strictly
prohibited and may be punishable in a variety of manners found on pages 37-40 of A World Lit
Only By Fire!
Step 1. First, consider your purpose and goals:
Purpose: 1) to help you process what you read; 2) to create a reference sheet that contains
specific examples and passages that will enable you to participate in our class discussion in early
September; 3) to create a study guide for a possible in-class writing assessment
Goal: to take a sufficient quantity of notes without interrupting your flow as a reader and without
detracting from your enjoyment of the book
Step 2. Next, consider two central questions that will help you determine what information is
worth recording in your notes.
Central Question #1: “William Manchester argues that the Renaissance challenged the
old assumptions of the Middle Ages. Using specific references from A World Lit Only By Fire,
analyze those assumptions and the forces and individuals that challenged them.”
Central Question #2: “A World Lit Only By Fire is little more than one scholar’s
interpretation of a historical era. Assess the validity of this statement by trying to distinguish
between historical fact and authorial bias in A World Lit Only By Fire.
Step 3. Next, consider at least two different procedures for note taking.
Option 1: Take notes while you read, recording a combination of big ideas, details, and
quotes that contribute to an understanding of the two central questions.
Option 2: Highlight while you read and then return to the highlighted material and record
only the most relevant big ideas, details, and quotes in your notes.
Step 4. Regardless of which option you choose, your notes on non-fiction books, primary
sources, and other non-textbook readings should follow the simple and utilitarian format modeled
below for the first 7 pages of A World Lit Only By Fire:
***Your notes for this book should be no longer than 3 pages. If they are longer, you
have taken too many notes.***
A World Lit Only By Fire
William Manchester
June 15, 2016
Page #
3. Dark Ages (400-1000AD) largely abandoned by historians, but not necessarily inaccurate and not an
unjustly negative term
3. Emperor Sigismund: “Ego sum rex Romanus et super grammatical” (“I am King of Rome and above
grammar”…proof that literacy was scorned)
3. Manchester’s view of Middle Ages: warfare, corruption, lawlessness, obsession with myth, and
mindlessness
3-5. Fall of Rome leads to darkness and devastation
5. Dark Ages were stark: famine, plague, no good roads built, art of bricklaying abandoned, few iron tools
for serfs
6. Only 1 of 100 Medieval murderers brought to justice according to English coroners
6. Tournaments were not glorious—60 knights hacked to death at Dusseldorf tourney in 1240
6-7. Paradox: Church had replaced Imperial Rome and found it easy to convert barbarians such as Clovis of
the Franks, but missionaries struggled to teach lessons of Jesus
7. Medieval Christians “knowing the other cheek would be bloodless, did not turn it.”
European Capitals
Albania
Tirana
Andorra
Andorra la Vella
Armenia [j]
Yerevan
Austria
Vienna
Azerbaijan [k]
Baku
Belarus
Minsk
Belgium
Brussels
Bosnia and Herzegovina Sarajevo
Bulgaria
Sofia
Croatia
Zagreb
Cyprus [d]
Nicosia
Czech Republic
Prague
Denmark
Copenhagen
Estonia
Tallinn
Finland
Helsinki
France [g]
Paris
Georgia [l]
Tbilisi
Germany
Berlin
Greece
Athens
Hungary
Budapest
Iceland
Reykjavík
Ireland
Dublin
Italy
Rome
Kazakhstan [i]
Astana
Latvia
Riga
Liechtenstein
Vaduz
Lithuania
Vilnius
Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Macedonia
Skopje
Malta
Valletta
Moldova [a]
Chișinău
Monaco
Monaco
Montenegro
Podgorica
Netherlands[h]
Amsterdam
Norway
Oslo
Poland
Warsaw
Portugal [e]
Lisbon
Romania
Bucharest
Russia [b]
Moscow
San Marino
San Marino
Serbia [f]
Belgrade
Slovakia
Bratislava
Slovenia
Ljubljana
Spain
Madrid
Sweden
Stockholm
Switzerland
Bern
Turkey [m]
Ankara
Ukraine
Kiev
United Kingdom
Vatican City
London (England, London – Scotland, Edinburgh –
Wales, Cardiff – N. Ireland, Belfast)
Vatican City