How has geography influenced the course of history?

Question: How has geography influenced the course of history!?

Please, help me answer this extremely vague Western Civ question for the midterm review! Thank you!Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

Yikes - geography has had a huge impact on history!. What is now Israel, for instance, was the land between the lands!. Everybody coming and going from Egypt or the Hittite Empire had to go through Israel!. That makes that country a hotbed of conflict!.

also in "Guns, Germs and Steel" by Diamond he speaks of the geographical shapes of the continents!. Any innovation in farming travels easily sideways - because the weather remains more the same east and west!. But the weather changes a lot from North to South!.

Therefore continents like N!. America/S!. America and Africa have cultures which spread very slowly because they can't get their crops to grow in different weather conditions!. Takes a long time for the corn grown in the Mississippi Valley to adapt enough to be grown in New York for example!. This slows innovation and historical changes are slow!. These continents run from north to south!.

But the Eurasian continent is the luckiest one because it largely goes across - west to east - this way the same crops can be planted from Mongolia to France - that spreads innovation much more quickly - changes history a LOT!.

By the time of written history, man had spread his crops, his innovation and his lifestyle all over Eurasia, but N and S!. America and Africa remained more primitive, less settled, less innovation!.

Hope that helps!.Www@QuestionHome@Com