Ch 16: The World Economy
 By around 1500, silver was taking over as the
standard of currency
 Huge deposit of silver of Bolivia and in the
Americas
 Silver made trade between Europe and Asia
that much more feasible
 Spanish revived the practice of “mita” to find
workers
 In China, the increasing import of silver
increased the gap between the rich and poor
The West’s First Reach: Maritime Power
 Europeans entered the expansion period
with certain disadvantages: they were fairly
ignorant about the rest of the world, and
had inferior vessels
 As they did expand, they (Europeans)
lacked the gold to pay for Asian imports
New Technology: Key to Power
 During the 15th century, Europeans developed
deep-draft, round-hulled ships which are
more suitable for sailing oceans
 New and improved compass; in addition there
are new maps
 European knowledge of explosives was
adapted into gunnery
 Metalsmiths developed the first guns and
cannons, which helped Western Europe gain a
naval superiority
Portugal and Spain Lead the Pack
 Under Henry the Navigator, Portugal began
exploring down the coast of Africa, bringing
back slaves, spices, and stories of unfound
gold
 Portuguese sailors ventured around the Cape
of Good Hope in 1488, in search of direct
route to India  were unsuccessful
 When Portugal found out about Spain and
their explorer (Christopher Columbus), they
doubled their expansion efforts
 The Portuguese send Vasco da Gama and his
“fleet of four” to India in 1498
 These Portuguese explorers originally
thought that local Hindus were Christians
because they observed many churches, and
also experienced conflict with Muslim
merchants
 Vasco da Gama uses guns on ships to kill
Indian merchants to “send a message”
 Vasco da Gama’s success in India led the
Portuguese to colonize Brazil
 Portugal also ventured out to Africa and India
to establish colonies
 By 1514, the Portuguese had arrived in
Indonesia and in China
 In 1542, Portuguese arrived in Japan to
spread Christianity (Jesuits)
 At the same time, Spain was looking to follow
the steps of Portugal. In 1492, Christopher
Columbus set sail for India and reached the
Americas  which is why he called them
“Indians”
 Spain sends Amerigo Vespucci to the
Americas, which is where the name “America”
comes from
 Under Ferdinand Magellan, Spanish ships
sailed around the southern tip of S. America to
eventually claim the Philippines
Northern European Expeditions
 In the 16th century, the zeal of expansion
spread to N. Europe for two reasons:
monarchs in France and England got involved,
and as Protestants began to compete for
followers against Catholicism
 The shift from W. to N. Europe happened
because W. Europe was still “digesting” its
territorial gains, and because N. Europeans
designed lighter, faster ships than their
Catholic adversaries
 Northern Europe was more so looking for
money and profit than religious gains
 French explorers crossed the Atlantic and
colonized Canada in 1534, and eventually
ventured down into eastern United States
 Britain began expanding to the US as early as
1497 to Canada, and around a hundred years
later to the east coast of the United States
 The Dutch spread to SE Asia and to Africa
 Expansionist countries such as France,
Britain, Netherlands, etc. began creating
mega-companies such as the Dutch East India
Company and the British East India Company
 Overall, expansionist voyages consisted of
hardships at sea  work was tiring, voyages
lasted up to years sometimes, and diseases
were rampant