Economics of Colonization and Resistance-Parm/Phillips

Bank of Amsterdam

Established in 1609, one of the first modern banks that allowed for currency exchange and deposit banking, helped fund Dutch trade. Located in Europe

Joint-stock companies

Businesses owned by shareholders who invest capital and share profits and losses; used to fund European exploration and colonization. Located in Europe

Shareholder

An individual or group that owns part of a company by buying stock.

Credit

The ability to borrow money with the promise of repayment later, fueling trade and investment.

Interest

Extra cost paid to borrow money, usually a percentage of the loan.

Bill of Exchange

A financial document promising payment at a future date, used to transfer money safely across distances.

Bonds

Certificates that represent loans to governments or companies, paid back with interest.

Mercantilism

An economic philosophy in which a government utilizes colonies to extract resources for the benefit of the mother country. Located in Europe

Primogeniture laws

European laws requiring estates to pass only to the eldest son, pushing younger sons toward exploration/colonization. Located in Europe

Adam Smith

Economist who wrote The Wealth of Nations (1776), promoting free markets and capitalism; as well as criticizing mercantilism. Located in Europe

Capitalism

An economic system where the means of production are controlled by individuals and companies. Based off a free market principles where all producers and consumers have freedom to choose.

Laissez-Faire

"Hands-off" economics, arguing that government should not interfere with business.

Monopoly

A single company or group with exclusive control over a trade, market, or product.

The Wealth of Nations

Adam Smith's book (1776) laying out principles of capitalism and free markets.

Dutch East India Company (VOC)

Powerful joint-stock trading company that dominated spice trade in southeast Asia.

British East India Company

English joint-stock company that controlled trade in India, eventually ruling large parts of South Asia.

Encomienda system

Spanish labor system granting settlers the right to demand labor/tribute from Indigenous peoples in exchange for "Christianizing" them. Located in Latin America

Haceinda

Large rural plantation estates in Spanish America utilizes indigenous and African labor to produce cash crops.

Potosí

Major silver mine in modern Bolivia; fueled Spain's wealth and global silver trade. Located in Latin America

Triangular Trade

Atlantic trade system moving enslaved Africans, raw materials, and manufactured goods between Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

Cash crops

Crops grown for profit, not subsistence (sugar, cotton, tobacco).

Staple crops

Crops forming the basis of daily diet (wheat, rice, corn).

Tobacco

A major American cash crop fueling European demand and plantation slavery. Originated in the Americas

Indentured servitude

Labor system where people worked for a set amount of time (usually 4-7 years) in exchange for passage to the Americas.

Commercial Revolution

Period of European economic expansion (1500s-1700s) with banking, trade, and capitalism growth. Located in Europe

Infrastructure

Basic physical systems supporting trade and society; like roads, ports, and communication networks.

Piracy

Theft and violence at sea, often targeting colonial trade ships.

Swahili Arabs

Traders from East Africa who participated in slave trade, and linked Africa, the Middle East, and Asia through the Indian Ocean trade network. Located in East Africa

Royal African Company

British company that monopolized the slave trade to the Americas in the 1600s.

Chattel Slavery

System where enslaved people were treated as property for life, with no personal rights and their status passed to their children.

Plantation economy

Economic system based on large-scale agricultural production using enslaved or coerced labor.

Monoculture

Dependence on a single crop for export, making colonies vulnerable to market shifts, and often damaging local economies and soil.

Feitorias

Portuguese fortified trading posts along Africa, Asia, and Brazil for commerce and defense.

Everyday resistance

Small, subtle acts of defiance by enslaved or oppressed people (work slowdowns, sabotage, feigned illness).

Marronage

Act of enslaved people escaping slavery to form independent communities outside colonial control.

Maroons

Enslaved Africans who escaped and formed self-sustaining communities.

Palenques

Maroon communities in Mexico. Located in Central America

Macambos

Maroon communities in Brazil. Located in Latin America

King Philip's War / Metacom's War

(1675-1676) Conflict in New England between Native tribes led by King Phillip (also known as Metacom's War by the Native Americans) resisting English expansion. Located in North America

Pequot

Native American tribe in New England nearly destroyed by colonists in the Pequot War (1636-1638). Located in North America

Fronde

Series of French civil wars (1648-1653) against royal authority and taxation led by nobles. Located in Europe

Pugachev Rebellion

Massive peasant revolt in Russia (1773-1775) led by Cossack Yemelyan Pugachev against Catherine the Great. Located in Europe

Maroon Wars

18th-century wars in Jamaica between British colonizers and Maroon communities. Located in the Caribbean

Pueblo Revolt

1680 uprising of Pueblo peoples in New Mexico against Spanish colonizers, temporarily driving them out. Located in North America

Nzinga Mvemba (Afonso I of Kongo)

King of Kongo (early 1500s) who protested Portuguese slave trading abuses, but maintained ties with Portugal. Located in Central Africa

Asante Empire

West African state that rose to power by controlling gold and participating in the Atlantic slave trade. Located in west Africa

Kingdom of the Kongo

Central African kingdom involved in trade with Portugal, eventually weakened by the slave trade.