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LAND BASED EMPIRES

A. Major European Developments

During the three centuries covered in this chapter, profound changes occurred on the European continent. These changes

government viewed their authority, the way religion intersected with politics and individuality, and the way Europeans

thought about and interacted with the rest of the world.

By the end of these 300 years, the European countries had used their new technologies, new ideas of governing, and new

forms of economic organization to become the dominant world powers. Much of their success was based on competition

and rivalry as they raced to secure faster trade routes and new colonial possessions, and attempted to gain control of key

resources. However, much of their success came at the expense of the land-based empires of Asia and the declining

empires in the Americas.

While the previous chapter was all about interactions, this one covers the period of European maritime empire-building

that resulted from those initial interactions across Asia and the Indian Ocean. As you review the enormous developments

in Parts A and B, think about how they were linked together and impacted each other.

B. Revolutions in European Thought and Expression:

By the 1300s, much of Europe had been Christian for a thousand years. The feudal system had dominated the political

and social structures for several hundred years, and the ancient classical civilizations of Greece and Rome had faded into

the ancient past.

The history of the Middle Ages was dominated by local issues, a concern with salvation, territorial dispute, disease and

famine, limited access to education, and small-scale trade. As you read in the last chapter, near the end of the Middle

Ages, countries began to unify under centralized rule. The Crusades exposed Christians to the advanced Islamic

civilizations, increased trade fueled contact with other parts of the world, and universities became great centers of

learning. This increased contact with foreign powers, along with scholasticism, exposed Europeans not only to

developments in the rest of the world but also to history. The Byzantine and Islamic Empires had preserved much of the

heritage of ancient Greece and Rome, even as they built unique civilizations of their own and made huge contributions to

ancient texts, especially in the areas of mathematics and science. As Europe expanded its worldview and interacted more

frequently with these two empires, it placed a greater emphasis on its own classical past.

The combination of a rediscovered past and a productive present led to major changes in the way Europeans viewed the

world themselves. These new perspectives led to four massive cultural movements; the Renaissance, the Protestant

Reformation, the Scientific Revolution, and the Enlightenment. These revolutions in expression and thought changed the

world. In a span of just a few hundred years, Europe when from being a backward outpost on the perimeter of the major

civilizations to the east to the home of some of the most dominant civilizations in the world.

Understand that this exploration and expansion were partly causing – and partly caused by – the major development in

thought and expression that are listed below.

1. The Renaissance: Classical Civilization Part II

After the Black Death abated and the population of Europe once again began to swell, the demand for goods and services

began to increase rapidly. Individuals moved to the cities. A middle class made up of bankers, merchants, and traders

emerged because of increased global trade. In short, Europe experienced an influx of money to go along with its new

found sense of history. It shouldn’t be too surprising that a sizable chunk of this money spent on recapturing and studying

the past.

Humanism: A Bit More Focus on the Here and Now In medieval Europe, thoughts of salvation and the afterlife so

dominated personal priorities that life on Earth was, for many, something to be suffered through on the way to heaven rath

than lived through as a pursuit of its own. As Europeans rediscovered ancient texts, they were struck with the degree that

humanity – personal accomplishment and personal happiness – formed the central core of so much of the literature and

philosophy of the ancient writers. The emphasis began to shift form fulfillment in the afterlife to participating in the here

and now.

This is not to say that medieval Europeans had no concerns in the present or that early modern Europeans suddenly

became hedonistic, focused on worldly pleasures. To the contrary, the Catholic Church and a focus on the afterlife

remained dominant. However, Europeans were fascinated with the ancient Greek and Roman concepts of beauty and

citizenship, and as a consequence they began to shift their focus to life on earth and to celebrating human achievements in

the scholarly, artistic, and political realms. This focus on human endeavors became known as humanism. Its impact was

far-reaching because a focus on present day life leads to a focus on individuals, and a focus on individuality inevitably

leads to a reduction in the authority of institutions.

The Arts Stage a Comeback The Renaissance literally means “rebirth,” and this was nowhere more apparent

than in the arts. In Italy, where powerful families in city-states such as Florence, Venice, and Milan became rich on

trade, art was financed on a scale not seen since the classical civilizations of Greece and Rome. The Medici family in

Florence, for example, not only ruled the great city and beyond (several family members not coincidentally became

popes!), but turned it into a showcase of architecture and beauty by acting as patron for some of the greatest artists fo the

time, including Michelangelo and Brunelleschi.

Unlike medieval paintings, which often depicted humans as flat, stiff, and out of proportion with their surroundings,

paintings of the Renaissance demonstrated the application of humanistic ideals learned from the ancients. Painters and

sculptors such as Leonardo da Vinci and Donatello depicted the human figure as realistically as possible. Careful use of

light and shadow made figures appear full and real. Many artists were so committed to this realism that they viewed and

participated in autopsies to fully understand the structure of the human body.

Western Writers Finally Get Readers Although printing was developed in China centuries earlier (remember

which dynasty? The Song), movable type wasn’t invented in Europe until the mid-1400s, when Johannes Gutenberg

invented the printing press. Prior to Gutenberg’s invention, the creation of books was such a long and laborious task that

few were made. Those that were made were usually printed in Latin, the language of scholars and the Catholic Church.

Because of this and the lack of public education, the typical person couldn’t own books or even read.

With the invention of the printing press, all that changed. Books became easy to produce and thus were far more

affordable. The growing middle class fueled demand for books on a variety of subjects that were written in their own

vernacular, or native language, such as German or French. The book industry flourished, as did related industries such as

papermaking, a craft that was learned from the Arabs, who learned it from the Chinese. More books led to more literate

and educated people. The newly literate people desired more books, which continued to make them more educated, which

again increased their desire for books, and so on. The most commonly circulated books and pamphlets were religious in

nature. New translations of the bible into vernacular languages encouraged public debate and personal interpretations of

the Bible and helped usher in the Reformation.

2. The Protestant Reformation: Streamlining Salvation

You might recall form the previous chapter that during the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church was an extremely powerful

force in Europe. While political power was diffused under the feudal system, and while the various European princes and

political powers frequently clashed with the pope, emperors and princes knew that their power increased if the church

blessed their reign. As a consequence, the pope wielded considerable political power.

The church was one of the most important institutions that unified ordinary people in Western Europe. It was a unifying

force, and institution believed to be sanction by God. With such widely accepted credential, the church held itself out as

not only the undisputed authority on all things otherworldly, but also the ultimate endorsement on all things worldly.

With one foot on Earth and the other in heaven, the pope – and with him the hierarchy of the Catholic Church – acted as

the intermediary between man and God. Nearly everyone in Europe understood this clearly: to get to heaven, you had to

proceed by way of the Catholic Church.

The church understood the power it had over the faithful. When it needed to finance its immense building projects plus

pay for the huge number of Renaissance artists it kept in its employ, it began to sell indulgences. An indulgence was a

piece of paper tha the faithful could purchase to reduce time in purgatory (the place Catholics believed they would go

after death). There, they would atone of their sins and then be allowed to enter heaven. Because purgatory was not

thought of as a happy place to go, people greatly valued the concept of reducing their time there. Selling indulgences was

not only a means of generating income, but also a way for the church to maintain power over its members.

During this time, landowning nobles grew increasing resentful of the church, which had amassed an enormous amount of

power and wealth and exploited a huge number of resources at the expense of the nobles. This resentment and mistrust

fueled anti-church sentiments. The selling of indulgences propelled the frustration into the ranks of the peasant class and

helped set the stage for confrontation. The selling of indulgences also confirmed to many the corrupt nature of the church.

Martin Luther: Monk on a Mission In 1517, a German monk name Martin Luther nailed a list of 95 theses on a

church door – a list that was distributed quickly and widely by aid of the newfangled printing press. His list outline his

frustrations with current church practices, including the church’s practice of selling indulgences, which he said amounted

to selling salvation for profit. Luther’s frustrations had been building for some time. He had traveled to Rome, and was

unnerved by the worldly nature of the city and the Vatican (the seat of the Catholic Church), which was in the midst of

getting a renaissance makeover – upgrades that were clearly paid for with money from church goers in far away places.

Among Luther’s many complaints was his insistence that church services should be conducted in the local languages of

the people, not in Latin, a language that the German people didn’t understand. To help in this effort, he translated the

Bible into German so that it could be read and interpreted by everyone, as opposed to making people dependent on the

church for biblical understanding. Luther’s most significant claim was that salvation was given directly by God through

grace, not through indulgences, and not through the authorization of the church. In other words, Luther suggested that the

Bible teaches that people could appeal directly to God for forgiveness for sins and salvation. This revolutionary concept

significantly reduced the role of the church as the exclusive middleman between God and man. In essence, the church

was marginalized to an aid for salvation as opposed to the grantor of salvation.

Pope Leo X was outraged, and ordered Luther to recant, or formally retract, his theses. Meanwhile, Luther’s ideas were

spreading through much of northern Europe as the printing presses continued to roll. When Luther refused to recant, he

was excommunicated. When he was allowed to address church leaders and princes at an assembly in Worms (1521), he

refused to abandon his convictions. The pope called for his arrest, but a nobleman from Luther’s hometown protected

him, and Luther continued to write and spread his ideas.

Christianity Splits Again The consequences of Luther’s actions were enormous. Luther’s followers began to refer

to themselves as Lutherans, and began to separate themselves form the Catholic Church. What’s more, other theologians

began to assert their own biblical interpretations, some of which were consistent with Luther’s; others were wildly

different. Once the flood gates were opened, Luther had no control over the consequences.

John Calvin from France led a powerful Protestant group by preaching an ideology of predestination. Calvinist doctrine

stated that God had predetermined an ultimate destiny for all people, most of whom God had already damned. Only a

few, he preached, would be saved, and those people were known as the Elect. In the 1530s, the city of Geneva in

Switzerland invited Calvin to construct a Protestant theocracy in their city, which was centrally located and near France.

From there, Calvinist teachings spread and were as influential to successive Protestant Reformations as wee the doctrines

of Luther. Calvinism, for example greatly influenced religious development in Scotland under John Knox, and in France

with the growth of the Huguenots.

In time, the Reformation spread to England, motivated by political as well as religious reasons. King Henry VIII did not

have a son as heir to his throne and sought to end his marriage to Catherine of Aragon because of it. When the pope

denied an annulment of the marriage, Henry VIII renounced Rome and declared himself the head of religious affairs in

England. This sat well with those in England who already were becoming Protestants, but much of England remained

Catholic. Nevertheless, Henry pushed forward and presided over what was called the Church of England, also known as

the Anglican Church.

The Protestant Reformation was a huge deal in world history. Its significance went well beyond the religious arena.

While previous skirmishes between the pope and the nobles had been about papal political authority, Luther’s challenges

were theologically based and directed at the pope’s religious role. Luther asserted that the people did not need the

Catholic Church, or its priests, in order to interact with God; they needed only their Bibles. If the religious authority of

the pope could be so openly and brazenly challenged, and commonly accepted understanding of God’s relationship to man

could be reevaluated and rearticulated, then people’s understanding of other concepts might need to be reevaluated as

well. Put simply, by challenging the pope, Luther made it acceptable to question the conventional wisdom of the church.

With newly printed Bibles available in their own languages, lay people could learn how to read and form their own

relationship with God. As the common people became literate and better educated, more and more European began to

question both the world around them and the authority of the church. Europeans desired to search for their own answers

to the question of the universe. In short, the Protestant Reformation paved the way for revolutions in education, politics,

and science.

The counter Reformation: The Pope Reasserts his Authority

During the Catholic Reformation (also known as the Counter Reformation) of the 16 th century, the Catholic Church

itself reformed, while also succeeding in winning back some of the souls it had lost to the fledgling Protestant

denominations.

At first, the Catholic Church responded ineffectively to the new religious trends. However, when Lutheranism, the

Catholic Church began to institute reforms, which were led by Spain, a dedicated Catholic country. By banning the sale

of indulgences, consulting more frequently with bishops and parishes, and training its priests to adhere to catholic

teaching more strictly, the Catholic Church regained some of its lost credibility. Make no mistake the Counter

Reformation was as much about reaffirming as it was about reforming, and the church made it clear that it was not bowing

to Protestants demands but rather clarifying its position. Weekly mass became obligatory, and the supreme authority of

the Pope was reestablished. During this time a former, Spanish solider and intellectual, Ignatius Loyola, founded the

society of Jesuits, which was influential in restoring faith in the teachings of Jesus as interpreted by the Catholic Church.

The Jesuits practiced self-control and moderation, believing that prayer and good works led to salvation. This pious

example of the Jesuits led to a stricter training system and higher expectations of morality for the clergy. Because of their

oratorical and political skills, many Jesuits were appointed by kings to high palace positions.

A group of church officials held a series of meetings known as the Council of Trent to direct the Counter Reformation

period form 1545 to 1563, dictating and defining the Catholic interpretation of religious doctrine and clarifying the

Catholic Church’s position on important religious questions such as the nature of salvation. During this period, “heretic”

were once again tried and punished, and the Catholic Church reestablished Latin as the language to be used in worship.

The result? The Catholic Church staged an amazing comeback. The Counter-Reformation proved successful in

containing the southward spread of Protestantism. By 1600, southern Europe (especially Italy, Spain, Portugal,) France

and southern Germany were heavily Catholic. Northern Germany and Scandinavia were mostly Lutherans. Scotland was

Calvinist, as were pockets within central Europe and France. England, as mentioned previously was Anglican.

The result of the result? Wars, of course. But more on that when we discuss developments in individual countries.

Evolution of Christianity: A Time Line

Christianity legalize under Edict of Milan – 313 C.E.

Catholic Christianity made official religion of Roman Empire 380 C.E.

The Great Schism of 1054 divides Christianity

Catholic Follower of Pope in Rome Orthodox – Follower of Patriarch in Constantinople

The Protestant Reformation Council of Trent responds -1545-1563

Splinter Catholic Europe 1520 Modern Day Catholicism

Anglicanism Lutheranism Calvinism

3. The Scientific Revolution: Prove It or Lose it

Prior to the Scientific Revolution, Europe and most of the world believed, as Aristotle asserted, that the Earth ws the

center of the universe and that the sun, starts, and planets revolved around the Earth. There certainly were numerous

inconsistencies observed by scientists with regard to this theory, but most scientists continued to attempt to explain the

inconsistency rather than investigate the theory itself. As Europe changed dramatically because of the Renaissance and

the Protestant Reformation , and as the growth of the universities gave structure to burgeoning questions about the world,

educated European began to examine the world around them with new vigor. The result were revolutionary.

The Cooperation Revolution: A Revolution About Revolutions

Just as the Counter Reformation was gaining momentum, Nicolaus Copernicus developed a mathematical theory that

asserted that the earth and the other celestial bodies revolved around the sun and that the earth also rotated on its axis

daily. This was pretty shocking stuff to many in the “establishment”. Although most educated people had accepted the

world as a sphere for centuries, even well before Columbus’s voyage 1492, the earth’s position at the center of the

Universe was widely accepted. Copernicus’s heliocentric theory of the solar system brought about much debate and much

skepticism. In 1543, Copernicus published On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres to prove his points, but it wasn’t’

until Galileo – who discovered the moons of Jupiter with his telescope – that the Copernican model really took off.

In 1632, Galileo published his Dialogue Concerning the Ten Chief System of the World. He wrote the work in Italian in

order to reach a wide audience and defeat the defenders of Ptolemy (the scientist who promoted the earth as the center of

the universe). He showed how the rotation of the earth on its axis produced the apparent rotation of the heavens, as well

as how the stars’ great distance from the earth prevented humans from being able to see their changed positions as the

earth moved around the sun. Galileo’s proofs made it difficult for scholars to accept the Ptolemaic model, which just so

happened to be the model sanctioned by the Catholic Church. The church put Galileo on trial before the Inquisition in

Rome for heresy and he was forced to recant. His book was place on The Index, a list of banned heretical works.

Nevertheless, while under house arrest, Galileo continued to research and document his findings.

(Galileo’s book remained on The Index until 1822)

The Scientific Method: In Search of Truth

Recall that during the High Middle Ages and the early Renaissance, the scholastic method of reasoning was deemed the

most reliable means of determining scientific meaning. Scholasticism was based on Aristotelianism and therefore used

reason as the chief method of determining truth. Some times reason led to heresies, while other time reason was used to

explain and complement faith, as was the case with Thomas Aquinas.

The scientific method was born out of the scholastic tradition, but it took that tradition to considerable new levels.

Reason alone wasn’t good enough. Under the Scientific method one had to prove what the mind concluded, document it,

repeat it for others, and open it up to experimentation. At its highest stage, the scientific method required that any

underlying principles be proven with mathematical precision.

Copernicus and Galileo, of course, were two fathers of the scientific method, but it took more than a century for the

method to be widely used. There were many contributors. Tycho Brahe (1546-1601) built an observatory and recorded

his observations, and Francis Bacon (1561-1626) published works on inductive logic. Both asserted that scientists should

amass all the data possible through experimentation and observation and that the proper conclusions would come form

this data. Then, Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) developed laws of planetary motion based on observation and

mathematics. Sir Isaac Newton took it one step further. In the Mathematical Principle of Natural Philosophy (1697), he

invented calculus to help prove the theories of Copernicus, Galileo, Bacon, and others. He also developed the law of

gravity.

Together, these men and others developed a widely used system of observation, reason, experiment, and mathematical

proof that could be applied to every conceivable scientific inquiry. With precise scientific instruments, such as the

microscope and the telescope, a scientist could retest what another scientist had originally tested. Many scientific inquires

were conducted with practical goals in mind, such as the creation of labor-saving machines or the development of power

sources from water and wind. Francis Bacon, for example, argued that science was pursued not for science’s sake but as a

way to improve the human condition.

All f this eventually led to the Industrial Revolution. In the meantime, however, you need to understand that the

Scientific Revolution led to a major rift in society. While many highly educated Christians were able to hold on to their

beliefs even as they studied science, many also began to reject the church’s rigid pronouncements that conflict with

scientific findings. Many of these people either became atheists (who believe that no god exists) or deists (who believe

that God exist but plays a passive role in life).

Deism: God as a Watchmaker

The Scientific Revolution contributed to a belief system known as deism, which became popular in the 1700s. The deists

believed in a powerful god who created and presided over an orderly realm but who did not interfere in its workings. The

deists viewed God as a watchmaker, one who set up the world, gave it natural laws by which to operate, and then let it run

by itself (under natural laws that could be proved mathematically). Such as theory had little place in organized religion.

The European Rivals

1. Spain and Portugal

As you read in the previous chapter, in 1469, King Ferdinand, from the Christian Kingdoms in northern Spain, and Queen

Isabella, from the more Muslim regions of southern Spain, initiated the consolidation of Spanish authority under one

house, and thereby created a nation-state that would become one of the world’s most powerful forces over the next

century. By aggressively supporting exploration (initially by underwriting Columbus’s exploration and then later by

establishing empires in the New World), Ferdinand and Isabella had a long term impact on cultural world developments –

they ensured the survival and expansion of the Spanish language and culture, including Catholicism, by extending them

across the Atlantic. Ferdinand and Isabella also built a formidable naval fleet, allowing Spain to rule the seas for the next

century.

Portugal: The Middleman of an Empire

As Spain focused on western exploration and its empire in the New World, the Portuguese continued their domination of

coastal Africa, the Indian Ocean, and the Spice Islands. A small country with limited manpower, Portugaul had to be

content as the middleman of a “floating empire”. It was an early player in the transatlantic slave trade, and it controlled

sea routes and garrisoned trading posts; still, it was unable to exert control over large sections of the interior of Africa and

India. Inevitably, Portugal could not maintain control of its far-flung colonies and lost control of them to the Dutch and

British who had faster ships with heavier guns.

The international importance of Spain grew under Charles V, who inherited a large empire. Charles was from the

Hapsburg family, which originated in Austria and, through a series of carefully arranged marriages (recall that divine right

promoted intermarriage among royalty), created a huge empire stretching from Austria and Germany to Spain. While on

set of Charles’s grandparents were Hapsburgs, his other grandparents were Ferdinand and Isabella, who themselves had

married to solidify the Spanish empire. Talk about family connections.

In 1519, Charles was elected Holy Roman Emperor by German princes, which meant that he then held lands in parts of

France, and the Netherlands, Austria, and Germany in addition to Spain. These possessions, plus the new colonies in the

Americas, brought wars as well as riches. Spain fought France for control of Italy and the Ottoman Turks for control of

Eastern Europe, which led to an expansion of ottoman rule into much of Hungry. In Germany Charles defended

Catholicism form the encroachment of Protestantism (recall that Spain was allied with the Catholic Church during the

Counter Reformation). Frustrated over trying to manage such an enormous empire at a time of expansion in the New

World and revolution in Europe (the Protestant Reformation and Scientific Revolution, for example), he decided in 1556

to retire to a monastery and thereby abdicate the throne. He gave control over Austria and the Holy Roman throne of

Germany to his brother, Ferdinand I. To his son, Philip II, he conferred the thorn of Spain and jurisdiction over the

Burgundy (in France), Sicily, and the Netherlands as well as Spain’s claim in the New World. Phillip II also gained

control over Portugal.

Under Phillip II, the Spanish Empire in the west saw some of its greatest expansion in the New World and a rebirth of

culture under the Spanish Renaissance, but it also started showing signs of decay. A devoutly religious man, Phillip

oversaw the continuation of the Spanish Inquisition to oust heretics, led the Catholic Reformation against Protestant, and

supported an increase in missionary work in the ever expanding empire in the New World. Increasingly eager to develop

their own empire, Dutch Protestants (of the Netherlands) revolted. By 1581, the mostly Protestant northern provinces of

the Netherlands gained their independence from Spain and became known as the Dutch Netherlands. The mostly Catholic

southern provinces remained loyal to Spain (this region would later become Belgium).

Exhibiting further sings of weakness, Spanish forces fighting for Catholicism in France fared poorly, and to the shock of

many Spaniards, the English defeated and devastated the once mighty Spanish Armada as it tried to attack the British

Isles. The defeat invigorated the English, who by the late 16 th century were expanding their own empire, and signaled

containment of Spanish forces.

Although Spain amassed enormous sums of gold from the New World, it spent its wealth quickly on wars, missionary

activities, and maintenance of its huge fleets. By the mid 17 th century, Spain still had substantial holdings, but its glory

days had passed. England and France were well poised to replace it as the dominant European powers.

2. England

As you read earlier in the discussion of the Protestant Reformation, King Henry VIII, who ruled from 1509 to 1547,

nullified the pope’s authority in England, thereby establishing (under the 1534 Act of Supremacy) the Church of England

and placed himself as head of that church. Henry took this action so that he could divorce his wife and marry Anne

Boleyn in an effort to father a male heir. He didn’t succeed in getting a male heir. Instead, he got an other daughter,

Elizabeth I, who oversaw a golden age in the arts known as the Elizabethan Age.

The Elizabethan Age (1558-1603) boasted commercial expansion and exploration and colonization in the New World,

especially after the English fleet destroyed the Spanish Armada in 1588. During this time, the Muscovy Company was

founded as the first joint-stock company, and the British East India Company quickly followed suit. Drake

circumnavigated the globe. The first English colonists settled in the Roanoke colony in present day Virginia. To top it all

off, Shakespeare wrote his masterpieces. Simply put, England experienced a golden age under Elizabeth.

The religious battles that were unleashed by the Protestant reformation still unsettled the region. Anglicans (Church of

England) were battling Catholics, while other Protestant groups such as the Puritans were regularly persecuted. When

James I came to power in 1607 after the death of Elizabeth, whose reign brought together the crowns of England and

Scotland, he attempted to institute reforms to accommodate the Catholics and the Puritans, but widespread problems

persisted. The Puritans (who were Calvinists) didn’t want to recognize thepower fo the king over religious matters, and

James reacted defensively, claiming diving right. It was at this point that many Puritans decided to cross the Atlantic.

The Pilgrims’ establishment of the Plymouth colony (1620) occurred during James’s reign. Jamestown colony, as you

might have guessed, was also founded during the reign of James I. The English aren’t known for their innovation naming.

Charles I, son of James, rose to power in 1625. Three years later, desperate for money form Parliament, he agreed to sign

the Petition of Right, which was a document limiting taxes and forbidding unlawful imprisonment. Charles ignored the

petition after he secured the funds he needed and, claiming divine right, ruled without calling another meeting of

Parliament for 11 years.

In 1640, when Scotland’s resentment toward Charles resulted in a Scottish invasion of England, Charles was forced to call

Parliament into session. Led by Puritans, this Parliament was known as the Long Parliament because it sat for 20 years

from 1640 through 1660. The Long Parliament limited the absolute powers of the monarchy. In 1641, the parliament

denied Charles’s request for money to fight the Irish rebellion, and in response he led troops into the House of Commons

to arrest some of the members. This sparked a civil war. Parliament raised an army, called the Roundheads, to fight the

king. The Roundheads, under the leadership of Oliver Cromwell, defeated the armies of Charles I, who were called

Cavaliers. The king was tried and executed. Oliver Cromwell rose to power, not as a monarch, but first as leader of what

was called the English Commonwealth, and then after reorganizing the government, as Lord Protector.

When Cromwell ruled as Protector, he ruled with religious intolerance and violence against Catholic and the Irish. He

encouraged Protestants to settle in Northern Ireland (this would cause many problems in future centuries). All of this

caused much resentment, and after Cromwell died, Parliament invited Charles II, the exiled son of the now beheaded

Charles I, to take the throne and restore a limited monarchy. This is called the Stuart Restoration (1660-1688). A closet

Catholic, Charles II acknowledged the rights of the people, especially with regard to religion. In 1679, he agreed to the

Habeas corpus Act (which protects people form arrests without due process). Following Charles II’s death, his brother

James II took over.

James II was openly Catholic, and he was unpopular. Like so many before him, he believed in the divine right of kings.

In a bloodless change of leadership known as the Glorious Revolution, he was driven from power by Parliament, which

feared he’d make England a Catholic country, and he fled to France. He was replaced in 1688 by his son-in-law and

daughter, William and Mary, the Protestant rulers of the Netherlands, who promptly signed the English Bill of Rights in

1689. The Glorious Revolution ensured that England’s future monarchs would be Anglican and that their powers would

be limited.

The Enlightenment Writers:

Keep in mind that the Enlightenment writers were busy at work by this time. Hobbes published Leviathan in 1651 in

response to the English Civil War, a time during which the monarch, Charles I, was beheaded. Hobbes’s violent view of

human nature and desire for an all-powerful ruler to maintain peace are completely understandable within the context of

the English Civil War. While Hobbes massed the peaceful resolution of the war in the Glorious Revolution and the

English Bill of Rights (1688-1689), John Locke did not. Locke’s more optimistic view of human nature can be viewed in

the context of the bloodless transition of power between James II and William and Mary. In addition, Locke’s writings in

Two Treaties on Government justified this change of leadership by suggesting that James II had violated the social

contract. Political events in England during this time, and such events in general, cannot be separated form the

development of social and political philosophy and vice versa.

3. France

After the Hundred Years’ War (1337-1453) drove the English from France, the French began to unify and centralize

authority in a strong monarchy. As elsewhere, however, religious differences stood in the way. France was largely

Catholic, but during the Protestant Reformation, a group of French Protestants, known as Huguenots, developed into

sizable and influential minority. Throughout the mid- to late-16 th century, Catholics and Huguenots bitterly fought each

other, sometimes brutally, until, in 1598, Henry IV issued the Edict of Nantes, which created an environment of

toleration. Henry IV was the first of the Bourbon kings, who ruled France for nearly two centuries until 1792.

Cardinal Richelieu, a Catholic, played an important role as the chief advisor to the Bourbons. His primary political role

was to strengthen the French crown. While clashes erupted among Catholics and Huguenots (Protestants) in France,

Richelieu did not seek to destroy the Protestants; he compromised with them and even helped them to attack the Cahtolic

Hapsburgs of the Holy Roman Empire, an empire that he wanted to end in order to make France a stronger power in

Europe. A new bureaucratic class, the noblesse de la robe, was established under Richelieu. The bureaucracy established

by Richelieu and his successor, Cardinal Mazarin, prepared France to hold the strong position it would achieve in

Europe under Louis XIV.

Louis XIV was four years old when he inherited the crown of France. His mother and Cardinal Mazarin ruled in his name

until he reached adulthood, at which time he became one of the most legendary monarchs of European history. Louis

XIV’s long reign (1643-1715) exemplified the grandiose whims of an absolute monarchy. Calling himself the “Sun

King” and “The Most Christian King,” he patronized the arts as long as they contributed to the glorification of France and

its culture, which became much admired and emulated. Ruling under divine right, he reportedly declared, “I am the

State,” and he built the lavish palace of Versailles to prove it. He summoned the Estates-General, the lawmaking body, to

meet. He revoked the Edict of Nantes, forcing many Huguenots to leave France. Perhaps most importantly, he appointed

Jean Baptiste Colbert to manage the royal funds.

A strict mercantilist, Colbert wanted to increase the size of the French empire, thereby increasing the opportunity for

business transactions and taxes. To accomplish this, France was almost constantly at war. For a while, warfare and

mercantilist policies allowed France to increase its overseas holdings and gain the revenue needed for the extravagances

of a king named for the Sun. However, the War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714) proved to be a disaster for the grand

plans of France.

Recall that European royalty was intermarrying and reproducing. It turned out that the twisted branches of the royal

family trees led to a situation in which, in 1701, one of Louis XIV’s grandsons inherited the Spanish throne. This alarmed

the rest of Europe, which feared that Spain, although substantially weaker than it had been in the previous century, and

France, already quite powerful, would form an unstoppable combo-power, especially given their American holdings at the

time (France owned a huge chunk of North America, Spain the bulk of Central and South America). It’s a complicated

story, but England, the Holy Roman Empire, and German princes all united under the perceived common threat, and 13

years later, the question of Spanish succession was settled. Philip V, the grandson, was able to rule Spain, but Spain

couldn’t combine with France, and France had to give up much of its territory to England, a country that then became

even more powerful.

The bottom line is that Colbert and Louis XIV’s many territorial invasions and wars proved costly and ineffective. France

remained powerful, but by the 18 th century, its position as a military power was weakening. Nevertheless, by 1750, its

position as a center for arts was firmly established.

Contrast Them: England and France in the 17 th Century:

Unlike England, France was ruled by a series of strong and able monarchs under the Bourbon Dynasty. After the death of

Elizabeth, England went from monarchy to Commonwealth and Restoration to Glorious Revolution. Hardly stable. On

the other hand, France’s Estates-General (a governing body representing clergy, nobles, merchants, and peasants) was not

nearly as powerful as the English Parliament. It didn’t even meet for the bulk of the 17 th century because of French king

ruled successfully under the justification of divine right.

4. German Areas (The Holy Roman Empire, Sort of)

The situation in German and Slavic areas of central Europe during this time period was complicated. The Holy Roman

Empire wasn’t really in Rome but rather in present day Austria and parts of Germany and surrounding regions because

Italy was controlled by ruling families in the Italian city states. The Holy Roman empire geographically dominated the

region, but was also still very feudal with lots of local lords running, but was also still very feudal with lots of local lords

running their won shows. Therefore, the Holy Roman Emperor was pretty weak. This is further complicated by the rise

of the powerful Hapsburg family of Austria, which, as we already stated, kept intermarrying so that it dominated not only

substantial territory within the Holy Roman Empire but also Spain and parts of Italy. It was complicated further by the

fact that northern Germany was essentially a collection of city states, such as Brandenburg, Saxony, and Prussia. Finally,

remember that northern Germany went Lutheran during the Protestant Reformation, while southern areas of the Holy

Roman Empire stayed Catholic, along with Spain and France. Got it? Its nutty, so we’re going to hit only the highlights,

or else your head will be spinning.

You need to grasp the following three things from this time period:

- The Holy Roman Empire lost parts of Hungary to the Ottoman Turks in the early 16 th century (this is the section on the

Ottoman Empire).

- The Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) devastated the region and significantly weakened the role of the Holy Roman

emperors, leading to the rise of hundreds of nation-states in the region in the 19 th century.

- By the 18 th century, the northern German city-states, especially Prussia, were gaining momentum and power.

Now for a few of the details

In 1555, the Peace of Augsburg was intended to bring an end to the constant conflicts between Catholics and Protestants

that engulfed the region during the Reformation and Counter-Reformation. The peace didn’t last. The Thirty Years’

War began in 1618 when the Protestant territories in Bohemia (which was under the rule of the Catholic Hapsburg clan)

challenged the authority of the Holy Roman Catholic emperor, a situation that frequently arose prior to the Peace of

Augsburg. This time, though, the conflict grew bigger than anything before it and developed into a huge religious and

political war. Everyone seemed to want a piece of the action, including other countries such as France (under Richelieu),

Denmark, and Sweden. Although this grew into a war between major European powers, the actual fighting stayed within

the German empire, meaning that after 30 years of fighting, many parts of Germany were left depopulated and devastated.

Some estimates suggest that the Holy Roman Empire lost one third of its population during the 30 years, some 7 million

people.

When the Peace of Westphalia was negotiated in 1648, the independence of small German states was affirmed, and

Prussia became the strongest of them. The Holy Roman Empire was left barely limping along. Its territories had been

reduced and its emperor, along with the Hapsburg family, was much less powerful. Somehow the Holy Roman Empire

survived in name until 1806, but it hardly had any power after Westphalia.

The biggest beneficiary of the war was France. It became the most powerful country in Europe during the 17 th century

under Louis XIV, although as you already read, it was weakened by the 18 th century after the country overspent and

overplayed its hand, particularly during the War of Spanish Succession. The other war beneficiary was Prussia, the

German city state centered in Berlin, which also controlled parts of Poland. Prussia eventually rose to dominate the

German territories, unifying them into the powerful country of Germany.

Contrast Them: Germany with Spain, England, and France

Germany unified under a central government much later than Spain, England, and France did. You won’t read about a

huge German empire in the New World or a strong German monarchy, because for centuries Germany remained caught in

a complicated web of rulers of the Holy Roman Empire, the Hapsburgs of Austria, and the princes of city-states. It was

also a tangle of religious movements, because it was at the heart of the Protestant Reformation.

Russia Out of Isolation

When the Turks conquered Constantinople and the Byzantine Empire fell, the center of Orthodox Christianity moved

northward to Moscow, which was called the “Third Rome” (after Rome itself and then Constantinople). At around the

same time, Russian leaders were overthrowing the Mongols. In 1480, Ivan III of Moscow refused to pay tribute to the

Mongols and declared Russia free of Mongol rule. He, and later his grandson Ivan IV, established absolute rule in

Russia, uniting it and expanding it ever eastward. They recruited peasant and offered them freedom from their feudal

lords, known as boyars, if they agreed to settle in new lands to the east. The catch was that these peasants had to conquer

the land themselves! Known as Cossacks, these peasant soldiers expanded Russian territories in the 16 th through the 18 th

centuries well into Siberia and southward to the Caspian Sea.

Ivan IV was such a strong leader and held such absolute power that he became known as Ivan the Terrible (not necessarily

meaning bad, but instead formidable or impressive). Takin on the title of czar (Russian for “Caesar”), Ivan the Terrible

expanded Russia’s holding, but not without cost to the Russian people. By the 1560s, he ruled under a reign of terror,

regularly executing anyone whom he perceived as a threat to his power, including his own son (executed in 1580).

After the death of Ivan IV in 1584, and with no strong heir to take the throne, Russia’s feudal lords continually battled

over who should rule the empire. The situation grew especially messy from 1604 to 1613, a period that historians refer to

as the Time of Troubles, because one pretender to the throne would be killed by another pretender and yet another. In

1613, the madness subsided when Michael Romanov was elected czar by the feudal lords. The Romanov Dynasty added

stability to the empire. It ruled until 1917.

Like the Ivans, the Romanovs consolidated power and often ruled ruthlessly. The peasants, now serfs, were practically

enslaved people. By the late 1600s, the Romanovs had expanded the empire, with the help of the Cossacks, eastward

through Siberia. By 1689, Russian territory spread from Ukraine (west of Moscow) to the Pacific Ocean, north of

Manchuria.

At around this same time, Peter the Great, who ruled form 1682 throgh 1725, came to power. He was convinced he

needed to Westernize Russia. He built Russia’s first navy and founded St. Petersburg on the Baltic Sea as his new capital.

The “window to the west,” St. Petersburg became the home to hundreds of Western European engineers, scientist,

architects, and artists who were recruited specifically to Westernize Russia. Women of the nobility were forced to dress

in Western fashions. Men were forced to shave their beards. Most the hard labor of building the great new city was

accomplished, of course, by serfs turned enslaved people.

Under Catherine the Great, who ruled from 1762 until 1796, more enlightened policies of education and Western culture

were implemented. Still, Russia suffered because Catherine fiercely enforced repressive serfdom and limited the growth

of the merchants class. Catherine continued the aggressive serfdom and limited the growth of the merchant class.

Catherine continued the aggressive westward territorial expansion, gaining ground in Poland and, most significantly,

territory on the Black Sea. This advance ensured Russia’s access to the Mediterranean to its south and west.

Contrast Them: Russia and Western Europe

Despite the centralization of authority under the Ivans, Russia remained very much a feudal arrangement, with local lords

exercising considerable power. While Western Europe basked in the glow of the Renaissance, explored and expanded its

influence across oceans, and debated about religion, science, and government in a series of movements, Russia remained

isolated from the west and pushed eastward instead. Its growth was territorial, but not intellectual or artistic. During the

15 th , 16 th , and most of the 17 th centuries, it had nothing that could be labeled a Renaissance or Enlightenment. It wasn’t part

of the Renaissance because it was under the control of the Mongols at the time. It wasn’t part of the Reformation because

it wasn’t part of the Catholic Church in the first place. So even though today we often see Russia as a European power, its

history progressed along very different path. It wasn’t until the late 17 th century that Russia turned its eyes westward.

Compare Them: Forced Labor Systems

Although slavery was not a new system, the demands of the newly global economy resulted in an expansion of systems of

forced labor in the empires. At the same time, Russia’s attempt to control their large ladn mass relied on the forced labor

of the peasants or serfs. All three systems took advantage of the laborers and were frequently managed by harsh and

brutal overseers. In the Spanish part of the New World, haciendas were established in which natives owed labor to their

landlords – not unlike the feudalism of Europe. This system fell apart as the native populations diminished due to disease,

and as natives converted to the Catholic faith. The Portuguese took advantage of the already thriving intra-African slave

trade and transformed it into a transoceanic one. The majority of transported Africans wound up on plantations in Brazil

and the Caribbean where life expectancy was just three to five years. Russian serfdom differed in that the Russian

economy was domestic and both the laborers and the landowners were Russian.

B. Islamic Gunpowder Empire

The history of the Ottoman Empire actually precedes 1450. You might recall form the previous chapter that the

territories of the former Islamic Empire were overrun by the ubiquitous Mongols in the 13 th century. Recall also that the

byzantine Empire, centered in Constantinople, controlled most of Turkey) and influenced southeastern Europe and Russia.

As the Mongol Empire fell, the Muslim Ottoman Empire, founded by Osman Bey, rose in Anatolia (eastern parts of

Turkey) to unify the region and challenge the Byzantine Empire. As it grew in the 14 th century, the Turks (as the

Ottomans were called) came to dominate most of modern-day Turkey and eventually, in 1453, invaded Constantinople,

thereby ending the Byzantine Empire. Perhaps 1450 isn’t such an artificial boundary after all.

The Ottomans made Constantinople their capital city renamed it Istanbul, and converted the great cathedrals such as the

Hagia Sophia into mosques. They installed solidified rule over conquered territory by handing over tracts of land called

timars to aristocrats, thereby replacing local rulers with Ottoman officials. In the expanding empire, Christians and Jews

were allowed to practice their religions, making the empire more tolerant than both the previous Islamic Empire and the

other major regimes of the era. Within 100 years, the Ottomans conquered the expanse of the old Byzantine Empire,

except for Italy westward. In other words, the Ottoman Empire extended from Greece eastward to Persia, and then all the

way around the Mediterranean into Egypt and northern Africa.

As the empire grew, so too did religious persecution. To conquer large territories, the Ottomans employed a practice

known as devshirme, in which they enslaved children of their Christian subjects and turned them into fighting warriors

called Janissaries. In other cases, the Ottomans raised the enslaved children to become bureaucrats within the imperial

government. Much of this expansion occurred during the reign of Selim I, who came ot power in 1512. Significantly,

Selim claimed that he was the rightful heir to Islamic tradition under the Arab caliphs. With that claim, and with such a

huge empire, Istanbul became the center of the Islamic civilization.

Just eight years later, Suleiman I, (a.k.a. Suleiman the Magnificent) rose to power. He not only built up the Ottoman

military, but also actively encouraged the development of the arts. For this reason, the Ottoman military, but also actively

encouraged the development of the arts. For this reason, the ottoman Empire experienced a golden age under his reign,

which lasted form 1520 until 1566. During this time, the ottomans tried to push into Europe through Hungary. You

already read that the Holy Roman Empire was weakening during the Protestant Reformation. The Ottomans took

advantage of this weakness; after taking parts of Hungary, the Turks tried to move into Austria. In 1529, the empire laid

siege to Vienna, a significant European cultural center. Had the Turks successfully taken Vienna, who knows what the

history of Western Europe would have been. From Vienna, the Turks could have easily poured into the unstable lands of

the Holy Roman Empire, but it wasn’t meant to be. Vienna was as far as the Turks ever got. Although Austrian princes

and the Ottomans battled continually for the next century, the Ottomans were never able to expand much beyond the

European territories of Byzantine influence.

Still, the Ottoman Empire lasted until 1922, making it one of the world’s most significant empires. In that time, it greatly

expanded the reach of Islam, while also keeping Eastern Europe in a constant state of flux. This allowed the powers of

Western Europe to dominate, and once they started exploring the oceans, the were able to circumvent their eastern

neighbors and trade directly with India, China, and their American colonies.

Remember the Mongols? After several false starts, in 1526, Babur, a leader who claimed to be descended from Genghis

Khan but was very much Muslim, invaded northern India and swiftly defeated the Delhi Sultanate (also Muslim). Barber

quickly established a new empire, known as the Mughal Empire, which dominated the Indian subcontinent for the next

300 years.

The Mughal Empire was distinctive for several reasons. First, within about 150 years, it had united almost the entire

subcontinent, something that hadn’t previously been done to the same extent. Recall that northern India experienced a

series of invasion and empires. The same was not true of southern India. The Deccan Plateau in southern India had

remained mostly isolated. It was there that Hinduism became very firmly established.

Babur’s grandson, Akbar, who ruled from 1556 to 1605, was able to unify much of India by governing under a policy of

religious toleration. Although Akbar gave the Muslim zamindars (land-owners) the power to tax, as well as an army to

enforce such taxation, he did allow Hinduism and Islam to be practiced openly. He eliminated the jizya, the head tax on

Hindus that had been a source of great anger to the people, and tried to improve the position of women by attempting to

eliminate sati, the practice in which high-caste Hindu women would throw themselves onto their husbands’ funeral pyres.

He even married a Hindu woman and welcome Hindus into government positions.

For nearly 100 years, Hindus and Muslims increasingly lived side by side and, consequently, became more geographically

mixed. The result was golden age of art, architecture, and thought. Under Shah Jahan, Akbar’s grandson, the Taj

Mahal was built. However, after Akbar, two development forever changed India.

The First was that religious toleration ended. When a new emperor, Aurangzeb, who was a very pious Muslim, came to

the throne, he enacted pro-Muslim policies and waged wars of expansion to try to conquer the remaining portions of India

still not under Mughal control. The Muslim government reinstated the jizya; Hindu temples were destroyed. The

consequences of this development were significant for alter centuries, but for the moment, understand that by 1700,

Muslims began to persecute Hindus who were beginning to organize against their Muslim rulers and neighbors.

The second development was the arrival of the Europeans. In the early 17 th century, the Portuguese and British were

fighting and other for Indian Ocean trade routes. In the beginning, Portugal had established trade with the city of Goa,

where it also sent Christian missionaries. By 1661, the British East India Company had substantial control of trade in

Bombay. By 1691, the British dominated trade in the region and founded the city of Calcutta as a trading outpost. While

the Mughal emperors were annoyed with the Europeans, they generally permitted the trade and regarded the Europeans as

relatively harmless. Of course, the Industrial Revolution would turn Britain into an imperial superpower. But before

1750 – the calm before the storm – India didn’t feel particularly vulnerable to the Europeans, except in its port cities. It

was a huge country with tons of resources united under strong Muslim rulers. It couldn’t be conquered, right? As the

time, Indians probably couldn’t imagine that a century later, a British woman named Victoria would be crowned Empress

of India.

Focus on: Westernization of Russia

Both Peter and Catherine are important because they positioned Russia for engagement with the rest of the world,

particularly the Western world. By the late 18 th century, Russia was in a significantly different position that it had been at

the beginning of that century. It gained physical access to the West by both the Baltic and the Black Sea, and it gained

cultural access to the West by actively seeking interaction. Unlike China and Japan, which repelled the West from their

shores in the same time period, the Russians wanted to engage with and emulate the West.

The Safavids

It is worth mentioning the chief rivals of the Ottomans were their eastern neighbors, the Safavids. This centralized state

was based on military conquest and dominated by Shia Islam. Its location between the ottomans and the Mughals, in what

is modern day Iran, resulted in often contentious relationships between the Muslim states, alliances with European nations

against the Ottomans, and continuation of the long-standing rift between the Sunni and Shia.

C. Africa

Beginning in the 10 th century, strong centralized states developed in southern and western Africa based on the wealth

accumulated from trade. The trend of increased power continued with the transatlantic slave trade and the establishment

of powerful kingdoms by the Songhai, and in the kingdoms of Kongo and Angola, among others. While you are not

expected to know each of these kingdoms in detail, you should recognize the pattern of state-building and the relationship

of Africa to both the Islamic world and the Europeans.

The Sub-Saharan empire of Songhai like it predecessors, Ghana and Mali, this was an Islamic state with economic ties to

the broader Muslim world through the trans-Saharan trade of salt and gold. Like other empires, this was built on

conquests and military force. Sunni Ali (ruled 1469-1493) consolidated his empire in the valley of the Niger River using

an imperial navy, established a central administration, and financed the city of Timbuktu as a major Islamic center. Like

all great empires, Songhai fell to a superior military force: Moroccans with muskets.

Adjacent to the Songhai Kingdom, the Asanti (Ashanti) Empire arose in 1670. Deriving its wealth form the gold trade,

the Asanti Empire was more prepared to face invasions due to its highly organized military. Accordingly, the Asanti

greatly expanded its territory.

On the west coast of Africa, the centralized kingdom of Kongo was bolstered by its trade with Portuguese merchants as

early as the 1480s. The Europeans established close economic and political relationships with the king, a situation that

initially worked to everyone’s advantage. The kings of the Kongo converted to Catholicism, and King Alfonso I was

particularly successful at converting his people. Over the long term, Portuguese tactics and the desire for enslaved people

form the interior undermined the authority of the kings of Kongo and the state gradually declined. Eventually, there were

outright hostilities and war between the two former allies and the kingdom was mostly destroyed.

South of Kongo, the Portuguese established a small trading post in Ndongo, or Angola, as early as 1575 for the sole

purpose of expanding their trade in enslaved people form the interior. As a result, Angola grew into a powerful state and

when the Portuguese attempted to further exert their authority and control, Queen Nzinga fiercely resisted. For 40 years,

the warrior queen led her troops in battle, studied European military tactics, and made alliances with Portugal’s Dutch

rivals. Despite her efforts, in the end, she could not unify her rivals or overcome the superior weaponry of the Portuguese.

D. Isolated Asia

1. China

By 1368, the Ming Dynasty booted out the last of the Mongol rulers in China and restored power over the empire to the

native Chinese. The Ming Dynasty ruled until 1644. During this time, the Ming built a strong centralized government

based on traditional Confucian principles, reinstated the civil service examination, and removed the Mongol influence by

reinvigorating Chinese culture.

In the early 15 th century, the Chinese also did something quite extraordinary: they built huge fleets. Zheng He, a Chinese

navigator, led fleets throughout southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean all the way to East Africa a century before the

Europeans did the same. Had the Chinese continued to explore and trade, they may have become the dominate colonial

power. Instead, within a few decades, the Chinese abruptly stopped their naval voyages. Increasingly, Chinese society

turned inward.

The Ming government attempted to prop up its failing economy by changing easily counterfeited paper money to a

“single-whip” system based on silver currency. Initially Japan supplied the silver (much to the benefit of the shoguns in

Japan), but with the discovery of American silver sources, China established trade relations with the Spanish through the

Philippines. Although this exchange fueled a period of commercial expansion, inevitable the silver flooded the Chinese

market, and the government was unable to control the resulting inflation.

By the 16 th century, the Ming Dynasty was already in its decline, just as the Europeans were beginning to sail toward

China. Pirates increasingly raided port cities, and the Portuguese set up shop in Macao. Still, the Chinese were able to

keep the Europeans at a safe distance. However, internal problems persisted. By the 17 th century, famine crippled the

Chinese economy, and peasant revolts erupted against the increasingly powerless Ming rulers. In 1644, the Ming

emperor invited a group of Qing warriors from nearby Manchuria to help him quell a peasant uprising, but instead, the

Qing ousted the emperor. With that act, the Ming Dynasty ended and the Qing (or Manchu) Dynasty began. The

Manchus ruled China until 1911.

Focus on: Environment Change and Collapse

The new food that arrived in Europe, Africa, and Asia from the Americas cassava, corn, peanuts, and potatoes) were high

in calories, easy to grow, in previously uncultivated areas, and, as a result, allowed for massive population increase.

These crops, along with new agricultural technologies and political stability, were initially a boon to China’s economy and

productivity. However, the new population levels could not be sustained over the long term, and a period of global

cooling in the late 17 th century put pressure on agricultural lands and hastened the collapse of the Ming Dynasty. In

Europe, the arrival of potatoes finally stabilized a food supply and a population that had been devastated by centuries of

cold weather, poor farming, and epidemic disease.

Because the Qing were from Manchuria, they were not ethnically Chinese. They attempted to remain an ethnic elite,

forbidding the Chinese to learn the Manchu language or to marry Manchus. However, because the Manchus comprised a

mere three percent of the population they needed the help of ethnic Chinese to run the country. Therefore, the civil

service examination gained new status. Even members of the lower classes were able to rise to positions of responsibility

as the Manchus opened up the floodgates to find the best talent.

Since these emperors were not ethnically Chinese, they had to find ways to affirm their legitimacy in the eyes of the

Chinese people. Imperial portraits of the emperors would be publicly displayed, often with items significant to Chinese

history, such as books and other artifacts. Such images were reminiscent of the ancient Chinese tradition of ancestor

veneration and helped solidify the authority of the ruling Manchus.

Manchus emperors were well steeped in Chinese traditions. Both Kangxi, who ruled form 1661 to 1722, and his chief

successor, Qianlong, who ruled form 1735 to 1796, were Confucian scholars. Both emperors not only supported the arts,

but also expanded the empire. Kangxi conquered Taiwan and extended the empire into Mongolia, central Asia, and Tibet,

Qianlong, added Vietnam, Burma, and Nepal to the vassal states of China.

In all of these expansions, the Chinese did not aspire to conquer the rest of the world, or even interact with it very much.

They stayed focused on China and its surrounding neighbors. The Manchus did trade with the Europeans and granted

rights to the Portuguese, Dutch, and British, but they were vigilant about and successful at controlling trade relations

through the mid-18 th century. The Manchu were fierce protectors of their culture. When they felt threatened by European

advances, they expelled the Europeans. In 1724, for example, Christianity was banned. In 1757, trade was restricted to

just one city, Canton. Still, trade with Europeans was substantial. The Europeans brought large quantities of tea, silk, and

porcelain. In exchange, the merchants received huge sums of silver, with created a new rising class of merchants in

Chinese coastal cities.

2. Japan

In the 16 th century, a series of shoguns continued to rule Japan while th emperor remained merely as a figurehead. As the

century went on, Japanese feudalism began to wane and centralized power began to emerge. The shogun still ruled (as

opposed to the emperor), but the power of the feudal lords was reduced. This centralization of power coincided with

Japanese exposure to the West. In 1542, the Portuguese established trade with the empire (they also introduced guns to

the Japanese). Within a decade, Christian missionaries streamed in. By the end of the century, not only had a few

hundred thousand Japanese converted to Christianity, but the Jesuits took control of the port city of Nagasaki and trade

flourished. Japan was well on its way to westernization.

In 1600, the trend changed dramatically. That year, Tokugawa Ieyasu established the Tokugawa Shogunate, a strict and

rigid government that ruled Japan until 1868. The shogun further consolidated power away from the emperor and at the

expense of the daimyo (feudal lords). Ieyasu claimed personal ownership to all lands within Japan and instituted a rigid

social class model, inspired somewhat by Confucianism but in practice was more like the caste system. Four classes

(warrior, farmer, artisan, and merchant) were established and movement among the classes was forbidden.

The Tokugawa period – also known as the Edo period because Tokugawa moved the capital to Edo (modern-day Tokyo)

– was marked by a reversal in attitude toward Western influences. Within two decades, Christians were persecuted. By

1635, a National Seclusion Policy prohibited Japanese from traveling abroad, and prohibited most foreigner from visiting

Japan (limited relations were kept with China, Korea, and the Netherlands). In other words, Japan became increasingly

secluded. The policy remained in place for nearly 200 years.

Tokugawa was very serious about this policy. He was worried that Japan would be overrun by foreign influences. Keep

in mind that Spain had claimed the nearby Philippines and that the English and Portuguese kept trying to make their way

into China. So, in 1640, when a group of Portuguese diplomats and traders sailed to Japan to try to negotiate with the

emperor and convince him to open up a dialogue, the shogun had every member of the Portuguese delegation executed on

the spot. The message was clear. Japan was off limits.

Contrast Them: India, China, and Japan on European Aggression

No doubt about it, under the Tokugawa Shogunate, the Japanese reacted most decisively against European colonialism.

Both China and India allowed trade and European occupation of port cities, although in China it was increasingly limited

under the Manchus. India was least suspecting of the Europeans and paid dearly for it. In the next chapter, you’ll see the

consequences of these three attitudes toward the Europeans: India was overrun, China was partially overrun, and Japan,

after briefly failing prey to outside influence, turned the tables and became a colonizing empire itself.

The absence of foreign influences allowed Japanese culture to thrive. During this time period, Buddhism and Shintoism

remained at the center of culture, and unique Japanese art forms also prospered. Kabuki theatre and a new form of

poetry, haiku, became very popular. Artists dedicated themselves to the creation of richly detailed scrolls, wood blocked

prints, and paintings. In other words, under a strong central authority, Japanese culture underwent its own renaissance.

Unlike the European Renaissance, however, it was strictly intended for domestic consumption.

E. Resistance

Large states expanded their power in the 17 th century. At times, that expansion was met with considerable local

resistance. The tables below lists some key rebellions against some of the world’s largest powers.

Rebellions Locations Year Challenged Outcome

Power

Ana Nzinga’s Amburndu Kingdoms 1641 Portugal Nzinga used strategic alliances and guerrilla

Resistance of Ndongo and 1671 tactics to resist the Portuguese colonizers;

Matamba (modern- fighting continued a decade after her death

Day Angola) before Nzinga’s kingdoms were absorbed into

Portuguese Angola

Cossack Modern-day 17 th and Russian The Russian Empire encroached on the

Revolts Ukraine 18 th Empire autonomous Cossack people; following a series

Centuries of rebellions, the Cossacks eventually fell to

Russia expansionary ambitions

Haitian Haiti 1791 France A rebellion of enslaved people eventually led to

Slave 1804 the defeat of the French occupiers and

Rebellion independence for Haiti

Maratha India 1680 Mughal Resisting the encroaching Islamic Mughal

1707 Empire Empire, the Hindu Maratha Kingdom ultimately

Defeated its would be occupiers and thus began

The Maratha Empire, which spread across the

Subcontinent

Maroon Caribbean 17 th and Slave-owning Maroon communities formed by people who

Societies and Brazil 18 th societies in escaped slavery were often able to resist

Centuries the Americas attempts at recapture and in several cases, signed

Treaties with frustrated authorities who accepted

The Maroons’ freedom

Metacom’s New England 1675 British Tensions over unfair trade practices by the

War United States 1678 Colonist colonists prompted this three year war; the treaty

To resolve the war aimed to restore a more

equitable coexistence, though conflicts persisted

Pueblo Modern-day 1680 Spanish The Native American Pueblo people pushed the

Revolts New Mexico Colonizers Spanish colonizers out of New Mexico as a way

United States to liberate themselves form the oppressive

Encomienda system. The victory was

temporary, as the Spanish reentered the land a

decade later

IV. UNIT 4: TRANSOCEANIC INTERCONNECTIONS

A. European Exploration and Expansion

Exploration before the late 15 th century was largely limited to land travel. To be sure, ships were used on the

Mediterranean and Indian Ocean trade routes for centuries, but they were linked up to land routes through Persia, Arabia,

northern Africa, or central Asia on the Silk Road.

Eager to eliminate Muslim middlemen and discover more efficient trade routes to Asia, the Portuguese and their Iberian

rivals, the Spanish, set out to sea. Advances in navigation, shipbuilding, and the development of gunpowder weapons

allowed for increased sea travel. These “floating empires of the wind” soon controlled major shipping routes in the Indian

Ocean, Indonesia, and the Atlantic Ocean.

The increase in European trade encouraged by the formation of the Hanseatic League and the crusades spawned a search

for new, efficient trade routes on the seas. Portugal led the way because it was strategically situated near the coast of

Africa, had long-standing trade relations with Muslim nations, and, most importantly, was led by a royal family that

supported exploration (King John I of Portugal’s most famous son was Prince Henry the Navigator). In 1488, Portugal

financed a voyage by Bartholomew Dias, who rounded the tip of Africa (which became known as the Cape of Good

Hope). In 1497, Vasco da Gama rounded the Cape of Good Hope, explored the east African kingdoms, and then went all

the way to India, where he established trade relations.

Shortly thereafter, Spain, which had recently been unified under Isabella and Ferdinand, wanted in on the action. As you

well know, in 1492 Christopher Columbus convinced them to finance a voyage to reach the east by going west. While

those who were educated understood that the earth was a sphere, few people understood how large it was. Despite the fact

that some scholars had accurately estimated the earth’s size, most people, including Columbus, thought it was smaller. As

a result, Columbus thought that China and India were located where the American continents are. He sailed, found Cuba

and the Islands that came to be known as the West Indies, and the exploration of the Americas was underway.

By 1494, Portugal and Spain were already fighting over land in the newly found Americas. To resolve their differences,

the two countries drew up the Treaty of Tordesillas, which established a line of demarcation on a longitudinal (north-

south) line that runs through the western Atlantic Ocean. They agreed that everything to the east of the line belonged to

Portugal; everything to the west belonged to Spain. The western side was enormous (they had no idea how enormous at

the time) so Spain became a mega-power quickly. Brazil happened to lie to the east of the line, which is why modern-day

Brazilians speak Portuguese instead of Spanish.

Soon, England, the Netherlands, and France launched their own expeditions. These seafaring nations competed with each

other by rapidly acquiring colonies and conquering new lands. The cost and risk associated with these explorations made

it necessary for explorers to rely on the backing of strong and wealthy states. In addition, merchants wanted protection for

their trade routes, which could also be acquired through allegiance to a particular sovereignty. Colonialism and the

expansion of the trade routes contributed to the rise of nationalism and the development of strong monarchies.

Here’s quick list of other explorers.

- Amerigo Vespucci – He explored South America on several trips around 1500; he realized that the continent was

huge part of Asia; America was named for him.

- Ponce de Leon – 1513, he explored Florida for Spain in search of the fountain of youth.

- Vasco de Balboa – In 1513, he explored much of Central America for Spain; he laid sight on the Pacific Ocean.

- Ferdinand Magellan – In 1519, he sailed around the tip of South America to the Pacific Ocean for Portugal. He

made it as far as the Philippines, where he died; his crew continued, however, and became the first to circumnavigate

the globe.

- Giovanni da Verrazzano – In 1524, he explored the North American coast for France.

- Sir Francis Drake – In 1578, he became the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe.

- John Cabot – In 1497, he explored the coast of North America for England.

- Henry Hudson – Beginning in 1609, he sailed for the Dutch, looking for a Northwest Passage to Asia. He explored the

Hudson River and made claims to the area for the Dutch.

Why wee so many explorers sailing around the globe? Why didn’t this happen sooner? In the late 15 th century,

innovation was combined with determination to apply new technologies to political and economic goals. In addition to

advanced mapmaking techniques, the Age of Exploration was brought to you by the following fine products:

- The Sternpost Rudder – Invented in China during the Han Dynasty, the sternpost rudder allowed for better navigation

and control of ships of increasing size. How did it end up in the hands of the Europeans? Trade, of course.

- Lateen Sails – These sails, invented during the early Roman Empire, allowed ships to sail in any direction, regardless

of the wind. This was a huge improvement to ships that were dependent on the wind, especially in the Indian Ocean

waters, where monsoons kept ships docked for long periods of time. Once these sails were used regularly on the Indian

Ocean routes, they quickly became standard on transatlantic voyages.

- The Astrolabe – Sailors used this portable navigation device, developed in the Hellenic world around 150 B.C.E., to

help them find their way. By measuring the distance of the sun and the stars above the horizon, the astrolabe helped

determine latitude.

- The Magnetic Compass – Borrowed from the Chinese, who developed it during the Han Dynasty, the magnetic

compass traveled west through trade with Arabs and allowed sailors to determine direction without staying in sight

of land.

To be sure, many of these invention existed prior to the 15 th century, but so much of history is about timing. In the late

15 th century, these inventions had converged on one continent, a continent that was fiercely competitive about trade routes,

newly wealthy, increasingly organized under strong leaders, and racing with the innovation and imagination of the

Renaissance. We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: The events of this time period are so interrelated that you can’t

separate them. The era needs to be understood as one giant glob of inseparable, indistinguishable forces.

B. The New World: Accidental Empire

Although Columbus failed to locate gold or spices in the Americas, the next generation of Spanish explorers found great

wealth in the Aztecs and Inca Empires. In 1519, Hernando (Hernan) Cortes landed on the coast of Mexico with a small

force of 600 men. He found himself at the heart of the Aztec Empire. As you might recall, the Aztecs used the conquest

of neighboring communities to secure humans for religious sacrifices. Many of these neighboring states loathed the

Aztecs and were more than willing to cooperate with the Spaniards. Cortes alternatively subjugated or slaughtered those

that were not.

Cortes, aided and guided by the resentful neighbors, first approached the magnificent azted capital of Tenochtitlan on

horseback. Horses were as yet completely unknown in America (and in fact were introduced to the continent by Spanish

conquistadores). Montezuma, the Aztec ruler, sent a gift of gold to appease this newcomer to his lands, but unfortunately

for the Aztecs, this offering only fueled the appetite of the new conquerors. Because the Spaniards sole motivation for

exploring the New World was to acquire gold and spices, the Spanish didn’t hesitate to seize Montezuma and begin to

siege of Tenochtitlan.

C. Disease: The Ultimate Weapon of Mass Destruction

Although the Aztecs resisted the occupation and fought to rid their capital of the invaders, the Spanish had incredibly

powerful weapons on their side, including diseases such as smallpox. These infections were completely new to the

Americas, thanks to their geographic isolation prior to Europeans’ arrival. The diseases quickly decimated the Aztecs,

who had no natural resistance to them. The combination of diseases, superior weapons, and assistance form Aztec

enemies reduced the native population of the region form well over 20 million in 1520 to fewer than 2 million by 1580.

Because so many of the deaths occurred in the first few years, the Spaniards were able to seize control of the empire by

around 1525.

A similar fate met the Inca Empire. In 1531, Francisco Pizarro set out in search of the Incas with a tiny force of 200 men.

Disease, superior weapons, and help from enemies quickly destroyed what little resistance the Incas could mount. In

addition, Pizarro happened to land shortly after a very destructive civil war that had left the current emperor of the Incas

in a shaky political position. By 1535, Pizarro was in control of the region.

Contrast Them: The Expansion in the Americas Versus Empire Building Elsewhere

We’ve talked about a lot of empires that expanded into far reaching territories: the Roman, the Mongols, the Muslims,

and the Macedonians, for example. In each of these cases, the empires either allowed existing cultural traditions to

remain intact, or converted the existing population to their way of doing things, forcibly or not. By contrast, in the case of

the Americas, the existing populations were largely wiped out. In addition, huge numbers of people moved in, far

outnumbering the natives who had survived. Even the Mongols, who didn’t hesitate to wipe out communities in their

paths, didn’t totally support the native populations the way the Europeans did in the Americas. Never before had an

empire moved int such a vast territory that was so unpopulated (or, more accurately, depopulated). All of the other

empires had to merge with, convert, or be converted by the existing populations. In the Americas, the Europeans created

two new continents strictly in their own image.

D. The Encomienda System

Once Spain established a foothold in the New World, thousands of Spaniards arrived to build a new colonial empire. The

colonial society was hierarchical organization. At the top were the peninsulares, the select group of Spanish officials

sent to govern the colonies. Below them, the crillos, or creoles, were people born in the colonies to Spanish parents.

Because they weren’t born in Spain, they were looked down upon by the Spanish monarchy and were consequently barred

from high positions. Yet, because they were the children of Spaniards, the creoles were educated and wealthy, and after

many generations, they were able to organize and demand recognition. They later became the leaders of the

independence movements. Below the crillos were mestizos, those with European and Native American ancestry,

followed by the mulattos, those with European and African ancestry. Finally, there were the native Americans, who had

little to no freedom and worked on estates or in mines.

To run the empire, the viceroys, who were appointed governors of each of the five regions of New Spain, established the

encomienda system, which was a system of forced labor. The system provided the peninsulares with land and a specified

number of native laborers. In return, the peninsulares were expected to protect the natives and convert them to

Christianity. Shocked at the treatment of some of the natives, Christian missionaries appealed to the viceroys, emperor,

and the Catholic Church to improve the natives’ lot. Some in the empire agreed that reform was needed, but disastrously,

the reform that was viewed as most important was the need for more workers. The reformers agreed to reduce the strain

on the natives by bringing in new workers for the hardest jobs. Those new workers were enslaved Africans. Not only

was this a cruel ironic way to solve the problem (relieve the burden on one group of victims by creating a second group),

but it also ended up not improving the lot of the natives. Within a few decades, both enslaved people and natives were at

the bottom of the social structure, and neither had significant rights.

E. African Slave Trade

Even before transatlantic voyages began, Europeans had begun exploiting a system of slavery that already existed in

Africa. While many African tribes and nations practiced a form of slavery by requiring prisoners taken in battle to serve

their captors for a period of time before being eventually released (when their captors judged that prisoners’ honor, lost in

battle, had been restored by their service), European traded guns and other good sto African leaders in exchange for their

surplus enslaved people but did not understand (or chose to ignore) the custom of eventual release. By the mid 15 th

century, the Portuguese were also capturing enslaved people while exploring the coasts of Africa. When the plantations

(and mines) of the New World demanded more labor, the money-hungry empire builders knew where to go. So began a

forced migration of people that would forever change the fate of millions of lives and the history of the New World.

Some African rulers cooperated with the slave trade, while others protested, but they were in a difficult position – as

demand for the transatlantic slave trade increased, Europeans became increasingly ruthless in their methods, kidnapping

Africans in their own raids or pitting groups against one another through control of weapons trade. Kings and other

leaders faced a choice of cooperating with the Europeans or seeing their people seized or slaughtered, so the slave trade

expanded. Africans were rounded up, forced onto ships, chained together, taken below deck, and forced to endure the

brutal Middle Passage to the Americas. By historians’ best estimates, at least 13 million Africans were taken from the

African continent and carried to the New World; approximately 60 percent went to South America, around 35 percent to

the Caribbean, and about 5 percent to North America. Along the way, some suffocated form the hot, unventilated

conditions below deck, others starved or died from outbreaks of disease, and yet others were killed attempting revolt or

jumped overboard to their deaths, preferring suicide to the dishonor of slavery. Based on slave traders’ existing records,

historians believe average mortality rate were around 20 percent, though some voyages lost a much larger portion of their

human cargo. Those who survived the journey were taken to the auction blocks, sold into slavery, and forced to work in

plantation fields or in mines until their deaths, as were their children and their children’s children.

Focus on: Demographic Shifts

The demographic changes of the 16 th and 17 th centuries were, in a word, huge. The Aztecs and Incas were wiped out.

Large cities were depopulated. Europeans moved by the hundreds of thousands. Africans were forced to migrate by the

millions. Cities in Europe swelled as the feudal system evaporated and urban, middle class merchants lined their pockets

with the fruits of trade and empire. By 1750, the continents of Europe, Africa, North America were unrecognizable form

their 1450 portraits.

Slavery and Gender

Since men were seen as more capable of the arduous agricultural labor demands required of enslaved people, the were

disproportionately sold in the early years of the Atlantic slave trade. However, as men were given more specialized labor

tasks (e.g. blacksmiths, carpenters), women were increasingly added to the plantation, eventually outnumbering men in

agricultural settings.

F. The Columbian Exchange

One consequence of the Spanish and Portuguese empires in the New World was what became known as the Columbian

Exchange – the transatlantic transfer of animals, plants, disease, people, technology, and ideas among Europe, the

Americas, and Africa. As Europeans and Africans crisscrossed the Atlantic, the brought the Old World to the New and

back again. From the European and African side of the Atlantic, horses, pigs, goats, chili peppers, and sugarcane, (and

more) flowed to the Americas. From the American side, squash, beans, corn, potatoes, and cacao (and more) made their

way back east. Settlers from the Old World carried bubonic Plague, smallpox, typhoid, influenza, and the common cold

into the New and then carried Chagas and syphilis back to the Old. Guns, Catholicism, and enslaved Africans, also

crossed the Atlantic. With them, the enslaved people brought agriculture such as rice and okra, as well as elements of

West African culture. Never before had so much been moved across the ocean, as ship after ship carried the contents of

one continent to another.

The American food crops (cassava, corn, peanuts, and potatoes) that traveled east made populations increases possible

throughout Europe, Asia, and Africa. Urban populations and commercial interest grew throughout Europe and led to

increased cultivation and enclosure of land. With increased cultivation came increased use for previously rural areas.

Despite some threat of famine, shortages due to a long cooling period or “little ice age,” and out-migration, overall the

trend throughout much of northern Europe was that of a growing population.

Two key products of the Columbian exchange were sugar and silver. Sugarcane roots had arrive in the Caribbean from

India with Columbus, who saw an opportunity to monopolize a profitable crop in a new environment. Sugarcane

production resulted in the development of plantations throughout the Spanish colonies and an increased need for enslaved

or forced labor once the native populations of the islands declined. The results of the plantation system were brutal,

dangerous labor and a transformation of the natural landscape.

The Spanish also monopolized the world’s silver market from the mine they controlled in Mexico and in the Andes

Mountain of Peru. This industry also resulted in a harsh system mining depended on native labor until that grew to scarce

to make a profit, when labor shifted to enslaved Africans provided by Portuguese traders.

More importantly, Spanish control of Latin American silver opened doors in Ming China. Spanish access to the

Philippines, China, and the Pacific Ocean trade routes made the world a much smaller place.

G. The Commercial Revolution

The trading, empire building, and conquest of the Age of Exploration was made possible by new financing schemes that

now form the basis of our modern economies. Though many elements had to come together at once for the new economy

to work, timing was on the side of the Europeans, and everything fell into place.

First, the church gave in to state interests by revising its strict ban on what are now standard business practices, such as

lending money and charging interest on loans. Once banking became acceptable, a new business structure emerged: the

joint stock company, an organization created to pool resources of many merchants, thereby distributing the costs and

risks of colonization and reducing the danger for individual investors. Investors bought shares, or stock, in the company.

If the company made money, each investor would receive a profit proportional to his or her initial investment. Because

huge new ships were able to carry unprecedented cargoes, and because the goods were often outright stolen form their

native countries, successful voyages reaped huge profits. A substantial middle class of merchants continued to develop,

which in turn attracted more investors, and the modern-day concept of a stock market was well under way.

These corporations later secured royal charters for colonies, such as the Jamestown colony in Virginia, and funded them

for business purposes. Even when they didn’t establish colonies, monarchies granted monopolies to trade routes. The

Muscovy Company of England monopolized trade routes to Russia, for example: The Dutch East India Company

controlled routes to the Spice Islands (modern day Indonesia).

Increased trade led to an early theory of macroeconomics for the nations of Europe. Under the theory of mercantilism, a

country actively sought to trade, but tried not to import more than it exported; that is, it attempted to create a favorable

balance of trade. Trade deficits forced dependencies on other countries, and therefore implied weakness. Of course, on

country’s surplus had to be met with another country’s deficit. To resolve this dilemma, European countries were feverish

to colonize. Colonies gave the mother country raw resources (not considered imports because the mother country

“owned” them), while creating new markets for processed exports. To further aid the effort, monarchies promoted

domestic industry and placed tariffs on imports form competing empires. Once the Industrial Revolution was under way,

Mercantilism really took off.

It shouldn’t be surprising that mercantilism fostered resentment in colonies. The colonial resources were shipped back to

Europe while the colonists were forced to pay for products from Europe. Add taxes, and you’ve got resentment. You

already know that the American Revolution was in part due to colonial fury over this arrangement. One by one,

beginning with America, European colonies revolted against the abuses by the unforgiving mercantilist economies of the

European powers.

ASIA

Recall that the original Portuguese explorers were trying to figure out a shortcut to India and China. Once they stumble

upon a couple of continents along the way and began wiping out native civilizations, building empires, and forcibly

transporting millions of Africans to do hard labor, they forgot the original purpose of their exploration. In time, European

explorers, armed with bottomless resources of energy and greed, remembered and pursued the East.

Asian colonization didn’t really get rolling until the 19 th century. From the 16 th through the 18 th centuries, however, the

Europeans managed to establish trade with the Asian empires, although it was more limited than they would have liked

because of Asian protectionist policies and the difficulties of travel.

After making their way around the Cape of Good Hope, the Portuguese set up a trading post in Goa on the west coast of

India. They also gained control over the Spice Islands by establishing naval superiority in the Straights of Malacca. In

less than a century, however, other European power coveted Asian riches. The Dutch, under the backing of the newly

formed Dutch East India Company, conducted deliberate raids on Portuguese ships and trading posts. In the 17 th century

the Dutch became the biggest power in the spice trades. Meanwhile, England and France set up trading posts in India.

As for China and Japan, both empires severely limited trade with the Europeans. Throughout this time period, the two

Asian empires couldn’t have been more unlike their European counterparts. They were highly isolationist. Not only did

they not go out and try to find the rest of the world, they also pushed the rest of the world away when it came to find them.

Developments in Specific Countries and Empires, 1450-1750

It’s dangerous to presume that because the Renaissance, the Protestant Reformation, the Scientific Revolution, the

Enlightenment, and the Age of Exploration eventually had enormous consequences that they did so quickly, broadly, or in

equal proportions. In reality, the major movements impacted different parts of the Europe at different times and took a

long time to penetrate all circles of society. Most people with power guarded it jealously, regardless of the intellectual or

religious movements that brought their power into question. What’s more, most of the peasant class didn’t participate in

the intellectual, scientific, or commercial developments because they weren’t educated or in a position to be immediately

impacted by the consequences.

Outside of Europe, the major developments of the time period also had widely varying consequences. In the previous

section, we discussed the consequences on the Americas and on much of Africa. Lest you think the rest of the world

remained passive in the face of European growth, it is important to not that powerful and centralized states were

established (or reestablished) in the Middle East, India, China and Japan. The empires of Asia, too, had unique

experiences. As you review the developments in the European empires, keep in mind that most nations were led by

monarchs, or sovereigns, who felt that the right to govern was ordained by God. Under this idea of divine right, it was

essential for royal families to retain pure bloodlines to God, so intermarriage among royal families of different nations

was common. Thus, the monarchies of one country also gained international influence as the ties of marriage and

inheritance led to alliances.

Monarchies also contributed to the development of strong national loyalties, which led to many conflicts, internally and

externally. The European wars of this time fall into three categories; religious fights between Protestants and Catholics,

internal civil wars between rival nations. In the beginning of this era, Spain became the world’s strongest nation with a

powerful naval fleet and an extensive empire. As the balance of power in Europe shifted, the rival nations of England and

France emerged as great powers.

V. Technology and Innovations 1450-1750

Europe became a powerful force during this time period because of its willingness to adapt and use three key innovations

that existed in other parts of the world: gunpowder weapons, navigation and ship-building technology, and finally the

printing press (which developed independently in Germany). At a time when competition among the Europeans resulted

in big risks and innovations, the Chinese and Japanese returned to more traditional lifestyles in order to maintain stability,

and the Muslims, while retaining powerful land based empires, allowed innovations in shipping and weaponry to pass

them by.

The biggest impact of these new technologies was the expanded knowledge of the world that resulted from exploration by

the European nations. Using their superior weapons and larger trading ships, the Europeans established new overseas

trading empires, moved lots of plants and animals, enslaved the transported people across oceans, and generally

transformed the interaction of the entire world. They fought wars with one another in Europe and – when they were

unable to establish suitable trading relationships – went to war in the places they wished to conquer.

Increased contact meant the spread of new ideas and technology (such as the printing press), and the exposure to new

cultures transformed both education and religion. The establishment of new Protestant churches in northern Europe

increased the power of the kings and nation states at the expense of the Catholic Church. Conversely, religious conflicts

led to increased immigration from northern Europe and the resettlement of large numbers of colonists in the New World.

VI. Changes and Continuities in the Role of Women

A number of powerful women took charge of the most dominant empires of this time. These included Elizabeth I of

England, Isabella of Spain, and Nur Jahan of Mughal, India. With the exception of Elizabeth, who chose never to marry,

most of these women shared power with their husbands. In spite of the great power and visibility of these few elite

women, for the most part the status and freedoms of women changed little form the previous period – legally they were

often considered property of their husbands, inherited less than sons or brothers, and had few right in legal or political

spheres.

The biggest change in the lives of women came from the mixing of previously unknown cultures. The result of global

exploration and colonization, these new relationships produced offspring considered mixed, or mestizo. Racial categories

began to be more widely used in determining status or class hierarchy, and restrictions developed regarding marriages and

legal relationships between classes. Changes in trade and production also placed a greater premium on male labor, and

jobs that women had traditionally held, such as textile weaving, were increasingly dominated by men.

Some regions of the world served as exceptions to these general patterns but were still impacted by the global interactions.

The forced migration of males in African societies resulted in a disproportionate number of females left behind in what

were already matrilineal societies. These number reinforced polygyny, or multiple marriages. Although large numbers of

men also migrated form Europe, the predominately Christian societies did not allow multiple marriages, and as the

number of unmarried women increased, this created a problem in society that regarded marriage as the goal of all women.

The non-European areas of the world tended to regard older or widowed women with both respect and superstition. In

both Africa and many Native American societies, councils of older women were part of the political decision making

process. However, older women were also feared, as they couldn’t necessarily be controlled. It was this need for control

that led to a continuation of Neo-Confucianism values in eastern Asia. This social philosophy designated proper roles and

virtues for women within the home with the understanding that if the home were stable so was the state.

In Europe, the revolutionary new ideas of the Renaissance and the Enlightenment included women, at least nominally.

Education was more widely available to all classes, but opportunities for girls lagged far behind those boys, and the

highest levels of education were open only to males. Even the less hierarchical new Protestant religions limited the roles

of women to wife and mother and did not have convents or monastic systems as alternative to traditional roles.

Eventually, the Protestant countries grew even more puritanical in their regulation of sex, marriage, and illegitimacy.

VII. Pulling it all Together

In the context of the Age of Exploration, “exploration” has lots of connotations. Of course, the most obvious is that it

involved European exploration of the Americas and the beginning of direct contact with Asia. But more than that, its

exploration was also internal. In the Renaissance, Europe explored its own lost history. During the Protestant

Reformation, it explored its relationship with God. During the Scientific Revolution, Europe explored the universe and

the laws by which the universe functioned. During the Enlightenment, it explored the rights of man and the appropriate

role of government, even as its empire depended on slavery. Finally, during the Commercial Revolution, Europe explored

its potential.

Combined, these explorations were going in all directions – outward, upward, inward, backward to the past, forward to the

future – an it was all going on simultaneously. If you’re confused by the developments, you should be. Its hard to figure

out which movements in which combination impacted which events. Historians haven’t sorted it out either. Its open to

debate.

What we can say is this: during the time period discussed, Europe was where the energy was. There was so much change

for so many reasons, that the boundaries of the continent couldn’t contain it. Unlike China and Japan, which largely

looked inward, and unlike the Islamic world, which didn’t take to the seas or radically shake up religious and social

orders, Europeans were dynamic at this particular time in history. They analyzed everything and were full of

inconsistencies. At various points in history, other civilizations had at least as much energy and unrest, but because the

Europeans had the technology, the political motivation, and the financial structure, they were able to quickly explode onto

the world scene. Add in the evangelical nature of Christianity (an explicit desire to convert the world), and it’s clear that

the desire for expansion ran deep.

Some would say that European monarchs ruled absolutely during this time period and adopted a controlling, ethnocentric

attitude with regard to the cultures they dominated. Perhaps this was precisely because Europe was in such a cultural

chaos itself. Who knows? We’ll leave that to your further studies. In any case, its hard to deny that even as Europeans

explored their own history, culture, and structures to unprecedented degrees, they had little trouble marginalizing the

complexities of others.

What about Non-European Cultures?

Why was their interaction with the West so Varied?

There are lots of ways to answer these questions, but we’ll get you started. China and Japan were both highly organized,

confident civilizations. The contingencies of Europeans on their shores were modest. Because the Japanese and Chinese

wanted desperately to preserve their own cultures, and because they had the power and sophistication to keep the

Europeans, for the moment, at bay, that’s precisely what they did. Why didn’t others?

In Africa, societies were fragmented. No centralized power existed, so the Europeans were harder to fend off. What’s

more, the Europeans weren’t initially obsessed with penetrating the entire continent. Because they didn’t have to overtake

entire civilizations to achieve their goals, they were able to trade goods and abduct individuals one by one, with little

concern for long term impact on the continent.

In the Americas, of course, civilizations were quickly overwhelmed by European technology and disease. In the Ottoman

Empire and Arabia, the interaction was somewhat limited because the Europeans weren’t as dependent on the overland

routs in their effort to trade with India and China. This diminished the importance of the Middle East to the Europeans.

What’s more, because the Crusades ended unsuccessfully for the Europeans, trade with the Muslims was important, but

conquest of the region was off the radar.

Finally, What about the Global Economy? How did it change?

Sailing, mercantilism, and private investment changed the global economy. Improvements in sailing diminished the need

for Asian land routes and connected the world like never before. Mercantilism and its dependence on the establishment of

imperialism married economic and political developments. The establishment of joint stock companies took major

economic motivation out of the hands of government and put it into the hands of thousands of people had a direct stake in

trade routes and conquest. Because the benefits of economic prosperity were diffused among a larger group of individuals

than ever before, governments began to lose their grip on controlling their own economies.

Medici Huguenots Prince Henry the Navigator

Michelangelo Henry IV Vasco da Gama

Brunelleschi Edict of Nantes Christopher Columbus

Leonardo da Vinci Cardinal Richelieu Treaty of Tordesillas

Donatello Cardinal Mazarin Amerigo Vespucci

Johannes Gutenberg Louis XIV Ponce de Leon

Printing press Jean Baptiste Colbert Vasco de Balboa

Vernacular War of Spanish Succession Ferdinand Magellan

Indulgences Philip V Giovanni da Verrazzano

Martin Luther Peace of Augsburg Sir Francis Drake

Pope Leo X Thirty Years’ War John Cabot

Lutherans Peace of Westphalia Henry Hudson

John Calvin Ivan III Northwest Passage

Calvinism Ivan IV The Sternpost Rudder

King Henry VIII Boyars Lateen Sails

Church of England Cossacks The Astrolabe

Catholic Reformation Ivan the Terrible The Magnetic Compass

Counter Reformation Time of Troubles Three Masted Caravels

Ignatius Loyola Michael Romanov Hernando (Hernan) Cortes

Jesuits Peter the Great Francisco Pizarro

Council of Trent Catherine the Great Peninsulares

Tycho Brahe Ottoman Empire Creoles

Francis Bacon Osman Bey Mestizos

Johannes Kepler Timars Mulattos

Sir Isaac Newton Devshirme Viceroys

Atheists Selim I Encomienda

King Ferdinand Suleiman I Middle Passage

Queen Isabella Babur Sugar

Charles V Mughal Empire Silver

Ferdinand I Zamindars Age of Exploration

Phillip II Shah Jahan Joint Stock Company

Spanish Inquisition Taj Mahal Muscovy Company

Decree of Alhambra Songhai Dutch East India Company

King Henry VIII Kongo and Angola Mercantilism

Act of Supremacy Asanti

Elizabeth I Kongo

Elizabethan Age King Alfonso I

Muscovy Company Angola

British East India Company Queen Nzinga

James I Zheng He

Charles I Qing

Petition of Right Manchus

Long Parliament Imperial portraits

Oliver Cromwell Kangxi

English Commonwealth Qianlong

Lord Protector Tokugawa Ieyasu

Stuart Restoration Edo period

Habeas Corpus Act National Seclusion Policy

Glorious Revolution Kabuki

English Bill of Rights Haiku