Chapter 14 rest of chapter

Due to the environmental changes that caused a "Little Ice Age", the fur trade became very prominent during the early modern era. European nations competed to be apart of this enterprise. The French obtained much of their fur from the St. Lawrence valley. British traders took over the Hudson Bay region and the Dutch primarily had control over the Hudson River where New York stands today.

For the most part, Europeans did not do any of the trapping that took place for trading fur. Many of the Native Americans that partook in these jobs benefited a lot from trading fur.  They usually had the Native Americans do the messy work in exchange for gifts suchs as weapons, textiles, and brandy. The fur trade became widespread and everyone wanted to take part in it due to the cold climates that were approaching. Trapping caused environmental damage to beaver populations in the United States. Their habitats were degraded which almost lead to their extinction.

The Atlantic Slave trade was essential during this time period as well. Many African people were taken in by elites in and sent to the Caribbean, America, and the Mediterranean. In the Americas, the African slave trade brought diversity into their society. Unlike other societies, there was a racial barrier between African Slaves and their European counterparts. For a long period of time, they were not viewed as equals, but instead they were seen as property. In the Indian Ocean world, many of these slaves assimilated into other societies of their owners. They lost their identity through this process. Some slaves in the Islamic world were given prominent military or political status. Many of the slaves that were transferred from one place to another died in the process. They caught diseases that were not known to them in the process.

Chapter 14 Part 1

Muslims held a monopoly on the Indian Ocean. They were the source of supply for much of the goods that were being traded within the Indian Ocean. The city of Venice was a place of commerce commonly used for trade between the European Powers. Europeans resented both the Venetians and Muslims due to the fact that they had to rely on them as trading partners. Because Europe was not as developed as its counterparts, they had to pay for Asian goods with gold or silver. Europe's lack of dominance on the Indian Ocean ultimately lead them to find their way into the "ancient Asian world of Indian Ocean commerce."

The advancements in technological weapons allowed for the Portuguese to gain access by force to bases that were under the rule of weak states. They knew they could not control commerce through economic competition, so they aimed to enter this system by using arm force. They attempted to assign merchant vessels duties of 6 to 10 percent of their cargos as a means to make profit. Although the Portuguese were able to make their way into the Indian Ocean trade, they never exceeded to amount of half of the spice trade in Europe. Their unsuccessful attempts soon lead them to assimilate themselves back to their ancient ways.

After seeing the success held by the Portuguese, the Spanish began to think of ways to catch up to their counterparts. They established themselves in the Philippine Islands. In comparison to the Portuguese, the Spanish did not dominate these Islands through force. Instead, they formed alliances with the chiefs living on these Islands. The Spanish pressed their religion --Christianity-- onto the Filipino lifestyle. Women began to be displaced by male priest as their major role as healers, specialists, and midwives were taken from them.

The Dutch and the British began to get into the Indian commercial trade during the early seventeenth century. The Dutch held great business and maritime shipping skills that allowed them to become a highly commercialized nation. The Dutch took over the Islands of Indonesia to use for their resources. They took control of spice-producing islands and forced the people living their to trade with them solely. Additionally, the Dutch East Indian Company also took over Taiwan. The British East Indian Company established itself in Bombay (now Mumbai), Calcutta, and Madras.

Silver and gold also became an essential when it came to trade. Spanish America held 85% of the world's silver in the early modern era. Because the Spanish held control over the Philippines, they possessed a capital that was the destination to shipments of silver.

Chapter 13 Summary

The Chinese, Indians, and Muslims lacked incentive to participate in the exploration of the Americas, but the Europeans did not. A relevant quote expressed by a Spanish Conquistador, that of which our history book mentions, is "We came here to serve God and the King, and also to get rich." This pretty much sums up the reasoning behind many of the Europeans settler's incentives to find land elsewhere. Some were seeking better lives after the potato famine, others left as a result of religious persecution, and some sought to obtain the riches that they believed the Americas possesed. This new land was easily sought for by the Europeans because they were more advanced than the Native American's residing in this land. The diseases that the Europeans brought to the Americas killed off most of the Native American populations making them the dominant race. The Dutch, the British, and the Spaniards all had major advantages towards the Native American populations. The "Little Ice Age" also took place during this time period. The cool temperatures that arouse made it hard for individuals to produce crops. A major revolutionary process that occurred was the columbian exchange. New plants, crops, and animals were introduced to the Americas making it easier to provide food for many. International exchange became worldwide and major nations were trading amongst each other. Additionally, the Atlantic slave trade was a means of making profit from Africa to the United States. Cheap labor was needed to take care of crops such as tobacco, and many colonies would pay to bring these workers to America. 

Both the European and the Russian empires had some similarities and differences during this time period that relied on conquering land. As individuals were expanding in the Americas, Russians were also expanding their influence westward. The Russians were trying to take control of those nomadic pastoral individuals who lived in the grasslands south and east of Russia. The reason for this was because they posed a threat to their agricultural Russian neighbors selling many of them into slavery. What drove the russians to the east was the opportunity to access "'soft gold' of fur-bearing animals." The Russian empire enforced the individuals under their control to pledge an oath of allegiance to the Russian authorities. They also demanded a tribute that had to be paid in cash. Similarly to the conquest in the Americas, being under Russian control produced epidemics in the places that were conquered. Russians provided incentives such as "tax breaks, exemptions from paying tribute, or the promise of land or cash" to get individuals to turn to Christianity. Russians destroyed mosques as a means to get individuals to turn to Christianity as well. 

Part four talked about the modern area and emphasized that it was not set in stone who held the most influence in 1970. It was interesting to read that Europeans did not have a grand amount of control on China and Japan. In fact, during the eighteenth century, China and Japan controlled the European missionaries and merchants who intervened in their societies. Additionally, African authorities had a huge say on the way that the triangular slave trade was processed between the European authorities. During this time period, women were still not viewed as individuals capable of owning land. Those who got a say for the most part were rich males that owned land or offices. Although our definition of modern means bigger changes than the ones that will be discussed in this chapter, during that time period these were the ideas that were placed and enforced in their societies.

Yay! I'm done.