Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Topic: Commerce in the Indian Ocean Region, 650 – 1750 Beginning - Long, unconnected trade routes stretching from China to Africa, with India as a hinge between them - Thriving multicultural cities across the coasts of India and Africa - Main commodities traded: Ivory, Silk, Spices - China under T’ang dynasty, not very strong mariners but still part of trade system, political stability in China allowed them to expand trade Middle - Qing Dynasty in China, believed it was important for Chinese to dominate Indian Ocean trade networks not only to bring goods to China but also to show Chinese splendor to the rest of the known world - Zheng He, mariner and trader under Qing dynasty. Sailed the largest ship at the time and spread Chinese goods across the region - Development of the long unconnected trade routes into broken up trade routes forming a large network -Discovery of the trade network by the Europeans, first the Portuguese End - Political instability in China, less dominance in the trade network - Europeans turned much of the trade to focus on slavery, particularly in the Western half of the region (China and Indian were able to remain more or less as before) - The impact of the Europeans was both positive and negative. It allowed for the trade network to flourish and expand, becoming a truly global network as it involved Europe directly and the Americas through the slave trade Changes: The Europeans came to dominate the system to the West, Chinese technological advancements allowed for more exploration and greater Chinese influence in the region, the trade routes became more connected to form a true network Continuities: China as the only main power to the East, the goods traded (slaves and ivory from Africa, spices from India, porcelain and silk from China), countries managed to remain un-colonized and maintain their local trade customs because of the Treaty of Tordesillas did not allow for their colonization. Thesis: From 650 to 1750 CE, the preexisting trade networks in the Indian Ocean region grew and flourished to reflect the evolving civilizations in the region, European trade, technological advances, and demand for goods and services throughout the globe. The trade system also reflected some of the continuities of the evolving regions, especially the Chinese, and the goods traded.