Download Ch. 13 Powerpoint European Visions

Chapter 13: European Visions
The Atlantic
North Atlantic was home of raiders and
sailors rather than traders (8th-12th
centuries)
Vikings were the major actors
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Were explorers and raiders
Settled new areas and established cities such as Dublin
Swedes (Vikings) moved eastward into Russia
Became more peaceful after 1000
No records of non-Viking activities
Decline of Trade in the Mediterranean
By 950, Mediterranean was “Muslim Lake”
but consisted of different cultural zones
Mediterranean now a war zone
Trade continued but was affected by fluctuations
in European economy
European merchants frustrated by lack of link from
Mediterranean to Indian Ocean
Europeans seek alternative routes
Trade and Social Change in Europe
Guilds/City-States Confront Rural
Aristocrats
Trade organized by guilds that controlled
wages, prices, production, and job training
Most were local; exception was Hanseatic
League of Germany
• Controlled trade from London to Novgorod
• Faded with rise of new states such as
Netherlands, England, and Sweden
Trade and Social Change in Europe
Economic and Social Conflicts within the City
Textile manufacturers dominated some cities
Capitalist traders organized manufacture based on
estimates of market demands
Production organized hierarchically with lower pay
for tasks at bottom of production process
Women and children got even less pay
Class antagonism led to revolts
Trade and Social Change in Europe
New Directions in Philosophy and Learning
Renaissance based on new urban wealth
Church renaissance from 11th century stressed
intellectual dimension of faith
• Anselm, Abelard, and Bernard of Clairvaux
• New monastic orders sought ties to early church
Intellectual opening to Arab world in 11th century
• Links through Spain
• Philosophers: Avicenna, Averroes, and Maimonides
Trade and Social Change in Europe
New Directions in Philosophy and Learning
[cont.]
University emerged and promoted practical
knowledge such as medicine, law, and theology
St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) paved way for
Renaissance (accepted ideas of Aristotle)
Assemblage of bright minds promoted wide range
of ideas, criticism of status quo and its leaders
Trade and Social Change in Europe
Disasters of the 14th Century: Famine,
Plague, and War
Italian prosperity brought population growth and
strain on natural resources
Rural depopulation followed by mid-13th century
Plague reduced European population from 70
million (1300) to 45 million (1400)
Trade and Social Change in Europe
Social Unrest Follows the Plague
Depopulation benefited survivors with
higher wages and ability to buy land
Ciompi (lowest class in Florence)
demanded access to guilds, right to
unionize, and participation in government
Successes were short-lived
The Renaissance
Motivating philosophy was humanism,
the belief that the proper study of man is
man
Asserting importance of individual
challenged authority of the Church
Strong belief in God tied to belief that
God gave mankind the power to shape
its own destiny
The Renaissance
New Artistic Styles
Religious themes influenced by humanistic and
commercial values
• Masaccio, Trinity with the Virgin (1427)
• Van Eyck, The Arnolfini Wedding Portrait (1434)
Florence and Medici family influenced art
• Michaelangelo, sculptor and painter
• Da Vinci, inventor and painter
• Machiavelli, political philosopher
The Renaissance
Developments in Technology
Improvements in sailing aided merchants
• Caravel and lateen sails
• Astrolabe
Cannon
Printing
• From China but better suited for alphabetic
writing
Decimal system
The Renaissance
Church Revises its Economic Policies
Had been critical of quest for private profit
• Opposition to money-lending led to Jewish role
as lenders and bankers who were segregated
from rest of society
Rise of commerce led Church to be more
open to commercial practices
Economic growth in secular city-states of
Flanders and Italy
A New World
Portugal situated to lead exploration
First goal was to gain supremacy over Muslims
Second goal was oceanic route to India
Prince Henry the Navigator, 1394-1460
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Outflanked Muslims by sailing around Africa
Interested in oceanic exploration
Circumnavigated Africa to reach India
Explorations around African coast opened commercial
opportunities in slaves, ivory, grain, and gold
A New World
Portugal [cont.]
Bartolomeu Diaz rounded southern tip of Africa in
1488
Portuguese rejection of Columbus’ services led
him to sail for Spain and connect Europe to what
he initially believed was China
Vasco da Gama made Europe-to-India voyage
• Defeated some Muslims and left armed force in India
A New World
Columbus funded by Spanish monarchy
Underestimated size of globe
Larger second voyage not a commercial success
Third voyage confirmed discovery of “new world”
Later voyages of Amerigo Vespucci and Vasco
Nunez de Balboa confirm “new world” finding;
discover the Pacific Ocean
Magellan circumnavigated the globe
Oceana
Australia largely untouched by European
voyages
Abel Tasman circumnavigated Australia for Dutch
East India Company (1642)
British sent James Cook and Joseph Banks to
Australia (and also Antarctica)
These voyages completed the process of gaining
understanding of the globe and its land masses
Legacies to the Future
Participants had different goals
Chart the unknown
Pressure to find a new home
Quest for profit
Desire to proselytize the world
Lust for conquest and global supremacy
Eastern and Western Hemispheres now
connected