Ch. 7 Maritime Technological Innovations & Exploration

Summary:

• Different Asian countries had started to explore the oceans and bays, but for different reasons. Malay voyagers were in it for the money (Connected Southeast Asia, Arabia, and Africa). The Chinese wanted to trade and power. Polynesians wanted power and to show off.  Vikings,  Africans, and Amerindians also partook in long-distance travel.

• European influence between 1450 and 1550 just like other regions advanced cultural exchange, but they took it one step further and changed history forever by connecting trade all the way across the 3 major oceans, creating regular contact between all the continents. There was a shift in the balance of power in parts of the world.

• In 1492 there was no way Europe could show off its power due to the might of China and the Ottomans. For example, Spain lacked institutions and Portugal was too small.

• Europe struggled to expand into Africa and Asia due to resistance from the locals, unlike the Americas which was fairly easy.

• Lots of Amerindians died due to epidemic disease and the destructive conquest involving the Europeans. This led to the rapid creation of settlements and subordination of the surviving Amerindians. Due to the low population of Amerindians, the African slave trade took place. Though the Spanish and Portuguese struggled at first, the Americas were like the lottery for them due to the production of gold, silver, sugar, and other products. This also led to growing tension between other European nation-states. Throughout the development of the Americas, the European economy drastically changed due to new technologies, plants, animals, languages, beliefs, and oppressive new forms of labor.