The West and the Changing World Balance

1. Introduction

After 1400, a new world balance was being created. The Mongol conquest caused the decline of Arab strength and opened opportunities for new participants in the Islamic trade system. At first the Ming dynasty of China appeared poised to take over the lead in world trade. When the Ming withdrew from international leadership, the nations of western Europe began to assert themselves.

The emergence of western Europe was signaled by internal changes that prepared the way for leadership. Changes outside the Eurasian network in Africa, the Americas, and Polynesia also affected the nature of international relationships.

2. The Decline of the Old Order



1. Introduction

By 1400, both the Byzantine Empire and the Abbasid Empire were virtually defunct.

2. Social and Cultural Decline in the Middle East

By 1300, religious leaders began to exert greater control over Islamic culture. In the Middle East, philosophical rationalism met resistance from religious conservatives. Mysticism and Islamic legalist traditions enjoyed greater currency than did the pursuit of scientific discoveries. As the caliphate declined, landlords exercised greater authority over the peasantry. Agricultural productivity declined as did tax revenue. European merchants began to challenge the Arabs in the Mediterranean, if not yet in the Indian Ocean. No total collapse of Islamic civilization occurred, as it did in the ancient West. The Ottomans rapidly took over most of the lands formerly held by the Abbasid caliphate.

3. A Power Vacuum in International Leadership

Ottoman rulers did not foster commerce as avidly as had the Abbasids. Science and philosophy continued to stagnate. The result was a power vacuum within Islamic civilization outside of the Ottoman Empire. The world trade network presided over by the Abbasids fragmented, and the chief beneficiaries were the Europeans.

4. Chinese Thrust and Withdrawal

When the Ming dynasty successfully drove out the Mongols in 1368, China was best placed to exert leadership in the Eurasian trade system. The first Ming emperors sought expansion, both by extending the borders of the empire and reviving the tribute system and by initiating state-sponsored maritime expeditions. Voyages reached India, the Middle East, and Africa. Just as the Chinese appeared poised to capture the trade system, the Ming emperors ordered the voyages to cease in 1433.

The costs of such ventures detracted from improvements in the infrastructure of China. The scholar-gentry also opposed the voyages out of rivalry with the leader of the expeditions, Cheng Ho. China's decision reflected traditional concentration on internal improvements and cultural isolation. Economic expansion in China did not depend on foreign trade. China's withdrawal cleared the path for the emergence of European dominance in the world trade network.

3. The Rise of the West



1. Introduction

In the fifteenth century, when the West began to expand their world contacts, there were important changes taking place in Europe. The Church, for long the unifying element of western culture, was under attack. Western philosophy seemed stagnant, and the military organization associated with feudalism was no longer effective. The West was also suffering from the impact of the Black Death, which eventually carried off almost one-third of Europe's population.

2. Sources of Dynamism: Medieval Vitality

The West enjoyed certain positive developments in the fifteenth century. More powerful and centralized nations were developed, particularly in the aftermath of the Hundred Years' War. New forms of military organization made greater centralization possible. Improvements in metallurgical technology made possible the construction and use of guns and munitions. Capitalism became more evident in the western economy with increased urbanization.

3. Imitation and International Problems

Although the Black Death temporarily reduced population levels in Europe, the overall trend between 1000 and 1700 was rapid population expansion. The establishment of the Mongol empire gave Europeans access to Asian technological developments. As a result, western technology drew closer to more advanced civilizations in Asia and the Middle East.

Another factor contributing to Europe’s international position was the fact that Europe had only crude goods to exchange for Asian luxury products and, while the people were able to make up the difference in gold, this meant that there was a serious gold shortage in Europe by 1400.

4. Secular Directions in the Italian Renaissance

The Renaissance, which began in Italy at the beginning of the fifteenth century, turned away from the medieval cultural synthesis toward a more secular outlook in art and literature. The wealth of Italian cities patronized the burgeoning of Italian cultural production. The typical political unit of the Italian peninsula was the city-state. Cities competed amongst themselves for land, cultural accomplishments, and administrative innovations.

5. Human Values and Renaissance Culture

The Renaissance was an age of cultural innovation and individualism. Renaissance artists abandoned medieval formalism to embrace more realistic and secular styles. Classical architectural forms replaced Gothic. Initially the Renaissance was largely limited to Italy, and even there its style was not accepted everywhere. The wide range of Italian commercial and shipping techniques laid the foundation for western expansion. The "Renaissance spirit" encouraged a sense of innovation and discovery.

6. The Iberian Spirit of Religious Mission

Another center of European expansion was the Iberian peninsula, where Christian monarchs had slowly reconquered the region from the Muslims. Two of the most important Christian kingdoms, Castile and Aragon, were united through the marriage of their monarchs in 1469. As part of the reconquest, Spanish and Portuguese rulers had developed powerful armies and regarded the defense and expansion of Christianity as a sacred duty. The Church worked closely with the Iberian states to encourage the sense of religious mission.

4. Western Expansion: The Experimental Stage



1. Introduction

Early expansion in the Atlantic began in the thirteenth century. Early discoveries unveiled the promise of colonialism.

2. Early Explorations

The Vivaldi brothers of Genoa undertook the first voyage of exploration into the Atlantic. In the fourteenth century, other Genoese explorers discovered the Canary Islands. Ships from Barcelona began to explore the Atlantic coast of Africa in the same century. Development of new technology more sea- worthy vessels, the compass, and the astrolabe enabled European discoverers to penetrate even farther into the Atlantic and along the African shore.

3. Colonial Patterns

Colonization rapidly followed exploration. Spanish and Portuguese settlers established large agricultural estates designed to produce commercial crops on the Atlantic islands. Sugar, cotton, and tobacco became the most popular crops. The Iberian settlers imported African slaves as a labor supply. These commercial ventures were sufficiently successful to stimulate further colonization on the plantation model of exploitation.

5. Outside the World Network



1. Introduction

The Americas, Polynesia, and parts of sub-Saharan Africa remained unaffected by early Western expansion, although they were eventually brought into a European-dominated world trade system. Some of these cultures experienced difficulties during the fifteenth century that made them vulnerable to European expansion.

2. Political Issues in the Americas

Both the Aztec and Inca empires of the Americas were already in disarray prior to the arrival of Europeans. Even without European intervention, it seems possible that other cultures would have taken over political leadership if American history had proceeded in isolation.

3. Expansion, Migration and Conquest in Polynesia

Between the seventh and the fifteenth centuries, migrations from the Society Islands populated the islands of Polynesia. One pattern of migration led to the Hawaiian islands, where an agricultural society developed. Hawaii was organized into regional kingdoms with stratified societies dominated by priests and nobles. While Hawaiian culture was complex, it lacked metallurgy and a system of writing.

4. Isolated Achievements by the Maoris

A second migration pattern led settlers to the islands of New Zealand. As in Hawaii, the Maori culture of New Zealand was warlike and dominated by priests and nobles. As in Hawaii, the Maori culture lacked metallurgy and concentrated on use of indigenous plants and animals. All of these developments occurred in total isolation from other civilizations.

6. Conclusion: Adding Up the Changes

The fifteenth century was an era of critical transitions involving world trade and the relative power of civilizations. As in the twentieth century, newly dynamic civilizations challenged those that had previously dominated.