chapter 13: european visions the atlantic north atlantic was home of raiders and sailors rather than...
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Chapter 13: European VisionsThe Atlantic
North Atlantic was home of raiders and sailors rather than traders (8th-12th centuries)
Vikings were the major actors• 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 trainingMost 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 CityTextile 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 LearningRenaissance 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 PlagueDepopulation 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 manAsserting importance of individual challenged authority of the ChurchStrong belief in God tied to belief that God gave mankind the power to shape its own destiny
The Renaissance
New Artistic StylesReligious 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 TechnologyImprovements in sailing aided merchants
• Caravel and lateen sails• Astrolabe
CannonPrinting
• From China but better suited for alphabetic writing
Decimal system
The Renaissance
Church Revises its Economic PoliciesHad 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 practicesEconomic growth in secular city-states of Flanders and Italy
A New World
Portugal situated to lead explorationFirst goal was to gain supremacy over Muslims
Second goal was oceanic route to India
Prince Henry the Navigator, 1394-1460 • 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 monarchyUnderestimated 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 goalsChart the unknownPressure to find a new homeQuest for profitDesire to proselytize the worldLust for conquest and global supremacy
Eastern and Western Hemispheres now connected