columbian exchange demographic and environmental impacts
TRANSCRIPT
Columbian Exchange
Demographic and environmental
impacts
Is it an important subject for WHAP?
• 2005 COT Analyze the social and economic transformations that occurred in the Atlantic world as a result of new contacts among Western Europe, Africa, and the Americas from 1492 to 1750. •2006 DBQ Using the documents, analyze the social and economic effects of the global flow of silver from the mid-sixteenth century to the early eighteenth century. Explain how another type of document would help you analyze the effects of the flow of silver bullion in this period •2007 COMP Within the period from 1450 to 1800, compare the processes (e.g., political, social, economic) of empire building in the Spanish Empire with the empire-building processes in ONE of the following. •The Ottoman Empire OR the Russian Empire •2009 COMP For the period from 1500 to 1830, compare North American racial ideologies and their effects on society with Latin American/Caribbean racial ideologies and their effects on society. •2010 COT Describe and explain continuities and changes in religious beliefs and practices in ONE of the following regions from 1450 to the present. Sub-Saharan Africa Latin America/Carribean•2012 COMP Compare demographic and environmental effects of the Columbian Exchange on the Americas with the Columbian Exchange’s demographic and environmental effects on ONE of the following regions between 1492 and 1750 Africa, Asia, Europe•2014 COT Analyze continuities and changes in the ways ONE of the following regions participated in interregional trade during the period circa 1500 to 1750. •Latin America, including the Caribbean •Sub-Saharan Africa •Southeast Asia
Read and write impacts on posterboard for group notes
• Group 1- Americas
• Group 2- Africa
• Group 3- Europe
• Group 4- Asia
• Group 5- Pos and negative impacts
Impact on Native Americans
• Europeans were learning of the profitability of the plantation system – relying on what?– Economic benefit of using local forced labor
• Disease – Europeans, unknowingly brought measles, mumps, chickenpox, smallpox, typhus and others.
• The local people had no built-up natural immunity to these diseases yet.
Impact on Africans
• With decline of native work force, labor was needed from elsewhere.
• Slave trade exploded, especially in W. Africa
Over the next 300 years (1500-1800) appx 10 million people were taken
Impact on Europeans• Europeans began to cross the Atlantic
creating one of the largest voluntary migrations in world history.
• Overseas expansion inflamed national rivalries in Europe causing conflict.– Treaty of Tordesillas, 1494 (Spain Vs. Portugal)
• Growth of trade markets completely changed the world
FOREVER!
The introduction of beasts of burden to the Americas was a significant development from the Columbian Exchange. The introduction of the horse provided people in the Americas with a new source of labor and transportation.
• Voyages launched large-scale contact between Europe and Americas.
• Interaction with Native Americans led to sweeping cultural changes.
• Contact between the two groups led to the widespread exchange of plants, animals, and disease—the Columbian Exchange.
• Plants, animals developed in very different ways in hemispheres
• Europeans—no potatoes, corn, sweet potatoes, turkeys
• People in Americas—no coffee, oranges, rice, wheat, sheep, cattle
The Exchange of Goods
The Columbian Exchange
• Arrival of Europeans in Americas changed all this
• Previously unknown foods taken back to Europe
• Familiar foods brought to Americas by colonists
Sharing Discoveries
Different Foods
• Exchange of foods, animals had dramatic impact on later societies
• Over time crops native to Americas became staples in diets of Europeans
• Foods provided substantial nutrition, helped people live longer
Italian Food Without Tomatoes?
• Until contact with Americas, Europeans had never tried tomatoes
• Most Europeans thought tomatoes poisonous
• By late 1600s, tomatoes had begun to be included in Italian cookbooks
Economics and Gastronomics
• Activities like Texas cattle ranching, Brazilian coffee growing not possible without Columbian Exchange; cows, coffee native to Old World
• Traditional cuisines changed because of Columbian Exchange
Effects of the Columbian Exchange
The Exchange can be positive or negative in its effects
• In the exchange that started along the coast of Newfoundland and was made widespread by Columbus, disease was the most negative for the Native American population
• Fatality rate over a period of two to three generations was 95% for many tribal groups
• In some cases, as in the Mohegans case, the fatality rate could be 100 percent
Europeans believed that it was God’s will that Indians died
• No germ theory at the time of contact.
• Illness in Europe was considered to be the consequence of sin
• Indians, who were largely “heathen” or non-Christian were regarded as sinners thus subject to illness as a punishment
Devastating Impact
• Native American population continued to decline for centuries
• Inca Empire decreased from 13 million in 1492 to 2 million in 1600
• North American population fell from 2 million in 1492 to 500,000 in 1900—but disease not only factor in decrease of population
• Intermittent warfare, other violence also contributed
The Introduction of New Diseases
• Native Americans had no natural resistance to European diseases
• Smallpox, measles, influenza, malaria killed millions
• Population of central Mexico may have decreased by more than 30 percent in the 10 years following first contact with Europeans
Old World Diseases
• European disease was particularly virulent• Smallpox, measles, diphtheria, whooping cough,
chicken pox, bubonic plague, scarlet fever and influenza were the most common diseases
• Nearly all of the European diseases were communicable by air and touch.
• The pathway of these diseases was invisible to both Indians and Europeans
Effects Widespread
Effects of Columbian Exchange felt not only in Europe, Americas
• China
– Arrival of easy-to-grow, nutritious corn helped population grow tremendously
– Also a main consumer of silver mined in Americas
• Africa
– Two native crops of Americas—corn, peanuts—still among most widely grown
• Scholars estimate one-third of all food crops grown in world are of American origin
• Wealth measured by amount of gold, silver possessed by nation
• Mercantilists believed there was fixed amount of wealth in world
• For one nation to become wealthier, more powerful—had to take wealth, power away from another nation
• Mercantilism led to intense competition between nations
Intense Competition
• Founding of colonies, new goods in Europe led to significant changes
• 1500s, Europeans developed new economic policy, mercantilism
• Nation’s strength depended on its wealth
• Wealthy nation had power for military and expanded influence
New Economic Policy
Mercantilism
• Mercantilists built wealth two ways—•extract gold, silver from mines at home, in colonies; •sell more goods than it bought from foreign countries, creating favorable balance of trade
• With favorable balance of trade, country received more gold, silver from other nations than it paid to them
• Increased its power; weakened foreign competitors
• To achieve favorable balance of trade, could reduce amount of imports by placing tariffs on goods
• Importer paid tariff, added cost to price of good
• Imported goods more expensive, discouraged people from buying
Imports
• Encourage exports that could sell for higher prices than raw materials
• Countries encouraged manufacturing and export of manufactured goods
• Governments provided subsidies to help start new industries
Exports
Balance of Trade
Controlling Sources
Third approach for favorable balance of trade,
Controlling Sources
• Nation that controlled own sources would not need to import from competing nations
• Why important
– Country did not need to spend own money to obtain raw materials
– Foreign countries considered rivals, might become active enemy, cut off supply of raw materials
• European nations worked to become more self-sufficient
• Nations began to establish colonies
Building colonial empires essential to mercantilist system
• European powers wanted to establish colonies
– To control sources of raw materials
– To provide new markets for manufactured goods
• To mercantilist, colonies existed only to benefit home country
Colonies
• Monarchs restricted economic activities in colonies
• Colonists could not sell raw materials to other countries
• Could not buy manufactured goods from other nations
• Strict laws forbade colonies from manufacturing goods
• Forced to buy only from home country
Strict Laws
Colonies
Summarize
What were the main principles of mercantilism?
Answer: •nation's strength depended upon its wealth;
•needed a favorable balance of trade
Commercial Revolution
• What: The transition (change) from Mercantilism & then to Capitalism IS the
COMMERCIAL REVOLUTION
• When: 16th -17th centuries• Who/Where: Europeans & European
countries & colonies• Why?: changes in commerce (trade) & money
making methodsChanges in the power structure btwn
countries
• Why Care?:Influenced today’s financial dealings (the way we do business)
Commercial Revolution
• CAUSE: – new wealth + dramatic growth in overseas trade
= new business and trade practices
• EFFECTS: – set the stage for the development of CAPITALISM– Basis of today’s financial practices
Increasing trade between Europe and colonies created new business and trade practices during the 1500s and 1600s. These practices would have a great impact on the economies of European nations.
• In capitalism, most economic activity carried on by private individuals, organizations in order to seek profit
• During this time, capitalism expanded
Capitalism Emerges
• Individuals amassed great trade fortunes
• Merchants supplied colonists with European goods
• Returned products, raw materials
Overseas TRADE
• Overseas trade made many merchants rich
• Wealth enabled them to invest in more business ventures
• Business activity in Europe increased greatly
Increased
BUSINESS ACTIVITY
The Rise of Capitalism
Money Supply
• Increase of money supply another factor in higher prices (INFLATION)
• Shiploads of gold, silver flowed into Europe from Americas to be made into new coins
• Over time, increase of money in circulation pushed prices for goods still higher
Rising Prices (INFLATION)
• Investors took risks of investing in overseas trade because of inflation
• Inflation: steady increase in prices
• Demand for goods increased due to growing population, scarcity of goods; rising demand drove prices higher
New Ventures
• Overseas business ventures often too expensive for individual investors
• Investors began pooling money in joint-stock companies
Shares
• Profit, loss based on number of shares owned
• If company failed, investors lost only amount invested
Joint-Stock Companies
• Investors bought shares of stock in company
• If company made profit, each shareholder received portion
Financing Colonies
• British East India Company, one of first joint-stock companies
• 1600, imported spices from Asia
• Others formed to bear cost of establishing colonies
A New Business Organization
So… What is CAPITALISM• Economic System based on:
– private ownership & – investment of wealth for profit– Free Trade
• Cause: overseas colonization & trade = lots of merchants getting RICH!– And… they continued to invest in trade to get
RICHER (increase profits)– AND then… they re-invested more to get even
RICHER!
Global Impacts of Columbian Exchange
Americas Africa Europe Asia Pos/negNew foodstuffs like wheat, rice, olives, grapes, coffee, sugarcane, chili peppersAnimals-pigs, sheep, horses, goatsChristianity bought along with European style citiesMiscegenation- mixing of racial based societyGreat Dying- largest population loss due to diseases brought from old worldSpanish controlExtraction of mineral resourcesDeforestationWeapons10-14 million enslaved AfricansPlantations ( encomiendas)
African DiasporaSweet potatoes and Manioc increase populationsPortuguese coastal colonies for slave tradeSlave trading kingdoms like Dahomey, Asante, Kongo, Benin and IfeLoss of males ( intensive labor on sugar plantations required male labor)Forced migrationIntroduction of guns, molasses and rum ( manufactured products from Europe for enslaved)Separation of families due to diasporaMany areas Christianized for Portuguese slave trade
Introduction of new foodstuffs like potatoes, tomatoes and cornPlace for overcrowded Europeans to go for opportunity ( mass emigration)Rise of bourgeoisie class ( merchants making money off of mercantilism and capitalistic enterprises)Syphilis ( not proven)Boost in population Increased use of ships (deforestation)Rise of nation states ( Spain, Portugal, France, Netherlands and England)Wealth from mercantilism used in religious wars (30 years war)Wealth also reinvested in stock markets 9 joint stock companies like British East India and Dutch East India CO formed)
Sweet potatoes increased Asian populationsEasy to grow corn increased populationChina’s Ming Dynasty became main consumers of silverLoss of revenue due to new markets, resources and laborMany Asians will eventually migrate to Americas for laborLand-locked empires have competition with European manufactured goods, markets and raw materials ( sugar, cotton, coffee, tea)
Slavery increases (neg)New foodstuffs enrich diets (pos)Souls are saved and Christian missionaries help educate populations (pos)Old culture denied ( neg)Massive destruction of environment through deforestation and mining ( neg)Social mobility for some through the triangle trade( pos)Reliance on slavery and other products/markets leads to diminished technology (neg)
Comp Thesis• From 1492-1750 both the Americas and Africa were tied through the trans-Atlantic
trade controlled by the European (Spain, Portugal, France, England, Dutch) forces, both will engage in coercive labor of slavery or indentured servitude, however, the African exposure to diseases made them less susceptible while the native Americans were succumb to smallpox and other diseases on a massive scale (Great Dying)
• During the Columbian Exchange Europeans and Asians were both benefit greatly being introduced to new foodstuffs and enriching their diets, however, Europe will begin their ascension dominating the land labor and capital of the Americas while Asia will not be directly involved because of their isolation. Europe, too , will export the much needed silver and gain power that the Ming Dynasty desperately needed for their economy changing the balance of trade ( still in favor of China but not as much).