Columbus’s World 1492

Frances LacsamanaHistory 140- 71097

Arguello

The Grand Tour: Europe

• Spanish rulers, Ferdinand and Isabella, provided the finances in launching their program of exploration to Christopher Columbus.

• The wealth discovered in America such as the Gold of Mexico and the Silver of Peru was shared among allies of Rome and Portugal which added great power to Spain as well as aid Ferdinand and Isabella’s heirs when they strove for “universal domination.”

The Grand Tour: Turkey to Africa

• Columbus proved to be the savior of Christianity by handing the Western Hemisphere over to the Spanish. Muslims and Jews had no place in his plan for the land he had discovered.

• Because of the Church’s powerful influence in Latin America, Spain which had the largest Jewish community in Europe expelled the Jews and those unwillingly to accept baptism ended up in Turkish land.

• The kingdom of Kongo converted to Christianity and later abandoned the faith because Nzinga a Knvwu felt that Christ had never delivered compensating military victories

The Grand Tour: South Asia

• India under Muslim domination adopted new cultures into the mainstream of their cultures and new peoples into their social system.

• In southeast Asia, Buddhists established their leaders as gods.• Rulers did not prosecute those of other faiths because of the humane doctrines of

their tolerant religion.• Moluccas was the greatest trade port where goods from all over the East are found

and goods from the West are sold. Also known as “The Spice Islands.”

The Grand Tour: China and Japan

• The Chinese had become the richest most powerful country in the world. It was natural to voyage to China for trade.

• China had revolutionary goods and inventions other empires adored.

• China created the worlds first paper, consisting of vegetable fibers.

• The compass was discovered, an item Christopher Columbus sought out for.

• Gun powder was the most revolutionary and was used for religious and ceremonial occasions and later adapted for warfare.

• Chinese Silk was the most demanded good and held dear as a luxury item to European Nobles.

• The Chinese emphasized social harmony and order, considering the empire as it formed a single household. With this idea in mind, any records of Cheng Ho’s expeditions were hidden or destroyed to keep from an event of wasted money and grains to repeat.

• Japan remained independent of Chinese domination

The Grand Tour: The Western Hemisphere

• The Aztec remained essentially a land-bound society with little interest in marine navigation.

• The Mayas had one of the most artistic and refined societies on the globe.• Their calendar system was based on astronomical observations which was

far in advance of any European system.• The Mayas long-distance trading system centered in Cozumel Island for

waterborne resources, such as salt, cacao, cotton and ceramics.

The Staff of Life

• Vast land areas depended upon different staples of food: wheat in Western Eurasia, rice in Eastern Eurasia and corn in the Americas.

• The cultivation of wheat, barley, oats and rye, required the cooperative labor of human and animal to turn the soil. But because of famine and their crops at the mercy of the weather, European living was insecure.

• Rice led to the largest populations because it was feasible to reap two crops or three a year in the same rice paddy. It needed reliable irrigation and a mobilized army of men and women laborers.

• Corn demanded relatively little effort from the peasants. Crops grew quickly and became edible before ripen.

• Due to the intensive cultivation of the three staple foods, China, the Mediterranean and the Americas accounted for three-quarters of the globes population.

The European Challenge

• The longer the cultural area, the longer cultures survived. Thus, the more inventions and advances there were to be passed around and perfected.

• Example, gun powders explosive power

• Through commerce and war, European kingdoms improved their shipping and gained an ultimate advantage over the rest of the world.

The Great Traditions

• Ancient China, Babylon, India and ancient Egypt were the four great ancient civilizations.

• All four great centers of civilization had elaborate bureaucratic structures, significant cities, iron implements, writing and improved technology. These traits created stable societies.

• In south east Asia, the African empires and the great civilizations of the Americas, culture was confined to temple-palace complexes standing amidst peasant villages.

• The kingdoms and empires were fragile and rapid-changing.• Hunter-gatherer groups occupied Australia, the Americas , parts of Africa and the

Arctic coastline.