The major step towards development of the Silk Road was because of the Chinese Emperor Wu Di. He became interested in developing commercial relationship with urban civilizations around the world and so he was influenced by them. This not only encouraged the Chinese to trade more but also showed them new things they had not seen before. This effected the Chinese civilization because this was a major step toward success in the future and many things changed because of trade. They now had different diets from which they could live a more leisure life.
Fundamental factors like the growing powers all the governments, a new thrust and desire for foreign goods- especially Asian goods, and a desire to spread the Christian religion drew the Europeans to the exploration, conquest and settlement of the New World. The key players in exploration of the New World all became more powerful. The Portuguese set up trading posts along the coast of Africa which allowed money to flow through the country, giving them more power. The marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile unified the kingdom of Spain, which increased its power. This increase in power made many countries and governments hungry for more power and would do anything to find it.
For example, there was improved navigational aids, refinements in shipbuilding, better mapmaking, and new legal arrangements and accounting practices which made shipping easier and cut the costs of seaborne trade. Another major new navigational instrument that helped this enormous revolution was the needle compass. With the new sea-lanes booming with profit and trade, this began to change the entire agriculture around 1000 CE. This also gave birth to the growth of commercial cities. By the late tenth century, many of these new cities were the anchorages of the maritime trade.
While the basic purpose of the Silk Road remained mostly the same, its’ goods and destinations went through many changes. The road started as a small transport route for Eurasian merchants, but later turned into an important economical and cultural necessity. Once Asian products, like spices and fabrics, were used by Europeans, they became dependent on them. This also occurred in Asia, and it began to shape both cultures. Also, due to the large amount of political changes that occurred during this expanse of time, the Silk Road also traveled through the new countries that began when the Roman Empire collapsed.
It was easier and quicker to be able to talk to other people or meet up with family. So overall new railroads did really help people socially. The next reason why the developments in transportation brought about social and economic change in the United States was because of all the different types of transportation. One of the new types of transportation throughout this time period were the steamboats invented by Robert Fulton. The steamboats really helped with trading goods with other countries.
CCOT Essay Trade has and always will be an important part of the global economy. Trade flourished with the creation of the Silk Road and the colonization of the Americas. Many organizations have been created to regulate or exploit trade, such as the Hanseatic League and the East Indian Trading Company. Between 650 and 1750 C.E, trade and commerce in the Indian Ocean region witnessed changes like the dominance of trade and population; it also stayed the same in the sense that religion was used and goods were in demand. Over time, commerce in the Indian Ocean region witnessed changes in trade dominance and population.
By the time European nobility had begun to look upon such imports as Oriental rugs and perfumes as essentials, the growing middle class of merchants and craftsmen was demanding the new foodstuffs, such as cane sugar, rice, garlic, and lemons, and textiles, such as muslin, silk, and satin, from the East, which naturally became less expensive as the shipments increased in size. Natural, too was the growth of towns and cities in this period. Goods brought into Europe had to be distributed, and as trade increased, so did the towns and cities along the inland trade routes. The larger galleys and sailing vessels built to carry Crusaders were also used to bring luxuries of the Orient to the courts of England and Scandinavia. The Crusades affected finance and business practice in Europe.
It also had a stable government, which allowed for the people to begin industrializing in the first place, harbors for trade, a very large population resulting in a very large workforce, and many water ways throughout the country to transport materials and products as well as to use for water power at mills. There are several reasons why the Industrial revolution started in the first place. One reason being that there was widespread resistance to disease in Europe as well as a reliable food supply, allowing for steady population growth, which in return created more demand for products, which in turn resulted in new ways of producing products more efficiently in response to demand. As a result of Industrialization, a new economic philosophy arose. Capitalism called for the lack of government intervention in the economy.
During the years between 650 an 1750 AD, the Indian Ocean saw changes and continuities in commerce through new methods of transportation, new commodities, and new European involvement. Innovation in transportation, new and unexpected commodities, and the Europeans spurned change in commerce in the Indian Ocean region from 650 to 1750 AD. Change in commerce in the Indian Ocean began with the invention of the Dhow. An Arab invention, Dhows are ships whose sails can maximize monsoon winds that are often found in the Indian Ocean. This enabled trade that region to occur faster than ever before.
This opened up trade routes between Asia and Europe with most of the goods originating or passing through Southeast Asia. Along with the exchange routes came more people and ideas into Southeast Asia and ultimately increased the cultural and economical development. (Upshur, 2002) The second contributing factor was the trade policy of Southern Sung China. The Chinese government needed revenue to support their efforts to please the northern invaders. For this reason the Chinese government encouraged exporting of porcelain and other goods to Southeast Asia.