The effect of Mongol rule on Russia and China was similar in some respects and different in others economically. The Mongols affected both civilizations similarly in that the Mongols demanded tribute from both empires. Although it was similar that Russia and China both had to give tribute to the Mongols, it affected both civilizations differently. For example in Russia, the peasants were taxed very harshly, turning them into serfs. Also in Russia, all of the tax went to Moscow because Moscow was the tax collector because Chinggis Khan did not live directly in Russia, so this helped build Russia’s wealth.
Russia used modern weapons of their time to conquer more land for more fur. They wanted more fur because it was a large and extensive maritime trade product. Spain also used modern weapons to conquer the Aztecs and Incas for more land, power, and wealth. Unlike Russia’s land based conquest, Spain had to ship weapons across the Atlantic because they
Peter started the Northern War in which his goal was to get to the Baltic Sea and establish a city there. The war was against the Swedish people and Peter was victorious because the last and most critical battle was won by the Russians. Peter had Moscow completely burned down so the Swedish could not take it, but the Swedish army also could not go back home because of the weather and they did not have the food and water to make it back home without losing most of their men. After this great victory, Peter conquered land near the Baltic Sea and established a city he named after himself, St. Petersburg. This city was known as Peter’s “window to the west” because it opened up many trading routes with other countries.
What exactly is imperialism? Imperialism happens when a stronger nation feels it is obligated to take over a weaker nation, or region, in order to control it politically, economically, and culturally. This practice also became important to growing nations to gain land, labor, and raw materials for the betterment and strengthening of the country. This type of foreign policy was mostly practiced by European nations and Japan, but the United States also began to join in imperialistic thoughts once it became a world power. Imperialism can also be known as colonialism.
From the 1450s to the 1750s, powerful empires including the Spanish maritime empire and the Russian empire rose. With these powerful empires also rose systems of forced labor. The Spanish empire grew to include the Americas, and the Russian Empire took control of territory lost to the Mongols prior to the 1750s. Both the Spanish settlers in the New World and the Russian Nobility needed labor for commercial purposes, but the encomienda system gave the settlers the right to demand labor from natives, whereas Russian serfdom were comprised of peasants who fell into debt and were forced to become laborers to the large estates owned by nobles to repay their debt. The intentions of both the encomienda system and system of Russian serfdom were the same, however, they differed in the foundation and functionality.
Imperialism is defined as the creation and maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural and territorial relationship, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination. (1) With the freeing up of excess labor for many different functions and the Industrial Revolution in full swing, this saw the need for more resources and materials for production of unique items and the need for much larger amounts of resources. This led to nations wanting to expand their rule to gain access to resources. I personally believe that Colonialism led to Imperialism. European nations began by establishing colonies in foreign areas to gain access to new resources that could not be easily accessed in Europe.
The lack of a warm water port would also be an important issue for a number of Tsars and the desire to obtain one would have lasting impacts on Russia's foreign policy. Until the advent of railways, one of the easiest methods of movement, including the transport of major quantities of goods was via the water, by river or sea. By being situated in the centre of a network of rivers systems in the Valdai Hills, Russian rulers were able to benefit greatly through-out their history. In the fifteenth century Muscovy was able to weaken the power of Novgorod to its north by constricting its grain supply after gaining control over the Upper Volga River.2 From this now relatively strong position, Muscovy would have been more easily able to take Novgorod. However the taking of Novgorod was not solely down to the ability of the Russians to take control of the grain supply.
He would win battles against weaker forces, but win he did, establishing a foothold on what would become the city of St. Petersburg. 12 Since there was no way Peter could send the southern fleet all the way around Europe or Asia to the Baltic, Peter again had an entire navy constructed from scratch and they would participate in naval as well as amphibious landings against the Swedes. 13 Throw in internal rebellion, external armies invading and bad choices by the Swedish military he and his forces finally owthe Great Northern War was concluded in terms favorable to Russia. Not content however,Peter would mobilize his forces (again) in an attempt to take on the Turks and would fail. To the rest of the European powers however, for the first time Great Britain and France would take notice of the power and potential of a rising Russia.
Peter had induced over 800 experts to emigrate to Russia, many of whom were military experts. Foreign officers trained the troops, and battles were planned according to German infantry manuals. Shipbuilding was supervised by the Dutch, and the new manufacturing techniques resulted in 800 galleys and 48 ships, which constituted the creation of Russia’s first navy. This resulted in Peter’s victories, notably at Poltava in 1709, against Persia in 1723 and the naval victory at Cape Hango which ensured the collapse of the Swedish empire. This helped Peter strengthen his rule as he was able to consolidate this through military success.
All the cultures were technologically stuck in the Stone Age,and ,combined with their lack of immunity to European diseases meant that these civilizations were overrun and conquered by Europeans. Columbus proved to the Europeans that the world was likely round and not flat. He didn't really prove that it was round, but his voyages increased the perceived likelihood that it was, and inspired other explorers who really did demonstrate that you could head west and end up east. That increased global trade significantly. It also increased global awareness of the other cultures that share this planet.