Effects of Global Contact A presentation by Zachary Blair

The Columbian Exchange Columbus returned from his first voyage in 1493, bringing plants and animals from the new world. When he began his second voyage later in the year, he brought plants and animals from Europe with him as well. Today we call this the Columbian Exchange, and the world as we know it today may not have been possible without it. Europeans brought back plants such as peppers, tomatoes, pumpkins, potatoes and corn, which caused a drastic increase in the population. They also brought plants and animals to the Americas as well, such as wheat, grapes, bananas and sugar cane, along with pigs, goats, chickens and horses.

The Global Population Explodes In the 1700s, crops like Manioc, tomatoes, beans and potatoes caused populations to grow around the world. The Columbian Exchange also brought millions of Europeans to the new world, in hopes of finding opportunity and wealth. Europeans also migrated to the edges of Africa and Asia, and many Africans were moved to New World as well.

A Commercial Revolution Prices began to rise in Europe by the 1500s, accompanied by an increase in money as well, causing inflation. Inflation can be described as an increase in the amount of money available linked to a rise in prices. This period of inflation is now known in European history as the price revolution. This large increase in money came from the huge amounts of gold and silver coming in from Mexico and Peru.

Capitalism Emerges With an increase in money and expanding trade, capitalism began to grow. A capitalist economy is one where most businesses are run privately. People known as entrepreneurs ran these businesses, and were responsible for hiring workers, transportation, and raw materials, among other production costs, and were the cause of success of capitalism as a type of economy.

Exploring New Business Methods European capitalists experimented with new ways of gaining wealth. They adopted Arab methods of bookkeeping that showed gains and losses in ventures as well an increase in banking activity. Joint stack companies also grew important, allowing different people to invest in overseas ventures.

Bypassing the Guilds Merchants looked for new ways to increase production with the growing demand for goods. Normally, the manufacturing of goods was done by guilds, but the guild masters often ran small businesses on the side. Capitalists came up with a way to bypass the guild, known as the putting-out system. An example of this is the distribution of wool to villages. The villagers spun the wool into cloth, where the capitalist would collect the product and send it to the city to dye. He would then collect the finished product and sell it.

Mercantilism Arises In the competition between Europeans for trade and empire, a new system known as mercantilism had arisen, aimed at strengthening their economies. A mercantilist believed that a nation’s wealth is measured in gold and silver, and to increase a nation’s wealth, it must export more than it imports. Mercantilists believed that a colony exists solely for the benefit of the parent country, serving as a market for its manufactured goods. To that end, the European nations imposed strict laws regulating trade with their colonies.

Increasing National Wealth Mercantilists implored rulers to use policies that they believed would increase revenues and national wealth. Governments used timber and mineral resources, backed new industries and built new roads to increase productions. They made their own currencies and used standard weights and measures. Governments also sold monopolies to large producers in certain industries as well as large companies. They also imposed tariffs, which are taxes put on imported goods.

Impact on European Society In the 1700s, There was still a social hierarchy in all of Europe. Merchants became wealthy, while nobles were hurt by the price revolution because their wealth was inland. The economic changes that took place went over the course of centuries, and were felt most by the lower class. Middle class families could enjoy a great degree of comfort, whereas the workers and peasants were living in near poverty.