1. Chapter 13: European Visions The Atlantic
North Atlantic was home of raiders and sailors rather than traders (8th-12th centuries)
Vikings were the major actors
Were explorers and raiders
Settled new areas and established cities such as Dublin
Swedes (Vikings) moved eastward into Russia
Became more peaceful after 1000
No records of non-Viking activities

2. Decline of Trade in the Mediterranean
By 950, Mediterranean was “Muslim Lake” but consisted of different cultural zones
Mediterranean now a war zone
Trade continued but was affected by fluctuations in European economy
European merchants frustrated by lack of link from Mediterranean to Indian Ocean
Europeans seek alternative routes

3. Trade and Social Change in Europe
Guilds/City-States Confront Rural Aristocrats
Trade organized by guilds that controlled wages, prices, production, and job training
Most were local; exception was Hanseatic League of Germany
Controlled trade from London to Novgorod
Faded with rise of new states such as Netherlands, England, and Sweden

4. Trade and Social Change in Europe
Economic and Social Conflicts within the City
Textile manufacturers dominated some cities
Capitalist traders organized manufacture based on estimates of market demands
Production organized hierarchically with lower pay for tasks at bottom of production process
Women and children got even less pay
Class antagonism led to revolts

5. Trade and Social Change in Europe
New Directions in Philosophy and Learning
Renaissance based on new urban wealth
Church renaissance from 11th century stressed intellectual dimension of faith
Anselm, Abelard, and Bernard of Clairvaux
New monastic orders sought ties to early church
Intellectual opening to Arab world in 11th century
Links through Spain
Philosophers: Avicenna, Averroes, and Maimonides

6. Trade and Social Change in Europe
New Directions in Philosophy and Learning [cont.]
University emerged and promoted practical knowledge such as medicine, law, and theology
St. Thomas Aquinas ( ) paved way for Renaissance (accepted ideas of Aristotle)
Assemblage of bright minds promoted wide range of ideas, criticism of status quo and its leaders

7. Trade and Social Change in Europe
Disasters of the 14th Century: Famine, Plague, and War
Italian prosperity brought population growth and strain on natural resources
Rural depopulation followed by mid-13th century
Plague reduced European population from 70 million (1300) to 45 million (1400)

8. Trade and Social Change in Europe
Social Unrest Follows the Plague
Depopulation benefited survivors with higher wages and ability to buy land
Ciompi (lowest class in Florence) demanded access to guilds, right to unionize, and participation in government
Successes were short-lived

9. The Renaissance
Motivating philosophy was humanism, the belief that the proper study of man is man
Asserting importance of individual challenged authority of the Church
Strong belief in God tied to belief that God gave mankind the power to shape its own destiny

10. The Renaissance New Artistic Styles
Religious themes influenced by humanistic and commercial values
Masaccio, Trinity with the Virgin (1427)
Van Eyck, The Arnolfini Wedding Portrait (1434)
Florence and Medici family influenced art
Michaelangelo, sculptor and painter
Da Vinci, inventor and painter
Machiavelli, political philosopher

11. Developments in Technology
The Renaissance
Developments in Technology
Improvements in sailing aided merchants
Caravel and lateen sails
Astrolabe
Cannon
Printing
From China but better suited for alphabetic writing
Decimal system

12. Church Revises its Economic Policies
The Renaissance
Church Revises its Economic Policies
Had been critical of quest for private profit
Opposition to money-lending led to Jewish role as lenders and bankers who were segregated from rest of society
Rise of commerce led Church to be more open to commercial practices
Economic growth in secular city-states of Flanders and Italy

13. A New World Portugal situated to lead exploration
First goal was to gain supremacy over Muslims
Second goal was oceanic route to India
Prince Henry the Navigator,
Outflanked Muslims by sailing around Africa
Interested in oceanic exploration
Circumnavigated Africa to reach India
Explorations around African coast opened commercial opportunities in slaves, ivory, grain, and gold

14. A New World Portugal [cont.]
Bartolomeu Diaz rounded southern tip of Africa in 1488
Portuguese rejection of Columbus’ services led him to sail for Spain and connect Europe to what he initially believed was China
Vasco da Gama made Europe-to-India voyage
Defeated some Muslims and left armed force in India

15. A New World Columbus funded by Spanish monarchy
Underestimated size of globe
Larger second voyage not a commercial success
Third voyage confirmed discovery of “new world”
Later voyages of Amerigo Vespucci and Vasco Nunez de Balboa confirm “new world” finding; discover the Pacific Ocean
Magellan circumnavigated the globe

16. Oceana Australia largely untouched by European voyages
Abel Tasman circumnavigated Australia for Dutch East India Company (1642)
British sent James Cook and Joseph Banks to Australia (and also Antarctica)
These voyages completed the process of gaining understanding of the globe and its land masses

17. Participants had different goals
Legacies to the Future
Participants had different goals
Chart the unknown
Pressure to find a new home
Quest for profit
Desire to proselytize the world
Lust for conquest and global supremacy
Eastern and Western Hemispheres now connected