Reaching Out: Cross-Cultural Interactions

Trade and Travel Reasons for trade and travel:

› Nomads who engaged in conquest› Involuntary slave travel› Pilgrims visiting holy shrines› Three most important reasons: trade,

diplomacy and missionary

Patterns of Trade Two major networks:

› Silk roads – lightweight luxury items like silk & gems

› Sea lanes of Indian Ocean – heavy items like crops, lumber, etc.

Smaller trade route:› Trans-Saharan

As trade increased major trading cities and ports grew› Filled with buyers, sellers, brokers and bankers› Khanbaliq, Melaka, Hormuz, Caffa, Cairo,

Constantinople, Timbuktu› Had large communities of foreigners

Melaka was the major trade city of east Indian Ocean

Early middle 13th century, Mongol military campaigns caused major economic disruption in Eurasia

However, as they gained control, trade and travel became less risky

A strong demand for Asian products took some Europeans (like Marco Polo) to Asia

Political and Diplomatic Travel Emergence of huge trading networks and establishment of huge empires created demand for diplomatic representation after 1000

Empires and countries began sending “ambassadors” to represent them in other countries

Cultural Exchanges All this travel encouraged cultural

exchanges between societies› Things exchanged: poetry, music,

science, gunpowder, citrus fruits, cotton, sugar, compass

All this interaction did several things:› Increase diets› Increase populations› Increase economic development› Mariners could sail more effectively

and safely› Spread of gunpowder changed war

forever

Little Ice Age 1300CE – global climate change Lasted 500 years Meant agricultural growing season was shorter

› Led to famine in some places› Greenland had to be abandoned

Bubonic Plague Spread from SW China Infected rodents Fleas transmitted it from rodents to humans Early 14th cent. – Mongol military helped

unknowingly spread it 1340’s – Mongols, merchants and travelers

helped spread it along trade routes to west

• Disease thrived in cities and oases

• Soon reached the Black Sea

• Italian merchants spread it from there throughout Med Sea area

• By 1348 – had affected most of western Europe

• Europeans called it the “Black Death”

Usually killed 70% of populations it encountered

Sometimes it wiped out entire villages New births usually followed But plague would come back and do it again

Areas not really affected:› Scandinavia (northernmost parts of Europe)› India (population actually grew)› Sub-Saharan Africa

It hard hit places, it took a 100 years or more to recover

China lost 10 million Europe lost 25% of population Egypt’s population didn’t reach former levels until

1800’s

Economic Disruptions Plague devastated societies and economies Killed the young, weak and old in high numbers But did not spare any group Workers, peasants, merchants, artisans, priests,

rulers Caused huge labor shortages

In Europe:› Workers demanded higher wages or began moving› Gov’t froze wages and forbid workers to leave home› Landlords tried to keep peasants from moving› Unhappy workers and peasants undertook series of

rebellions› All eventually put down

By 17th cent. plague mostly died down

Ming Dynasty

Mid 14th – Yuan dynasty in trouble› Economic problems› Leader assassinations› Political infighting› Bubonic plague

1368 – Yuan dynasty collapsed

Mongols all left and returned to steppes

China left in political and demographic turmoil

Hongwu came to power after leading rebellion forces against the Yuan

Proclaimed the Ming dynasty (means “brilliant”)

1368-1644 Hongwu got rid of

everything Mongol Returned gov’t to

traditional Chinese type

Reestablished Confucian education system and bureaucracy of merit (civil service exams)

Emperors ruled directly Insisted on absolute adherence to laws Used “mandarins” to make sure local gov’ts

were following policy Also relied on eunuchs to be in the bureaucracy

Economics:› Laborers rebuilt irrigation systems› Promoted production of silk, porcelain,

cotton› Domestic trade in China surged› Foreign trade not pushed, but merchants

actively traded with Asian islands and Japan

Cultural revival:› Discouraged Mongol names and clothing› Promoted Confucian and neo-Confucianism› The emperor Yongle organized a huge

encyclopedia of Chinese history, philosophy, literature Yongle Encyclopedia was almost 23,000

manuscript scrolls

The Renaissance Means “rebirth” Amazing cultural

flowering of artistic and intellectual creativity from 14th-16th centuries

Painters, sculptors and architects got their inspiration from Greek and Roman artists

Moved back towards realism

Scholars known as humanists studied classical Greek & Roman literary sources rather than medieval sources› Tried to update Middle Ages thought & ideas

Center of Renaissance was Italy Artists studied the human body

› Showed the emotion of their subjects

Masaccio, da Vinci, Donatello, Michelangelo

Architects most impressive achievements were domed buildings› Brunelleschi’s Dome was

most famous (Florence)

Humanists were interested in the humanities (literature, history, and moral philosophy)› Very committed to

Christianity› Erasmus published

the first edition of the Greek New Testament in 1516

› Others tried to promote high moral standards in their own society

• They liked the elegant, polished language of Greek and Roman writers and early church leaders

• Petrarch traveled Europe searching for manuscripts of classical (G & R) writings

• Scholars became acquainted with Byzantine scholars and their works

Humanists argued that it was honorable for Christians to enter into marriage, business relationships and public affairs› People did not have to enter monasteries

or convents to be good Christians

Renaissance art and ideas also reflected their engagement with the rest of the Eastern Hemisphere

Painters put foreign images (silk, spices, animals) in their paintings

Princes and wealthy patrons commissioned paintings to decorate their homes, businesses, etc.

The Renaissance would help lead to Age of Exploration