Trade is a potent driver of change—economic, political, and social. Beginning with primitive exchanges in the remote past, this course traces the emergence of trade and long-distance commerce in Europe, Africa, and Asia. As trade expanded, interconnections among distant markets and financial resources accelerated. Students will witness these processes at work in the Indian Ocean, the South China Sea, the Mediterranean, Europe’s Atlantic Coast, and the Baltic Sea. The 17th and 18th centuries saw long-distance commerce move to the center of state policy and in the 19th century breed exploitive colonial systems buoyed by trade. Global war traumatized international trade in the 20th century but gave rise to our world of supertankers, giant container ships, global air freight, and monetary transfers at the speed of light.
Focuses on the Indian Ocean, the South China Sea, the
Mediterranean, Europe's Atlantic coast, and the Baltic Sea. The 17th and
18th centuries saw long-distance commerce move to the center of state
policy, and in the 19th century bred exploitive colonial systems buoyed by
trade. Global war traumatized international trade in the 20th century but
ultimately gave rise to our world of supertankers, giant container ships,
global air freight, and monetary transfers at the speed of light.