Origins of The Modern World

Chapter One: The Material and Trading Worlds, circa 1400 lntroduction: (This deals with the state ofaffairs about the time we start in World Нistory 2) • ln this chapter, Marks argues that most changes in history are the result of "huge processes that are hardly detectaЫe," arising from shifts in social, economic, political, and cultuгal structures • The focus is on two major structural aspects ofthe world in 1400 о Material and natural conditions under which most people lived • Overwhelming agricultural • Terms this the "Ьiological old regime" о The trading networks that connected most ofthis "Old World" together о These two аге iп some ways opposing foгces • А material (agricultural world) in which most people lived restrictive lives • А trading апd commercial world that increasingly brought parts of the world iпto gгеаtег contact о Не also hope to show how t.hese two dimeпsions interacted, through а discussion ofthe mid-fourteenth century Black Death. • Marks also introduced key concepts that will Ье used throughout the book о Civilizations refer to the large empires, based оп the agricultural revolution. • In them there is an explicit relationship between • Cities апd couпtrysides • Ruling elites and peasants (agriculturalists orvillagers) • These relationships form the fottпdation of what Marl< s refers to as the "Biological Old Regime." о This chapter also examines the World System as it existed at the time • ln some senses, this is the first phase of modernglobalization • There are two features of viewing this trade system • Polycentric: а world trade system with many centers • Core апd Periphery: each part of this system consisted of an empire with а соге which provided wealth and and а peгipl1ery, which supplied labor and raw mate1·ials • Marks endeavors to prove in this chapter that in fact the world trading system was polycentric, comprised of empires, each with а core and а periphery Whatwas the world like in the 15 111 Century (1400's)? • Regardless of where you lived people had а basically similar material world о Everyone (peasants and elites alike) relied upon agriculture to survive о With similar structt1res and needs, they faced similar proЫems • Life in the Biological Old Regime о ln 1400, there were abottt 350 million people 6% of our current population (Ьу 1800 it had douЫed) о 80% were peasants, directly tied to the land • however, at the time they represented 1 % of the population • 9 ofthe largest cities were in China, Nanjing was the Ьiggest • Vijayanagar in !ndia was second, Cairo 3 rd, and Paris 4 th • Europe had only 5 cities in the top 25 • Other large cit.ies included Constantinople (Mediterranean), Samarkand (Central Asia) Baghdad (Iraq), and Fez (Morocco) • These cities ranged froш 80,000 to 500,000 iпhabltants • Towns were very different from the villages where the other 99% lived о Had people with great wealth and possessions о То peasaпts, tl1ese реор\е did по work, as they did not farm, but lived off peasant agriculture о They did resent the taxes, tithes and rents the peasants paid to city landlords and official. о Noшads, too, eпvied tl1e wealtl1 ofthe cities • Lived оп the steppes, which was not farmland • Made а living Ьу hunting gathering, and following their herds. • Mobllitywas а way oflife for them, but theywere not completely self-sufficieпt • Traded for things prodt1ced in the city-salts, pots and pans, textiles • ln return they traded horses, meat, honey or products they could gather. • Thus nomads and cities relied upon one another • This symblotic relationship was not always peaceful • Nomads were fierce warriors who often raided civilizations, who considered them barbaric • Often nomads were recruited to defend empires, often leading to the nomads conqueriпg them (Нап and Roman Empires stand as examples • The Chinese distinguished between the nomads ("raw") апd civilized people ("cooked") о Wildlife • Although Ьу 1400 humans had migrated to nearly every part of the planet, there was still ample room for wildlife • Wolves roamed mostofEurope (Griшm's Fairy Tales), апd attacked реор\е in Paris • Tigers inhablted most ofChina and periodically carried away piglets and bables • North America had wildlife in astronomical numbers • • • It was especially acute because peasants had to give up to ½ of their harvest in the form ofrent and Jabor service to the landowner. • ln good times they might have а surplus to sell апd acquire more land • However, in bad weather, theywould fall behind in payments and lose tl1eir lease on the land • Thus, famine was just as much а social phenomenon for the peasants, а resu]t ofthe empire's social structure. • Eventually this would lead peasants to develop new poJitica] concepts about their rights and re]ationship to landowners and government Peasant revolts were another factor affecting life in the Biological Old Regime, as many of the food sho rtages affecting them were due to tl1e existing economic and politica! structure. о However, no matter how dire the conditions, revolt depended upon two factors • Whether tl1e government had sufficieпt force to subdue them • Their unity and capacity for collective actions о Revolts did occur • !п [арап from 1590 to 1871 over 3,000 instances ofpeasant revolt • China had fewer but larger uprisings sнch as the Taiping Rebellion ofthe 1800's • Russia had the Pugachev uprisings in the 1700's • The French had а peasant-led revolution in 1789 о Tht1s, peasants constantly found ways to resist the rнling elite, and resistance was precipitated Ьу the agricнltural conditions, even if these revolts seldom resu]ted in major changes. Epidemic Disease was likewise а major factor affecting population in the O!d Biological Regime о ln essence, all life depended upon the agriculturalists, and there were two types of parasites that lived offthem • Macroparasites: the ru!ing elite that re!ied оп their food to sustain cities апd civilizations (tbls is whatwe have discussed to date in this section, leading to famine and revolts) • Micгoparasites: the plague bacteria, smallpox, influenza. о The latter affected the entire popt1\ation, a\though most virulent to the peasants who comprised 99% ofthe populations о Diseases traveled more quickly as the wor]d became more interconnected during this time period. • The Black Death spread from China to Енrоре in а matter of years • Once in Europe, it engulfed the entire region in 3 years. • • о ln the meantime, in Europe the Ыасk rat took refuge in houses, driven indoors Ьу а worseniпg climate, and less natural l1aЬitat as Euгope's population expanded. о The Mongols carried the fleas across their empire, which spanned the Eurasian continent. They infected rodents along the way. о Бу tl1is time Europe had developed а trade network that liпked the fairs ofFrance to the merchant ships of Genoa and Venice. These ships intersected the Mongol's northern trade route at the Black Sea port of Caffa. о ln December 1346, Genoese and Venetiaп ships were docked at Caffa as it was besieged Ьу а Mongol priпce. о Unfortuпately for the Mongols, they were beset Ьу the plague апd forced to withdraw. Before leaviпg, they catapaulted dead corpses into the city, causing an outbreak of the plague о As the ltalians fled, they carried rats and fleas that carried the plague, bringing them back to Europe. о The plague might have died out, except for two three factors • The tleas spread to the Ь!асk rats in the cities and homes of Europeans • European had no immunity, and could spread the disease Ьу coughing. • Cities of Europe were much closer together and more tightly bound Ьу trade, creating а highway for the disease • Within four уеагs it had reached Sweden and Moscow Thus, like famine, the plague was not а purely natural phenomenon. lt was spread Ьу human activity along the trade networks. о As а result Europe's population Ьу 20 million in а few years о Although records are scarce, it most likely had а similar affect on the Mongols, the lslamic world, and India as well But, as the idea of conjuncture suggests, the influence of the plague went beyond the nнmber ofpeople who died, as it prodttced essential structнral changes in Europe о Those who survived inherited wealth and land, and were much better off thaп before, especially peasants. о The popнlatioп grew rapidly and commerce increased о The puЬ!ishing of books and transfer of information took off, as there was now an abнndant supply of rags from which better, cheaper, and more duraЬ!e рарег cou]d Ье шаdе. This translated into а larger, faster and deeper transfer of information. Conclusion: The Bio1ogica1 Old Regime • Like the millennia before it, during this period the human population lived very much in the environment and had to Ье very mindful of the limits and opportunities that it provided