The period of 1000 – 1500 C.E. was a very tumultuous and transformative time, but as the world was changing, it was also coming closer together. The trans-continental trade, travel, and the exchange of ideas between cultures began to emerge as commonplace. Both the Indian-Ocean and the Sub-Saharan trade routes grew in popularity due to many factors, these factors having both positive and negative effects on Eurasia and the African continents. The interactions that occurred between peoples and cultures at this time didn’t only shape the way they perceived each other at the time; it also established the foundation of the relationships of the future.
There were many components the propelled the growth of the trans-continental trade, one of which …show more content…
(Bentley 469) The plague had very serious effects in every country outside of India and most of Sub-Saharan Africa. The illness originated in Yunnan region of China and moved westward mostly through a military campaign from the Mongols and continued to spread by way of travelers and merchants. The plague was extremely devastating to the population. In China, within seventy years the population had declined by 10,000,000 while in Europe the population declined by 25% within 100 years. (Bentley 4458) An additional effect of the trans-continental trading was the increase in the African slave trade. The slave trade in Africa had been around for ages. Muslim merchants had opened the passages to new markets in places like India, Persia, Southwest Asia, and the Mediterranean basin, which increased the demand for slave labor. (Bentley 396) But it was when the Portuguese took on trading through the Indian Ocean that the slave trade changed dramatically. The Portuguese had colonized the uninhibited islands of Madeiras and Azores in the Atlantic Ocean, and also conquered the Canary Islands off the east coast of North Africa. Soon the Islands were filled with functioning sugar plantations, which required massive amounts of labor. The Portuguese acquired the slaves they needed by the traditional way of trading goods for slaves, but they also employed very devious tactics. In a letter written in 1526 from King of the Kongo Nzinga Mbemba to the King of Portugal, King Mbemba begs the king of Portugal to have his merchants stop kidnapping his people and selling them into slavery. “[W]e cannot reckon how great the damage is. . . they [the merchants] grab them to be sold; and so great, Sir. . . Your Highness should not agree with nor accept it as in your service. (Wisner
There were many components the propelled the growth of the trans-continental trade, one of which …show more content…
(Bentley 469) The plague had very serious effects in every country outside of India and most of Sub-Saharan Africa. The illness originated in Yunnan region of China and moved westward mostly through a military campaign from the Mongols and continued to spread by way of travelers and merchants. The plague was extremely devastating to the population. In China, within seventy years the population had declined by 10,000,000 while in Europe the population declined by 25% within 100 years. (Bentley 4458) An additional effect of the trans-continental trading was the increase in the African slave trade. The slave trade in Africa had been around for ages. Muslim merchants had opened the passages to new markets in places like India, Persia, Southwest Asia, and the Mediterranean basin, which increased the demand for slave labor. (Bentley 396) But it was when the Portuguese took on trading through the Indian Ocean that the slave trade changed dramatically. The Portuguese had colonized the uninhibited islands of Madeiras and Azores in the Atlantic Ocean, and also conquered the Canary Islands off the east coast of North Africa. Soon the Islands were filled with functioning sugar plantations, which required massive amounts of labor. The Portuguese acquired the slaves they needed by the traditional way of trading goods for slaves, but they also employed very devious tactics. In a letter written in 1526 from King of the Kongo Nzinga Mbemba to the King of Portugal, King Mbemba begs the king of Portugal to have his merchants stop kidnapping his people and selling them into slavery. “[W]e cannot reckon how great the damage is. . . they [the merchants] grab them to be sold; and so great, Sir. . . Your Highness should not agree with nor accept it as in your service. (Wisner