The social and economic transformations that took place in the Atlantic World between 1492 to 1750 revolutionized and altered the course of history. The interactions that occurred between West Europe, Africa, and the Americas led to social and economic development and factored into the reason on why the world is the way it is.
Between the years 1492 to 1750 there was a great economic heap that took place on all major continents. This change was the result of the Age of Exploration--a period of time when European explorers went off to conquer and colonize land outside of their home country in the name of God, gold, and glory. The exertion of power that the Europeans had over the natives eventually led to large trade routes such as the Columbian Exchange, and the Triangular Trade, resulting in the economic growth (or decay) of many of these colonized territories. The prominence of these trade routes remained vital in the global economy in terms of maintaining the trading of corn, beans and squash.The Europeans took advantage of the natives through forced labor as a way to extract their resources. A clear example …show more content…
The trading and exportation of slaves became a global necessity and was the backbone of prosperous economies like the Americas and West Europe. Although this form of enslavement goes on for years, a new form of economy was beginning to meld with the previous ones: mercantilism. Mercantilism is an economy achieved by acquiring silver and gold through gaining colonies, and establishing a balance of trade. Ideally speaking, this was a good idea but in the reality of things, the natives received little to no amount of the bullion acquired and they were also underpaid. This was a prominent idea throughout the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries that allowed West Europe’s contact with the Americas and Africa to result in wealth and global economic power at the expense of the Amerindians and African
Between the years 1492 to 1750 there was a great economic heap that took place on all major continents. This change was the result of the Age of Exploration--a period of time when European explorers went off to conquer and colonize land outside of their home country in the name of God, gold, and glory. The exertion of power that the Europeans had over the natives eventually led to large trade routes such as the Columbian Exchange, and the Triangular Trade, resulting in the economic growth (or decay) of many of these colonized territories. The prominence of these trade routes remained vital in the global economy in terms of maintaining the trading of corn, beans and squash.The Europeans took advantage of the natives through forced labor as a way to extract their resources. A clear example …show more content…
The trading and exportation of slaves became a global necessity and was the backbone of prosperous economies like the Americas and West Europe. Although this form of enslavement goes on for years, a new form of economy was beginning to meld with the previous ones: mercantilism. Mercantilism is an economy achieved by acquiring silver and gold through gaining colonies, and establishing a balance of trade. Ideally speaking, this was a good idea but in the reality of things, the natives received little to no amount of the bullion acquired and they were also underpaid. This was a prominent idea throughout the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries that allowed West Europe’s contact with the Americas and Africa to result in wealth and global economic power at the expense of the Amerindians and African