Economic Development of Western Civilization

On the eve of the French Revolution, the West had witnessed it’s greatest cultural and economic expansion. Over the course of some four centuries, 1300 – 1789, the West had seen it’s population and economies ravaged by both natural and man made disasters yet each time it was able to not only survive but flourish afterwards.

It is said that the true strength of a nation or people is how quickly they can recover from a catastrophe. The climate of Europe became colder and wetter around 1300. This is the beginning of a period that geographers refer to as “a little ice age”. A number of storms ruined wheat, oat and hay crops which resulted in very poor harvest that led to both scarcity and starvations. Most of Europe suffered the “Great Famine” between 1315 and 1322. This caused tremendous increase in the cost of all types of food which limited the number of people who could afford to eat.

The ones who did not starve were surviving on reduced nutritional intake which resulted in increased susceptibility to disease, especially infants, children and the elderly. Typhoid fever killed thousands. In addition, the reduced diets left workers with less energy and even lower productivity which in turn allowed the cycle to stay intact. In some areas this resulted in the abandonment of homesteads and even entire villages. Population levels decreased exponentially.

At the same time, an epidemic that we refer to as the Black Death struck Europe as well. The disease known as bubonic plague or even some type of Eboli disease in some circles ravaged Eastern Europe beginning in 1340’s. By spring of 1348 Southern Germany was infected. In June 1348, 2 ships entering the British Channel introduced the plague into England and the rest o...

... middle of paper ...

...nslation of ancient works. The Renaissance patrons played a role funding scientific investigations as they did for art and literature. The rise of printing provided a faster and less expensive way to circulate knowledge across Europe. Navigational problems were critical in the development of many new scientific instruments, which permitted more acute observations and often led to important new information. These advancements in technology aided in the eventual discovery of the New World. These discoveries led to a new source of wealth for their respective countries. Discoveries in new deposits of gold, silver, sugar can and furs led to even more wealth for the West. It was almost contrary to some of the Renaissance thinking that most of these came on the backs of slave labor or the near destruction of the indigenous people that had these new found resources.