During the time 600C.E-1450 C.E the Silk Road went through major changes while maintaining ingenuity. Changes and continuities interactions included cultural knowledge (changes in art, architecture and technology), political control (the impact the leader had on the Silk Road), culture diffusion (continuities in religion that spread and the impact) and trade (continuities of luxury items). Although there were many continuities, the changes of the Silk Road outweighed the continuities. The changes in political leaders impacted the Silk Road. The Silk Road was first established during the Han dynasty (Golden Age) under the dictatorship Liu Bang, a peasant who rose to power for the first time during china’s history. The Silk Road connected Central Asia to the Mediterranean and Central Asia to China. After the decline of the Han dynasty in 220 A.D under emperor Xian, it was not until 300 years later c.600 C.E did the Silk Road was later rivived in the Tang dynasty (Golden Age) were it prosper. During the 300 year gap, the Silk Road was under the control of the Six …show more content…
Dynasties (c.220–550A.D) then Sui dynasty (c.550–600 C.E).
During the 300 years the Silk Road did not prosper, until the Tang Dynasty. The reason why so many dynasties dominated the Silk Road was because of the claim of Mandate of Heaven, which gave the emperor of china the right to rule, if the emperor who claim the Mandate of Heaven does not fulfill his obligations as emperor, then he loses the Mandate and thus the right to be emperor, giving the right to rule over to another dynasty. Whichever dynasty ruled China controls the Silk Road. Genghis Khan the leader of a pastoral nomadic group called the Mongols conquered China. Under the control of the Mongols the Silk Road prosper because the Mongols made traveling along the Silk Road safer and easier to
travel. Under the control of the Mongols, trade increase and with the increase of trade new technology, language, art, and culture spread. Along with these items, the Bubonic Plague spread from Asia to Europe, causing a population decrease in Europe. The Chinese invented the compass, the printing block, gunpowder, and paper, which they traded to the European, with the new technology the European expanded their seagoing capabilities which eventually led to Columbus discovery of the Americas. The products traded along the Silk Road has stayed the same despite the changes, the trading of luxury items has continued. The luxury items traded included porcelain, silk, spices and jade to Europe. Luxury items continue to be traded on the Silk Road because they were high in demand. Asia traded silk to Rome because Roman elite fancied the silk because it showed wealth. The Silk Road also helped to spread religion across the world, the religion spread included Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Islamic etc. Religion was continuously spreading because merchant was continuously trading, the trading of goods led to the spreading of religion and culture. The Silk Road 600C.E-1450 C.E went through major changes while maintaining ingenuity. Changes and continuities interactions included cultural knowledge (changes in art, architecture and technology), political control (the impact the leader had on the Silk Road), culture diffusion (continuities in religion that spread and the impact) and trade (continuities of luxury items). The changes of the silk road contribute both a positive and negative effect. Although there were major continuities, the changes of the Silk Road outweighed the continuities.
An African rhino horn for some Chinese silk, 6 Iron bars for 12 Ferghana horses, or Chinese orange trees for India’s spices. Trade was encouraged by the Silk Road because it was the earliest type of compromise when wars were fought, and supplies were demanded.
Francesco Pegolotti was a Florentine merchant and politician. He wrote the The Practice of Commerce in which he expressed the personal qualities he believed that merchants were most needed to survive, which were compliancy and the skill to work with others, and have understanding. Pegolotti’s history was based on the sensitivity to local rules and customs was the key to survival. In this paper it will argue that the personal qualities that was needed to succeed in the Silk Road trade.
Around 220 CE the Han dynasty that rules China starts many attacks on the northern nomads. The Han have conquered and received new territories. Then repairs and builds about 10,000 kilometers of walls. This is the first time the Chinese are extending far west through the Gobi Desert. The Great Wall then takes on a new role which is protecting the Silk Road trade routes that connect China and the West.
As told by the roman historian Cassius Dio, Silk was used in Caesar’s celebration. (doc. 1). When Dio talks about the silk he calls it a “device of barbarian luxury.” This proves that a well educated roman was oblivious to the advancements that the Chinese had made, including The Great Wall and Grand Canal. Not to mention that the Chinese have existed thousands of years prior to the Roman civilization. Secondly Sima Qian who wrote The Records Of the Grand Historian clearly hints that Zhang Qian may have started the Silk Road. According to the document, Zhang Qian travels several thousand li (1 Li is equivalent to a bit more than one third of a mile.) Zhang brings back crops such as wheat and rice, and even find out about wine and grapes. Zhang was the first person to bring a clear account of present day Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, claiming it was people settled on the
Barron’s Review Assignment Three “Evaluate the effects of the spread of scientific and technological innovations in Eurasia from 1000 to 1450”. It can be said that Eurasia underwent large changes between 1000 and 1450. Governments are changing their methods of control and trade networks, increasing globalization worldwide. Along with these new changes, scientific and technological innovations in Eurasia took flight and reached new heights unseen.
The most notable was the cultural diffusion and expansion that these trade networks facilitated. The Mediterranean Sea trade network reached its peak under Alexander of Macedonia. “Alexander the Great,” as he is most often called was a large supporter of Hellenic culture and the spreading of such. He modeled much of his ruling on Greek culture, language and architecture. Alexander utilized the Mediterranean Sea as a passage to further spread his love of Greek culture. This is evidenced in the building of the Library of Alexandria, in Egypt, a crucial spot in Mediterranean Sea trade. This phenomenon of utilizing trade networks to further expand culture can also be seen in the Silk Road. Beginning in Eastern China, the Silk Road stretched all the way to Eastern Mediterranean Europe. During the classical era, Islam and Buddhism were taking form in Eastern China and India. As they developed, so did the Silk Road. While the Silk Road transferred luxury goods, such as spices and jewels, many Muslim and Buddhist scholars and missionaries traveled the Silk Road to expand and discuss theological ideas with scholars and students they met on the way. Therefore, Buddhism and Islam saw a spread due to the Silk Road. This can all be examined to further the argument that both the Silk Road and the Mediterranean furthered and assisted in the spread of culture for Alexander the Great and religion for Buddhist and Muslim
The Mongols influenced the world in many great ways, one of them was their vast trade system. They relied quite heavily on trade, not only to gain resources, but also to get their inventions and objects to the Europeans and then hopefully spread from there. The Mongols enhanced the trading system by composing the “Silk Road”. The Silk Road was a path/road that the Mongols had control of and it was a trade route that many travelers and traders took. Along the Silk Road, the main resource that was traded was silk, hence the name “Silk Road.” The
As in terms of economics, China grew prosperous through trade, military expansion, invention of tools and other means of convenience and through the market economy. From the Han Dynasty China began to build again. The Sui Dynasty constructed the Grand Canal. The Grand Canal was an artificial canal that extended 1,240 miles. It enabled merchants and farmers to travel by water, selling an abundance of rice and other crops. This canal was extremely expensive but throughout the years paid itself off by providing travel routes north and south of China. The Sui Dynasty also built palaces, granarie...
During the early Ming Dynasty, China was one of the most economically and technologically advanced countries in the world. As Ebrey pointed out, “Europe was not yet a force in Asia and China continued to look at the outer world in traditional terms.” China was regarded as the center of Asia at the beginning of the 15th century and the idea of “Middle Kingdom” (Zhong guo) began to take off at that time. The early Ming Emperors were not interested in promoting commercial trade at all. Emperor Hongwu, the founder of the Ming Dynasty, implemented the Hai jin policy which forbade maritime shipping and private foreign trade outside of the tributary system (Ebrey, p. 209).
At the time of the Han Dynasty, general trade began over the Silk Road, which was a network of trails that stretched 4,000 miles from China extending to the Roman Empire. At the time the Chinese were unique in their knowledge of how to raise silkworms and weave silk. Chinese silk was extremely expensive. In fact it was worth its weight as gold in Rome! Europeans also preferred other Asian luxury goods including but not limited to exotic sp...
During the time period 1450 to 1750, the world went through major changes and developments. Nomadic power declined, and European Kingdoms became world powers. A world trade network was set up as contact amongst nations increased immensely. A population boom occurred throughout the world. Many civilizations that were once isolated were brought into the world economy.
Wills, John E., Jr. "Canton System." History of World Trade Since 1450. Ed. John J. McCusker. Vol. 1. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2006. 98-100. Gale World History In Context. Web. 9 Oct. 2010.
Inventions such as silk, paper, printing, and gunpowder traveled on the road. Likewise the different ideas of religion spread, like Christianity from pilgrims and monks from Rome, Islam from the Middle East, and Buddhism spread from India to China. Trade on the Silk Road had periods of peace especially during the Han dynasty, the Tang dynasty, and Yuan dynasty. Lastly the Battle of Changping. This battle was a battle between the state of Qin and the state of Zhao in 260 BCE.
During this time in China the Han dynasty was responsible for the greatest expansion of China, to what is now southern China, northern Vietnam, and parts of Korea and had trade with Central Asia, India, Persia. Because of the expansion of the territory they were able to trade with more countries. This was furthered by the discovery of the Silk Road in 2nd century BC. The Silk Road, discovered by a Chinese ambassador Zhang Qian, was a series of trade routes from China to the Mediterranean Sea. The Silk Road got its name from the amount of silk used for trade during the Han dynasty. This route was used to travel from West to East on land they traveled to India, Persia, Arabia, and Europe, while traveling by sea they traveled through Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines. These paths were used by merchants, pilgrim, monks, soldiers, nomads, and urban dwellers.
The Tang Dynasty (618-906) succeeded the Sui Dynasty, who ruled from 581-618 A.D., respectively. The foundation for the development, growth, and expansion of China during the Tang Dynasty’s rule was laid during the Sui Dynasty’s reign. The political and governmental institutions of the Sui Dynasty directly influenced the Tang tremendously. Diplomatic relationships were successfully established during this period, and Tang China took its role as one of the greatest and prominent empires existing in the medieval world. Retail traders, clerics, ambassadors, and convoys from Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and other countries emerged into common members of everyday society in Tang China.