Western Civilization

natural and as yet untouched by European corruption.

But even the latter group still believed that the Indi-

ans should be converted—if not forcefully, at least

peacefully—to Christianity. Overall, Europeans’ rela-

tively easy success in dominating native peoples

(whether Africans or Indians) reinforced Christian

Europe’s belief in the inherent superiority of Euro-

pean civilization and religion. The Scientific Revolu-

tion of the seventeenth century (see Chapter 16), the

Enlightenment of the eighteenth (see Chapter 17),

and the imperialism of the nineteenth (see Chapter

24) would all bolster this Eurocentric perspective,

which has pervaded Western civilization’s relations

with the rest of the world.

Toward a World Economy

Q FOCUSQUESTION: What was mercantilism, and what

was its relationship to colonial empires?

During the High Middle Ages, Europeans had experi-

enced a commercial revolution that created new opportu-

nities for townspeople in a basically agrarian economy.

Although this commercial growth was slowed by the cri-

ses of the fourteenth century, Europe’s discovery of the

world outside in the fifteenth century led to an even

greater burst of commercial activity and the inception of

aworldmarket.

Economic Conditions in the Sixteenth

Century

Inflation was a major economic problem in the six-

teenth and early seventeenth centuries. This so-called

price revolution was a Europe-wide phenomenon,

although different areas were affected at different

times. Foodstuffs were most subject to price increases.

But wages failed to keep up with the rising prices.

Wage earners, especially agricultural laborers and sala-

ried workers in urban areas, saw their standard of liv-

ing drop. At the same time, landed aristocrats, who

could raise rents, managed to prosper. Commercial and

industrial entrepreneurs also benefited from the price

revolution because of rising prices, expanding markets,

and relatively cheaper labor costs. Some historians

regard this profit inflation as a valuable stimulus to

investment and the growth of capitalism, helping to

explain the economic expansion and prosperity of the

sixteenth century. Governments were likewise affected

by inflation. They borrowed heavily from bankers and

imposed new tax burdens on their subjects, often

arousing additional discontent.

The Growth of Commercial Capitalism

The flourishing European trade of the sixteenth cen-

tury revolved around three major areas: the Mediterra-

nean in the south, the Low Countries and the Baltic

A Seventeenth-Century

World Map.This beautiful

map was prepared in 1630

by Henricus Hondius. The

portraits in the corners are

of Caesar, the Roman

statesman; Ptolemy, the

second-century astronomer;

Mercator, the Flemish

cartographer whose map

projection Hondius

followed; and Hondius

himself. By comparing this

map with the map created

by Ptolemy on p. 330, one

can see how much

Europeans had learned

about the shape of the

world by the seventeenth

century.

The Huntington Library, San Marino, CA/SuperStock

352 Chapter 14 Europe and the World: New Encounters, 1500–1800

Copyright 2017 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.

`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ

˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ*Ê

`ˆÌœÀÊ

/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê