Effects of Exploration
Definition – an economic
theory in which nations try to
amass wealth through trade
with other nations/colonies
and by establishing a
positive trade balance
(exporting more than
importing), while increasing
stores of precious metals.
MERCANTILISM
MERCANTILISM, CONTINUED
Gave colonizing nations more reason to establish commercial development and
colonies
Nations would trade with colonies but not allow colonies to trade with each other
Colonies became impoverished, colonizers became wealthy
Spain and Portugal had been poor countries prior to exploration, but became
extremely wealthy
Jean Baptiste Colbert – French politician who masterminded mercantile policies that
led to much of France’s economic success in the 17th Century (Louis XIV).
Rivals on the World Stage
European rivalries meet abroad
European nations established trade and colonial empires internationally
through coercion and negotiation
Spain’s dominance:
Established colonies in Americas, Caribbean, and the Pacific
Became dominant world power in 16th century
England, France, and Netherlands responded by creating own colonial
and trade networks in the 17th century
Competition led to rivalries and international conflicts
Examples of Colonial Conflicts/Rivalries
1. Treaty of Tordesillas (1492)
1. Agreement between Spain and Portugal brokered by Pope Alexander VI (Borgia)
2. Lands East of the meridian (Brazil) belonged to Portugal
3. Lands West of the meridian (rest of Latin America) belonged to Spain
2. War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714)
1. War to determine next Spanish ruler (last Spanish Habsburg Charles II died heirless but had
chosen French Philip of Anjou to replace him)
2. War between France and Grand Alliance (Britain, Austria, Prussia, Dutch Republic, Portugal,
and Savoy)
3. Conflict in North America between British and French/Spanish lands (Florida, Maine,
Canada)
3. Asiento (1713)
1. Result of War of Spanish Succession. Allowed British to sell African slaves for a licensing fee in
Spanish colonies at high profits.
4. Seven Years’ War (1756-1763)
1. Generally considered first world war
2. Britain and its allies vs. France and its allies
Columbian Exchange & Slave
Trade
Columbian Exchange
Rise in colonial/trade expansion led to:
1. Exchange of flora, fauna, and goods
2. European dominance
3. Expansion of the slave trade
Trade led to the rise of Atlantic ports
over Mediterranean ports
England: London and Bristol
Netherlands: Amsterdam
Antwerp (Spain, Austria, or France)
Consequences of the Columbian Exchange
Europe:
Trade created economic opportunities for
Europeans, which also increases power of
Western Europe
Dietary changes (sugar)
New World:
Introduction of Horse
Diseases and warfare destroyed some indigenous
civilizations
Africa
Triangular Trade
Vast majority of forced labor in New World (long
term impacts in Africa)
Columbian Exchange & European Colonial Holdings
Word Bank
Cattle Corn Horses
Measles Pigs Potatoes
Sheep Smallpox Squash
Tobacco Tomatoes Turkey
Wheat
European Colonial/Trade Zones
Dutch England France Portugal Spain
Republic
1. Europe to New World 2. New World to Europe
The Slave Trade
Sugar plantations drove the initial demand for
slavery
Africans used because:
Europeans wouldn’t do the work
themselves
Natives died from disease or ran away
Triangular trade:
European goods (guns) went to Africa
African slaves went to West Indies
Sugar (or other tropical products) from
West Indies went to Europe
10 Million African slaves transported across the
Atlantic
Middle Passage &
Planter Society
Middle Passage: The sea journey from
West Africa to the Americas
Conditions:
Cramped, poor food, diseases rampant,
often chained below deck
10-15% died on the journey
Planter Society: Slave plantation system
that stretched from Chesapeake Bay to
Latin America (Brazil)
Created in response to European
demands for New World goods (coffee,
sugar, tea, etc.)
Life was harsh and difficult, regardless of
which colony controlled it
