HIST-1106EL Study Guide - Quiz Guide: Spice Trade, Wanli Emperor, Curbed
13 Nov 2020
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
The term mercantilism described a system that saw the world"s wealth as fixed, meaning that any one country"s wealth came at the expense of other countries. Mercantilism further assumed that overseas possessions existed solely to enrich european motherlands. Thus, colonies should ship more value to the mother country than they received in return. In addition to creating trade surpluses, colonies were supposed to be closed to competitors, lest foreign traders drain precious resources from an empire"s exclusive domain. As the mother country"s monopoly over its colonies" trade generated wealth for royal treasuries, European states grew rich enough to wage almost unceasing wars against one another. Wealth is power and power is wealth. As dutch merchants profited from handling other colonizers" slaves, spices, textiles, and silver, they also coveted the riches flowing from spanish and portuguese possessions. Dutch businessmen profited from financing foreign merchants and transporting other nations" cargoes. They were, in fact, often called the world"s.
