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Unit 2: Networks of Exchange
Height of the Middle Ages: Trading and Crusading
● Merchants emerged in towns - referred to as Burghers , became politically powerful ● Towns often formed alliances with each other ● Hanseatic League (1358): trade alliance though northern Europe to drive toward nationhood, increase social mobility and flexibility
● Architecture: Romanesque to Gothic - especially reflected in cathedrals ○ Flying buttresses: tall windows and vaulted ceilings ○ Often had art and sculpture, music ● Scholasticism: growth of education and knowledge - founding of universities for men; philosophy, law, medicine study; ideas of Muslims and Greeks - came in conflict with religion
● Crusades (11-14th century): military campaigns by European Christians to convert Muslims and non-Christians, combat religious questioning ○ Combat Heresies : religious practices/beliefs not conforming to traditional church doctrine ○ Pope Innocent III : issued strict decrees on church doctrine - frequently persecuted heretics and Jews, unsuccessful 4th crusade ○ Pope Gregory IX : Inquisition (formal interrogation and prosecution of perceived heretics with punishments like excommunication, torture, execution) - church often referred to as Universal Church or Church Militant ○ Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274): Christian theologian who made advancements in Christian thought - faith and reason aren’t in conflict ● Urbanization ○ Trade led to the growth of urban culture - cities usually were around trade routes ○ Silk Route cities were the most populous - Baghdad, Merv, Chang’an ○ Constantinople before 1400 and Paris and Italian city-states after 1400 were big European cities
The Rise and Fall of the Mongols
● Set of tribes and clans that were superb horseman and archers ● Genghis Kahn : unified the tribes in Mongolia in the early 1200s to expand their authority over other societies - first invaded China in 1234 ● Mongol Empire: spanned from Pacific Ocean to Eastern Europe - spit into hordes after death of Genghis Kahn, ruthless warriors destroying cities but remained peaceful after settling into cities ○ Golden Horde: conquered modern-day Russia ○ Kublai Khan: Genghis Kahn’s successor - ruled China ● Didn’t really have a set culture - didn’t enforce religion or way of life on conquered nations, but did make any cultural advancements ● Timur Lang : Mongol leader who took over India and destroyed everything - grew Islam in the nation ● If any residents of society the Mongols took over resisted, they would immediately kill them, so most had no choice but to give in - they were ruthless fighters, organized and mobile ● Impact: ○ Great diffusers of culture ○ Prevented Russia from culturally developing ○ World trade, cultural diffusion, global awareness grew as they spread through Europe, the Middle East, and Asia
Mali and Songhai
● Mali had a lot of gold that Islamic traders were interested in ● Mansa Musa : Malian ruler who built the capital of Timbuktu and expended the kingdom beyond Ghana
● Set precedent for large, European trading operations
Expansion of Religion and Empire: Cultural Clash
● Both natural spread of religion through contact over trade and intentional diffusion through missionary work or religious war
Other Reasons People Were on the Move
● Ran out of room in certain places, but cities were always increasing in size as opportunities grew in them ● New cities and empires drew people in ● Muslim pilgrimages
Notable Global Travellers
- Xuanzang : Chinese Buddhist monk - through T’ang Dynasty to India to explore Buddhism
- Marco Polo : merchant from Venice, to China and Europe
- Ibn Battuta: Islamic traveler, through Islamic world to India to China
- Margery Kempe : English Christian, through Europe and Holy Land ●
