Trade Technology And The Influence Of Powerful Empires
Trade, technology and the influence of powerful kingdoms all contributed to a new age of exploration in their own way. Trade had a huge influence on the new age. The silk road was the easiest way for people of Europe to get fine goods from Asia, and the only way they could get there is because the Mongol Empire protected the road. So, once the Mongol Empire collapsed, so did the silk road’s cheap goods. Now that the Mongols were gone, the local rulers raised the prices making it harder to get the goods. Next, the Ottoman Turks took over the Byzantine Empire, and they shut down the Italians access to the Black Sea. So, because the Italians couldn’t get to the Black Sea to get to Asia to trade; they wanted to find a way to get to Asia without
getting in the Byzantine’s way. Technology had a great influence on the exploration age as well. At first, the Europeans wanted to go exploring, but could not because the technology was not advanced enough to cope with the harsh conditions of the sea. So they studied how different cultures traveled, and through this idea, they found the technology they needed to sail the seas. From the Arabs, the Europeans learned about the Greek device to find latitude, the astrolabe, and the Chinese gadget used to find the magnetic north, the compass. This was not the only great technology that the Europeans used that was developed by the Arabs. The Europeans did not have the ships to outlast the harsh weather in the seas. So they used the triangular shaped sails developed by the Arabs to sail in a zigzag formation to reduce the effect the wind has on the boat. And with these ships, they would be able to explore the world. Now that the Europeans had the drive to explore for trade opportunities, and had the technology to withstand the natural conditions, they only needed money to fund the exploration. Most of Europe kingdoms did not have the money to fund a project like this, however, this would change in the 1400s, as trade and the government became stronger. This gave the rulers free reign to tax in the noble class, giving the Europeans money to start their exploration.
getting in the Byzantine’s way. Technology had a great influence on the exploration age as well. At first, the Europeans wanted to go exploring, but could not because the technology was not advanced enough to cope with the harsh conditions of the sea. So they studied how different cultures traveled, and through this idea, they found the technology they needed to sail the seas. From the Arabs, the Europeans learned about the Greek device to find latitude, the astrolabe, and the Chinese gadget used to find the magnetic north, the compass. This was not the only great technology that the Europeans used that was developed by the Arabs. The Europeans did not have the ships to outlast the harsh weather in the seas. So they used the triangular shaped sails developed by the Arabs to sail in a zigzag formation to reduce the effect the wind has on the boat. And with these ships, they would be able to explore the world. Now that the Europeans had the drive to explore for trade opportunities, and had the technology to withstand the natural conditions, they only needed money to fund the exploration. Most of Europe kingdoms did not have the money to fund a project like this, however, this would change in the 1400s, as trade and the government became stronger. This gave the rulers free reign to tax in the noble class, giving the Europeans money to start their exploration.