Lecture 10: European seaborne trading companies Flashcards
Tower of Belem
1514-1519
Journey from Lisbon to East Asia starts here
Manueline style
Manuel I 1495-1521. Money earned through trade–> embelish Lisbon pq
a. monuments from this period related to navigation, armillary spheres, boats
b. Jerónimos Monastery in Lisbon
VOC galleons by ?
Hendrick Cornelisz Vroom
a. Galleons were designed and built in Rotterdam’s dockyards
- Cargo is located in the stern so they lean forward
Why were Europeans interested in going to India
As soon as the period of the Roman Empire, INDIA = you could find everything gold to spices
-
Periplus of the Erythrean Sea (1st century CE)
Greek travel book gives a description of the trading city of Muziris
What did Greeks exchange?
Eaglewood, silk, sandalwood, spices, camphor [Silappatikaram, tamil epic]
Pliny the elder: “nearest market in India”
Importance of aromates-> épices -> spices
1504 Portugal monopoly over pepper trade
INDONESIA: cloves, introduced by Arab traders to Europe. paid in cloves for extra
CHINA, ARAB, MALAY: nutmeg, Middle ages, Persian Gulf –> Europe
a. Social status: richer = more spice
payer en espèces, no man should die who can affor cinnamon, il est riche comme le poivre
b. Food Conservation: Without refrigeration, food spoiled easily, spices were used to mask the flavour of rancid meat
- meat/fish preserved by salting– used lots of pepper to counteract salt
Why did the maritime trade between Europe and Asia begin with the Portuguese?
- Henry the Navigator (1394-1460)
- dedicated life to promotion of navigation
- maritime maps were kept under state secret. useful in finding trading points
–> Portuguese established outposts along their way in Madeira, Azores, Cape Verd, Saint Helens
–> Set up NAVAL ACADEMY in Sagres
a. Caravels, bigger, improved sailing techniques
b. use of astrolabe: knowledge of stars and constellations enabled them to reach SEA
ESTABLISHED Carreira da India/Route to India
Volta do Mar
Winds in the Atlantic and Indian ocean, portuguese navigators took advantage of because they were the first to know about it. They enabled ships to be faster.
Early Portuguese expeditions
Under patronage of Henry, POR discovered Porto Santo, Madeira, Azores, Canaries –> prominent power in maritime technology
- conquered African coasts/established outposts (feitoria)
+ India/Indonesia after 2 expeditions to find alternative to the land spice route bc Ottomans would tax alot
- Cross Strait of Bojador
Who crossed the Cape of Good Hope?
Bartolomeu Dias, paving the way to the circumnavigation of Africa 1488.
- Vasco de Gama achieved this 10 years later by finally reaching Calicut/Goa.
The Lusiads by Camoes 1572
Saragossa Treaty
April 1529 completed the 1494 Tordesillas
Spain and Portugal shared the world known and still unknown
Albuquerque
First Ruler of the Portuguese trade. Under his mandate = monopoly of state trade
- Conquered strategic Indian Ocean ports
1510 Goa
1511 Malacca
Capture of Hormuz, cutting off Muslim trade in the Persian Gulf
The Spice Trade
India was one of Portuguese Overseas Empire –> started w trading posts, before builiding colonial states
- a centralized system benefitting portugal VICEROY
(Diu, Daman, Bassein, Bombay)
Armada
ships to secure harbors and warehouses.
Well equipped fleets of ships would leave Lisbon x2 / year (portugal-india)
- followed carreira de india
- military ships would ensure safe arrival
