Unit 4: Era 6 - An Age of Global Revolutions

Essentially, historians see five significant developments during this era: (1) growth of trans-oceanic contact by all major regions leading to global transformations; (2) expansion and consolidation of Eurasian empires - “gunpowder empires” – that unified large areas of Afro-Eurasia; (3) growth of new European state system and Atlantic-based economy; (4) the development of the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment in Europe and the diffusion of their ideas to other parts of the world; and (5) the increase of Europe’s political and economic power in relation to the rest of the world. This era marked the first truly global age in history because it initiated and organized ongoing contact between all the hemispheres on the earth. Where before we could talk about “many worlds” (i.e., Chinese, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean, European, American), by the mid-18th century it made sense to talk about a single world. The Iberian voyages across the Atlantic linking Europe to the Americas and the voyages across the Pacific linking China to the Americas ushered in an era of global interdependence with new zones of cultural and commercial exchange. These new connections led to global exchanges of goods, ideas, foods, peoples, and germs. It is a period when new scientific, philosophical, and cultural developments taking place in one part of the world moved relatively quickly to other parts of the world. Central to these new links were the expansion into and conquest of large sections of the Americas by European powers. A second development during this era was the continued growth of empires throughout Eurasia (e.g., Russia, China) and the simultaneous growth of a new system of nation-states in Europe. Across the “old” world, five empires expanded and consolidated their power over the continent: China, Russia, Mughal India, Safavid Iran, and the Ottoman Empire essentially controlled all of Eurasia but the far western areas of Europe. In Western Europe, an emerging nation-state system was marked by struggles between the states (e.g. France and Britain) and within states (e.g. Glorious Revolution, revolts in Japan). The creation and expansion of this state system is important in understanding both the changes within this era, and the subsequent growth of nation-states into the empires. Initially, European state building rested strongly on the idea of a divine right of kings. Slowly the European Enlightenment called into question this foundational idea for state legitimacy, replacing it with republican ideas that played important role in transforming the governance structure of European states (England in this era, France in the next era). The emerging ideas of nationalism, nation-state, and democratic citizenship played and continue to play important roles. Tightly tied to these major developments was the construction of an Atlantic economic system developed initially on exchange of sugar, slaves and silver. Economic systems such as mercantilism shaped policies and relationships with far reaching consequences. For example, by the end of the era, a new set of global relationships had emerged as European states grew in wealth and power, shifted foundational ideas from religion to science and reason, and significantly expanded their global influence. Additionally, China continued to exert tremendous power – resisting, for example, European incursions well into the 19th century. Conversely, Mughal India was declining and by the end of the era was losing autonomy. While Europe’s growth was dramatic during this era, China and other Asian economies remained influential. For example, some historians estimate that at the end of the 18th century Asians were producing over three-fourths of the world’s products. The sudden European wealth emerging from the new world economy, conquest, and new political and economic ideas enabled Europe to move forcefully into the world’s markets.

How did global networks of exchange and revolutions lead to worldwide crises and achievements?