This is another essay I wrote for my history class a little less than two years ago. My class was learning about European explorations in America and how their maritime expeditions had such an impact worldwide. The Columbian Exchange was quite a factor in changing how the world was then and setting the basis of how our world is now. Most of the expository content was from the history textbook my class was using, but I obtained the concept of the North-South axis and East-West axis (which indicated whether the climates varied over the regions or basically remained similar to each other) and how it affected vegetation from Jared Diamond’s book, Guns, Germs, and Steel. If you have any questions or if there’s something you’d like to correct, please feel free to comment. :)
Change Over Time: The Columbian Exchange
The impact of the Columbian Exchange not only had global significance, but also had effects on two regions that were directly involved: Western Europe and the Americas. Because of this historical event, the catalyst was set into place of global impact, such as demographic transition, and the spread of Enlightenment ideas. Intellectual fermentation spurred across the West, influencing needed factors for global exploration and leading to the challenge of all political structures.
Early Latin America had already been astounding civilizations before the disruption of European conquest, reflected in its great architecture, the militant nature of the Aztecs, and the road systems of the Incas. In both empires, imperialist notions were established in the form of tribute systems. Hierarchal structures, specialized classes, planned architectural structures, and fervent patronage to the gods of harvest paralleled attributes of ancient river valley civilizations. However, their lack of writing system limited communication of ideas, a long-term detriment to their societies.
Western power began to rise with independent thinking such as the scientific revolution, Enlightenment movements and focuses on religion and secularism. With the encouragement of educated cognizant minds, more ideas were exchange and results included technological advances. Western Europe's interest in expansion led to the exploration voyages to find a shorter route to the West Indies. Because of their efficiency in resources and motivation, Western Europe initiated the beginning of its hegemony.
The crops from the Americas provided high calorie yields, establishing a steady supply on soil with unfavorable conditions. Hence, the surplus contributed to the population growth of not only Western Europe, but also the civilizations of the Eastern Hemisphere. With more people, there was bound to be more advances. However, the Americas did not receive benefits equitable to that of the rest of the world. The spread of smallpox and measles reduced the population size of the indigenous people and then slave trades from Africa were necessary for coerced labor, replacing insufficient amount of laborers needed.
The discovery of the Americas became an extension of Western power. Extractions of bullion inflated market prices, raising the number of people living in poverty. Although European products were inferior to other contemporary civilization, all wanted the bullion. Diffusion of ideas, such as the Enlightenment had an impact on the Americas in terms of social hierarchy, subjugating natives and mixed races to European family structures. However, the Indians were resilient in creating amalgams of Western traditions in their culture. The superiority complex Europeans possessed grew commensurate to their colonial expansion, marked by actions such as 'civilizing the savage natives' in the Americas as well as other areas such as Africa and Oceania.
The civilizations of Latin America certainly had a remarkable ingenuity that would've suffice for world hegemony. Imperialistic tendencies might have emulated patterns of global impact similar to the West, but apparently, Latin America had a different circumstance. Its vulnerability from isolation and the North-South axis of its geography hindered the expansion of their territory. As a result, less diffusion of ideas, exchange of crops, and technological advances (including the lack of naval military) as well as lack of resistance to foreign diseases were key factors of Western success of conquest. The Columbian Exchange caused a chain reaction impetus to the ongoing activity of Western Europe. Without the exchange, the world would've been static if population growths weren't ameliorated by efficient food sources from the Americas; perhaps the absence of demographic transition in history may not instigate an industrial revolution or the industrialized phase of history may have little or no impact.
Sources:
Stearns, Peter N., Michael Adas, Stuart B. Schwartz, and Marc J. Gilbert. World Civilizations: the Global Experience, Third Edition, AP* Edition. 3rd ed. Longman Group, 2006.
Diamond, Jared. Guns, Germs, and Steel. W.W. Norton and Company, 2005.
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