Unit 6: Colonization and Economic Expansion
During the 17th century, nations worldwide experienced profound military and political transformations. Gunpowder technology gradually moved from Asia through the Middle East to Europe between the 1300s and the 1600s. By the 17th century, Europeans began perfecting cannon technology and experimenting with handheld firearms. These military technologies altered warfare across Europe and the Middle East and helped establish powerful, centralized states. Absolutist governments formed in France, Russia, and Japan. Kings and emperors declared themselves agents of God and used their military and political power to demand total obedience from the nobility and the peasantry.
In this unit, we examine the development of absolutism in Europe and Asia and compare it with other forms of government. We also examine growing conflicts between European states over colonial possessions and resources worldwide and explore how these conflicts altered the balance of European power.
Completing this unit should take you approximately 4 hours.
Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- discuss the different motivations for colonization of the Americas and how different colonies formed;
- identify the main characteristics of mercantilism and capitalism, as well as critiques of both of these;
- describe how economic systems such as mercantilism fostered conflict; and
- compare the impact of capitalism on the Industrial, Scientific, and Agricultural Revolutions.
6.1: European Colonization in the Americas
European colonization of the Americas was hardly swift or sudden: it occurred in fits and starts. The Spanish enthusiastically conquered Mexico, but they only had one settlement in Florida for decades. Its only purpose was to protect their shipping from English pirates. Several colonies, such as Roanoke in North Carolina and Popham in Maine, collapsed or were abandoned. Nevertheless, colonization persisted. The colonists came to the Americas as traders in search of wealth, to elude poverty in Europe, and to escape religious persecution and turmoil in Europe.
Read this text on European colonization in North and South America. What motivated Europeans to settle in North America? During the 1500s, the Spanish Crown employed the encomienda system of labor, which rewarded Spanish explorers, conquistadors, and military men with land in the New World. Africa became their source of free forced labor. How did climate, economics, and geography affect these colonial settlements? What was the indigenous response?
Read this text to learn more about the Dutch and French and their attempts to settle different parts of North America. What were they seeking, and how did it differ from what the Spanish sought? What areas did they colonize?
Read this text, which describes the English settlements that arose in the Americas.
Watch this video on the New World (Mundus Novus), Columbus, Vespucci, and the splitting of the world between Spain and Portugal in the Treaty of Tordesillas.
Watch this video on the Mestizo populations, ethnic castes, the Spanish Armada, and slavery in these regions.
Read this short article, which compares the economies and settlement patterns in Spanish, French, and British colonies in the Americas. Pay close attention to the impact of European settlement on the indigenous people who lived in these areas.
6.2: The Rise of a Global Economy
The discovery of the Americas set in motion a truly global economy. Cod fishing off Newfoundland and Canada's coast fed Europeans and enslaved people in the Caribbean. Spanish silver mined in Mexico was traded with Ming and Qing China. An economic system known as mercantilism was followed by a number of European states, which led them to seek out colonies, often aggressively.Read this text on mercantilism. What role did the colonies play in mercantilism? What are some major criticisms of this economic theory?
Watch this video, which describes how mercantilism influenced exploration, particularly in newly discovered territories.
Read this text on the Seven Years' War (1756–1763) in Europe and the new global balance of power it created. The authors describe British colonization in India, how China's Qing dynasty was able to maintain a favorable trade balance with Europe, and how colonized societies responded to European imperialism.
6.3: Capitalism and the First Industrial Revolution
Many consider Adam Smith (1723–1790), the Scottish economist, the "father" of modern economics. He coined the idea of the invisible hand, where he described how changes in supply and demand for an item typically return to a state of economic equilibrium. When a shortage of a product occurs, most businesses raise their prices to take advantage of the increased demand. The profit margin encourages other businesses to enter the market, increase production, and cure shortages. When too many producers flood the market with increased supply, manufacturers are forced to lower the price of their products to get rid of their excess inventory and stay in business. Eventually, the competition among manufacturers achieves a market equilibrium or "natural price".
While Adam Smith made a case for what economists would call laissez-faire capitalism, Karl Marx (1818–1883) and Friedrich Engels (1820–1895) were highly critical of the exploitative nature of industrial capitalism. Smith tended to ignore these social byproducts, which were still in their infancy when he wrote his Wealth of Nations.
Known for their views on social and class conflict within society, Marx and Engles witnessed and protested against the extreme poverty and horrendous living conditions that capitalist practices created in many newly industrialized cities. They predicted a class struggle would occur between the lower and upper classes over controlling the means of production. Marx and Engels advocated for the proletariat (the working class) to rise up in revolt against the bourgeoisie (the upper classes and wealthy elite) to demand better working conditions. They predicted society would become more stable and equal once capitalism failed.
Read this biographical article about Adam Smith. It contains insights into how The Wealth of Nations essentially created the field of economics and how its focus on labor rather than land ownership revolutionized international trade.
- Read this excerpt from Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations. Read the first book to understand the arguments Smith made in his writing.
Read this short biography of Karl Marx. It gives context to the birth of his ideas on the social impacts of capitalism.
Watch this lecture on the course of the Industrial Revolution in Europe. John Merriman discusses changing attitudes and historical perspectives during this period of innovation and social transformation.
Watch this video on the origins of the Industrial Revolution in England. It explores how England was uniquely situated to harness coal and steam power during this critical historical moment.
Unit 6 Assessment
- Receive a grade
Take this assessment to see how well you understood this unit.
- This assessment does not count towards your grade. It is just for practice!
- You will see the correct answers when you submit your answers. Use this to help you study for the final exam!
- You can take this assessment as many times as you want, whenever you want.