TRADE NETWORKS AND THE BLACK DEATH

• environmental effects

  transfer of crops

  • champa rice

  transfer of diseases

  • bubonic plague
• How did the success of the Mongol state help the Black Death spread?

  • Trade networks grew more, so more people intermingled with one another. This opened up more diseases to spread.
• How many people are estimated to have died from the plague?

  • 100 million 
• What do gerbils have to do with plague?

  • They are the fleas that carried the bacteria
• Why was plague the worst?

  • It affected anyone who was near it
  • Wiped out 1/3 of Europe
• How did the plague affect economies?

  • led to sharp declines and production in trades throughout Afro-Eurasia
  • With a significant reduction in population, there was a labor shortage, leading to increased wages for workers but also higher costs for employers. Agricultural production declined due to labor shortages, leading to food shortages and inflation. Trade was disrupted as well, impacting economies that relied heavily on commerce
• Describe the extents that explains the environmental effects of the various networks of exchange in Afro-Eurasia from c. 1200 to 1450.

  • Increased trade and travel led to deforestation, soil erosion, and habitat destruction as demand for resources grew. Additionally, the introduction of new species, such as crops and animals, sometimes disrupted local ecosystems
• In the economic systems narrative, we generally hear about expanded trade routes as a purely good thing. How does the Black Death affect that view?

  • The Black Death makes us realize that while trade affected other countries significantly, it also increased the spread for many diseases. 
• What "change" in the Afro-Eurasian networks of exchange does the Black Death cover, and how would you describe it?

  • The Black Death brought about a drastic decline in population, leading to labor shortages and economic disruptions. This event reshaped trade patterns, as regions affected by the plague experienced declines in production and consumption, altering the flow of goods and ideas across Afro-Eurasia
• • a bacteria known as Yersinia Pestis was the cause of the black death
• • black death was commonly spread through flea bites
• • black death brought an end to feudalism
• • workers in europe who didnt die from the plague started to demand higher wages
  • wages rose up 40%
  • rise in wage created middle class society in europe
• • landowners did not want to rely on farmers/workers anymore after the black death, so they started to raise more livestock
  • inspired technological innovations in farming
• • rise of the middle class in europe helped revive the the economy and re-establish trade networks
  • with higher wages, more workers could afford goods that were previously considered luxury 
  • likely helped start the european renaissance