Exam 18: Trade and Empire,1700-1800

Correct Answer:

Verified

Several factors transformed agricultural productivity in the eighteenth century,including new techniques in farming,land management,and participation in the commercial market.Beginning in the Rhineland areas and spreading into the Netherlands and England,the traditional three-field crop rotation system was ended by utilizing several new crops planted in the traditionally fallow section of land.Being able to switch between livestock and crops allowed more flexibility in farming and participation in the market.As herds got larger,they were managed to improve the quality of the herds: breed bigger cows,breed sheep with better wool,etc.These herds also refertilized the fields with manure,which recharged the lands.Land was therefore kept in continual production with the elimination of fallowing.This increased the yield to the point of surplus.Changes were also made in how land was held,either collectively or individually.Consolidation of strips for farming meant that one person holding land was not obligated to the opinions of a village council and could experiment with new crops or techniques without being overruled.This did have a detrimental effect on some farmers in England because it began the process of enclosure,eliminating collective or communal farming.For small landholders or peasants,this could result in their being downgraded to landless wage earners,or even expelled from the land altogether.

Correct Answer:

Verified

The initial establishment of the plantation economy,particularly in the sugar production market necessitated heavy manual labor,and there was an established precedent with the Spanish of using indigenous labor before switching to the use of African slavery.The growth of the Atlantic Trade,however,increased the slave trade significantly,creating the Triangle Trade model.Slaves were brought from Africa,no longer under the monopoly of the Portuguese slave trade,set to toil in the plantations of the Caribbean and ultimately America,which would then transport sugar and other raw commodities back to Europe,which would then return finished goods for consumption to the colonists.The Consumer Revolution,as well as the expansion into new empires for production of goods,fueled the increased use of slaves.Contributing to that ongoing need was a high mortality rate and a gender imbalance within the practice of slavery.