Global Monetary Depression Essay -- World History, Chinese Economy

Whether or not one believes that the 17th century global monetary depression actually occurred or if there even was a â€Å"general crisis† to begin with, it has been widely apparent that from 1601 to 1680, a transformation in economic history and a decline in transnational finance was underway. We cannot mistaken—though richly diverse the economy—a specific geographical region as if it fiscally rose or declined in isolation. Comparative studies are crucial; however, â€Å"it is yet another argument against the narrow parochialism which still afflicts the teaching of history in too many universities† (Aston 3). Those of us who have suffered while studying the Western past must not plummet into the similarly devastating Asian strain; therefore, while juxtaposing the two influential economies of the 17th century, Europe (Spain) and Asia (China), it is crucial to bear in mind the transnational fluctuations in domestic and oversea trade with regards to the glo bal consequences: monetary inflation. Unlike their European counterpart, Chinese feudalism consisted of peasants, especially in the late Ming and early Qing, that were not directly tied to landlords—rather, their atypical Chinese socioeconomic feudalism was more of a â€Å"commercialized peasant economy† where market imports were driven by the demands of the general public (Kishimoto-Nakayama 228). On the surface, an unfathomable torrent of New World silver deposits controlled by Spain alleviated much of the amounting debt and dissolved the liquidity crisis in Europe; however, it also unleashed a devastating increase of bullion in China’s over-heated economy which demoted global price levels on silver—leading to the deleterious monetary inflation (Glahn 429). Since the source of profit from... ...y-rocketed levels of international trade, government spending, and population—the main reason for China’s financial inflation was due to global climatic changes that diminished agricultural yields, caused outbreaks of epidemic and ultimately depreciated the purchasing value of money by increasing market prices of staple goods. In this same context, despite the fact that one nation’s economy was in decline, it did not Moreover, the instance of China’s financial crisis during the 17th century demonstrates the ultimate full scale of changes in a global economy and with respects to environmental factors. The significant economic downturns during the period brought to light the constantly shifting organizations of the first markets during the modern era and the indigenous demands for natural resources which determined the direction of a country’s economic stability.