Maritime Empires and Swahili City-States

Maritime Empires Established

• Students should ensure they have access to their guided notes before the lecture.
• The first part of the lecture focuses on governance (politics) concerning the SPICE-T theme.
• Vasco da Gama's voyage opened a new sea route to India and Southeast Asia from Europe.
• The Portuguese influence on African coastal cities (both East and West) was significant due to their early engagement in maritime trade with West Africa.
• Vasco da Gama observed bustling African port cities and numerous merchant ships during his voyage to India.
• His journey sparked the establishment of Portugal's maritime empire.

The Swahili City-States

• Swahili translates to "people of the coast".
• The Swahili coast became a point of interest to the Portuguese following Vasco da Gama's 1498 voyage.
• 35 independent trading cities, primarily Muslim, thrived on trade between the 12th and 15th centuries.
• These trading cities were significant for the Portuguese as they were active participants in the lucrative Indian Ocean trade.
• Major Swahili trading cities were of interest to the Portuguese after Vasco da Gama's first voyage.

Portugal Seeks Trading Posts in Africa

• Portugal established a trading-post empire, a network of small ports in Africa and Southeast Asia to control valuable trading routes.
• Mombasa, present-day Kenya, was a target for trading-post establishment.
• Vasco da Gama's crew encountered unarmed Arab merchant ships and attacked and looted them.
• This action led to increased Portuguese presence on the East African coast.
• Mombasa's strategic location made it a vital trading post for Portugal, aiming to control the Indian Ocean trade.

Portugal and Mombasa

• Two years after Vasco da Gama's initial visit, the Portuguese returned and attacked Mombasa.
• The city was destroyed by Nuno da Cunha in 1528.
• Mombasa was captured by the Ottomans and Somalis in 1585, and later reconquered by the Portuguese in 1589.
• Fort Jesus was built to defend the city's claim. The fort was repeatedly taken over by several different parties.
• Mombasa was a highly desired trading post because of its vast trading potential. Portugal made vast investments in controlling the city.

Portugal and Kilwa

• Da Gama reported his findings to King Manuel I after returning to Portugal.
• A second Portuguese India Armada, led by Pedro Álvares Cabral, visited Kilwa in 1500 and attempted a treaty.
• Vasco da Gama returned to Kilwa in 1502 and forced a tribute payment from the city's leader.
• Francisco de Almeida established a Portuguese presence in Kilwa in 1505 by bringing in his fleet and built Fort Santiago.

Response to the Portuguese

• The Portuguese encountered resistance in some areas despite their trade agreements.
• Mombasa and Kilwa faced conflict, due to Portuguese policies like requiring that only Portuguese ships trade with other nearby coastal cities.
• This impacted local merchants who relied on free trade.
• The Portuguese installed puppet leaders, often with violent repercussions for those who refused to compromise with them.
• Ultimately, the Portuguese abandoned Fort Santiago and the city was taken over by Omani Arabs in 1512.

Portuguese India Armadas

• Vasco da Gama's voyage prompted repeated Portuguese missions to India (India Armadas).
• These missions aimed to expand Portugal's sea-based empire in both Africa and Asia.
• The voyages were often aggressive and resulted in establishing various trading posts.
• Large armadas of 20 ships and 1500-1800 men were sent to engage in trade and establish control over trade routes.
• These voyages also extended to Brazil.

Building Portugal's Empire

• Portugal established bases/warehouses rather than controlling vast territories.
• Aggressive tactics were used to establish a presence.
• Control of bottlenecks (e.g., Hormuz, Malacca) was sought to dominate the spice trade.
• This involved the construction of forts and commercial warehouses.
• Control of coastal India and Brazil.

Portugal and West Africa

• Pope Nicholas V granted Portugal dominion over lands south of Cape Bojador in Africa.
• This ensured that Portugal's trade and colonization were protected.
• Growing demand for slaves in Portugal due to labor shortages.
• Trade occurred with the Kingdom of Benin, resulting in the exchange of goods like brass, ivory, and slaves.
• The exchange of gunpowder for slaves altered power dynamics in these African kingdoms.

Portugal and West Africa: Kongo

• The Kongo King Afonso I formed a relationship with Portugal, beginning a trade with Portugal in 1500's.
• The Kongo King Afonso I was given the Christian name Afonso to further cement relations with Portugal.
• He established a steady slave trade, but also attempted to control Portuguese slave trade, while also remaining subservient to Portugal.

Japan and the Nanban Trade Period

• The arrival of Portuguese traders in Japan in 1543 marked the beginning of the Nanban Trading Period of the Japanese.
• Japan's initial trade engagement involved significant exchange with Portuguese traders in Southeast Asia.
• Subsequently, other Europeans including Dutch, English, and Spanish traders also participated.
• The introduction of Christianity in Japan led to conflicts.
• Japan largely closed for outside trade during the Tokugawa period (1603-1868) due to rising tensions between government and religion.
• The Tokugawa shogunate (military government) enacted isolationist policies to preserve Japan's cultural identity.
• Foreign trade remained through specific trading points in Japan (e.g., with China, Korea, and the Dutch).

Ming Dynasty Trade Policies

• The Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) in China utilized large fleets under Zheng He for exploration.
• Zheng He's expeditions explored areas bordering the Indian Ocean.
• Later emperors issued "sea bans" to restrict trade to focus on internal threats.

European Rivalries: Spain and Portugal in the Americas

• Spain's desire to control South America led to a dispute with Portugal over territories.
• The Treaty of Tordesillas (1494) attempted to divide the New World between Spain and Portugal.
• Accidental Portuguese landing in Brazil in 1500 shifted colonization patterns.
• Spain and Portugal continued to compete in other parts of the world and in the Americas, although the Treaty of Tordesillas was not enforced equally.

European Rivalries in India and Southeast Asia

• European nations, like England and the Netherlands, sought to establish trading posts in India and Southeast Asia.
• This competition led to conflicts with the Portuguese, Dutch, and English East India Companies.

European Rivalries in Africa: The Asante Empire

• The Asante Empire's prosperity stemmed from its involvement in trade with Europeans.
• This involved trading gold and enslaved people, with Europeans providing weapons and gunpowder.

Restructuring of Economic Systems in the Indian Ocean

• The arrival of the Portuguese, Spanish, and Dutch profoundly changed existing trade systems in the Indian Ocean.
• Existing trade networks between Asia, the Middle East, and Africa continued, albeit significantly altered.

How did the arrival of Europeans to the Indian Ocean change existing trade systems?

• Some existing trade systems in the Indian Ocean continued to thrive alongside the changes brought in by European traders.
• European traders sought to control trading routes, ports, and trade networks.
• European control over some ports and trade networks persisted, with indigenous traders continuing to trade in the region.

Labor Systems in the Americas

• The Spanish established encomienda systems (using coerced indigenous labor) in the Americas.
• The Portuguese and Dutch used similar systems which led to exploitative labor conditions.
• The Mitma system, used by the Incas, was modified by the Spanish.
• Indentured servitude and chattel slavery increased as labor demands grew in the Americas, particularly in regions that focused on agriculture and resource extraction.

Colonial Economic Systems: Plantations

• Plantations (large estates that primarily grew a single crop) developed under Spanish and Portuguese control, and later British control, requiring significant labor.
• Initially, Native Americans were employed, followed by the shift to enslaved Africans.
• Plantation economies heavily depended on enslaved people.

Indentured Servitude in the British Colonies

• Indentured servants came to British North America.
• They signed contracts to work for a specific number of years to pay for their voyage.
• These servants often experienced poor conditions
• The labor system was gradually replaced by chattel slavery.

Chattel Slavery in the Triangular Trade

• The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade transformed African slavery.
• Chattel slavery, where people were treated as property, developed.
• Chattel slavery was a brutal system in which enslaved people had no rights.
• The demands for labor in sugar and other plantation economies created a great demand for enslaved people.

Continuities in African Slavery

• Forms of slavery existed in Africa before the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
• These existing forms of slavery were distinct from the chattel slavery introduced by Europeans.

Demographic Changes in the Americas

• The transatlantic slave trade led to significant population shifts in the Americas.
• Racial mixing occurred in the Caribbean and South America.
• The slave trade had long-term detrimental effects on African societies.

Social and Demographic Changes in Africa

• Africa lost millions of people through the trans-Atlantic slave trade, particularly men.
• This led to economic and social disruption, with many West African kingdoms losing their population.
• Some African states became prosperous because of their involvement in the trade with Europeans, but most states experienced decline/disruption of economic structures due to the slave trade.

King Afonso I of the Kongo

• King Afonso I of the Kongo made efforts to control the trans-Atlantic slave trade in order to secure his kingdom, but was largely unsuccessful given Portuguese traders' and merchants' disregard and defiance.
• King Afonso I wrote to King Joao III of Portugal seeking assistance, to persuade him to curb the slave trade and better treat the people he was trading.

This quiz explores the establishment of maritime empires, focusing on Vasco da Gama's significant voyages that opened new trade routes to India and Africa. It also examines the role of the Swahili city-states, their trading practices, and their interactions with Portuguese explorers during the age of sail.