The Great Divergence

Expansion
Between the 14th and the 15th century a gradually process of expansion began in Europe, that claim with the
circumnavigation of Africa in order to reach India by the Portuguese, and the shipment through Atlantic
Ocean that allowed Cristopher Columbus reaching Americas. These events, called Great Travel, allowed
European to open New market on the East and on the West. This process of globalization (unique
worldwide market) is a starting point of great divergence.
As French historian Pierre Chaunu observed the process of opening up these closed worlds marks a
fundamental step ahead in the history of humanity and lies at the origin of an extremely important process
of change.
This process began in the 13th century, when the great Italian mercantile republics, Genoa, and Venice, first
sent their maritime trade expeditions beyond the Mediterranean. Their ships most sailed northwards,
where the Italians consolidated commercial routes directly linking the Mediterranean with the large
markets of Flanders and England. However, they were unable to venture any further south than the Port of
Safi in Morocco. The same technical difficulties they met in the attempt to sail westward. For instance,
explorer Ugolino and Vadino Vivaldi in 1291 reached Canary Island, and then sailed to the open Atlantic
with the aim of reaching India, but they never returned. The same problem has been faced from the traders
of the Hanseatic League, an alliance of trading cities which monopolies the Baltic and the Northern Europe
for much of the Middle Ages.
In 1434, Portuguese explorer Gil Eanes sailed for the first time beyond Cape Bojador in Western Morocco.
Portugal’s success was due to great advance in naval technologies. It took them almost forty years to reach
the Gulf of Guinea for the very first time. In 1488 Bartolomé Diaz rounded successful the Cape of Good
Hope. In 1498 Vasco da Gama reached India circumnavigated Africa.
In addition, the ancient trading areas were connected in a sort of world economic system, expanding
continuously in progressive waves from an epicenter in Europe. This was a major turning point in history
and so can be said that the period 1434-1550 marked the start of a kind of “proto-globalization”.

Adam smith considerations

By the time he wrote his opinions, had been elapsed two or three centuries from the Great Travel. He
believed consequences of this events were still unpredictable, but he gave its opinion. He thought that by
joining the most distant part of the world, allowing them to exchange goods and knowledge, would have
beneficial effects. This means it was going to create demand, that would have boosted the production, and
would have led in beneficial effects in terms of, for example, specialization(division of labor). This would
allow the principle of free market to spread worldwide.
On the other hand, for a large part of the world the implication of globalization would not have been free
trade, but exploitation. As a matter of fact, the impact of Americans with European caused their
impoverishment not only because the superior strength of Europeans, but also for the disease them
brought. Diseases that cause a collapse of the population, after which had begun the importation of slaves,
used in miners of metals and in the plantation, from Africa to Americas, in order to replace the labor
provided by indigenous.
These misfortunes, however, seem to be casual. In other words it happened at the time when European
were stronger, they have horse instead than lama, have invented firearm and own a greater ability to
govern over other people, that allowed them to prevail, establishing not market in the sense of
commutative justice, but exploiting Americans resources.
He continued saying that perhaps there will be reached a position where there will be enough strength on
both sides to avoid fight and establish market. In its opinion, the most realistic way to reach this balance is
the exchange of knowledge, goods, and anything else allowing Americans and Europeans to be “equal”.
On the other hand, the most realistic fruit of globalization will be the raise of mercantilism, meaning a
system characterized by protectionism and nationalism, the opposite of internationalism. In other word the
systematic pursuit of a supremacy against other nations, even looking between European countries.

Introduction to great divergence

The expression “great divergence” refers to two aspects. Firstly it indicates the process by which Western
European Countries gradually emerged as the most powerful area of the world. Secondly, it indicates the
capacity of this world area to overcome the limitation typical of the pre-industrial economies, consenting a
relative improvement in living conditions.
In 1500, the most advanced Asian civilization were at the same level with Europe in science and technology.
Asia, and particularly China, was still ahead of Europe in soma fields. However, western Europe began to
overtake Asia during the 16th century, and the difference became more pronounced over time, due to the
combined effect of accelerated growth in Europe and the slow decline seen in Asia from the 17 th century.

Why did the balance begin to take the other way in the 16 th century? (Needham Question)
It can be classified as belonging to three broad categories:
- Demographic: the population in Europe was more concentrated than that of the enormous Chinese
Empire or Indian sub-continent, and communications were easier. These conditions not only
enabled the rapid diffusion of ideas and knowledge, but also the incentive to produce innovations,
due to constant pressure on the limited resources available in a relatively restricted area.
Another demographic explanation is suggested by the historian Clerk. He states that the impulse
came from the Black Death (14th). Destroying large part of the population, it left to the survivors
more resources, meaning high living standard. In other words it provided a solution to the
Malthusian trap.
- Institutional: Western Europe typical institution were different from the typical institutions of East
Asia, meaning they were more apt to enable the emergence of societies capable of introducing
economic and technical-scientific innovations.
Joseph Needham, basing on Max Weber ideas, underlines the importance of the spread of
universities which have encouraged the development of knowledge, triggering the “scientific
revolution” of the Renaissance, period in which Europe began to overtake China.
- In the economic sphere he sees the mercantile cities played the same role of universities, as they
were the chosen residence place of the bourgeoisie, whose mentality and culture made them
interested in enterprise and innovation. On the other hand, since the strongly centralized state
system of great Asian empires were based on advanced agrarian societies, they do not only restrict
the development of trade and the raise of capitalistic economic elite, but also impeded scientific
progress.
The doctrine of neo-institutionalism found the explanation for the Great Divergence on the
different market conditions, theorized more efficient and freer in Europe than Asia, and on the
progressive improvement in private property rights.
- Geographical and geopolitical: as Jaren Diamond suggest, the origin of European supremacy
compared with Asia lay in the natural barriers, such as mountain or rivers, breaking Europe up into
fragmented areas, making it unsuited to the emergence of single great empires, favoring the
appearance of relatively small state in continual competition, which were more likely to innovate
because they were attempting to gain advantages over their rivals. The great Asian empires were
often ready to forbid potentially useful technological innovations, preferring to preserve social
stability. For example the Japanese progressively abandoned firearms during the 17 th century
fearing they could be used in civil wars. As well, China had abandoned ocean navigation, following
Zheng He’s expedition occurred between 1413 and 1433 toward the West.
 Kenneth Pomeranz has stressed the importance for Western Europe of enjoying relatively easy
access to the Americas, where supplies of essential resources could be obtained. The problem
beyond was the fact that both Western Europe and Asia were faced with a crucial ecological
problem, known as the law of diminishing returns, meant that intensive agricultural system always
run the risk of becoming trapped in an increasingly labor-intensive economy. According to
Pomeranz, Europe was able to avoid this trap only because the exploitation of the Americas. In
addition, in certain specific area, such a in England, there was a relative abundance of coal. The
replacement of wood with coal allowed the development of energy intensive production sectors,
decisive to lunch the Industrial Revolution. Pomeranz, however tends to minimize Europe’s relative
advantage during the early modern age, maintaining that a true divergence in living conditions and
development levels between West and East appeared only in 19 th century.
Moreover, many historians like Pomeranz, emphasize the exploitation of non-European people as
an essential factor in the West’s achievement of supremacy.
In particular Immanuel Wallerstein interpreted the creation of the first world-economy in terms of
the progressive institution of a system articulated in a core, a semi-periphery, and a periphery.
According to this interpretation the dominion of the center imposes an unequal trade system which
consolidates the supremacy of the center, but at the same time it tends to make the relative
underdevelopment of the peripheries into a permanent condition.

Americas, Africa and, Asia

The Spanish and Portuguese built up vast and articulate colonial empires in the Americas. Since the Spanish
colonies incorporate the pre-existing states, they immediately included a vast hinterland. In Africa and Asia,
the Iberian adopted a different strategy. In Africa, the Portuguese established a network of outposts,
trading posts and forts, concentrating only on gaining control of the coasts and shipping lanes, trading with
local peoples to obtain African goods, including slaves. A similar strategy was adopted in Asia from
Portuguese’s Indian bases.
In Asia the Spanish limited their control to the Philippines, also because the Treaties of Tordesillas divide
the world into precise spheres of influence.
Other areas of the world were incorporated in the world economy with more or less of a delay.
From 17th century the Dutch were the first to explore Oceania, followed by French and finally by English.
British Captain James Cook was the first European to arrive in New Zealand and in Australia’s east coast in
1769 and 1770, and in in 1788 English founded its first Australian colony.

How was old-world (before 1492) legal system characterized?

It was a world unified by Christianity, but at the same time this unit was split in a series of division in
geopolitical terms (kingdom, city…) and also in functional terms (guilds). There were two supreme powers:
the Pope and the Emperor. Outside Holy Roman Empire there were two types of people European had to
confront with:
- Islamic: viewed as enemy, because heretic, to be conquered and annexed
- Pagans: people who didn’t have encountered the true faith. So this people, meaning their territory,
should not be killed, but evangelized, hence they were territory of mission.

After great exploration:

The unity had been split consequently to the treaty of Tordesillas (1494), in which Portuguese and Spanish
settled their spheres of influence. The Pope, that at the time was the supreme authority, ratified this
contract, meaning gave to these countries the duty and the right to colonize pagans living in the
respectively assigned territory. In other words what happened is that the Medieval conception of the world
had been extended on a worldwide prospective.
As already said, the principal players were Portuguese and Spanish. However, despite the immediate
advantages these two countries gained from the 16 th century, the medium- and long-term situation was
much more complex. Portugal was a small state. Limited by its scarce demographic and economic
resources, which led it to rely on foreign operators to sell goods in the northern Europe’s markets,
especially those based in the Flemish city of Antwerp.
Moreover, Portugal’s success attracted rivals, such as the English and the Dutch.
On the other side Spain supremacy on the continent meant inevitable conflict with Western Europe’s major
powers, particularly with France and England. The situation was further complicated because of the way in
which American colonial products imported, created problems and not only advantages . Regarding the
products imported, these were mainly precious metals. Since the Spanish economy was relatively backward
in the early 16th century, the influx of large quantities of precious metals not only caused notable market
imbalances, but also allowed down the development of local production. In fact, the inflation generated by
American silver and gold made Spanish goods more expensive than those imported from abroad.

In 1559 the rules of the game changed dramatically, inaugurated a new world war. Was issued the Amity
Lines, established with a clause of the Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis, dividing Europe from free land and open
sea, meaning they were not under European law. In other words, Europeans states were legitimate to fight
each other in that land to get supremacy. The reason of this change was that the authority of the Pope has
been questioned by the Protestant Reform, conventionally beginning on 31 st October 1517 when Martin
Luther nailed his 95 Theses, so he was not anymore part of the picture. In other word, there had been a
division between Christian and Protestant, so the pope could cot anymore control the situation. The
reformation from a legal point of view means the end of Universal power. What remained were just the
national States, which their own sovereignty, meaning they did not recognize any superior authority, and,
by definition were in competition one another.

Hobbes definition:
Hobbes describes the origin of a state in the form of a contract between king and all the citizens.
Regard to international relationship, he compared the situation after the Amity lines to the state of nature,
in which not only everything is legitim in order to exercise your strength against your neighbors, but mostly
it is honorable. As families did then, by the time the state of nature was between nations, and the reasons
was they did not recognize any superior authority. This led to a situation in which states have no point of
satisfaction, in which seems that their expenses were not limited by their own appetite, but by external
accidents, and the appetite of other nations. In other word changed the identification of wealth with
growth, and the end of self-sufficiency economy, otherwise other nations were able to overcome yours. In
this new perspective wealth means that you are richer than before.