Spices from Southeast Asia reached Europe through routes that shaped world trade for millennia

historyWikipedia1st millennium BC–1st millennium AD · Asia, Northeast Africa and Europe

Spices from Southeast Asia reached Europe through routes that shaped world trade for millennia

the gist

The spice trade linked civilizations in Asia, Northeast Africa and Europe for thousands of years, moving cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, cloves and other spices. Austronesian sailors from Southeast Asia built early sea routes to India and Sri Lanka, and by the 1st millennium AD their trade lanes reached East Africa and Madagascar. Arab traders dominated the Indian Ocean from the mid-7th century, and Venice and Genoa monopolised the trade to Europe between the 11th and 15th centuries. The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama opened a sea route around the Cape of Good Hope in 1498, and the Dutch later pioneered a direct route to Indonesia, shifting power to European traders.

how it works

Spices were carried by a chain of traders, passing from sea routes to overland caravans and finally to Mediterranean ports. Each middleman added cost, which made the final price high in Europe. Direct sea routes cut out these intermediaries and reshaped who profited.

so what

The spice trade drove much of world commerce from the late Middle Ages into the Renaissance and paved the way for European domination in the East. The struggle to control spice routes fuelled exploration, rivalries and colonial conquest. Its routes also carried cultural and commercial exchange between many peoples.

fun fact

Spices were so valued in Europe that pepper was once used as a form of currency and for paying rents and dowries in parts of medieval Europe.

Hampi was once one of the world's largest cities, until its Vijayanagara capital was destroyed in 1565

the gist

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.

how it works

The city was built around a fortified core with temples, markets and water structures along the river, supplied by an extensive network of roads and waterworks. When the empire fell, the city was not rebuilt, so its stone monuments were left standing.

so what

Hampi shows how quickly a great city can vanish after a military defeat, and how a ruined capital can remain sacred. Its ruins give historians a view of medieval South Asia that few other sites can match.

fun fact

The name Hampi comes from Pampa, an old name for the Tungabhadra River.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

2 min

politicsshortCNA2:01

False allegations about Singapore’s hand in Indonesia’s markets and a made-up meeting

from CNA

CNA Verify has found close to 400 posts pushing falsehoods tying Singapore to Indonesia’s stock market rout and to a secret meeting that never took place. Together, they drew nearly 12 million views, and some were circulated by accounts that appeared to be working in concert, across multiple social media platforms.

Here’s how the disinformation campaign targeting Singapore was uncovered.

on YouTube: CNA ↗