1300-1400 ad. the little ice age global cooling of 2-3 degrees begins c. 1300 ad part of a cycle of...
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1300-1400 AD
The Little Ice AgeGlobal cooling of 2-3 degrees begins c. 1300 AD
Part of a cycle of hot/cold spells that is still unpredictable
Lasts 150 yearsPrior 400 years were relatively warm (900-1300)c.1300 glaciers begin moving south
Disrupts shipping and trading in northern climates More frozen water = less rain Called “Little Ice Age”
Today’s temperatures are only now reaching what they were in the 1200s
Effects of Little Ice AgeMassive flooding early (cooling quickens
precipitation until water becomes locked in glaciers)“Great Drowning” of 1362 in HollandErosion and village destruction in northern
latitudesSevere droughts and cold winters in Central
AsiaFamine throughout Asia and AmericasBrings end of:
Mongol Empire Hohokam in AZ
Coming of the Plague“Black Death” most lethal event in the history
of humanityHistorians still unsure exactly what the “Black
Death” actually was Probably a mixture of several dangerous pathogens
Bubonic Plague Typhus Small Pox Influenza Anthrax
Global cooling created more hospitable environments for these diseases
Spread of the PlagueSeems to have originated in the steppelands
Spread through Mongol conquestFlourished because of global cooling
Earliest accounts in China, but quickly spread throughout all of Eurasia
Depending upon the region 1/3 to ¾ of the population died from the plague
Effects of the PlagueTurn toward religionIncreased interest in medical scienceSurvivor’s guild and obsession with deathRise in Anti-Semitism
Belief that Jews caused the plague by poisoning wells Jews burned by mobs
Exploited Bible passages about betrayers of Christ
Drove Jews out of W. Europe and concentrated them in E. Europe
Effects cont. Women’s status
Plague hit men harder than womenMajority numbers brought women into power
Socially, economically, politically Chaucer’s Wife of Bath
Class distinctions diminishedLabor much more valuable because of worker
scarcityPeasant rebellions in China and W. Europe“free” peasantry rather than serfdom
Only in plague areas, not E. Europe
Still more EffectsLack of labor force led to increase of interest
in labor saving technologiesParticularly in hardest hit areas like W. EuropeMajor reason for European head start on
industrializationPlague survivors had very strong immune
systemsReason European diseases so devastating to
the New World
Outside the Plague ZoneIndia
Delhi Sultanate becomes aggressive w/ decline of Mongol power Ibn Tughluq est. large empire
Based on conquest Falls apart after his death
SE AsiaJava
Imperial power slowly taking Mongol possessions Controlled SE Asian trade
JapanEnjoying century of peace and isolation
Lessens importance of warrior class “Shoguns” Struggle for power between Emperor and Shoguns
Emperor defeated, left as a figurehead with the warrior Shoguns in charge
Chaos of the time period leads to development of Zen Part of the Buddhist tradition Discipline Self-denial Willingness to die
Women oppressed in military culture
Mali Empire (NW Africa)Began to grow in wealth at European expenseDesert protected it from effects of plagueMuslim kings who frequently made pilgrimages to
Mecca/MedinaMansa Musa 1324
Controlled W. African gold mines Spent so much on his pilgrimage that he caused world-wide
inflation (fall in the buying power of currency)Europe’s trade imbalance caused need for $
(gold/silver)Very little precious metal in EuropeAfrican gold led to extreme European interest in est.
regular trade with NW Africa
After the PlagueVikings stop exploring the N. Atlantic
Last voyage to America 1347 ADN. Greenland abandoned
Major earthquake levels walls of GallipoliTurks tried to move in and seize Dardanelles
Begins 200 years of Muslim/Christian conflict for straights of Bosporus/Dardanelles
Ottoman Turks seize all of Anatolia, leaving only Constantinople and S. Greece to Byzantines
After the PlagueMongol expansion ends
Russian princes gain independence from Golden Horde
Il-Khan in Persia dies 1343 and region fragmentsRise in power of European monarchs
E. Europe spared from plague Monarchs lived long lives with well-planned
succession, leading to stable, peaceful statesW. Europe’s peasants blamed feudal nobles for
their problems and began appealing directly to monarchs
Population RecoveryWorld population static for approx. a century
as smaller plagues hitW. Europe and China rebound most quickly
Causes power shift out of Middle East and the steppelands and toward W. Europe and China