World Trade Since 1431: Geography, Technology, and Capitalism

Equipped with reliable maps and instruments for open—ocean navigation and highly seaworthy, three—masted, cannon—armed ships, Portugal dominated the Atlantic trade routes—until the diffusion of Portuguese technologies to wealthier polities made Holland the eventual successor, owing to its geographic position and its immense commercial fleet. It is precisely this interplay of technology and geography, argues Peter J. Hugill, that has guided the evolution of the modern global capitalistic sys...