Major Trade Routes of the Post-Classical World

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The emergence of trade routes marked a major development in the history of humankind. Observably, the rise and fall of most classical empires played a crucial role in these historical developments. Indicatively, the sociopolitical and economic elements provided the greatest center stage for these historical advancements. In addition, the economic and religious factors also had remarkable levels of manipulation.

These were observable within different geographical destinations within the globe. Evidently, the major trade routes of the post-classical world helped in the emergence and establishment of an empire. A classical example is the initiation of the famous Roman Empire. Notably, all empires sprouted within or along major trade routes.

The availability of currency influenced the capacity to initiate taxation policy. Taxation and levies formed the fundamental backbone for most ancient empires (Rodriguez 1). For instance, Ceaser levied taxes on the traders within the territories of the kingdom. Religious concerns contributed immensely to the establishment of trade routes and empires. The failure of Han Empire in China led to many changes.

For example, Buddhism emerged in China because the Confucian administration lacked effective decentralization. When the Roman Empire collapsed, other small and fragmented regional authorities rose. It is imperative that these kingdoms were created along the major trade routes.

Political influences had significant impacts on these developments. These patterns of events were notable in India after the collapse of the famous Gupta Empire.

It is evident that the practice of Hinduism led to the establishment of trade lines within the region. Consequently, other small kingdoms emerged along these important trade lines. The period also marks the rise of the powerful Indian Ocean trade route. There was an obvious transfer and shift in the focal of power from the western Rome and China.

To some extent, historians argue that these developments could have also occurred due to favorable foreign policies. The major occurrences after 600 were purely influenced by religious groups and trade routes (Rodriguez 1).

However, it is important to note that the religious formations catapulted the foundation of various dynasties and empires. These occurrences and formations can be traced in major parts of Africa, the western nations and the great Southwest Asia.

The influence of geopolitics and social orientations in these processes cannot be underestimated. A classic example is the Umayyad Caliphate of the 6661 C.E. This clan managed to initiate their own hereditary system of monarchy in Damascus. During the process of initiation, they conquered major destinations. The major trade routes acted as the basic guide towards these conquered geographic locations.

Some of the places that were conquered include the Syria, Persia, Egypt and North Africa. These operations were only possible due to a large base for taxation supported by the identified trade routes. All social practices and cultures were accepted within this dynasty so long as the subjects remained loyal to the taxation policies.

Trade routes were also instrumental in the rise of empires in western Africa. The Sahara trade route had its start point in Sub-Sahara Africa. It extended through the Sahara desert towards Europe. It is linked to the rise of empires in Mali and Mali. Many scholars note that trade was the way of life for the West African people, and it ensured growth of empires in the region.

Merchants who participated in the trade carried foodstuffs form Ghana Kingdom and exchanged them for products produced locally in Mali and Algiers. The commonly traded products included gold, cotton clothes, metal ornaments and salt.

Ghana Empire was endowed with a large quantity of gold while kingdoms located in the northern parts of Africa had plenty of salt. The exchange of gold and salt fueled the trade and ensured the success of some of the empires that participated in the trade.

The start point of the trade route was Sidjilmassa in Northern Africa (Rodriguez 1). The route passed through Taghaza village that was endowed with plenty of common salt. Finally, it ended in a Gold rich region called Wangara in the Ghana Empire. All these villages and towns flourished because of to the trade. The administration systems used in the towns along the trade route also ensured growth of the empires.

The leaders maintained control over valuable commodities, especially gold. This was done to ensure that the prices were maintained at high levels. Possession of gold nuggets was prohibited. Only the leader had gold pieces while the rest of the population held gold dust. Taxation in the kingdoms was also high. The administration levied taxes on all merchants who used the trade routes.

This also ensured the success of the empires along the trade route. Thus, it can be concluded that trade routes promoted the success of empires in Western Africa. However, the empires existed before the trade routes were formed.

From all the examples provided, it is evident that the empires existed before the trade routes were formed. The trade routes simply promoted the growth of the empires. Hence, this paper concludes that the trade routes resulted from the existence of empires.

Works Cited

Rodriguez, Joel 2012, Questions of Periodization. Web.

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Major Trade Routes of the Post-Classical World

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