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Introduction
• Gains in agriculture produced bigger changes in medieval economic life
• Banking was soon introduced to help facilitate this new long distance trade
• The largest banking operations were in Italy
• However, Germany, the low countries, France, and Britain were clearly capitalistic
Exchanges• Between western Europe
and other parts of the world
• Wealthy Europeans developed a taste for luxury goods
• Mediterranean trade developed once again – mainly in the control of Italian merchants
• Timber and grain came from northern Europe and cloth and metal came from the south
• Soon, commercial alliances emerged
• First in Germany – The Hanseatic League– This was a mix of people in Germany and
southern Scandinavia
Banks
• Many Jewish people dominated the banking sector of the economy
• They lended money to the monarchs and the papacy
• This growth of banking and trade served Europe as the origin of capitalism
Capitalism• Investing for profit• Individual merchants could
gain mass amounts of profit• Jacques Coeur - one of Europe’s most famous
entrepreneurs• He founded a trading company that competed
with Italians and Spaniards• He visited Damascus for spices, rugs, silk, and
Indonesian spices• He also became a financial advisor to the King
of France
• However, when it was discovered that he was selling weapons to Muslims, he was tortured and sent to die on a Greek island
Other Leagues and Groups
• Many of the growing commercial cities were run by leagues
• Royal governors did not interfere with commercial business
• Thus, this rising merchant class was gaining power in Europe
• Guilds formed – grouped people in similar businesses, they stressed security and mutual control; all members gained a share of profits