Silk routes, colonialism, Great Depression, post-war reconstruction, and modern globalisation
The world has been connected through trade, migration, and exchange of ideas for thousands of years. Globalisation is not a new phenomenon!
The Silk Routes were ancient trade networks linking Asia, Europe, and Africa. They were named after the highly valued Chinese silk carried along these routes. The routes were not just for trade — they carried ideas, religions, diseases, and people across continents.
• Buddhism spread from India to East Asia via the Silk Route
• Christianity and Islam also spread along these routes
• Chinese noodles became Italian pasta! (Marco Polo's travels)
Many foods we consider "traditionally Indian" came from the Americas:
• Potatoes, tomatoes, chillies, groundnuts, maize — all brought to India by Portuguese traders after Columbus reached America in 1492
Before chillies, Indian food used black pepper as a spice!
This shows how global connections have always shaped our daily lives.
1. Flow of trade: Goods and products (wheat, cotton, textiles, machinery)
2. Flow of labour: People migrating to find work (Chinese to USA, Indians to Caribbean, South Africa)
3. Flow of capital: Money invested in other countries (British investment in railways in India, Argentina)
In the 1890s, rinderpest (a fast-spreading cattle disease) devastated Africa. It killed 90% of cattle in some regions. This destroyed African livelihoods, forced Africans to work in European mines and plantations. This shows how disease shaped colonial economics!
India was a crucial part of the 19th century global economy:
• Fine textiles: Indian cotton, silk, and muslin were exported worldwide. Indian weavers were world-renowned.
• After British colonisation: British machine-made cloth flooded India → Indian handloom weavers ruined → reverse trade! India now exported raw cotton and imported British cloth.
• Indentured labour: After slavery was abolished (1833), Britain needed cheap labour. Millions of poor Indians were recruited under 5-year contracts (called "indenture") to work in Caribbean, Fiji, South Africa, East Africa. Conditions were brutal — similar to slavery.
The Wall Street Crash of October 1929 triggered the worst economic crisis in modern history:
• US banks collapsed → stopped loans → factories closed → millions unemployed
• World trade collapsed by 66% between 1929–1933
• Global unemployment rose dramatically (25% in USA)
• Prices of agricultural goods (wheat, coffee) crashed → farmers ruined worldwide
India's impact: Agricultural prices fell sharply. Indian farmers were devastated. Peasant debt spiralled. Export earnings collapsed. This fuelled participation in India's nationalist movement.
Allied nations met at Bretton Woods, USA to plan the post-war economic order. They created:
• IMF (International Monetary Fund): To deal with external surpluses and deficits of member nations
• World Bank (IBRD): To finance post-war reconstruction and development
These institutions still govern global economics today! The Bretton Woods system established the US Dollar as the global reserve currency (tied to gold).
After WWII, European colonies gained independence. New nations struggled with poverty left by colonial rule. The Cold War (USA vs USSR) also shaped development choices of new nations.
G77: Group of 77 developing nations that demanded a "New International Economic Order" — fair prices for their exports, debt relief, technology transfer from developed nations.