Age of Exploration

European settlers found yet another form of trade but this time it consisted of the normal goods and items or animals and plants. Slavery was introduced and what was known as the Triangular Trade had begun. The Triangular trade was in the shape of a triangle as Europeans took slaves from Africa, then traded them to the new colonists in return for raw materials or manufactured goods (Joseph Kleinman, 16). The slave ships were full of diseases and the slaves were tightly crammed into small areas. The slaves were not taken care of properly or fed; this was sometimes a cause of death on the ships (Joseph Kleinman, 16). The Triangular Trade was not a positive influence but help people get the things they needed.

African slave ships were awful and the way the slaves were treated was terrible. It all began with a few Portuguese ships in search of ivory, spices, and gold but ended up taking slaves back with them. The first the slaves did jobs like building pyramids for pharaohs or paving roads for Ancient Rome (Joseph Kleinman, 11). When the Triangular Trade started slaves were being brought to America by the hundreds and the rate of slaves was increasing daily. The condition of the slave ships was poor. There would be six hundred slaves on a boat the size of a modern day sail boat and they were practically “stacked” on top of each other. To clean them from the trip the traders washed the slaves down with vinegar, this added to the stench of the African slave ships (Joseph Kleinman, 16). The African slavery route was terrible and some slaves didn’t even make it off the ships because of the conditions they were under.

The new world and the new trading routes impacted most of the world’s societies. Slavery was a result of less scarcity of crops. New trading routes made for the decline in scarcity of raw materials and other items. It also introduced new plants and animals to areas that were in need of them. New inventions were being made all over the world. The new way of life was a lasting impact and virtually no society was no affected by it.

Many people called this era the age of exploration with new countries being found and new ways of life with new trade routes. The Columbian Exchange and Triangular Trade brought many positive and negative changes. New items and raw materials that were not available before now are. The slaves make the new colonist expand their land and the new country. Almost every society was affected by the era and time of much trade.