The Making of Global World

The Age of Industrialisation

 

1.     Explain what we mean when we say that the world 'shrank' in the 1500s

In the 1500s, the world became smaller because Europeans found new ways to travel by sea to Asia and the Americas. This made it easier for people from different continents to interact and trade with each other. So even though the world is still the same size, it felt smaller because people could travel and communicate more easily.

 

2.     Who profits from jute cultivation according to the jute growers' lament? Explain.

Farmers in Bengal grew raw jute and sold it to factories to be turned into bags for export. They hoped that the demand for jute bags would increase, but it did not happen. Instead, the market for jute bags decreased and the price for raw jute fell by 60%. The farmers were left in debt and only the traders and moneylenders made money from jute cultivation.

 

3.     Briefly summarise the two lessons learned by economists and politicians from the inter-war economic experience.

Two lessons that economists and politicians learned from the economic experiences during the inter-war period were: (i) A society that relies on large-scale production needs large-scale consumption to be sustainable. To make this happen, people need steady jobs and good wages. (ii) It is important for a country to have strong economic connections with other countries. To reach full employment, the government must be able to control how money, workers, and goods move. The government must take action to reach this goal.

 

4.     Give two examples of different types of the global exchange, choosing one example from Asia and one from the Americas.

Two examples of different types of global exchange were:

(i)                 Before the 17th century, China traded silk and pottery with Europe in exchange for gold and silver. This trade was done through the old "silk route."

(ii)              After America was found by Christopher Columbus in the late 15th century, many food items like potatoes, soybeans, peanuts, corn, tomatoes, chili peppers, and sweet potatoes were brought to Europe from America.

 

5.     Explain how the global transfer of disease in the pre-modern world helped in the colonization of the Americas.

The way diseases spread helped Europeans conquer parts of the Americas during the time before modern medicine. The Portuguese and Spanish had strong armies, but the germs and viruses they brought with them also helped them take over. The original people living in the Americas had no protection against diseases from Europe, so they got very sick and died quickly. The diseases spread quickly and affected many people at once, making it easier for the Europeans to take control. The diseases were even more powerful than guns because there was no way to protect against them.

 

6.     Write a note to explain the effect of The British Government's decision to abolish the Corn Laws 

The British government made a decision to stop having laws that protected the price of corn grown in Britain. This made it cheaper to buy food from other countries. Because of this, farmers did not grow corn and the land was not used. This caused many people to lose their jobs and move to cities or other countries to find work.

 

7.     Write a note to explain the effect of The coming of rinderpest to Africa.

·       Rinderpest is a disease that killed many cows in Africa

·       It was brought to Africa by Asian cows that were taken to feed European soldiers

·       The disease spread quickly and killed 90% of the cows in Africa

·       This caused many problems for the people of Africa because they relied on cows for their livelihood

·       Many people lost their jobs and were forced to work for the European colonizers in mines and on farms

·       The European colonizers took advantage of this situation and controlled the cow industry

·       This made them stronger and forced the people of Africa to work for them.

 

8.     Write a note to explain the effect of The death of men of working age in Europe because of the World War.

 

·       MNCs are big companies that operate in many countries

·       They decided to move their factories to Asian countries

·       This led to more trade and more money moving around the world

·       The reason for this is that it is cheaper to produce things in Asian countries

·       This helped Asian countries by creating jobs and helping their economy grow quickly.

 

9.     Give two examples from history to show the impact of technology on food availability.

 

1.     Cold storage and refrigerated ships allowed food that spoils quickly to be sent to faraway places. This helped people in other countries to eat fresh meat from America, Australia, and New Zealand.

2.     Faster trains, bigger ships, and lighter wagons made it cheaper and faster to move perishable food from farms to the places where it would be sold. This helped people who were poor to afford meat, butter, and eggs in their daily diets.

 

 

10. What is meant by Bretton Woods Agreement? 

The Bretton Woods Agreement was a plan to keep the world's economy stable and make sure people had jobs. It was made at a meeting in 1944 in the United States. As part of this agreement, two organizations were created: the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), also known as the World Bank. These two organizations are often called the "Bretton Woods twins." The countries that had the most power, mostly Western countries, had the most control over what happened in these organizations. 

 

11. Explain the three types of movements or flows within international economic exchange. Find one example of each type of flow which involved India and Indians, and write a short account of it.

 

 (i) Flow of Trade: This refers to the trade of goods such as wheat and cotton. Historically, India produced fine cotton cloth and exported it to European countries. However, when Europe began the industrial revolution and imposed tariffs, India's textile exports decreased and they began importing mill-made cloth from England.

(ii) Flow of Labour: This refers to people moving to different countries in search of employment. During the 19th century, many Indian labourers moved to Africa, the West Indies, and other countries to work on plantations, in mines, and on railway and road construction projects set up by Europeans. Many of these labourers settled in the countries where they worked and their descendants still live there.

(iii) Flow of Capital: This refers to the movement of money over long distances for short-term and long-term investments. Groups of Indian financiers and traders, such as the Shroffs and Chettiars, financed agriculture and plantations in various Asian and African countries using their own funds or money borrowed from European banks.

 

12. Explain the causes of the Great Depression.

The Great Depression was a period of the economic downturn in the 1930s. Some of the causes of the Great Depression were:

1.     The end of the First World War led to a drop in demand for goods that were supplied to the army.

2.     Overproduction in agriculture caused prices to fall and made it difficult for farmers to make a living.

3.     Many countries relied on loans from the USA, but when the economy started to struggle, lenders panicked and stopped giving out loans.

4.     The collapse of the banking system in the USA led to the closure of many banks and factories, causing unemployment to rise.

5.     The unemployment rate grew as businesses collapsed and people lost their jobs.

 

13. Explain what is referred to as the G-77, countries. In what ways can G-77 be seen as a reaction to the activities of the Bretton Woods twins?

 

 The G-77 is a group of developing nations that works together to promote their economic interests and negotiate more effectively at the United Nations. It started with 77 countries but now has 135 members. They want a New International Economic Order (NIEO) where they have more control over their resources, get more development assistance, fair prices for raw materials, and better access to markets in developed countries for their goods. They formed G-77 because they felt that the IMF and World Bank (Bretton Woods twins) mainly helped developed nations and they did not benefit from the economic growth of the Western countries in the 1950s and 1960s. They wanted to have more control over their resources and better opportunities for their goods in developed countries.

 

14. What was the form of currency used for more than a millennia ago?  

 Ans. Cowdi or cowries

 

15.Which country introduced 'Corn Laws' to restrict the import of corn?

 Ans. Britain 

 

16. Who later joined the Allies during the First World War? 

 Ans. USA

 

17. Which war is known as 'Modern Industrial War'? 

Ans. First World War 

 

18.Which country's status transformed from being an international debtor to an international creditors? 

 Ans. (c) USA 6 

 

 

·      The World War I was fought in all over the World. 

·      The World War I was fought in 1913-1919. 

·      The Allies powers were Britain, Poland and Hungry.

·      The system of indentured labour was abolished in 1921. 

·      By the 1890, a global agricultural economy had developed. 

·      The World War I was the first Modern Industrial War. 

 

 

 

19. In 16th century after European sailors found a sea route to Asia, they discovered ............ 

 Ans. America 

 

20.The most powerful weapon of the ........... conquerors was not a conventional military weapon but germs of smallpox which they carried.  

Ans. Spanish 

 

21......... had a great impact on the transformation of 19th century world such as Railways, steamship and telegraph. 

Ans. Technology 

 

 

Correct and Rewrite 

 

·      In America, by the 19th century, plantations worked by slaves captured in Africa were growing cotton and sugar for Asian markets. 

 Ans. In America, by the 19th century, plantations worked by slaves captured in Africa were growing cotton and sugar for European markets. 

 

·      To deal with external surpluses and deficits a conference was held in July, 1944 at Bretton Woods in New Hampshire, England. 

 Ans. To deal with external surpluses and deficits a conference was held in July 1944 at Bretton Woods in New Hampshire, USA.

 

 

 

22.Explain the word El Dorado. 

 El Dorado was the fabled city of South America. In 17th century Europe legends spread about South America's fabled wealth, so many expeditions set off in search of El Dorado. 

 

23. Which was the most powerful weapon used by the Spanish to conquer America? 

 Ans. Smallpox was the most powerful weapon used by the Spanish to conquer America 

 

24.Why did smallpox kill a large number of native Americans? 

 Ans. Smallpox killed a large number of native Americans because of their long isolation, they had no immunity against this disease. 

 

25. Where did the big European powers meet in 1885 for dividing Africa? 

 

 Ans. In 1885, the big European powers met in Berlin to complete the carving up of Africa between them. 

26.How the 19th century 'indentured labour' has often been described? 

Ans. The 19th century 'indentured labor' has often been described as 'new system of slavery'. 

 

27.Indian indentured workers came from which regions of India? 

 Ans. Most Indian indentured workers came from Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Central India, and Iry districts of Tamil Nadu. 

28.Name a Noble Prize-winning writer who is a descendant of indentured labor from India.

 Ans. VS Naipaul is a Nobel Prize-winning writer who is a descendant of indentured labor from India. 

29.In the 1820s, India was the single largest exporter of which commodity? 
 

Ans. India was the single largest exporter of opium in the 1820s 

 

30.Give the names of nations that constituted the two power blocs during the First World War. 

 Ans. During the First World War, the two power blocs were Allied Powers and Central Powers. 

31.Which group of countries was known as the 'Central Powers' in Europe? 

 Ans. Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Ottoman Turkey were he countries known as the 'Central Powers' in Europe. 

32.Which countries were considered as Axis Powers during the Second World War? 

 Ans. Nazi Germany, Japan, and Italy were considered as Axis Powers during the Second World War. 

 

 

33.What led to globalisation? 

 Ans. Trade, migration of people in search of work, the movement of capital etc led to globalisation. 

34.What is G-77? 

The G-77 is a coalition or group of developing countries to demand a New International Economic Order (NIEO).  

 

35.The silk routes are a good example of trade and cultural links between distant parts of the world. Explain with examples.  or How did silk routes link the world? Explain with three examples. or Describe the significance of silk routes in the pre-modern period in the field of trade cultural exchange and religion. 


Silk routes were a network of trade and cultural exchange that existed before the Christian era and flourished until the 15th century.
The routes linked Asia with Europe and North Africa and were used to transport silk cargoes from China, Indian spices and textiles, and gold and silver from Europe.
Along the routes, Buddhist preachers, Christian missionaries, and later Muslim preachers also traveled.