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Silk Road Trade Route

Page history last edited by Ann Marie Francis 9 years, 5 months ago

Silk Road Trade Route

 

The Silk Road Trade Route, which connected China to Europe and the West, is one of the most influential trade routes in history.  

 

 

 

History

 

Ancient Painting from Han Dynasty

The formation of the Silk Road Trade Route was gradual. Though the Han Dynasty is credited with opening the trade network, the formation of the routes began much earlier. The Persian Royal Road, which became one of the primary channels of the Silk Road Trade Route, was used for trade as early as the Achaemenid Empire (500-330BC). The Persian Royal Road served to deliver messages quickly and efficiently, as was noted by Herodotus (484-425BC), who commented that “There is nothing in the world that travels faster than these Persian couriers. Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor darkness of night prevents these couriers from completing their designated stages with utmost speed" (Herodotus' Histories, 8.98). Those words would later serve as the creed of the US Postal Service. 

 

 

The route continued to grow and allowed for the first contact between China and the West around 200BC, around the start of the Han Dynasty of China. The Han Dynasty officially opened the trade routes when Zhang Qian was sent to form an alliance in order to defeat the Xiongnu who were hostile towards the Han Dynasty. The journey that Zhang Qian took put him in contact with people and cultures and prompted the formal opening of the routes to encourage trade. Several wars against the Huns helped to removed obstacles along this trade route, and in 60BC, the Protectorate of the Western Regions was established to supervise portions of the area, which helped protect merchants along the routes.

 

The routes remained fragmented until the Mongol Invasions and Conquests, which many claim had the most influential impact on the development of the Silk Road. The Mongols depended on trade for essentials and they worked to establish the Silk Road. It was during this period that the network began to be flourish as merchants became able to travel the entire route (something that very few did prior to this point); in addition, the roads were improved, tolls were removed, and paper money started to spread between areas.  The improvements and stability of the network allowed for more trade and lower prices, especially of silk, even with higher demand.  When the Mongol Empire collapsed, the Silk Road became fragmented again and prices of goods, especially silk, increased.

 

 

 

Silk Road Name

 Although the trade route is commonly called Silk Road, the name was not given until1877 when German geographer and traveler, Ferdinand von Richthofen coined the name. There are some problems with the name, though. The biggest concern is that the name implies that there is only one route, when in reality, the Silk Road is a network of trade routes. For this reason, some historians prefer the plural (Silk Roads) when referring to the

 

Also, many assume that the trade route was primarily used to trade silk when they hear the name. While silk was an important trade item, especially since the Chinese kept the origins of silk secret for as long as they could, it was by no means the only thing traded. Spices, crops, tea, paper, furs, ceramics, gold and silver, and even animals and slaves were traded on the Silk Road. And the unofficial trade items were important as well. Items like ideas, philosophy, and skills were traded as people met along the route, and those exchanges are arguably the most important items that were traded on the Silk Road. Unfortunately, not everything that was traded along the route was positive. Sicknesses were also spread over the Silk Road, including the bubonic plague, which was brought to Constantinople via the Silk Road and devastated the Byzantine Empire.trade routes although Silk Road is the more common and most recognized name.

Ferdinand von Richthofen

 

 

 

 

 

 

Relevance

 The Silk Road had a major impact on the spread of ideas. The network allowed people of different cultures and backgrounds to interact with each other, resulting in the exchange of art, ideas, religions, language, technology, and skills. Not only did the trade route allow for the exchange of ideas, it actually promoted such exchanges. As a result of the interactions on the Silk Road, ideas, thoughts, and philosophies were spread throughout the entire region. The route also prompted Europeans to embark on their Age of Discovery and Exploration, leading them into a position of world power. The network of trade routes also became symbolic of the relationship between East and West. Ancient Silk Robe

 

 

 

Works Consulted

Beckwith, Christopher I. Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2009.

Hansen, Valerie. The Silk Road: A New History. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2012. Print.

Liu, Xinru. The Silk Road in World History. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010

Tamai, Isao., et al. The Silk Road. [New York]: Central Park Media, 1990. Video.



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