Write in brief
Question 1. Give two examples of different types of global exchanges which took place before the seventeenth century, choosing one example from Asia and one from the Americas.
Answer:
Two examples of different types of global exchange
(i) Before the 17th century, China exported silk and pottery to Europe in exchange of gold and silver from Europe. This trade was carried out using the traditional ‘silk route’.
(ii) Many common food items like potatoes, soya, groundnuts, maize, tomatoes and chillies were introduced into Europe from the Americas after they were discovered by columbus at the end of the 15th century.
Question 2. Explain how the global transfer of disease in the pre-modern world helped in the colonization of the Americas.
Answer:
- America was not conquered and colonized by Europeans with the help of superior firepower alone.
- Germs such as those of smallpox were a helpful to a great extent.
- Americans had no immunity against them as a result of long isolation. Once introduced the germs spread deep into the continent decimating whole communities and paving way for Conquest.
3. Write a note to explain the effects of the following:
a) The British government’s decision to abolish the Corn Laws
Answer:
i. The British government’s decision to abolish the Corn Laws was the inflow of cheaper agricultural crops from America and Australia.
ii. Many English farmers left their profession and migrated to towns and cities. Some went overseas.
iii. This indirectly led to global agriculture and rapid urbanization, a prerequisite of industrial growth.
iv. The British government finally abolished the Corn Laws which brought a lot of changes in the British economy
b) The coming of foreigners to Africa.
Answer:
- Rinderpest arrived in Africa in the late 1880s. Within two years, it spread in the whole continent reaching Cape Town (Africa’s southernmost tip) within five years.
- The germs of the disease were carried by infected cattle imported from British Asia. The rinderpest killed 90 per cent of the cattle.
- The loss of cattle destroyed the African livelihoods.
- Planters, mine owners and colonial governments now successfully monopolized what scarce cattle resources remained, to strengthen their power, and to force the Africans into the labour markets.
- Control over scarce resource of cattle enabled the European colonizers to conquer and subdue Africa.
- The death of men of working-age in Europe because of the World War.
Answer:
World War-I was fought between Worlds industrial nations. World War-I was known as the World’s First Industrial War. The scale of death and destruction was unprecedented.
- As a result of the First World War, 9 million people were killed and 20 million people were injured. Most of these people killed and injured were men of working-age.
- Such a scale of deaths in the war had not taken place before the use of industrial arms.
- To fight this war, millions of soldiers were recruited from across the globe.
- These soldiers were moved to the battle frontlines using trains and ships.
- The First World War saw the use of Aircrafts, Tanks, Machine Guns, Chemical Weapon etc. Modern large-scale industries helped in production of these weapons and war platforms.
- The Great Depression on the Indian economy.
Answer:
- Impact on trade: The depression immediately affected Indian trade. India’s exports and imports nearly halved between 1928 and 1934. As international prices crashed, prices in India plunged. Between 1928 and 1934, wheat prices in India fell by about 50 per cent.
- Impact on farmers: The fall in prices had a deep impact on the poor farmers. Though agricultural prices fell sharply, but the colonial government refused to give any relief to the farmers in taxes. Peasants producing for the world market were the worst hit.
e) The decision of MNCs to relocate production to Asian countries.
Answer:
- The decision of MNCs to relocate production to Asian countries led to a stimulation of world trade and capital flows.
- This relocation was on account of low-cost structure and lower wages in Asian countries.
- It also benefitted the Asian nations because employment increased and this resulted in quick economic transformation as well.
Question 4. Give two examples from history to show the impact of technology on food availability.
Answer:
Examples of impact of technology on food availability
- The technique of cold storage and use of refrigerated ships boosted the export of perishable goods without fear of loss. Meat exported from America could be sent to areas where meat was scarce.
- Faster railways, larger ships and lighter wagons enabled cheaper and quicker movement of perishable foodstuffs from faraway farms to their final markets.
Question 5. What is meant by the Bretton Woods Agreement?
Answer:
The Bretton Woods Conference took place in the July of 1944 at Bretton Woods in Ethisphere, USA. Under this system, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) were established.
The main terms of the Agreement:
- Formation of IMF and IBRD (also called the World Bank).
- To establish monetary cooperation with its member countries.
- Adjustable foreign exchange system was followed, i.e., the exchange rates were fixed, with the provision of changing them if necessary.
- Currencies were required to be convertible for trade related and other current account transactions. The governments, however, had the power to regulate capital flows.
- All member countries were required to subscribe to the IMF’s capital.
- Discuss
Question 6. Imagine that you are an indentured Indian laborer in the Caribbean. Drawing from the details in this chapter, write a letter to your family describing your life and feelings.
Answer:
Dear family,
Life here in Trinidad as an indentured laborer is incredibly tough. I wanted to share with you the hardships I face and how much I long to be with you.
The contractor who hired me misled me about where I would be working, how I would get there, and what conditions I would be living and working in. We have very few rights, and the contractor treats us with cruelty, using abusive language and treating us like animals on the cocoa plantations. We are unable to voice our concerns about our working conditions.
If I miss work, I am punished and sent to jail. The workload is heavy, sometimes requiring me to finish it all in one day. And if my work isn’t up to standard, my wages are cut.
I am living in a state of slavery and facing immense hardship. I miss you all dearly.
Question 7. 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.
Answer:
Flow of Trade: Before British rule, India exported cotton clothes to the Western world. However, in the 19th century, Britain destroyed Indian handicraft industries and began exporting cheap mill-made cotton clothes to India.
Flow of Labour: In the 19th century, thousands of Indians migrated to countries like Fiji, the Caribbean islands, and others to work on plantations and mines. Many settled in these countries, leading to a significant Indian diaspora in places like the West Indies and Fiji.
Movement of Capital: Indian financiers and traders, such as the Shikaripuri shroffs and Nattukottai Chettiars, financed agricultural plantations in various Asian and African countries during the 19th century. They used their own funds or borrowed from European banks for these investments.
Question 8. Explain the causes of the Great Depression.
Answer:
The Great Depression is attributed to the combination of the following factors:
- Tight monetary policies adopted by the Central Bank of America
- Stock market crash of 1929
- The failure of banks, which was the impact of the stock market crash as more people withdrew their savings from the banks leading to closure.
- Reduction in purchases due to diminished savings
- The passing of Smoot-Hawley Tariff or the Tariff Act of 1930, imposed high taxes on imported goods. As a retaliation for the same, trade partners imposed high tariffs on goods made in the USA, which resulted in a decline in the world trade by around two-third between the periods of 1929-34.
- Environmental degradation by drought and farming practices did not help in soil preservation and resulted in large areas of non-agricultural land. This was known as the Dust Bowl. This was coupled with dust storms that destroyed crops and livestock.
Question 9. 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?
Answer:
After World War II, many regions remained under European colonial rule for over two decades, hindering their development. Upon gaining independence, these nations faced challenges like poverty and resource scarcity.
As former colonies, these regions were part of Western empires, and post-independence, they found themselves under the influence of international agencies dominated by former colonial powers. To address their needs, they formed the Group of 77 (G-77) and advocated for a New International Economic Order (NIEO).
The NIEO aimed to grant them control over their resources, increased development assistance, fairer prices for raw materials, and improved market access for their goods in developed countries.
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