Impact of Plants on History : Spices Changed History Forever

Question: Of those plants we have so far studied, which in your opinion has had the greatest impact on world history. Justify and explain your answer.

If I had to choose one plant we have learned about in class that I think has affected history the most, it would have to be spices. The search for quick sea routes to the spice rich islands led nations to sail across the vast ocean. In the 1400s the navigational equipment became more advanced and allowed for long-haul sailing. The kings of Europe set out to change the balance of world trade by paying for spice-hunting missions. Christopher Columbus set off sailing to look for a quicker route to India when he found himself running into the Americas instead. Vasco de Gama was also looking for spices when he sailed around Africa for the first time. America would have not been discovered were it not for the European desire to stop the Arab traders’ monopoly on spices.

Spices (and the search for them) motivated the globalization of the world. All of Europe seemed to crave a piece of the spice trade, using dubious and brutal tactics to establish a position in Southeast Asia and India. European outposts were located all around the Indian Ocean. While it brought tremendous wealth to their home countries, it also fuelled the colonization of any territory that was able to grow spices. Spain, Portugal, England and Holland all fought for control of the spice trade participating in wars during the 15^th to 17^th centuries.

I believe that the spices are the most important plant to the world’s history because they revealed entire continents to Europeans, created shifts in the balance of world power and established vast empires. Some historians have argued that the start of the modern age began because of the spice trade. It is clear that the demand in spices was a key to expanding world trade throughout history.