In the 16th century, the Spanish Empire produced unprecedented amounts of silver. Much of this silver passed through a vast trade network and eventually arrived in Ming China, the greatest producer of consumer goods in the world.
Develop an argument that compares the extent to which increased global connections affected the Spanish and Ming empires in the 16th Century.
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The global flow of silver from the mid sixteenth century to the early eighteenthcentury generally had very negative social and economic effects. Despite early benefits,the increased trade eventually weakened the Ming Empire and the Spanish states throughdependency. Based on the documents, although the middleman benefited through thefacilitation of trade, the effects of silver production ultimately damaged the society andeconomy of the states/empires that supplied or demanded silver in vast quantities.In China, many people first believed the increase of trade and thus the increase ofsilver was beneficial to the Ming Empire. Indeed a portion of the flow was necessary,especially when the emperor declared that all taxes and trade fees be paid in silver. Dueto the scarcity of silver in China during the late 1500’s, many people were forced to turnto middlemen. This caused the value of products, particularly grain, to fall, whichaffected all areas of China’s economy and the people of China as well (Document 3).Wang Xijue’s report to the emperor demonstrates the need for silver. Being a courtofficial, this issue was likely a concern for him because it could cause public unrest,which could ultimately lead to a rebellion against the Ming government. However, beinga court official presents an interesting bias because he could have been exaggerating hisclaim in order to ensure he kept his government position. As stated in document 2, “the nationalgovernment requires silver for taxes but disburses little silver in its expenditures. As the price ofgrain falls, tillers of the soil receive lower returns on their labors, and thus less land is put intocultivation.” The Ming government was hoarding all the silver they received and as a resultChinese farmers barely received any silver for their crops. her UWU

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