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Trade Networks (Renaissance and Reformation)

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  1. Introduction
  2.  
  3. The discovery of America and, more broadly, the European expansion to other continents are the major events characterizing the trade networks of the Renaissance. Several scholars have discussed the impact of these factors on European development as well as on the world’s steps toward capitalism and globalization. Circa the mid-17th century (the chronological limit of this bibliography), however, inter-European trade still made up the majority of overall trade. By and large, trade was not badly affected by the otherwise disastrous consequences of the Black Death of the mid-14th century. The demands of those who survived, constantly fueled by a wider range of products available on the market, along with a much-improved transport system, led to an increase in the volume of trade. International merchants were able to set up extensive commercial networks or broaden existing ones, which extended into a number of prominent towns. Beginning in the 16th century, following the exploration of the African coast by the Portuguese, their arrival in India, and, in particular, the discovery of America, trade expanded globally. Commercial empires sprang up—first in the countries of the Iberian Peninsula, then in the northwestern European countries (notably England and Holland and, to a lesser extent, France). In the seventeenth century, merchants from these areas began to strengthen their influence in the Mediterranean, thus reversing what formerly had been the scenario in the late Middle Ages, when southern European and German merchants dominated in the North Sea.
  4.  
  5. Journals
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  7. There are no specialized journals specifically dedicated to trade. However, the main journals on economic history, such as the Economic History Review, the Journal of Economic History and the Journal of European Economic History, frequently publish on trade issues over time, though they favor modern-day topics. In addition, history journals occasionally deal with themes related to commerce and commercial relations in a local or an international context. Another sector that can be of interest concerns exploration and world history, here represented by the journal Itinerario.
  8.  
  9. Economic History Review. 1927–.
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  11. Probably the most important journal on economic history; promoted by the British Economic History Society, it covers a variety of subjects—including the history of trade—from the Middle Ages to the 20th century.
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  13. Itinerario. 1977–.
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  15. Journal devoted to the European expansion and to world history after 1500. Published by Cambridge University Press for the Leiden Institute for History.
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  17. Journal of Economic History. 1941–.
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  19. Journal of the Economic History Association. Broader in scope than most of the other publications in this section, this journal aims to attract both economists and social historians; it often publishes quantitative analyses.
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  21. Journal of European Economic History. 1972–.
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  23. Ranging from Antiquity to the present day, this journal also includes articles on Renaissance trade and commercial relations.
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  25. Primary Sources
  26.  
  27. The level of literacy among Renaissance merchants was well above the average. Their need of being kept constantly informed often resulted in a proliferation of letters sent across the European routes, with information on merchandise and prices as well as on the economic and political situation in general. Many letters have survived, some of which have been edited. Moreover, a broad range of surviving business documents have been published (Lopez and Raymond 2001, Melis 1972). Balducci Pegolotti 1936 is a merchants’ manual written by a 14th-century Italian businessman. Customs registers, though often fragmentary, are another useful source: Day 1963 contains the customs registers of a large commercial town. Contemporaries naturally commented on the trade of their countries, offering at times very biased views (Warner 1926). See also Dahl 1998 (cited under Institutions and Merchants’ Networks).
  28.  
  29. Balducci Pegolotti, Francesco. La Pratica della mercatura. Edited by Allen Evans. Cambridge, MA: Mediaeval Academy of America, 1936.
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  31. This is the most famous late-medieval merchants’ manual, written around the mid-14th century by a factor of a Florentine company. Gives detailed information on coins, units of measure, customs duties, and other important issues for many European (and Asian) marketplaces. The main text is in Italian, but the introduction and footnotes are in English.
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  33. Day, John. Les douanes de Gênes, 1376–1377. 2 vols. École pratique des hautes études: Centre de recherches historiques; Ports, routes, trafics. Paris: SEVPEN, 1963.
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  35. Transcription of two cartularia (customs registers), dated 1376 and 1377. The sources show Genoa’s trade—its relations with the markets of origin and destinations of the merchandise—and illustrate the city’s important role as a center of redistribution. Regrettably, Day’s introduction is extremely brief.
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  37. Lopez, Robert S., and Irving W. Raymond, eds. and trans. Medieval Trade in the Mediterranean World: Illustrative Documents. Records of Western Civilization. New York: Columbia University Press, 2001.
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  39. English translation of some two hundred documents, mainly European, covering most of the Middle Ages. Each section has an editorial introduction. This volume, first published in 1955 and reprinted several times since, is very useful for English-speaking students of medieval trade.
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  41. Melis, Federigo. Documenti per la storia economica dei secoli XIII–XVI. Istituto internazionale di storia economica F. Datini. Florence: Olschki, 1972.
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  43. Divided by subject (trade, banking, and so on), this collection shows a gallery of images of standard documents, each of which has been transcribed. Very useful for anyone who wants to gain insight into Italian business sources.
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  45. Warner, George, ed. The Libelle of Englyshe Polycye, a Poem on the Use of Sea-Power, 1436. Oxford: Clarendon, 1926.
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  47. A long poem about English commercial policy before the mid-15th century. Critical about foreign influence on English trade.
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  49. Medieval Trade: An Overview
  50.  
  51. Medieval trade has been the subject of many studies; some very specialized, others aimed at a wider public. Both Favier 1998 and Spufford 2003 stay somewhat in between. Written by well-established academics, these texts combine the scientific rigor of serious research with a simplicity of language that makes them suitable for many readers.
  52.  
  53. Favier, Jean. Gold and Spices: The Rise of Commerce in the Middle Ages. Translated by Caroline Higgitt. New York and London: Holmes and Meier, 1998.
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  55. Originally published in 1987, in French, as De l’or et des épices: Naissance de l’homme d’affaires au Moyen Âge (Paris: Fayard). This work is centered on businessmen as promoters of medieval economic development. Their skills and beliefs as well as the technical facets of their business are analyzed. Regrettably, the English edition has no footnotes.
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  57. Spufford, Peter. Power and Profit: The Merchant in Medieval Europe. New York: Thames and Hudson, 2003.
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  59. Aimed at an academic audience, but suitable for a nonspecialist public, this volume analyzes European trade after the “commercial revolution.” Deals extensively with transport routes as well as business techniques, trade balances, and shipping of precious metals.
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  61. Fairs
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  63. Fairs took place all around Europe. These were periodic events in which merchants gathered to buy and sell merchandise and in which payments were usually made through forms of compensation that called for a limited use of cash. Cavaciocchi 2001 and Lanaro 2003 provide many examples of fairs: there were small local fairs (Epstein 1994) and large-scale fairs, taking place in cities such as Geneva (Bergier 1963), Frankfurt (Rothmann 1998), and Lyons (Gascon 1971), where commercial and financial operations went hand in hand.
  64.  
  65. Bergier, Jean-François. Genève et l’économie européenne de la Renaissance. Affaires et gens d’affaires. Paris: SEVPEN, 1963.
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  67. An economic history of 15th-century Geneva, and in particular of the commercial fairs held in the Swiss town, which were run mainly by Italian merchants, until their decline as Lyons gained favor. The analysis fits suitably within the wider framework of European trade.
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  69. Cavaciocchi, Simonetta, ed. Fiere e mercati nella integrazione delle economie europee, secc. XIII–XVIII: Atti della “Trentaduesima settimana di studi,” 8–12 maggio 2000. Istituto internazionale di storia economica F. Datini. Florence: Le Monnier, 2001.
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  71. Collection of some fifty essays—in various languages—that contain single case studies as well as assessments of the significant role played by the fairs in preindustrial European economies.
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  73. Epstein, S. R. “Regional Fairs, Institutional Innovation, and Economic Growth in Late Medieval Europe.” Economic History Review, n.s., 47.3 (1994): 459–482.
  74. DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0289.1994.tb01386.xSave Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  75. This article draws attention to the importance of local fairs and underlines that their proliferation was not necessarily linked to periods of demographic growth. Available online by subscription.
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  77. Gascon, Richard. Grand commerce et vie urbaine au XVIe siècle: Lyon et ses marchands (environs de 1520–environs de 1580). 2 vols. Paris: SEVPEN, 1971.
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  79. A benchmark study of one of Europe’s main commercial and financial centers in the 16th century. Draws from a variety of sources held in Lyonnais archives as well as in those of other European cities, notably Italian and Spanish.
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  81. Lanaro, Paola, ed. La Pratica dello scambio: Sistemi di fiere, mercanti e città in Europa (1400–1700). Saggio Marsilio. Venice: Marsilio, 2003.
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  83. Collection of essays in Italian, English, and French. Fairs are looked at both for their role as centers of exchange as well as for their significance in terms of the physical spaces they occupied. The book shows the flexibility of the fairs and their adaptability to change.
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  85. Rothmann, Michael. Die Frankfurter Messen im Mittelalter. Frankfurter historische Abhandlungen. Stuttgart: Steiner Verlag, 1998.
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  87. A comprehensive study of the Frankfurt fairs. The analysis is focused on commercial exchanges as well as on the credit market and the crucial role of precious metals.
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  89. Transport and Commercial Routes
  90.  
  91. An efficient transport system was an essential prerequisite for the smooth functioning of trade. During the late Middle Ages, roads were highly improved; moreover, the technological side of navigation developed quickly and made transoceanic travels possible. Parry 1967 presents a clear and simple overview. Lane 1934 concentrates on Venice’s shipbuilding industry and on the importance of navigation for a “maritime republic.” See also Spufford 2003 (cited under Medieval Trade: An Overview) and Lane 1973 (cited under Italy).
  92.  
  93. Lane, Frederic Chapin. Venetian Ships and Shipbuilders of the Renaissance. Johns Hopkins Historical Publications. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1934.
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  95. The Venetian arsenal was one of the major enterprises of the Renaissance. This book analyzes the shipbuilding industry as well as the importance of galleys and round ships for Venice’s commercial system.
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  97. Parry, John H. “Transport and Trade Routes.” In The Cambridge Economic History of Europe. Vol. 4, The Economy of Expanding Europe in the 16th and 17th Centuries. Edited by E. E. Rich and C. H. Wilson, 155–222. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1967.
  98. DOI: 10.1017/CHOL9780521045070Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  99. Early modern trade is synthetically described, by area. The essay is completed by a description of several means of transport.
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  101. Trade in Specific Areas
  102.  
  103. Given the nature of trade, it is naturally difficult to carry out studies on individual countries, in isolation. Some countries were important trading areas because they exported raw materials (e.g., England), whereas others could boast cities that were central to international trade because of their role as reexporters of goods from all corners of the known world.
  104.  
  105. The Mediterranean World: An Overview
  106.  
  107. Since Antiquity, the Mediterranean has been the cradle of European civilization and a lively trading area. Lopez 1987 provides a good overview of the main routes, trading centers, and merchandise. Braudel 1972 is a seminal study that develops an argument that is not based solely on factual history, but that also takes into account slow changes over the long term (longue durée). Fusaro, et al. 2010 draws together several studies on different Mediterranean areas. Tenenti 1967 emphasizes the effect of piracy on trade.
  108.  
  109. Braudel, Fernand. The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II. 2 vols. Translated by Sian Reynolds. New York: Harper and Row, 1972.
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  111. Originally published in 1949, in French, as La Méditerranée et le monde méditerranéen a l’époque de Philippe II (Paris: Colin) and then revised several times. This influential text is the prototypical work of the French Annales school, with its concept of longue durée. The first part addresses a variety of “structural,” or slow-changing, issues (e.g., environment, biology). The second part focuses on the Spanish Empire, devoting particular attention to trade and trade networks.
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  113. Fusaro, Maria, Colin Heywood, and Mohamed-Salah Omri, eds. Trade and Cultural Exchange in the Early Modern Mediterranean: Braudel’s Maritime Legacy. International Library of Historical Studies. London and New York: Tauris, 2010.
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  115. Collection of essays covering various aspects of Mediterranean trade after 1500, from the commercial structures to the protagonists. Emphasis on the eastern Mediterranean and North Africa.
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  117. Lopez, Robert S. “The Trade of Medieval Europe: The South.” In The Cambridge Economic History of Europe. Vol. 2, Trade and Industry in the Middle Ages. 2d ed. Edited by M. M. Postan and Edward Miller, 306–401. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1987.
  118. DOI: 10.1017/CHOL9780521087094Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  119. A clear synthesis of trade in the Mediterranean world, from the fall of the Roman Empire to the end of the Middle Ages. In the middle of this period, the rebirth was stimulated by the so-called commercial revolution.
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  121. Tenenti, Alberto. Piracy and the Decline of Venice, 1580–1615. Edited and translated by Janet Pullan and Brian Pullan. London: Longmans, 1967.
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  123. Originally published in 1961, in Italian, as Venezia e i corsari: 1580–1615 (Bari, Italy: Laterza). Even though the chronological period is limited, the author covers the impact of piracy on the Mediterranean trade routes in general and highlights the moment in which the northern European merchants began to dominate across these routes.
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  125. Italy
  126.  
  127. Italian merchants dominated the European trade routes throughout the late Middle Ages. The most important among them had at least a correspondent and sometimes even branches in the main commercial centers of the continent (see Merchants Abroad). Some Italian towns, as well as being industrial producers (mainly of textiles), were very lively trading centers. Florence (Goldthwaite 2009), Genoa (Heers 1961), and Venice (Lane 1973) were particularly important in the wider European economy. Franceschi, et al. 2007 sums up the Italian influence in Europe during the Renaissance, looking in particular at the mercantile world.
  128.  
  129. Franceschi, Franco, Richard A. Goldthwaite, and Reinhold C. Mueller, eds. Il Rinascimento italiano e l’Europa. Vol. 4, Commercio e cultura mercantile. Venice: Colla, 2007.
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  131. Part of a twelve-volume series on the Italian Renaissance and its relation to the rest of Europe. This collection of essays concentrates on trade, trade networks, and mercantile culture. The essays aim at highlighting Italy’s influence on other parts of Europe and vice versa.
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  133. Goldthwaite, Richard A. The Economy of Renaissance Florence. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2009.
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  135. Probably the only comprehensive study on the Florentine economy during its heyday, written by the leading expert in the field. Sums up decades of research.
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  137. Heers, Jacques. Gênes au XVe siècle: Activité économique et problèmes sociaux. Affaires et gens d’affaires. Paris: SEVPEN, 1961.
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  139. The city of Genoa is analyzed in all its socioeconomic aspects. A significant portion of the book is devoted to the town’s financial and insurance market and to its maritime trade and commercial network.
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  141. Lane, Frederic C. Venice, a Maritime Republic. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1973.
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  143. This book shows that Venice’s prosperity was dependent on the sea: shipbuilding and trade were the keys to the city’s success.
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  145. Spain
  146.  
  147. Spain was one of the great promoters of European expansion in the 16th century, and Seville was the capital of its empire (see the Spanish Empire). During the Middle Ages, however, the main trading town was Barcelona, an important stopover on the route from Italy to the North Sea (Carrère 1967); moreover, Catalan merchants played a relevant role along the European trading routes (Del Treppo 1972). The gradual decline of Barcelona from circa the mid-15th century coincided with the flourishing of Valencia (Guiral-Hadziiossif 1986).
  148.  
  149. Carrère, Claude. Barcelone, centre économique à l’époque des difficultés, 1380–1462. 2 vols. Civilisations et sociétiés. Paris and The Hague: Mouton et Cie, 1967.
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  151. An extremely well-documented study on late medieval Barcelona in its heyday. Owing to the development of the city’s network, which included the North Sea (London and Bruges) and the Mediterranean, this is also a study on the medieval trade of Europe.
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  153. Del Treppo, Mario. I mercanti catalani e l’espansione della Corona d’Aragona nel secolo XV. Universita di Napoli: Seminario di storia medioevale e moderna. Naples, Italy: L’arte tipografica Napoli, 1972.
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  155. A study of the role played by Catalan merchants in 15th-century European trade (particularly in the Levant and in southern Italy), as well as of the influence of Italian merchants in Catalonia.
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  157. Guiral-Hadziiossif, Jacqueline. Valence: Port méditerranéen au XVe siècle (1410–1525). Histoire moderne. Paris: Publications de la Sorbonne, 1986.
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  159. This work describes the vibrant port of Valencia, with its valuable communities of foreign merchants. Illustrates not only the crucial role played by maritime trade, but also the city’s link and relations with its hinterland.
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  161. Northwestern Europe: An Overview
  162.  
  163. During the late Middle Ages the Low Countries and England were important producers of woolen textiles, and some of their ports were among the main trading centers of Europe, as shown in Postan 1987. These countries constituted an integrated market, and trade between these areas was regular (Munro 1994). They also attracted many foreigners, who played a decisive role in the inclusion of the North Sea within the European trading network (see Merchants Abroad). In the 17th century the situation reverted, however, as the English and the Dutch began venturing into the Mediterranean Sea (Rapp 1975).
  164.  
  165. Munro, John H. Textiles, Towns and Trade: Essays in the Economic History of Late-Medieval England and the Low Countries. Collected Studies. Aldershot, UK, and Brookfield, VT: Variorum, 1994.
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  167. Collection of a dozen of Munro’s previously published essays. All stress the significance of textile production and textile trade for both regions’ economies.
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  169. Postan, Michael. “The Trade of Medieval Europe: The North.” In The Cambridge Economic History of Europe. Vol. 2, Trade and Industry in the Middle Ages. 2d ed. Edited by M. M. Postan and Edward Miller, 168–305. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1987.
  170. DOI: 10.1017/CHOL9780521087094.006Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  171. Overview of northern European trade throughout the Middle Ages. Suitable for those who look for a synthetic yet clear introduction.
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  173. Rapp, Richard T. “The Unmaking of the Mediterranean Trade Hegemony: International Trade Rivalry and the Commercial Revolution.” Journal of Economic History 35.3 (1975): 499–525.
  174. DOI: 10.1017/S0022050700075616Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  175. The rise of Amsterdam and London is here explained by their success in “invading” the Mediterranean Sea rather than by their exploitation of the Atlantic routes. Available online by subscription.
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  177. Low Countries
  178.  
  179. In the late Middle Ages the Low Countries were an urbanized area with an important textile production. None of the cities were big, but together they formed an integrated and diversified urban network (Stabel 1997). Until the 15th century, Bruges was the main commercial (and financial; see “North-Western Europe” and “Money Markets in Specific Areas,” both in the Oxford Bibliographies article Banking and Money) town but was then gradually replaced by Antwerp (Bolton and Guidi Bruscoli 2008), which became the center of world trade (van der Wee 1963). Stabel, et al. 2000 focuses on organizational aspects of international trade in the two cities. In a later period the Brabantine town had to make room for the rise of Amsterdam (Lesger 2006). Howell 2010 discusses the many aspects of an increasingly commercialized society.
  180.  
  181. Bolton, J. L., and Francesco Guidi Bruscoli. “When Did Antwerp Replace Bruges as the Commercial and Financial Centre of North-Western Europe? The Evidence of the Borromei Ledger for 1438.” Economic History Review, n.s., 61.2 (2008): 360–379.
  182. DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0289.2007.00397.xSave Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  183. Circa the mid-15th century, Bruges gradually lost its place, in favor of Antwerp. This essay discusses the chronology of this passage, starting from the existing literature as well as from the data in Italian manuscript sources. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
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  185. Howell, Martha C. Commerce before Capitalism in Europe, 1300–1600. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2010.
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  187. This volume draws attention to the cultural, social, and legal aspects of trade. Howell underlines the growth of commerce in the period but denies that it was a capitalist market economy. The study is concerned mainly with the Low Countries, though comparisons with other areas are also drawn.
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  189. Lesger, Clé. The Rise of the Amsterdam Market and Information Exchange: Merchants, Commercial Expansion and Change in the Spatial Economy of the Low Countries, c. 1550–1630. Translated by J. C. Grayson. Aldershot, UK, and Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2006.
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  191. After the mid-16th century, Amsterdam gained a leading role in world trade. The major factor in Amsterdam’s success was the information network.
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  193. Stabel, Peter. Dwarfs among Giants: The Flemish Urban Network in the Late Middle Ages. Studies in Urban Social, Economic and Political History of the Medieval and Modern Low Countries. Leuven, Belgium: Garant, 1997.
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  195. The region of Flanders was very densely populated during the Middle Ages: dwarfs and giants (i.e., small and big towns) were part of the same urban network, and their interaction was continuous.
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  197. Stabel, Peter, Bruno Blondé, and Anke Greve, eds. International Trade in the Low Countries (14th–16th Centuries): Merchants, Organisation, Infrastructure; Proceedings of the International Conference “Ghent-Antwerp,” 12–13 January 1997. Studies in Urban Social, Economic and Political History of the Medieval and Modern Low Countries. Leuven, Belgium: Garant, 2000.
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  199. Trade was instrumental to the success of the Low Countries. The essays collected in this volume stress the importance of foreign merchants and describe the organization of international trade, particularly in Bruges and Antwerp.
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  201. van der Wee, Herman. The Growth of the Antwerp Market and the European Economy (Fourteenth–Sixteenth Centuries). 3 vols. The Hague: Nijhoff, 1963.
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  203. A study of primary significance on the town of Antwerp, which became the first distribution center of products from all corners of the known world. Full of statistical data and charts, this study also shows that Antwerp was a center for technical innovation in the field of business techniques.
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  205. England
  206.  
  207. During the Middle Ages, England’s main asset was wool. Foreign merchants moved to the island (see Merchants Abroad) in search of raw wool, which would feed the looms of cloth producers in the Low Countries and Italy (Lloyd 1977). Gradually, however, England developed its own woolen industry and added woolen cloth to its range of exported products (Carus-Wilson and Coleman 1963). London was already the main center, but other port towns such as Southampton (Ruddock 1951) played a significant role in the island’s international trade as well. Britnell 1993 shows the importance of trade for the development of the country, whereas Thrupp 1989, Nightingale 1995, and Sutton 2005 focus on the people (the merchants)—their organization and their role not only in the economy, but also in society as a whole.
  208.  
  209. Britnell, R. H. The Commercialisation of English Society, 1000–1500. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1993.
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  211. In half a millennium, English society underwent a process of development and change. The author argues that trade played a major part in such change.
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  213. Carus-Wilson, E. M., and Olive Coleman. England’s Export Trade, 1275–1547. Oxford: Clarendon, 1963.
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  215. A classic study of English overseas trade. Clearly shows the changes in the composition of English exports: initially, raw wool made up the greater part but was later surpassed by woolen cloth.
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  217. Lloyd, T. H. The English Wool Trade in the Middle Ages. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1977.
  218. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511561214Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  219. Wool was the main asset of English export trade in the Middle Ages and therefore played a decisive part in the development of the English economy as a whole. The book highlights the initial Flemish and Italian hegemony, followed by the gradual English ascendency.
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  221. Nightingale, Pamela. A Medieval Mercantile Community: The Grocers’ Company and the Politics and Trade of London, 1000–1485. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1995.
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  223. This study on one of the most important guilds of late medieval England contains discussion of the struggle for power in London, where commercial and political rivalries were clearly intermingled.
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  225. Ruddock, Alwyn A. Italian Merchants and Shipping in Southampton, 1270–1600. Southampton Records. Southampton, UK: University College, 1951.
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  227. A reference volume on English overseas trade and on the Italian community in Southampton. Foreign merchants are described in terms not only of their commercial activity, but also of their integration and interaction with the local community.
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  229. Sutton, Anne F. The Mercery of London: Trade, Goods and People, 1130–1578. Aldershot, UK, and Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2005.
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  231. Explains the role of the mercers, both in London and on international grounds, especially in the context of trade with the Low Countries. A fine study by an expert on the mercery’s archive.
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  233. Thrupp, Sylvia L. The Merchant Class of Medieval London, 1300–1500. Ann Arbor Paperbacks. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1989.
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  235. Originally published in 1948. A classic study on the mercantile class of London: merchants are considered in relation to their networks. A study of social, more than economic, history. Contains a long prosopographical appendix.
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  237. The Hansa
  238.  
  239. Unfortunately, the existing literature on this association of German, Baltic, and North Sea cities is mainly in German. The best introductory study for a reader of English is Dollinger 1970. Various studies have analyzed the Hansa trading relations with different areas: Lloyd 1991 looks at trade with England, drawing mostly from English sources. The same subject has been developed and expanded in Jenks 1992, an extremely well-documented study.
  240.  
  241. Dollinger, Philippe. The German Hansa. Translated and edited by D. H. Ault and S. H. Steinberg. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1970.
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  243. Originally published in 1964, in French, as La Hanse, XIIe–XVIIe siècles (Paris: Aubier). Explains the history of the Hansa, from its creation to its dissolution (12th–17th centuries). Still the essential point of departure for English readers.
  244. Find this resource:
  245. Jenks, Stuart. England, die Hanse und Preussen: Handel und Diplomatie 1377–1474. 3 vols. Quellen und Darstellungen zur hansischen Geschichte. Cologne: Böhlau Verlag, 1992.
  246. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  247. Extremely well-documented research on the Hansa trade with England in the 15th century. Volume 3 is entirely devoted to tables.
  248. Find this resource:
  249. Lloyd, T. H. England and the German Hanse, 1157–1611: A Study of Their Trade and Commercial Diplomacy. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
  250. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511560279Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  251. Based on customs accounts, this study is centered on trading relations, yet it also considers political and diplomatic issues from an Anglocentric point of view.
  252. Find this resource:
  253. Central Europe
  254.  
  255. At the beginning of the early modern era, central and eastern Europe filled a growing niche in European trade networks. The trade of products was important, but so, too, was the circulation of ideas, and cultural exchanges played a relevant role in the integration of the Continent (Mazzei 1999). See also Bergier 1963 and Gascon 1971 (both cited under Fairs).
  256.  
  257. Mazzei, Rita. Itinera mercatorum: Circolazione di uomini e beni nell’Europa centro-orientale, 1550–1650. Lucca, Italy: Pacini Fazzi, 1999.
  258. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  259. A book about the mercantile world and much more. Merchants played a major part in the integration of towns, such as Nuremberg or Krakow, into the European trading circuits; however, a great deal of other travelers (ecclesiastics, diplomats, artists, and so on) increasingly moved along the same routes.
  260. Find this resource:
  261. Europe’s Trade with Asia
  262.  
  263. Trade with Asia dates back to Antiquity. During the Middle Ages, precious Asian products reached the eastern coasts of the Mediterranean and were then distributed to Europe, mainly by Venetians. Abulafia 1987 and Ashtor 1983 look at this trade from the European and Levantine perspectives, respectively. Matschke 2002 sketches the last period of the Byzantine Empire, previously an intermediary between the East and the West. Mack 2001 deals mainly with the trade of Islamic luxuries to the West and their influence on Italian art. In 1498, Vasco da Gama reached India, and this caused dramatic change: Europeans could now reach the production centers of spices and avoid Arab intermediaries. Chaudhuri 1985 explains how things evolved in the trading routes of the Indian Ocean; Prakash 1997 shows the different contributions of the European powers. For the spice trade after the 1500s, see the Portuguese Empire.
  264.  
  265. Abulafia, David. “Asia, Africa and the Trade of Medieval Europe.” In The Cambridge Economic History of Europe. Vol. 2, Trade and Industry in the Middle Ages. 2d ed. Edited by M. M. Postan and Edward Miller, 402–473. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1987.
  266. DOI: 10.1017/CHOL9780521087094Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  267. Medieval Europe traded with Africa and Asia through the southern and eastern ports of the Mediterranean. This study summarizes these exchanges and constitutes a good overview of the subject.
  268. Find this resource:
  269. Ashtor, Eliyahu. Levant Trade in the Later Middle Ages. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1983.
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  271. Middle Eastern trade with Europe is not limited here to the main commercial cities but includes a variety of minor centers. The author has drawn information from a large number of European archives in order to assess the success and decline of Islamic products on the European market.
  272. Find this resource:
  273. Chaudhuri, K. N. Trade and Civilisation in the Indian Ocean: An Economic History from the Rise of Islam to 1750. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1985.
  274. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  275. A long-term perspective allows the author to describe trade networks in the Indian Ocean before and after the arrival of the Europeans. The second part, recalling Braudel’s longue durée (see Braudel 1972, cited under the Mediterranean World: An Overview), is devoted to an analysis of the slow-changing structures.
  276. Find this resource:
  277. Mack, Rosamond E. Bazaar to Piazza: Islamic Trade and Italian Art, 1300–1600. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001.
  278. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  279. A picture of the trade in luxury products (carpets, ceramics, glass, and so on) between the Levant and Italy in the Renaissance. The work is based on artistic sources and secondary works, not on primary sources.
  280. Find this resource:
  281. Matschke, Klaus-Peter. “Commerce, Trade, Markets, and Money, Thirteenth–Fifteenth Centuries.” In The Economic History of Byzantium: From the Seventh through the Fifteenth Century. Vol. 2, Urban Economy. Edited by Angeliki E. Laiou, 771–806. Washington, DC: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, 2002.
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  283. A synthesis of the trading structures of the late Byzantine Empire after the fourth crusade and the growing influence of Western merchants. The article is part of a three-volume collected study on the economic history of the Byzantine Empire, devoted mainly to earlier centuries.
  284. Find this resource:
  285. Prakash, Om, ed. European Commercial Expansion in Early Modern Asia. Aldershot, UK, and Brookfield, VT: Variorum, 1997.
  286. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  287. Collection of reprinted essays describing the influence of various European powers on Asian trade. Europeans often looked at Asia in a global perspective and organized trade in such a way that products moved from the East to the West, and precious metals (notably silver) moved from the West to the East.
  288. Find this resource:
  289. European Expansion and Global History
  290.  
  291. With the 16th century the world drastically changed, and the Europeans’ perspective became global. There is naturally a vast literature on the subject: some scholars concentrate on the expansion of individual countries, whereas others take a broader view and underline the development of a global economy. Two celebrated studies (Braudel 1992, Wallerstein 1974–2011) try to offer explanation and analysis of the consequences of change and of the balance of power between Europe and the rest of the world, attracting at times some criticism. Eurocentrism has often characterized these kinds of studies (Davis 1973). O’Rourke-Williamson 2002 uses a model to provide an explanation of how things changed. Collections of essays are particularly useful, because they can present a comparative approach (Tracy 1990). Curtin 1984 and Subrahmanyam 1996 highlight the role played by merchants.
  292.  
  293. Braudel, Fernand. Civilization and Capitalism, 15th–18th Century. 3 vols. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1992.
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  295. Originally published in 1979, in French, as Civilisation matérielle, économie et capitalisme, XVe-XVIIIe siècle (Paris: Colin). Renowned work from one of the most illustrious economic historians of the 20th century. Economic changes are analyzed within the material life and in the market economy: on the latter, see in particular Volume 2, The Wheels of Commerce, and Volume 3, The Perspective of the World.
  296. Find this resource:
  297. Curtin, Philip D. Cross-Cultural Trade in World History. Studies in Comparative World History. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1984.
  298. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511661198Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  299. A true world history over a long period of time, this volume looks at merchant diasporas and cultural exchange, presenting a series of case studies.
  300. Find this resource:
  301. Davis, Ralph. The Rise of the Atlantic Economies. World Economic History. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1973.
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  303. This work describes the development and successes of the European countries that built empires. Clearly organized and written, the work has, however, been criticized for its Eurocentrism.
  304. Find this resource:
  305. O’Rourke, Kevin H., and Jeffrey G. Williamson. “After Columbus: Explaining Europe’s Overseas Trade Boom, 1500–1800.” Journal of Economic History 62.2 (2002): 417–456.
  306. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  307. The economists’ point of view: a model and a series of quantitative data are set out in order to provide an explanation for the trade boom of the 16th through 19th centuries. Available online by subscription.
  308. Find this resource:
  309. Subrahmanyam, Sanjay, ed. Merchant Networks in the Early Modern World, 1450–1800. An Expanding World. Aldershot, UK, and Brookfield, VT: Variorum, 1996.
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  311. Edited collection of studies illustrating the role of merchants in Europe and beyond. Useful in its comparative perspective.
  312. Find this resource:
  313. Tracy, James D., ed. The Rise of Merchant Empires: Long-Distance Trade in the Early Modern World, 1350–1750. Papers presented at a conference held at the University of Minnesota in October 1987. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990.
  314. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511563089Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  315. Collection of essays written by prominent historians. Contains studies of countries individually considered as well as comparative works that aim at assessing quantitative trends and structural changes in international trade between the late 14th and late 18th centuries.
  316. Find this resource:
  317. Wallerstein, Immanuel. The Modern World-System. 4 vols. Studies in Social Discontinuity. New York: Academic Press, 1974–2011.
  318. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  319. The first two volumes analyze the world system as it emerged from expansion in the 16th century, up to the 1750s. This controversial work places Europe at the center of this system (based on the core-periphery dichotomy) and highlights the uneven exchange between developed and underdeveloped areas.
  320. Find this resource:
  321. The Portuguese Empire
  322.  
  323. The Portuguese Empire was made up of two parts: on the one side, Asia, where the Portuguese built a commercial empire, hardly daring any territorial conquest; on the other side, Brazil, where a process of territorial expansion took place after the mid-16th century and large plantations were created. Diffie and Winius 1977 explains this development, whereas Bethencourt and Curto 2007, Godinho 1982–1983, and Russell-Wood 1992 show the consequences of this enterprise for world trade, cultural exchanges, and the exchange of ideas. In contrast, Mauro 1983 concentrates on Brazil and the importance of sugar plantations. See also Chaudhuri 1985 and Prakash 1997 (both cited under Europe’s Trade with Asia).
  324.  
  325. Bethencourt, Francisco, and Diogo Ramada Curto, eds. Portuguese Oceanic Expansion, 1400–1800. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
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  327. Collection of essays, the first part of which, in particular, is devoted to the economic aspects of the Portuguese Empire. Parts 2 and 3 are concerned with institutional and cultural issues, whereas the last part attempts to build up a comparative dimension.
  328. Find this resource:
  329. Diffie, Bailey W., and George D. Winius. Foundations of the Portuguese Empire, 1415–1580. Europe and the World in the Age of Expansion. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1977.
  330. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  331. A clear history of the Portuguese Empire, from the first explorations along the African coast to the fall of Portugal under the Spanish Crown. Also explains all the phases of the shaping of the empire in the 16th century.
  332. Find this resource:
  333. Godinho, Vitorino Magalhães. Os descobrimentos e a economia mundial. 2d ed. 4 vols. Lisbon, Portugal: Presença, 1982–1983.
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  335. Classic collection of studies by one of the most celebrated Portuguese historians. The essays are concerned not solely with trade, but also with social studies in general (following the trend set by the French school of the Annales). This work places the Portuguese expansion within the wider field of global history.
  336. Find this resource:
  337. Mauro, Frédéric. Le Portugal, le Brésil et l’Atlantique au XVIIe siècle (1570–1670): Étude économique. 2d ed. Paris: Centre Culturel Portugais, 1983.
  338. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  339. Reference work on the western part of the Portuguese Empire after the 1570s, when Brazil became for the Portuguese more important than Asia. Full of quantitative data, the volume is an updated version of two works of 1960 and 1963.
  340. Find this resource:
  341. Russell-Wood, A. J. R. A World on the Move: The Portuguese in Africa, Asia, and America, 1415–1808. Manchester, UK: Carcanet, 1992.
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  343. Those Portuguese who went abroad often settled in more than one area of the empire throughout their career, but the “move” of the title also refers to products and ideas. These movements helped connect three continents. The book is organized thematically and aims at highlighting these aspects rather than providing a history of the empire.
  344. Find this resource:
  345. The Spanish Empire
  346.  
  347. After the discovery, in the 1540s, of the silver mines at Zacatecas and Potosí, the major share of Spain’s trade with its American empire consisted of precious metals: this led to capitalist development in Spain, as shown in Stein and Stein 2000. Parry 1990 and Macleod 1984 are aimed at those who want an introductory overview, whereas Chaunu and Chaunu 1955–1959, a massive documentary study, provides an extremely detailed quantitative analysis. Elliott 2006 draws comparisons between the Spanish and the British Empires. See also “Bullion Flows in the Global Economy” in the Oxford Bibliographies article Banking and Money.
  348.  
  349. Chaunu, Huguette, and Pierre Chaunu. Séville et l’Atlantique, 1504–1650. 8 vols. Paris: Colin, 1955–1959.
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  351. Monumental work on Seville’s trade that presents the data on thousands of voyages across the Atlantic Ocean, based on the records of the Casa de Contratación, in Seville. This quantitative study aims at illustrating the successive phases of this trade until the decadence.
  352. Find this resource:
  353. Elliott, J. H. Empires of the Atlantic World: Britain and Spain in America, 1492–1830. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2006.
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  355. This comparative study follows the two empires along their path from conquest to dissolution. The study tries to assess differences and similarities in the processes of occupation and consolidation and then emancipation, when the empires were no longer able to maintain control.
  356. Find this resource:
  357. Macleod, Murdo J. “Spain and America: The Atlantic Trade, 1492–1720.” In The Cambridge History of Latin America. Vol. 1, Colonial Latin America. Edited by Leslie Bethell, 341–388. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1984.
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  359. Synthetic and clear overview of Spain’s trade with America. Nonspecialist readers would find this an excellent introduction to the subject.
  360. Find this resource:
  361. Parry, J. H. The Spanish Seaborne Empire. History of Human Society. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1990.
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  363. Originally published in 1966. From a well-known maritime historian and historian of the European expansion, a slightly dated but still clear outline of the Spanish Empire, from Christopher Columbus’s voyage to the rivalry against the North European powers, to the dissolution. Suitable for a nonspecialist audience.
  364. Find this resource:
  365. Stein, Stanley J., and Barbara H. Stein. Silver, Trade, and War: Spain and America in the Making of Early Modern Europe. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2000.
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  367. Spain is here seen in its development following the conquest of America. Silver was the main factor behind this process. The book also analyzes the rivalry with other countries and eventually the Spanish decline.
  368. Find this resource:
  369. England and Holland
  370.  
  371. Toward the end of the 16th century, England and Holland began to undermine the Atlantic commercial routes of the Iberian nations, a process that eventually led to their domination of the transoceanic trade. Quinn 1974 and Sacks 1991 explain how England gradually developed its maritime power, whereas Boxer 1965 gives an overview of the Dutch expansion. Furber 1976 describes the rivalry that eventually arose between these two countries, especially in Asia. See also Elliott 2006 (cited under the Spanish Empire).
  372.  
  373. Boxer, C. R. The Dutch Seaborne Empire, 1600–1800. History of Human Society. New York: Knopf, 1965.
  374. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  375. Aimed at a readership not necessarily made up of academics, the book offers a clear synthesis of the golden age of the Dutch republic, clarifying the reasons behind its success; the story ends with the dissolution of the East India Company, the symbol of the empire.
  376. Find this resource:
  377. Furber, Holden. Rival Empires of Trade in the Orient, 1600–1800. Europe and the World in the Age of Expansion. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1976.
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  379. Centered on the rivalry between the English and the Dutch, this volume highlights that European trade with Asia was, after all, beneficial to both continents.
  380. Find this resource:
  381. Quinn, David Beers. England and the Discovery of America, 1481–1620, from the Bristol Voyages of the Fifteenth Century to the Pilgrim Settlement at Plymouth: The Exploration, Exploitation, and Trial-and-Error Colonization of North America by the English. New York: Knopf, 1974.
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  383. Collected studies by one of the leading scholars of the English overseas expansion. Particularly interesting are the essays concerning the voyages that preceded John Cabot’s landing in 1497.
  384. Find this resource:
  385. Rabb, Theodore K. Enterprise and Empire: Merchant and Gentry Investment in the Expansion of England, 1575–1630. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1967.
  386. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  387. This volume looks mainly at the investors—their social status and the companies they set up in order to finance the beginning of the English expansion overseas.
  388. Find this resource:
  389. Sacks, David Harris. The Widening Gate: Bristol and the Atlantic Economy, 1450–1700. New Historicism. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991.
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  391. Explores Bristol’s development from a medieval city to one of the centers of the expansion of Europe across the Atlantic, after a first phase of trade with the Iberian Peninsula. Significantly, as the author argues with the conclusion’s title, this serves as an example of the “widening gate of capitalism” (p. 331).
  392. Find this resource:
  393. Merchants
  394.  
  395. The history of individual merchants often has a broader significance, because it gives information on products, commercial techniques, personal and collective attitudes, and so on. It can also be a means of analyzing trade of one or more countries. Le Goff 1993 and Jeannin 1972 provide general comments on medieval and 16th-century merchants, respectively, as well as examining their personalities, cultural and religious beliefs, and business activity. For the period preceding the 15th century, Francesco Datini (Nigro 2010) undoubtedly represents the most documented case, with a surviving archive made up of some 120,000 commercial letters and dozens of account books. For the 15th century, Jacques Coeur (Heers 1997) and Andrea Barbarigo (Lane 1944) also offer interesting stories, thanks to the preservation of many of their papers: one of the points of interest of the former is his strong link with the French Crown; the latter is followed in his quest to rebuild his family’s fortune after a collapse owing to his father’s failings. The Fugger family rose to a position of absolute preeminence, especially in the late 15th and the 16th centuries (Häberlein 2006).
  396.  
  397. Jeannin, Pierre. Merchants of the Sixteenth Century. Translated by Paul Fittingoff. New York: Harper and Row, 1972.
  398. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  399. Originally published in 1957, in French, as Les marchands au XVIe siècle (Paris: Éditions du Seuil). Short but very well-written synthesis of the mercantile world in the 16th century, with its trading centers and the men who animated them (both big and small merchants). Also describes merchants’ practices.
  400. Find this resource:
  401. Häberlein, Mark. Die Fugger: Geschichte einer Augsburger Familie, 1367–1650. Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 2006.
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  403. The rise and successes of the Fugger family over three centuries. An analysis of the multiple activities of the famous merchants/bankers/entrepreneurs from Augsburg.
  404. Find this resource:
  405. Heers, Jacques. Jacques Coeur, 1400–1456. Paris: Perrin, 1997.
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  407. A book on the life and activity of the famous 15th-century French merchant and on his role at the service of the king, Charles VII, who rewarded him with many honors.
  408. Find this resource:
  409. Lane, Frederic C. Andrea Barbarigo, Merchant of Venice, 1418–1449. Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1944.
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  411. From one of the leading economic historians of Renaissance Venice, the portrait of a 15th-century merchant, drawn from a mass of manuscript documents found in the Venetian archives.
  412. Find this resource:
  413. Le Goff, Jacques. Marchands et banquiers du Moyen Âge. Que sais-je? 699. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France, 1993.
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  415. Originally published in 1956. Nonspecialists will enjoy this booklet, written by one of the leading historians of the late Middle Ages. The merchant is at the center of the discussion, which concerns not only his activities but also his values and beliefs.
  416. Find this resource:
  417. Nigro, Giampiero, ed. Francesco di Marco Datini: The Man, the Merchant. Biblioteca di storia. Florence: Firenze University Press, 2010.
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  419. A study on the illustrious merchant of Prato. The volume concentrates on his network of companies across Europe, as well as on his attitudes and beliefs. The text is accompanied by a wide selection of illustrations, which in turn constitute a route through the life and activity of a late-medieval international merchant.
  420. Find this resource:
  421. Merchants Abroad
  422.  
  423. Settling abroad for short periods or longer is an intrinsic part of international mercantile activity. The organization of each foreign community abroad varied according to place and time, but sometimes it is difficult to identify their features clearly; this is partly because of confusion that arises in the literature between terms such as colony and nation, which are not always fully clarified. Comparative studies (Petti Balbi 2001) can provide a step forward in that direction. More or less institutionalized foreign communities at times were instrumental to the commercial development of less “advanced” countries; for example, England in the late Middle Ages (Thrupp 1957). Among the merchants who played a part in international trade, the Italians were especially important, as shown in Melis 1990 and Soldani 2011. Of the many studies on merchants abroad, examples on England (Bratchel 1984) and the Low Countries (Goris 1925) are presented here. Other examples can be found in the sections dedicated to Merchants and Fairs. On the Diaspora of Jewish traders, see Trivellato 2009.
  424.  
  425. Bratchel, M. E. “Alien Merchant Colonies in Sixteenth Century England: Community Organization and Social Mores.” Journal of Medieval and Renaissance Studies 14 (1984): 39–62.
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  427. An essay that clearly explains the care merchants had to take when settling abroad: on one hand, they had to deal with and obey local institutions; on the other hand, they had to keep ties with (and remain loyal to) their own country.
  428. Find this resource:
  429. Goris, Jan-Albert. Étude sur les colonies marchandes méridionales (portugais, espagnols, italiens) à Anvers de 1488 à 1567. Université de Louvain: Receuil de travaux. Leuven, Belgium: Librairie Universitaire, Uystpruyst, 1925.
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  431. Classic study on the foreign communities in Antwerp during the heyday of the Brabantine town. Written in the early 20th century, but still a relevant reference source on the subject.
  432. Find this resource:
  433. Melis, Federigo. I mercanti italiani nell’Europa medievale e rinascimentale. Edited by Luciana Frangioni. Opere sparse di Federigo Melis. Florence: Le Monnier, 1990.
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  435. Collection of Melis’s previously published essays, highlighting the role played by Tuscan merchants abroad and especially the pervasiveness of their commercial activity in Europe and beyond.
  436. Find this resource:
  437. Petti Balbi, Giovanna, ed. Comunità forestiere e “nationes” nell’Europa dei secoli XIII–XVI. Papers presented at a conference in Genoa, Italy, 28–30 November 1999. Europa mediterranea. Naples, Italy: Liguori, 2001.
  438. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  439. A comparative approach lies behind this collection of essays. Communities of university students are the subject of the first part of the book, but merchants get most of the attention in Parts 2 and 3 (the latter being devoted to Genoa, Genoese abroad, and immigration to the town).
  440. Find this resource:
  441. Soldani, Maria Elisa. Uomini d’affari e mercanti toscani nella Barcellona del Quattrocento. Anuario de estudios medievales: Anejo 69. Barcelona: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 2011.
  442. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  443. An extremely well-documented study of the Tuscan merchants in Barcelona, based both on Italian and Catalan sources. Analyzes their economic activity as well as the process of integration in the local community.
  444. Find this resource:
  445. Thrupp, Sylvia L. “A Survey of the Alien Population of England in 1440.” Speculum 32.2 (1957): 262–273.
  446. DOI: 10.2307/2849117Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  447. A short article based on the so-called alien subsidy of 1440. Explains the composition of the alien communities in England and attempts some quantitative evaluations. Available online by subscription.
  448. Find this resource:
  449. Trivellato, Francesca. The Familiarity of Strangers: The Sephardic Diaspora, Livorno, and Cross-Cultural Trade in the Early Modern Period. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2009.
  450. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  451. Devoted mainly to a later period (17th–18th centuries), this volume explores the extensive trading network of the Sephardic Jews of Livorno. Shows the importance of informal practices and trust, which enabled the overcoming of cultural (and religious) boundaries.
  452. Find this resource:
  453. Institutions and Merchants’ Networks
  454.  
  455. Neo-institutionalist scholars place institutions at the core of their analysis and stress their significance for economic change. Two of the most illustrious representatives are Douglass C. North and Avner Greif: North 1990 ventures beyond the limits imposed by Renaissance sources to draw more universal conclusions; Greif 1989 emphasizes the importance of reputation and social sanctions. Gelderblom 2003 illustrates the strategic use of institutions by an early modern trader in order to minimize costs and maximize profits. Trivellato 2007 argues that within the mercantile networks, letters not only promoted trade but also favored social cohesion. Similarly, Dahl 1998 points to the value of trust for the process of network building.
  456.  
  457. Dahl, Gunnar. Trade, Trust, and Networks: Commercial Culture in Late Medieval Italy. Lund, Sweden: Nordic Academic Press, 1998.
  458. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  459. Work based on Italian documents from 1300 to 1500, available in published editions: through analysis of letters, diaries, and merchants’ manuals, the author argues that trust and reciprocity were the basis for the efficient networks developed (in particular) by Florentine merchants. Useful collection of documents, even though slightly disorderly at times.
  460. Find this resource:
  461. Gelderblom, Oscar. “The Governance of Early Modern Trade: The Case of Hans Thijs, 1556–1611.” Enterprise and Society 4.4 (2003): 606–639.
  462. DOI: 10.1093/es/khg048Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  463. Case study of the activity of an Antwerp merchant in Amsterdam and Danzig. The author underlines Thijs’s use of formal and informal institutions in order to minimize the costs of trade. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  464. Find this resource:
  465. Greif, Avner. “Reputation and Coalitions in Medieval Trade: Evidence on the Maghribi Traders.” Journal of Economic History 49.4 (1989): 857–882.
  466. DOI: 10.1017/S0022050700009475Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  467. This essay stresses the importance of reputation and that, in those communities where misbehavior is socially sanctioned, the economic actor is stimulated to act honestly. The analysis is based on medieval sources. Available online by subscription.
  468. Find this resource:
  469. North, Douglass C. Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance. Political Economy of Institutions and Decisions. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990.
  470. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511808678Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  471. One of the many works by one of the promoters of the New Institutional Economics. The volume points to the role of institutions in economic change and gives a framework that can also be applied to Renaissance trade.
  472. Find this resource:
  473. Trivellato, Francesca. “Merchants’ Letters across Geographical and Social Boundaries.” In Cultural Exchange in Early Modern Europe. Vol. 3, Correspondence and Cultural Exchange in Europe, 1400–1700. Edited by Francisco Bethencourt and Florika Egmond, 80–103. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
  474. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  475. Trivellato emphasizes the centrality of business letters in the mercantile world, well into the modern era: they were the only way a merchant could assess the correspondent’s trustworthiness, thus building an informal mechanism of social control.
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