Dr. Anne Gerritsen, University of Warwick – The Rise of Globalization

By Bradley Cornelius. In today’s Academic Minute, Dr. Anne Gerritsen of the University of Warwick traces globalization to its sixteenth-century roots.
Dr. Anne Gerritsen – The Rise of Globalization
Global historians have long argued about when exactly the economic and cultural connections between disparate parts of the world increased to such an extent that one can begin to speak of ‘globalization’.  Perhaps the most persuasive arguments have been made by those who see globalization emerging in Europe around 1500. 
My research on the porcelain production centre of Jingdezhen in southern China shows it was by no means a uniquely European invention.  Around 1500, the Jingdezhen potters manufactured goods destined for consumers not only in China but throughout Asia, Africa and the Middle East.  By 1520, the Portuguese, too, were able to put in orders with the Jingdezhen potters.  Foreign delegations to the Chinese court were strictly limited, and foreign merchants certainly were not allowed to enter freely, so how did sixteenth-century Chinese potters tailor their production processes to such different market demands? Read more...