Unit
Four:The
First Global Age (1450 - 1770)
During this first global age, the Ming,
Ottoman, and Mughal empires experienced cultural renaissances that paralleled
the earlier European Renaissance. A complex global economy arose that
shaped today’s modern world. During this time period the economic
and cultural interactions among the peoples of Afro-Eurasia expanded rapidly.
Global urbanization intensified. Nations responded to the absolutism of
Akbar, Suleiman the Magnificent, Peter the Great, Louis XIV, and Philip
II in a variety of ways.
In some instances, demands for internal reform occurred and in other instances
those absolute rulers were seen by their neighbors as threats. Social and political
institutions emerged in Europe that became the foundation of the American political
system. The power and influence of European nations expanded well beyond the
boundaries of their region.
