Per. 1
CCOT Rewrite
A bridge between different lands from the year 200 BCE to 1450 CE, the Silk Roads experienced many patterns of interaction. During this period of time, the roads changed such as the amount they were used, which changed as nations and empires rose and fell; the goods and ideas that traveled the roads after Europe and Asia increased their trading; and lastly the safety of the roads varied throughout this time period. However, the Silk Roads still experienced many continuities as well, for example their original purpose which was to facilitate the exchange of goods between Asia and Europe never changed; they continued to influence many cultures especially with the ...view middle of the document...
In the end however, the Mongols are weak because of their own instability and spilt the huge empire into four khanates. This disunites the roads and changes them both economically and culturally. Maritime trade routes such Indian Ocean trade becomes more popular than the Silk Roads as people look for even faster and more effective ways to transport goods and ideas.
Another component of the Silk Road’s patterns of interaction that changed was the goods that were transported. They had first begun using silk, which was seen as a luxury item. Silk strengthened the roads and expanded their usage, and as time goes on new ideas and goods also traveled the roads. Europe and Asia become “hooked” on each other’s goods, especially after Alexander the Great’s Hellenism binds the east and west together. New inventions such as compass, printing press, gunpowder, and religions changed the roads and world. Later on, Russia’s own Peter the Great who lived from 1682-1725 would believe he had to westernize Russia (no longer under Mongol control) if the empire were to survive. He traveled to Europe and gained appreciation for western ideas, which he was able to have access to thanks to the patterns of interaction established by the Silk Roads.
The last thing that changed during the Silk Road’s patterns of interaction was its safety, which was hardly ever consistent. When they began in 200 BCE, the roads were smaller and therefore safer but after Rome’s collapse bandits along the roads threatened the safety of those who traveled them. The Bubonic plague that began in China during 14th century made the roads extremely dangerous to travel as entire populations were wiped out from exposure. Then, the Mongols come in and bring safety to the roads during their reign...
