From Pepper to Power: The Spice Trade and Colonisation of India
Mudasir Ahmad Mir
Cluster Resource Coordinator, Department of Education, Jammu and Kashmir, India.
It is an established fact that the human quest for things has often ended up with fascinating discoveries. What is however ignored is that the same would simultaneously cause catastrophic impacts as well. The quest for spices resulted in the Spice trade with the East including India. The growing need and demand of spices in European markets eventually wrought in a colonial commerce and competition era. It persuaded Europeans to seek a direct trade route to India. The same quest concluded with the discovery of ‘New world’ from one side and that of the sea route to India on the other and finally its colonisation at the hands of Europeans. This article specifically explores and underscores the significance of the spices and their trade in particular, along with some other commercial goods which ultimately led to the political subjugation of India.
Keywords: Spices, Trade, India, colonisation
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