World History and Early Civilization. History Essay

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World History and Early Civilization
Introduction
Reformation began in Germany under Martin Luther when he authored his “95 Thesis” in protest to the sale of indulges by the pope resulting in his excommunication in 1521. Later, he translated the bible into German. The German peasants revolted in 1524, inspired in part by Luther’s teachings, protesting financial exploitation and rampant corruption. His teachings spread beyond Germany aided in part by the resentment towards the catholic clergy CITATION Leo16 \l 1033 (Leopold Von Ranke, Robert A.Johnson, 2016). When reformation ended, Germany and Scandinavia had adopted Lutheranism as their state religion. John Knox initiated Lutheranism in Scotland and formed the Presbyterian Church. Effects of reformation were; increased literacy across Europe, decades of war like the 30 year war and lessened the clergy’s powers.
The institutional infrastructure of African kingdoms was such that power was centered on kings with religion as the unifying factor. These were important in maintaining unity and ensuring succession of the tribe. The Ashanti Empire, in modern-day Ghana, was founded by Osei Tutu in 1670 by unifying the kingdom around the Golden Stool which had been commanded down from the heavens by the chief priest; Okomfo Anokye. The king (Asantehene) enforced the rules made by God (Nyame).The union conquered the Denkyira in 1701 thereby giving them access to Atlantic Ocean trade with the Dutch CITATION Rob10 \l 1033 (Robert B.Edgerton, 2010). It was famed for its wealth, military prowess, architecture and culture. The economy was supported by trading in gold bars, kola nuts and cocoa.
The African slave trade was the forceful movement of Africans across the Atlantic Ocean to America. The Triangular trade had three legs; the first involved shipment of factory goods to Africa’s west coast in exchange for slaves. Next was the transportation of these slaves to America and the Caribbean islands. The third leg involved the transport of finished goods back to Europe. These goods were the products of slave labor from mines, industries and plantations like tobacco, cotton and sugar. Various governments started to ban the trade at the turn of the 19th century CITATION WEB14 \l 1033 (W.E.B Du Bois, 2014). The trade hampered development of African states by established a systematic exploitation of the continent’s resources to the present day and depopulated the continents able-bodied males. The trade led to the introduction of European religions like Christianity.
The partition/scramble for Africa (1881-1914) was the subdivision of the lucrative continent by European powers due to its abundant natural resources. These expansions nearly degenerated into war. The Berlin Conference of 1884-85, chaired by Otto Von Bismarck, met to deliberate the African problem CITATION Ern12 \l 1033 (Ernest Francis Penrose, 2012). The conference put on the façade of condemning slave but they also laid down r...