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TRADING
NETWORKS of all kinds, c.1700's-1850's |
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The Dutch were active and
well-organized
merchants, and sought to understand the cultures they
encountered;
their
power increased at the expense of the *Portuguese* |
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The Danes too had their own
East
India Company,
and a fort in *Tranquebar*
from as early as 1620; but they were never as prominent
as the *French* |
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European ship-building and
navigation techniques
were steadily improving-- and so were the skills of
naval warfare |
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Cannons were becoming
indispensable on the
battlefield, and were used in more organized ways;
infantry tactics
were
analyzed in new books |
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More efforts began to be made
to
depict
and interpret Indian culture, and the Indian environment
generally; *cultures
around
the world* began to be studied |
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Meanwhile, Parliament kept
trying
to ensure
that all British trade would take place through their
own East India
Company |
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"India House" in London
became
steadily
more grandiose, as the East India Company's trade
expanded |
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India had long been famous
for the
skills
of its traditional craftsmen |
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Now there were new markets,
and
new sources
of patronage; *bidri*
work
became widely popular; fancy cases were made for *bezoars* |
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And there was always the very
widespread
and vital trade in cotton |
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The cotton and cotton goods
trade
included
carders, spinners, weavers, and many other artisans--
and particularly *tailors*
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Merchant princes often lived
in
fine mansions
located right on main streets, with shops at street
level; shops could
also surround mosques and temples |
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Small shopkeepers catered to
the
retail
market, selling provisions and food items by the
roadside |
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In the streets, fast-food
entrepreneurs flourished |
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Fairs, festivals, religious
processions, and pilgrimage sites provided
constant opportunities for vendors of all kinds-- and
especially for
professional entertainers
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