Summary
Contents
Subject index
Business and Polity explores, through a variety of economic and political formations over the past two and a half millennia, right from the Greco-Roman civilization to present day globalization, the behavior of two power networks: those who control the levers of political power and those who engage themselves in wealth-generating activities. It traces the dynamics of interdependence between these two powerful networks and what happens when one or the other becomes more powerful.
The rational and logical approach taken by the author reveals the links that our modern state of affairs has with the experience of past civilizations—knowledge that can potentially enhance our ability to make informed decisions to shape the global future. Though the content is academic and interdisciplinary in scope and nature, its lucid presentation will appeal to a wide range of readers who are interested in geopolitical issues and economic, political and business history.
Weaving a Pattern: The Spanish Imperial Machine
Weaving a Pattern: The Spanish Imperial Machine
The Portuguese were pioneers of the Atlantic expansion but the kings of Castile and other powers were close behind. The Castilian conquest and occupation of the Canary Islands between ad 1473 and ad 1493 was a response to the challenge posed by the spectacular expansion of Portuguese power and wealth. Following the precedent set by the Pope towards the Portuguese Crown, Spain secured from Pope Alexander VI papal bulls in 1493–1494 giving it the New World; this was to remain fundamental to Spanish claims to possession of the Indies.1
In medieval Spain, conquest and colonisation had been backed by a combination of state sponsorship and private initiative. The Reconquestia, a prolonged struggle over ...
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