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What was the economic impact of the Columbian Exchange on European mercantilism?

Mercantilism is the belief that national power is derived from wealth and that wealth is accumulated through a favorable trade balance.  In other words,  a nation that sells more goods to foreign markets than it buys will acquire wealth.  The voyages of Christopher Columbus were motivated by the need to establish new trade routes in the pursuit of profit.  The Columbian Exchange played a significant role in the primacy of mercantilism as economic policy.  The exchange introduced new agricultural goods like potatoes, maize, and tomatoes to Europe.  This new abundance of food caused greater nutritional variety to the diet and enabled the populations to grow.  The larger populations would spark the introduction of factory systems to western Europe.  A larger population also created pressures on the economies of Europe.  This pressure was relieved to some degree through the establishment of colonies in the New World.  It was through the colonies that mercantilism really took off.  The colonies supplied Europe with raw materials like wood, sugar, and cotton that were vital to economic growth.  The colonies also supplied important markets to European merchants that hoped to create trade surpluses in the pursuit of wealth. 


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