Mediterranean Trade in the 16th and 17th Centuries

In the 16th century, Flanders and Northern Italy were Europe's main industrial centers. Their connection was crucial for their development. The Italians transported spices and luxury goods from the East to Flanders, returning primarily with cloth. This trade occurred both overland and by sea. Overland routes passed through mountain passes like Brenner and Saint Gotthard. At the time, overland trade was safer than maritime trade, as North African pirates constantly disrupted sea traffic. By the mid-16th century, this threat extended to the waters around Gibraltar. However, abuses by landowners along the Rhine and in southern Germany regarding toll payments often amounted to piracy. Despite this, the well-developed overland trade routes remained operational.

The 16th century was the golden age of mule transportation in the Mediterranean, lasting until the end of the century. This traditional transport method ceased due to climate change. With the advent of the "Little Ice Age," mountain passes became iced over and impassable. Consequently, Atlantic trade gained prominence. In the early 16th century, Genoese and Venetian ships still dominated these waters, but their significance declined as their timber resources for shipbuilding were depleted. By the latter half of the 16th century, the Mediterranean had largely run out of wood for shipbuilding.

Venice's decline was not solely due to resource depletion but also its failure to recognize the need for changes in ship design. Even in the mid-16th century, they continued using galleys. These ships were suitable for Mediterranean waters because they were fast and independent of wind. They were still rowed by oarsmen, with sails only providing additional power. However, on the Atlantic, galleys could only be used during the summer and carried relatively small cargoes over long distances. Moreover, finding oarsmen became increasingly difficult. Eventually, Venice also adopted carracks, which had capacities of 600–1,000 tons. However, these large, sturdy ships were expensive to build and difficult to steer. By the latter half of the 16th century, they struggled to compete with smaller, faster northern ships.

Northern shipping penetrated the Mediterranean in the 16th century. The English were the first to cross the Strait of Gibraltar in 1511. Ships from Bristol and Southampton reached Sicily, Cyprus, and eventually Beirut. They brought cloth, finished garments, and tin, while returning with pepper, oil, and carpets. However, the English could not compete with the Venetians, and English shipping to the region declined in the 1550s. They returned at the end of the century, but their presence remained modest. The Dutch were the first to achieve significant inroads. They traded essential goods like fish and grain, knowing that the western Mediterranean always needed grain. Dutch grain shipments were especially crucial during times of famine, such as in Italy from 1586 to 1590.

The Hanseatic League also exploited grain shortages, enjoying a temporary advantage since they were not at war with Spain. However, the League faced challenges: they were being edged out of Northern Europe by the Dutch, lost their privileges in London in 1579, and lacked the industrial base and advanced technology of the Dutch. After the 1609 Spanish-Dutch truce, they lost the neutrality advantage, and the Thirty Years' War ultimately extinguished the remnants of Hanseatic trade. By the early 17th century, the Dutch represented northern shipping in the Mediterranean, though England and France also had interests in the region.

The Dutch demonstrated that ships designed for Mediterranean conditions could not compete even in the Mediterranean with the better-designed northern ships. Dutch expansion in the Mediterranean coincided with their more dramatic entry into the Indian Ocean. The first Dutch ship sailed there in 1595, and the Dutch East India Company was established in 1602. Over the next two to three decades, the Dutch gradually took control of the main spice-producing islands in Indonesia, monopolizing much of the eastern spice trade.

By sailing around the southern tip of Africa, the Dutch rendered the northern Red Sea route less significant. The new trade dynamics split the eastern trade route: the Dutch sourced spices, calico, and muslin directly from India, while the English acquired similar goods through Levantine trade. Both trades were highly profitable, making it impossible for others to compete with these two maritime powers.

As a result, the Adriatic Sea gradually became a stagnant backwater. Its decline was sealed in 1669 when the Ottomans captured Crete. In contrast, the Tyrrhenian Sea benefited from changes in trade routes and the incursion of northern trade. Despite its decline, Genoa remained a significant port and business hub with a strong industrial base, thanks to its shipbuilding industry. Trade with southern French ports, particularly Marseille, grew steadily. Marseille's development accelerated after the construction of the Languedoc Canal, which provided France with a direct water route between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. This canal accommodated only small ships, which were built in Marseille.

The Dutch, whose small, mostly unarmed ships had secured northern dominance, understandably had less success in the Mediterranean. The English, however, with their heavily armed, solidly built wooden ships, found it easier to compete in the Mediterranean than in the Baltic. Although their trade in the 16th century was smaller in volume, it grew steadily. Supported by significant military power, England's influence in the Mediterranean expanded, leading to the paradoxical notion of an "English Mediterranean" in the 17th century.

J. H. Parry The Economy of Expanding Europe in the 15th and 17th Centuries. (ford, Märcz Róbert)