Economy & TradeThe 14th century

Economy & Trade in the 14th century

Every event in the Terralore archive tagged economy and trade — trade, currency, industry and resources, narrowed to the 14th century — 6 of them, drawn from 6 nations, running from 1300 to 1350. Each entry keeps the sources it was verified against and links back to the chronicle it came from.

Events
6
Nations
6
Earliest
1300
Latest
1350
Africa
5
Europe
1

Every entry below is the same record, with the same sources, as the one on its nation’s chronicle.

  1. Africa

    Eritrea

    Massawa grows as a leading port

    Massawa develops into the principal harbour of the coast, mediating trade between the highland interior and the Arabian Peninsula.

    Era: The Beja, the Dahlak Sultanate and the Muslim Coast

    Sources: Massawa · Wikipedia

  2. Africa

    Ghana

    Gold links the forest to the Sahel

    Akan gold dust, traded north through Begho to Djenné and Timbuktu by Wangara merchants, made the forest states wealthy and laid the economic foundations for later kingdoms.

    Era: The Akan forest states and the gold trade

    Sources: Bono people / Bono State · Wikipedia, Ghana (country overview and history) · Encyclopaedia Britannica

  3. Africa

    Mozambique

    Kilwa controls the Sofala gold trade

    The sultanate of Kilwa dominates the export of interior gold through Sofala, drawing wealth from the Zimbabwe and Mutapa goldfields into the wider Islamic world.

    Era: The Swahili Coast and the Gold of Sofala

    Sources: Sofala · Encyclopaedia Britannica, Sofala · Wikipedia

  4. Africa

    Tanzania

    Kilwa dominates the gold trade

    Controlling the gold exported through Sofala, Kilwa reaches its peak of wealth, minting coins and building the Great Mosque, the largest in the region.

    Era: Bantu Settlers and the Swahili Coast

    Sources: Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani and Ruins of Songo Mnara · UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Kilwa Kisiwani · Wikipedia, Kilwa, the abandoned East African city that controlled the medieval gold trade · National Geographic

  5. Africa

    Guinea

    Mansa Musa's pilgrimage makes Mali's gold legendary

    Under Mansa Musa, the Mali Empire — embracing the Mande lands of the upper Niger — reaches its height and becomes renowned abroad for the wealth of its rulers.

    Era: The Mande Heartland and the Sahelian Empires

    Sources: Mali Empire · EBSCO Research Starters, Guinea — History · Encyclopaedia Britannica

  6. Europe

    Norway

    The Hanseatic Kontor at Bryggen

    German merchants of the Hanseatic League established their trading office at Bryggen in Bergen, which became Norway's foremost town and a hub of northern commerce for some four centuries, until 1754.

    Era: The Christian Kingdom, St Olaf and Hanseatic Bergen

    Sources: Bryggen i Bergen · Store norske leksikon, Bryggen (World Heritage List) · UNESCO World Heritage Centre