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Unit 11 Commercial Capitalism

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Unit 11 Commercial Capitalism UNIT 11 COMMERCIAL CAPITALISM Structure 11.1 Introduction 11.2 What is Commercial Capitalism 11.3 The Period of Commercial Capitalism 11.4 Significant Features of Commercial Capitalism 11.5 Evolution of Commercial Capitalism 11.6 Role of Mercantilism 11.7 Role of Trade 11.8 Transition from Feudalism to Capitalism 11.9 Commercial Capitalism in Spain, Italy, France, England and Holland 11.10 Results of Commercial Capitalism 11.11 Summary 11.12 Exercises 11.1 INTRODUCTION In order to clearly understand the concept of commercial capitalism in all its aspects, it is imperative to first fully conceive what is meant by capitalism (you will read more about capitalism in Unit 12), the different stages that it passed through and the exact stage that is referred to as commercial capitalism. The International Encyclopaedia of Social Sciences refers to capitalism as the economic and political system that in its industrial or full form first developed in England in the late 18th century. Thereafter, it spread over Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Together with its colonial manifestations, it came to dominate the world in the 19th century. Dictionary of Social Sciences explained capitalism as denoting an economic system in which the greater proportion of economic life, particularly ownership of and investment in production goods, is carried on under private (i.e. non-governmental) auspices through the process of economic competition with an avowed incentive of profit. It has been pointed out that the wealth amassed by capitalism differs in quality as well as quantity from that accumulated in pre-capitalist societies. For example, many ancient kingdoms, such as Egypt, displayed remarkable qualities to gather a surplus of production above that needed for the maintenance of the existing level of material life, applying the surplus to the creation of massive religious or public monuments, military or luxury consumption. What is characteristic of these forms of wealth is that their desirable attributes lay in the specific use-values— war, worship, adornment—to which their physical embodiments directly gave rise. By way of decisive contrast, the wealth amassed under capitalism is valued not for its specific use-values but for its generalized exchange-value. Wealth under capitalism is typically accumulated as commodities or objects produced for sale rather than for direct use by its owners. Historians such as Werner Sombart (1915), Max Weber (1922) and R.H. Tawney (1926), who were concerned to relate change in economic organizations to shifts in religious and ethical attitudes, found the essence of capitalism in the acquisitive spirit 5 Capitalism and of profit-making enterprise. The spirit of economic activity under capitalism is Industrialization acquisition, and more specifically, acquisition in terms of money. Acquisition, which is quantitatively and qualitatively absolute, degenerates eventually into unscrupulousness and ruthlessness. It has been pointed out that rise of capitalism is associated with three main features: (1) the growth of the capitalist spirit i.e. the desire for profits, (2) the accumulation of capital, and (3) the development of capitalist techniques. Until the 12th and 13th centuries methods of business were extremely simple. Most trade was local, some of it was barter. During this era in which ideas were hostile to profit, in which techniques of trade were primitive, the chance of emergence of capitalism was slight. Until about 1200 the whole medieval economy can be called non-capitalistic. As late as 1500, capitalism was still in its nascent stage. It is in this context that this unit tries to analyze the meaning and role of commercial capitalism in the late medieval period. The attempt will also be made to look into those historical processes which led to the coming of this phenomenon and, which, in turn subsequently led to the rise of industrial capitalism (see Unit 12). Since commercial capitalism too, like all other phases, had varying impact in different countries, a short discussion about its specific development in different European countries will be undertaken. 11.2 MEANING OF COMMERCIAL CAPITALISM The question now is: what is then commercial capitalism and what is its period? Marxist historians have identified a series of stages in the evolution of capitalism— for example, merchant or commercial capitalism, agrarian capitalism, industrial capitalism and state capitalism— and much of the debate on origin and progress has hinged on differing views of the significance, timing and characteristics of each stage. The first stage, i.e. mercantile or commercial capitalism provided the initial thrust and impetus for capitalism in the sense that merchants started becoming entrepreneurs to cater to market demands by employing wage labourers as well as by exploiting the existing craft guilds. Commercial Capitalism metamorphosed into industrial capitalism, which again, according to Marxist economists, gave way to socialism. Because industrial capitalism was inseparably connected with problems of the working class, this invariably gave rise to different currents of socialist thoughts. Side by side with commercial capitalism sprang what is called agrarian capitalism (capital accumulated out of agricultural surplus) that characterized Europe of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. Commercial Capitalism and agrarian capitalism were, therefore, two forms of capitalism that overlapped with each other, the difference between them being that one emerged out of commercial surplus while the other out of agricultural surplus. Agrarian capitalism sometimes metamorphosed fully into commercial capitalism i.e. invested the entire surplus accumulated from agriculture into commerce and sometimes transformed directly into industrial capitalism by investing in industrial development alone. Sometimes capital was accumulated from both these sources, i.e. commerce and agriculture, and paved the path for the rise of industrial capitalism. Agrarian capitalism was emphasized by Immanuel Wallerstein who adopted a world-economy perspective, and considered its origin to be rooted in the agrarian capitalism. Only transcending the national horizon, by establishing a world trade and commercial network, could fulfil the requirements of capitalism, according to Wallerstein. In this world economy, there existed certain zones— like the periphery, the semi-periphery and the core— where international and local 6 commerce were concentrated in the hands of a powerful bourgeoisie. The strong states imposed unequal exchange upon the weak states. Therefore, the strong states Commercial Capitalism or the core dominated the entire world economy in agrarian capitalism as well as industrial capitalism later. Tribe also emphasized agrarian capitalism which was the essence of a national economy where production is separated from consumption, and is made a source of profit after being utilized in profit-making enterprises. Agricultural revolution, therefore, played a very significant role in the growth of capitalism by feeding a growing population and by creating a surplus to meet the demand for industrial raw materials. Reference is sometimes made to a fourth form—state capitalism—defined by Lenin as a system under which state takes over and exploits means of production in the interest of the class which controls the state; but the phrase, ‘state capitalism’, is also used to describe any system of state collectivization, without reference to its use for the benefit of any particular class. Still there is a fifth form in which there is an increased element of state intervention either in terms of welfare programmes or lessening the impact of business cycle. This is welfare capitalism or protected capitalism. In all these stages of capitalism, identified by the Marxist historians, therefore, the first stage was merchant capitalism or commercial capitalism. Now, what is it? Precisely, capital accumulation out of the profits of merchants to be invested in various economic activities, was what is called commercial capitalism. It took different forms in different stages. For example, it existed in some of its elements in ancient Egypt (as mentioned earlier) and in ancient Rome. In Babylonia, in the city-states of classical Greece, in Phoenicia, in Carthage, in the Hellenistic states of the Mediterranean littoral, and in the Roman Empire, also during different stages Commercial Capitalism developed. There was, however, little uniformity of economic and political institutions in these variant forms of commercial capitalism or merchant capitalism, which at this time was in a very nascent stage. Even where merchant capitalism existed in the ancient world, large applications of improved technology to goods production did not occur. In short, therefore, the ancient times were the age of capitalist accumulation, rather than capitalist production. In the middle ages, however, the form assumed by commercial capitalism was entirely different. It was during this time that it developed in the true sense. In England, and even more emphatically in Holland, the birth of capitalism can be dated from the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Holland’s supremacy in international trade, associated with its urgent need to import grain and timber (and hence to export manufactures) enabled Amsterdam to corner the Baltic trade and to displace Venice as the commercial and financial centre of Europe. The capital thus amassed was available to fund the famous chartered
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