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The Commercial Revolution in Medieval Europe

从12世纪60年代开始，北欧新银矿的开发导致了大量银币的铸造和流通。

Beginning in the 1160s, the opening of new silver mines in northern Europe led to the minting and circulation of vast quantities of silver coins.

现金的广泛使用大大增加了国际贸易额。

The widespread use of cash greatly increased the volume of international trade.

商业流程发生了根本性的变化。

单独处理几乎所有交易的个体行商演变成涉及三种不同商人类型的经营：定居商人经营内务，融资和组织公司的整个进出口贸易；经海路运输货物的承运人；以及定居在国外城市的公司代理商，他们在内务部门的建议下负责销售和采购。

The individual traveling merchant who alone handled virtually all aspects of exchange evolved into an operation involving three separate types of merchants: the sedentary merchant who ran the “home office,” financing and organizing the firm’s entire export-import trade; the carriers who transported goods by land and sea; and the company agents resident in cities abroad who, on the advice of the home office, looked after sales and procurements.

当一个商人监督一切并与买卖双方进行直接交易时，商业信函就变得多余了。

Commercial correspondence, unnecessary when one businessperson oversaw everything and made direct bargains with buyers and sellers, multiplied.

商业城市间的定期快递服务开始了。

Regular courier service among commercial cities began.

当公司不得不与股东、制造商、客户、分公司、员工和竞争对手打交道时，商业会计变得更加复杂。

Commercial accounting became more complex when firms had to deal with shareholders, manufacturers, customers, branch offices, employees, and competing firms.

道路通行费高到足以支撑所谓的道路革命，包括新的路面和桥梁、新的阿尔卑斯山通道，以及新的旅馆和旅客收容所。

Tolls on roads became high enough to finance what has been called a road revolution, involving new surfaces and bridges, new passes through the Alps, and new inns and hospices for travelers.

商人之间相互信任的增长促进了赊销的增长，并导致了金融的新发展，如汇票，一种使漫长、缓慢和非常危险的硬币运输成为不必要的工具。

The growth of mutual trust among merchants facilitated the growth of sales on credit and led to new developments in finance, such as the bill of exchange, a device that made the long, slow, and very dangerous shipment of coins unnecessary.

德国汉萨同盟的经历说明了这些进步。

The ventures of the German Hanseatic League illustrate these advancements.

汉萨同盟是1159年由欧洲城镇组成的商业联盟。

The Hanseatic League was a mercantile association of European towns dating from 1159.

到14世纪末，该联盟发展到包括从荷兰到波兰的约200个城市。

The league grew by the end of the fourteenth century to include about 200 cities from Holland to Poland.

联盟城市的船只越过波罗的海和北海的常规的、明确的贸易路线，运载着毛皮、蜡、铜、鱼、谷物、木材和葡萄酒。

Across regular, well-defined trade routes along the Baltic and North seas, the ships of league cities carried furs, wax, copper, fish, grain, timber, and wine.

这些商品从西方城市换来了制成品，主要是布料和盐。

These goods were exchanged for finished products, mainly cloth and salt, from western cities.

在布鲁日和伦敦等城市，汉萨商人获得了特殊的贸易特许权，免除了所有的过路费，并允许他们在当地集市上交易。

At cities such as Bruges and London, Hanseatic merchants secured special trading concessions, exempting them from all tolls and allowing them to trade at local fairs.

汉萨商人建立了对外贸易中心，其中最著名的是伦敦钢场，这是一个有围墙的社区，有仓库、办公室、教堂和供公司代表居住的住宅区。

Hanseatic merchants established foreign trading centers, the most famous of which was the London Steelyard, a walled community with warehouses, offices, a church, and residential quarters for company representatives.

到十三世纪晚期，汉萨商人已经发展出一种重要的商业技术——商业登记。

By the late thirteenth century, Hanseatic merchants had developed an important business technique, the business register.

商人们公开记录他们的债务和合同，并获得联盟担保。

Merchants publicly recorded their debts and contracts and received a league guarantee for them.

这种方法被证明是后来北欧信贷和商业发展的决定性因素。

This device proved a decisive factor in the later development of credit and commerce in northern Europe.

这些发展加起来就是一位现代学者所说的“商业革命”。从长期看，中世纪盛期的商业革命给欧洲社会带来了翻天覆地的变化。

These developments added up to what one modern scholar has called “a commercial revolution.” In the long run, the commercial revolution of the High Middle Ages (A.D.1000–1300) brought about radical change in European society.

这种变化的一个显著的方面是，商业阶层只占总人口的一小部分——从不超过10%。

One remarkable aspect of this change was that the commercial classes constituted a small part of the total population—never more than 10 percent.

他们的影响力远远超过了他们的人数。

They exercised an influence far in excess of their numbers.

商业革命创造了大量的新财富，这意味着更高的生活水平。

The commercial revolution created a great deal of new wealth, which meant a higher standard of living.

财富的存在并没有逃过国王和其他统治者的注意。

The existence of wealth did not escape the attention of kings and other rulers.

财富可以征税，通过征税，国王可以建立强大而集权的国家。

Wealth could be taxed, and through taxation, kings could create strong and centralized states.

在接下来的几年里，与中产阶级结盟使国王能够削弱贵族的利益，建立起后来被称为“现代”的国家。

In the years to come, alliances with the middle classes were to enable kings to weaken aristocratic interests and build the states that came to be called modern.

商业革命也为成千上万的农业工人提供了改善其社会地位的机会。

The commercial revolution also provided the opportunity for thousands of agricultural workers to improve their social position.

11世纪开始的商业革命的最大影响是欧洲社会缓慢而稳定地从几乎完全的乡村和孤立状态向相对比较城市化的状态转变。

The slow but steady transformation of European society from almost completely rural and isolated to relatively more urban constituted the greatest effect of the commercial revolution that began in the eleventh century.

尽管如此，除了在意大利中部和北部以及佛兰德斯郡，商人们并没有经营中世纪的社区。

Even so, merchants and business people did not run medieval communities, except in central and northern Italy and in the county of Flanders.

贵族和教士决定了占主导地位的社会态度、价值观以及思想和行为方式。

The nobility and churchmen determined the predominant social attitudes, values, and patterns of thought and behavior.

然而，11世纪到14世纪的商业变化确实为城市生活和文化的发展奠定了经济基础。

The commercial changes of the eleventh through fourteenth centuries did, however, lay the economic foundation for the development of urban life and culture.

According to paragraph 1, one effect of the increased use of cash was that

The word “oversaw” in the passage is closest in meaning to

According to paragraph 2, which of the following was NOT an effect of the change in business procedures?

Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.

Why does the author provide the information in paragraph 4 that the commercial classes never exceeded 10 percent of the population?

The word “alliances” in the passage is closest in meaning to

According to paragraph 5, the most important result of the commercial revolution was to

Paragraph 5 supports which of the following inferences about the commercial revolution between A.D. 1000 and 1300?

Look at the four squares  that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage. While it originated in the German city of Lübeck, it began to expand in 1241 when Lübeck entered into a mutual protection treaty with the city of Hamburg.  Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a square  to add the sentence to the passage.

Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.

The Commercial Revolution in Medieval Europe Beginning in the 1160s, the opening of new silver mines in northern Europe led to the minting and circulation of vast quantities of silver coins. The widespread use of cash greatly increased the volume of international trade. Business procedures changed radically. The individual traveling merchant who alone handled virtually all aspects of exchange evolved into an operation involving three separate types of merchants: the sedentary merchant who ran the “home office,” financing and organizing the firm’s entire export-import trade; the carriers who transported goods by land and sea; and the company agents resident in cities abroad who, on the advice of the home office, looked after sales and procurements. Commercial correspondence, unnecessary when one businessperson oversaw everything and made direct bargains with buyers and sellers, multiplied. Regular courier service among commercial cities began. Commercial accounting became more complex when firms had to deal with shareholders, manufacturers, customers, branch offices, employees, and competing firms. Tolls on roads became high enough to finance what has been called a road revolution, involving new surfaces and bridges, new passes through the Alps, and new inns and hospices for travelers. The growth of mutual trust among merchants facilitated the growth of sales on credit and led to new developments in finance, such as the bill of exchange, a device that made the long, slow, and very dangerous shipment of coins unnecessary. The ventures of the German Hanseatic League illustrate these advancements. The Hanseatic League was a mercantile association of European towns dating from 1159.  The league grew by the end of the fourteenth century to include about 200 cities from Holland to Poland.  Across regular, well-defined trade routes along the Baltic and North seas, the ships of league cities carried furs, wax, copper, fish, grain, timber, and wine.  These goods were exchanged for finished products, mainly cloth and salt, from western cities.  At cities such as Bruges and London, Hanseatic merchants secured special trading concessions, exempting them from all tolls and allowing them to trade at local fairs. Hanseatic merchants established foreign trading centers, the most famous of which was the London Steelyard, a walled community with warehouses, offices, a church, and residential quarters for company representatives. By the late thirteenth century, Hanseatic merchants had developed an important business technique, the business register. Merchants publicly recorded their debts and contracts and received a league guarantee for them. This device proved a decisive factor in the later development of credit and commerce in northern Europe. These developments added up to what one modern scholar has called “a commercial revolution.” In the long run, the commercial revolution of the High Middle Ages (A.D. 1000–1300) brought about radical change in European society. One remarkable aspect of this change was that the commercial classes constituted a small part of the total population—never more than 10 percent. They exercised an influence far in excess of their numbers. The commercial revolution created a great deal of new wealth, which meant a higher standard of living. The existence of wealth did not escape the attention of kings and other rulers. Wealth could be taxed, and through taxation, kings could create strong and centralized states. In the years to come, alliances with the middle classes were to enable kings to weaken aristocratic interests and build the states that came to be called modern. The commercial revolution also provided the opportunity for thousands of agricultural workers to improve their social position. The slow but steady transformation of European society from almost completely rural and isolated to relatively more urban constituted the greatest effect of the commercial revolution that began in the eleventh century. Even so, merchants and business people did not run medieval communities, except in central and northern Italy and in the county of Flanders. Most towns remained small. The nobility and churchmen determined the predominant social attitudes, values, and patterns of thought and behavior. The commercial changes of the eleventh through fourteenth centuries did, however, lay the economic foundation for the development of urban life and culture.