Iberian Silk Roads: spices, silver, and souls

Chapter 18 defines the Iberian Silk Roads as maritime networks that contributed decisively to early modern globalisation. From the early sixteenth century, the Portuguese established a string of colonies from the Indian Ocean to Malacca. In partnership with local Asian merchants, they reached the Moluccas, China, and Japan. Decades later, the Castilians discovered a return route across the Pacific, creating a stable connection between Manila and Acapulco. Iberian cartography furthered an accurate knowledge of world geography, while Iberian navigation sparked the global silver trade and three centuries of Sino-Iberian relations. Iberian Asia was shaped not only by political and commercial agendas, but also by the efforts of Catholic missionaries to spread the Gospel and save souls.