Sean Philipps Myers

BOME

The Romans discovered London around the year 65AD. London has the Thames River running through it. This made London a trading post. This post rapidly expanded into an international trading destination. London takes all the inventory for it’s country. This is called a Entrepose. Being an Entrepose automatically raises the level of wealth in that city or port. What happens is that when a city becomes a port, there is more items for trade. Merchants get these trades and sell for a profit. Since they buy it first hand, it is obviously lower priced then what they would pay for it. So, the more trade you have, the more wealth the people obtain.

The Battle of Hastings in 1066 was what seemed to be the next huge event in London. William the conqueror of the Norman conquest ended the long Ango-Saxon reign of England. This made one ruler for England instead of many small rulers with the land divided up. A feudal system was developed with guilds until 1215 when the Magna Carta gave the people more rights and less power to the king. When the king loses his power of the purse, money exchanges freely and a wide spread distribution of wealth is gained.

We also have to remember that England is an Island. There for the only real military force needed is a navy. There navy becomes the most elite in the world during the colonization of the New World. It could and did go out and conquer all of North America and other places like India and Australia. The conquering these places would lead to trade. This was called mercantilism. England trades and brings back goods to London. London becomes the trade center of the world. London is now the first in political dominance and economic dominance. With this completed, England is an Imperial Country with London as it’s center.