The history of the Asia-Pacific region since the 1500s has traditionally been told as one of stagnation and decline imposed by the superiority of Europeans, who also allegedly established capitalism and political and economic domination since their arrival, thus opening the era of “the Rise of the West.” In the last decades, however, there has been a rejection of the academic paradigm that placed Europe as the key player in the formation of a globalized, capitalist world. Since, ever-earlier world-systems have been subsequently defined in Asia, with particular attention paid to China’s economy ... More

The history of the Asia-Pacific region since the 1500s has traditionally been told as one of stagnation and decline imposed by the superiority of Europeans, who also allegedly established capitalism and political and economic domination since their arrival, thus opening the era of “the Rise of the West.” In the last decades, however, there has been a rejection of the academic paradigm that placed Europe as the key player in the formation of a globalized, capitalist world. Since, ever-earlier world-systems have been subsequently defined in Asia, with particular attention paid to China’s economy. The relevance of this task can hardly be overemphasized: a decentralized global history is being delineated. Thus, the mechanisms by which European colonialism managed, eventually, to bend existing “world-economies” and resources to raise a truly global thriving exploitative economy must be made clearer. Asia-Pacific deserves, as much as any other region, a place in global history as one of the key players not only before Europeans landed there but also after (practically until the nineteenth century). In doing such historical and archaeological work, Western colonialism becomes a comparatively tiny event. This book aims to gather different disciplines and points of view to outline the development of colonialism in Asia-Pacific and its implications, and to shed light on relevant topics for a holistic understanding of the colonial processes.