The Columbian Exchange: Chocolate

The Columbian Exchange: Chocolate
During the time frame of 1450-1750, the Columbian Exchange was at its height of power and influence. Many products were introduced from foreign lands, like animals such as cattle, chickens, and horse, and agriculture such as potatoes, bananas, and avocados. Diseases also became widespread and persisted to distant lands where it wreaked devastation upon the non-immunized people. One such influential product during this time period was the cacao, or more commonly known as chocolate. First discovered and used in the Americas, cacao beans quickly traveled to and became a popular treat in European lands. It was valuable in the New World and even used as a currency by the Aztecs. Only the rich and privileged were allowed to purchase the valuable item in the beginning. Cacao was even used in religious ceremonies by the native people. When it moved to Europe and other lands, it also created a lot of stir. The cacao plant had quite a large impact upon the Columbian Exchange.
Chocolate or cacao was first discovered by the Europeans as a New World plant, as the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. In Latin, Theobroma literally means: “food of the Gods” (Bugbee, Cacao and Chocolate: A Short History of Their Production and Use). Originally found and cultivated in Mexico, Central America and Northern South America, its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC. The majority of the Mesoamerican people made chocolate beverages, including the Aztecs, who made it into a beverage known as xocolātl, a Nahuatl word meaning “bitter water” (Grivetti; Howard-Yana, Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage). It was also a beverage in Mayan tradition that served a function as a ceremonial item. The cacao plant is generally native to South America, and while it was not a staple crop, it had great importance politically, socially, and economically. The cacao bean was considered quite valuable, and used as a source of currency. It was considered a great luxury and only people of huge importance could drink the coveted recipe of spices and chocolate. The natives of South America even believed that chocolate had healing properties that brought down fevers, and was a mild aphrodisiac that helped impotence (Beezley, The Global Market from and to The Americas). Despite not being a major crop, chocolate was a popular novelty as it was brought to other lands.
After Columbus’s voyage to the Americas in 1492, he took back to Spain to present the King and Queen not just riches, but also new products that weren’t available in Europe. He took back to Spain the practice of drinking chocolate mixed with heavy spices. For nearly 100 years after the Spaniards were introduced to chocolatl, the coveted drink of the New World inhabitants, they kept the secret of its production to themselves. In the same years as Shakespeare wrote his final plays, the missionary and theologian José de Acosta wrote about cocoa from Lima, Peru, saying, “It is so much esteemed among the Indians that it is one of the richest and the greatest traffickes of New Spain” (Liu; Pelletier, CDA’s World History Wiki). After a century, Spain lost its monopoly on the European chocolate market. By the mid-1600s, the drink made from the little brown beans had gained widespread popularity in France. In Europe, chocolate (as a drink) gained popularity as the production of the beans became more popular. More of the lower and middle class were able to afford it, and it was considered a great treat to have. In terms of economic impact, the cacao had been a boon for the Europeans. It was praised as a delicious, health-giving food enjoyed by the wealthy (McNeill, The Columbian Exchange). Starting from its native land of South America, the cacao plant had truly traveled a long way across the globe to impact other lands.
The Columbian Exchange of 1450-1750 had a large impact on the economy and politics of the world. Many crops that originated in the New World, namely, the Americas, became staple crops of foreign lands. (An example of this would be the potato.) However, even though cacao or chocolate has not been a staple crop, it too had placed its own impact upon the globe. To the Mesoamericans, Aztecs, and Mayans, the cacao represented a plant of the rich and wealthy, romance, and also medicinal properties. To the Europeans, the cacao quickly became a favorite drink of foreign tastes, whether it is sweet, or bitter, or spicy. During the height of the Columbian Exchange, the cacao plant was a major global product of interest. 



Bibliography
Beezley, William. "The Global Market from and to The Americas." The Global Market from and to The Americas. University of South Carolina Beaufort, 23 Nov. 2004. Web. 12 Oct. 2013. .
This source is a PDF file on the Global Market to and from the Americas, focusing especially on the Columbian Exchange. While cacao was only mentioned in a small passage, it provided information on reasons why it was influential. There were rumors of chocolate acting as an aphrodisiac. It also provided even more background information on the Columbian Exchange. It was mildly useful- not for specifics, but as a generalization of information.

Bugbee, James M. Cocoa and Chocolate: A Short History of Their Production and Use. Dorchester, MA: Walter Baker &, Limited, 1917. Print.
This source was more of a general history of chocolate and cacao than one of its influence during the Columbian Exchange. However, it was still quite useful in its content; it had many facts of origin and the fruit itself. There is much information on the cultivation and the appearance of the cacao tree, including much diagrams and pictures within the book. This source had much information upon the plant itself, but the most helpful part was the history and origin of the cacao tree. The information and images provided were quite useful.

Grivetti, Louis, and Howard-Yana Shapiro. Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2009. Print.
This source was quite useful in the research of the history of chocolate. It provided its origin and the usage of cacao. It began as a beverage in Mayan tradition served a function as a ceremonial item as well. The cacao plant had derived from the Americas, but after the Spanish had traveled and integrated the society, the practice of drinking chocolate made its way back to Europe. This book was quite informational in the uses of chocolate from food to medicinal properties, to the role of cacao in the world trade. This book was a very useful source in this collateral.

Liu, Liango, and Michelle Pelletier. "CDA's World History Wiki." The Columbian Exchange and Global Trade -. CDA World History Wiki, n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2013. .
This source was not as useful as the others, but it provided information on the general Columbian Exchange and the process that goods made from the Americas to Europe or Asia. It included maps and pictures of the trade routes. Not many specifics were provided on the topic of cacao; it was only mentioned in a brief passing.

McNeill, J. R. "5.1 The Columbian Exchange." The Columbian Exchange. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2013. .
This source had a wide variety of information on the Columbian Exchange in the Americas. It provided a diverse list of diseases as well as foods, such as the cacao bean. It was not widely mentioned, but it provided that the cacao was a plant native to South America and became important export crops in West Africa in the 20th century. While little information was provided on our specific topic, this source was useful for the information of the Columbian Exchange.

Nunn, Nathan, and Nancy Qian. "The Columbian Exchange: A History of Disease, Food, and Ideas." Journal of Economic Perspectives. Yale University, 2010. Web. 12 Oct. 2013. .
This source was one of the most useful for the research of the collateral. It is a PDF file of the Columbian Exchange and all the background information of the trade, as well as an extensive list of foods are provided. Cacao beans, while not a staple crop, was very influential in the trade network. This journal was useful in providing details on the importance of cacao, and its significance over time.