Smallpox in the modern scientific and colonial contexts 1721–1840

Abstract

Maritime voyages in the centuries immediately following Columbus and Vasco da Gama transformed not only Europe’s economy but also its mindset. For the first time in history, prosperity depended not on the goodwill of the God or the King but on the initiative of the merchant and the skills of the navigator and the artisan. Huge profits were waiting to be made if ships could sail to distant lands and return home safely. Knowledge lay not in the past but in the future, not in the archives but out in the open. And knowledge meant wealth. When the East India Company was established, the telescope had not yet been invented. It is no more than a coincidence that the invention of the telescope (Van Helden 1977) took place in the Netherlands the same year (1608) the first English ship reached India. This numerology brings home the important point that modern science and technology grew hand in hand with maritime exploration, colonial expansion and domination over nature and fellow human beings. Scientific and industrial activity triggered by oceanic voyages can be discussed under three heads. First, there were efforts to make the voyages safe. Second, activity was triggered in Europe by the arrival of new things, such as vibrantly printed and dyed cotton textiles. This eventually led to the industrial revolution. Third, accumulated knowledge from distant lands was incorporated into the European mainstream. The best brains of the time applied themselves to furthering maritime activities. Many names, such as Henry Briggs (1561–1636) and Robert Boyle (162–1691), which are celebrated in the history of science, figure in the annals of trading companies as well. With time, feudal forces weakened, mercantile elements gained ground, and Europe in general became receptive to new ideas and influences. Europeans took great interest in the skills and knowledge of the natives in India and the East in general for the sake of their own survival, out of curiosity and for making an impact back home. Traditional empirical technologies from the East were examined and incorporated into the European mainstream. The process of extraction of metallic zinc by inverse distillation that originated in the Aravalli Hills, India, in ancient times was patented by William Champion in 1738 as Bristol process. Analyses of the samples of Indian carbon steel, wootz, and the process of its making led to advances in European steel technology. Similarly, the metal-cased Mysore rockets used against the British by Haidar Ali and Tipu Sultan served as the starting point for the development of Congreve rockets, which served Britain well in its wars against France and USA.