1450-1750 was an extremely important time in the history of the world. The most common type of government was an absolutist. Although specifics within civilizations were varied the general concepts were the same. Governments influenced everything from religion to social status to trade. Ming China and the Ottoman Empire were two major world powers at this time. They were both ruled by absolute rulers but not only did their governments vary but their views on the merchant class were very different.
In Ming China absolutism was brought back after the fall of the Yuan Dynasty run by the Mongols. Their civilization was extremely ethnocentric. The emperors had complete and total rule over the land and all the people. Neo-Confucianism played a large role in the government. This included the reinstatement of the civil service exam which improved the quality of upper class officials and the subordination of women to men. …
