When one wonders why the United-States and Brazil, which have similar areas and as much riches, did not follow the same destiny, one first speculates about their emancipation dates, protestant vs catholic ethic, or the treatment of natives, but is eventually always lead to study the Mediterranean.
That's where they both originate.
Here in fact the question we address is not Brazil vs the U.S. but why the
Mediterranean, compared to other comparable seas, played such a role in the
history of the World.
The whole history of the World seems to stem from there. And to stay actual there appears that a good part of recent history is a consequence of the lock of the Middle-East by the Ottomans five centuries ago. That lead the Western world to search for other routes to trade with the Orient with all the consequences we know.
Today we live in the tail of this world, compounded with the early XXth century discovery of new riches in the region, but it's been a long time the region has useful riches.
Then why here rather than elsewhere ?
The hypothesis we propose is that to make a civilization -
civilizations - a sea surrounded by lands is necessary. It is better if the sea
is of temperate climate and navigable, and if the surrounding lands are varied.
A sea surrounded by lands is a space for easy trade, and it offers convenient
protection. Invaders are limited at first to counters and harbours.
When one peers over the map of the World one finds many small and more or less
temperate seas : West Indies, Bengali gulf, China sea, Molucos, Papua, let alone
the Baltic sea, the Black sea, the Mozambic channel, the Persian gulf, and many
other. But it is never as rich of possibilities as the Mediterranean :
Bengali : not enough variety in the surrounding lands
China : just a channel, not enough protection
Molucos : islands (like Polynesia)
Papua : there is a large land at the South, but too open a situation, and too distant from "the craddle of humankind",
Persion gulf : doubtllessly a very old history, more than 5000 years old, and therefore forgotten...
Baltic : too cold
West Indies : the greatest enigma. Let's note that the Olmecs were in Yucatan before any other civilisation in the area, we think it is related to the West Indies sea.
More to come...