... Empire carried on, the Western Empire collapsed. Before its division and collapse, the Roman Empire had a very complicated trading network with the peoples of Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. This meant that the Romans had an economy that had access to many resources. In addition to ... why Italian merchants traded so much were because they had a large trade-ship fleet, money, and because of a merchant/explorer named Marco Polo. Marco Polo was born in Venice, Italy into a merchant family. In 1271, Marco set out with his father and uncle on a journey, along the Silk Road ... which was...

• Word Count: 775
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School