Final answer:
The growth of trade and wealth led to an expanding role of states as they needed to regulate and protect trade routes, increase military strength, and develop infrastructure. States became wealthier and more complex, necessitating greater government involvement in the economy and the establishment of effective bureaucracies.
Step-by-step explanation:
How did the growth of trade and wealth give rise to an expanding role of states? The answer to this question is multifaceted, reflecting the complex relationship between economics and statecraft in history. As trade expanded, states experienced a significant increase in wealth, which enabled them to finance voyages of discovery and thereby open up new markets, leading to a rapid progression of economic development. This new wealth didn't come without the need for a strong state apparatus to regulate and protect the trade routes.
Increases in state wealth often resulted in the establishment of stronger militaries. As a consequence, states developed comprehensive infrastructures to support economic activity and military power. Besides increased military capacity, governments now took a greater role in managing economies, collecting taxes more efficiently, and overcoming the limitations imposed by traditional feudal systems. Advanced bureaucracies developed to effectively tax and administer these larger, more complex economies.
Trade not only provided direct income but also indirect financial benefits through the taxation of goods passing through a state's territories. As states controlled and taxed trade routes, they accumulated the resources necessary to build powerful armies, ensure internal stability, and create cohesive bureaucracies to manage economic affairs. Due to the importance of protecting wealth and trade, these activities contributed to the growth of state roles, affirming the necessity of a robust state mechanism in the era of expanding trade and economic interdependence.