Why did sedentary civilizations progressively dominate nomadic societies after the fifteenth century?

- The Black Death had a much greater impact on nomadic societies than sedentary ones.

- Sedentary states, especially those in Europe, became centralized and devoted more resources to military advancements used to fight off nomads. Some advancements include:

• Improved metalworking techniques

• More powerful gunpowder and firearms

• Increased military discipline

- Russians, the Ottoman Empire of the Mediterranean, and the Qing Dynasty of China moved into the heartlands of nomadic peoples and settled it with their growing peasant populations.

- This settling brought nomads under sedentary control and re-purposed the pastures used for grazing as agricultural land.

- After the Industrial Revolution occurred, railroads and repeating rifles allowed for the destruction of virtually all remaining nomadic societies.

Source(s): Pearson World Civilizations, AP* Edition