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The Age of Exploration and Colonization

By: Jamie Bourne

"Redirect Notice." Redirect Notice. Pinterest, n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2017.

Economic motives for Exploration

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Carraway, Angie. "UNIT I - REASONS FOR EXPLORATION & COLONIZATION - WSMS 8th US HISTORY." Google Sites. WSMS,
n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2017.

The main economic push factor for European countries to explore new lands was to find gold and
riches. This picture shows the trade and circulation of different items and where they came from. Precious
metals were very scarce in Europe for the amount of people that populated the Countries. European
monarchs were in hopes of finding gold and silver in the Americas, contributing to the greed part of
reasoning. Not only were gold and silver valuable, but spices and other foods were as well. New and
exciting tastes were very valuable to the different explorers. A great example of this is the Portuguese
explorer Vasco Da Gama. He went to India and filled his boat with the different spices they had. Once he
returned home his cargo was worth 60 times the cost of the voyage, giving him a very nice profit. The
picture is a very good example of how more than just metals can be worth a lot of time, money, and effort.
Another reason to explore was to find quicker, easier trade routes. If trade routes were made between
different countries, it would be much easier to trade, spread goods, and spread ideas. Having established
trade routes would also save money by having safer trade routes, and quicker ways to save time and
materials.

Religious motives for Exploration

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Your Highnesses, as Catholic Christians, and princes who love and promote the holy Christian faith, and are enemies of the
doctrine of Mahomet, and of all idolatry and heresy, determined to send me, Christopher Columbus, to the above-mentioned
countries of India, to see the said princes, people, and territories, and to learn their disposition and the proper method of
converting them to our holy faith; and furthermore directed that I should not proceed by land to the East, as is customary, but by a
Westerly route, in which direction we have hitherto no certain evidence that any one has gone.
Mar, Paul Halsall. "Medieval Sourcebook: Christopher Columbus: Extracts from Journal." Internet History Sourcebooks Project. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 10 Mar. 2017.

This primary source came right from Christopher Columbuss journal. This excerpt from his
journal explains a huge religious motive for himself, and other explorers. Christopher Columbus says
and to learn their disposition and the proper method of converting them to our holy faith; Many
explorers wanted to spread their religion and convert the people of another population to follow their
religion as well. While thats a good example of a pull factor to explore new lands there were also some
push factors. The main push factor to leave Europe was to find religious freedom. Puritans were
Protestants that basically did not agree with the religion/church and thought it should be more holy. They
could change this in Massachusetts where they settled, being the largest groups from England to do so.
This idea of freedom of religion and no persecution made others want to come over, and eventually more
colonies were formed, and the idea kept going and spreading. The Kings of Empires wanted their religion
to spread to establish power and more colonies of their Kingdom. Christopher Columbus again is a good
example because he and his King wanted to convert the Native Americans to Christianity.

Political motives for Exploration

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Dahlgren, Whitney. "I. Age of Exploration & Colonization." Team Sigma Social Studies. Weebly, n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2017.

Now I know this is a satire on the European colonization of the New World, but it does explain
the idea of power well. The main political reason for exploration was gaining power. In this cartoon the
Native American is telling his son that none of this land will be theirs, even though they lived and
colonized there first. This speaks loudly to the idea of going to the New World to gain power. Nations in
Europe realized that they gained more power by settling in the New World and spreading deeper into the
land. They gained more power because the other two reasons (economic and religion) came into play.
Politically the nations and kings were gaining off of these explorations and were able to just keep sending
out more expeditions and even set of civilizations. This political growth allowed nations to challenge
other nations for power, continuing to add to political desire to gain as much land as possible. European
absolutism was the go to political approach to gain this power and land. The nations did not want to co-
exist, so they would just take over land, like the Americas, even though the Native Americans were there
first. To be politically strong you had to gain land, to gain land you had to spread and conquer, and to do
this took money and time.

Columbus Conquest of Hispaniola

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"Age of Discovery." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 07 Mar. 2017. Web. 13 Mar. 2017.

The natives of Hispaniola, Taino Indians (Arawaks), were very friendly. When Columbus and his
crew arrived in 1492, they made the explores very welcome and had no interest in making them leave of
fighting. There was gold, fertile soil, and natives to be used as laborers. Columbus had no concern for the
interest or well-being of the Taino Indians, all he cared about was the gold. They were able to set up a
colonization as the first stable settlement in the New World. This settlement was on the southern coast of
Hispaniola, modern day Santo Domingo. Due to maltreatment and abuse to their woman, the Arawaks
rose up, but were crushed in 1495. Columbus was the governor until 1499 and did try to stop the more
serious abuse towards the Natives. This all relates to the map shown above by showing the travelers, the
dates, and the destinations. As you can see in the map, after Columbus settled in Hispaniola, new
discoveries of modern day America began to arise. The map shows how the Spaniards discovered the
little island of Hispaniola before discovering the larger lands of the New World.

Spanish Encomienda System

The encomienda system was created by the Spanish to control and regulate American Indian labor and behavior
during the colonization of the Americas. Under the encomienda system, conquistadors and other leaders
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(encomenderos) received grants of a number of Indians, from whom they could exact tribute in the form of gold or
labor.
Lehrman, Lewis E. "Encomienda System Established." The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. 49 W. 45TH STREET, 6TH
FLOOR NYC, NY 10036, 2009. Web. 13 Mar. 2017.

This secondary source says the basic definition of the encomienda system. This system was
basically created by the Spanish to control the American Indians while the Europeans were colonizing
the Americas. The system made it easier to control the Native Americans and even control their religion.
The encomenderos, or leaders, were supposed to protect and Christianize the Natives but that is not
how this power was really used. As you could probably guess the encomenderos would just use the
Encomienda System to enslave the Natives and even take their land. This system is viewed by many as
one of the worst things to happen in the Spanish American history. This system symbolizes oppression
and exploitation because of the way that European explorers took advantage of the Natives. The idea
behind the encomienda system seems good and well-intended in a perfect world. It was going to help
educate the Natives, help them become Christians, and protect them from threats. However, the power
that was given the select Spanish leaders was not used with responsibility. Instead of helping the Native
Americans, it destroyed them. The craziest thing behind the system is the reasoning. The main reason,
theoretically, for the formation of this system was the Spanishs religion. Of course they could not just
convert the Native Americans, their greed for more took over the intentional good cause.

Disease Epidemics
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Stalinist, Espresso. "Native American Genocide." The Espresso Stalinist. The Espresso Stalinist, 24
Mar. 2014. Web. 13 Mar. 2017.

European diseases ravaged the populations of the Native Americans. This picture shows the effect
of the deaths and the other civilians. The Natives were not used to these diseases brought over by the
Europeans and did not fully understand the cause of this sudden outbreak of disease and death. Influenza,
smallpox, measles, and typhus fever were some of the first diseases brought to the Americas. European
explorers were not affected by theses diseases because they had been exposed to them before. Being
exposed to the diseases let their body build up a resistance to the bacteria and viruses, causing them not to
be sick. The Bering Land Bridge was created during an ice age in the 50,000s BCE. The ice age caused
more glaciers which lowered the water levels, forming the Bering Land Bridge between Asia and the New
World. When nomads would travel across the bridges and go through the extreme colds they brought
almost no diseases and bacteria to the New World. This is why the Native Americans had not been
exposed to diseases like smallpox, and did not have a resistance. These seeming small diseases caused a
very severe effect on the population of the Natives. Between 1492 and 1650 their population may have
dropped as much as 90%. Overall, the Europeans brought over diseases that killed almost every Native it
came in contact with and also affected their livestock and crops, destroying the once harmless Americas.

Cortes Conquest of the Aztecs

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"Corts and Pizarro." Corts and Pizarro - HistoriaRex.com. Historia Rex, n.d. Web. 13 Mar.
2017.

Hernan Cortes is a very well-known Spanish Conquistador but was not a very kind or rational
person. As this picture shows, Cortes wanted to conquer the Aztec Empire and take Mexico for Spain. In
1519 he and his crew reached the Mexican coast and were prepared to take over the land. The Natives
were immediately hostile and resistant toward the Spanish invaders. Cortes easily overpowered them with
his swords, armor, and horses that were way more advanced than the Natives weapons. Later that year he
set his sights on the Aztec Empire, and taking more power for himself and Spain. The Aztecs had a god
named Quetzalcoatl, was supposed to return to Earth and fulfil their prophecy. This idea of their god
returning made them think that Cortes was the god, and they met him with great honor and even told
others to come and see what was happening. The Aztec leader, Montezuma, took them to the main city
and the Europeans ransacked the place. Cortes manipulated Montezuma and ruled through him. As the
picture shows the people were killed and could do nothing against the horses and swords of the army.
Also, 3 million Aztecs died from smallpox alone, devastating their population.

Pizarros conquest of the Inca

Atahuallpa, the 13th and last emperor of the Incas, dies by strangulation at the hands of Francisco
Pizarros Spanish conquistadors. The execution of Atahuallpa, the last free reigning emperor, marked the end of 300
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years of Inca civilization.

Staff, History.com. "Pizarro Executes Last Inca Emperor." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2010. Web. 14 Mar.
2017.

Pizarro was a great leader for the Spanish conquistadors but also represents a very sad end for the
Incas and their empire. As this quote says, Pizarro and his men ended the 300 year civilization of the Inca
empires. The Aztec Empire was built in the Andes Mountains of Peru and was home to about 12 million
people. Their leader, Atahuallpa, had just defeated the army of his half-brother Huascar and were trying to
recover from the hard fought war. This is when Pizarro appeared with 180 soldiers on November 15, 1532
to conquer them. Pizarro was very smart though and knew that his 180 men were no match for
Atahuallpas 30,000 men. He invited Atahuallpa to have a feast in his honor for winning one of the largest
battles in history. Atahuallpa arrived with several thousand men, all unarmed, and was ready to celebrate.
He refused to be Christianized though and threw the Bible to the ground which made Pizarro immediately
order the attack. The guns and cavalry were alienated to the Incas and the Spanish slaughtered thousands
of them. Capturing Atahuallpa, later on August 29, 1533 he was tied to a stake and was offered the choice
of being burned alive or strangled by a garrote if he converted to Christianity. He picked the option to be
strangled in hopes to preserve his body. Pizarro deceived the Incas and destroyed their civilization, just to
gain more power.

Middle Passage
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"Middle Passage." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 24 Jan. 2017. Web. 14 Mar. 2017.

The Middle Passage, or triangular trade, was a three part trading voyage that started and ended in
Europe. This passage is most commonly thought of as the slave trade, and even though other goods like
textiles and sugar were shipped, the main purpose was for slaves. The slaves were brought from Africa to
the Americas to sell off as slaves, and the ships would then go back to Europe with sugar, tobacco, and
cotton. The Middle Passage was a good idea in theory. It made trade between several nations more
efficient and more goods were spread around, but the slave trading was a bad thing to occur. The Africans
would be taken from Africa in exchange for things like iron, brandy, cloth, firearms, and gunpowder. 300-
400 slaves would be packed into a level of the ship and there was little to no head space. They were
restricted with shackles and branded with hot irons. To make matters worse, there was very little
ventilation, and with all of those people in a tight area the smell and discomfort was unbearable. There
were buckets that they used for waste, but with such little room, and no way to stay clean, spread of
disease of inement. Another scary thought is that these Africans did not know what was going on, or why
they were being transported. All of these reasons would sometimes be enough to make some of the slaves
want to commit suicide, but even this option was taken away from them. The captain valued his human
cargo and did not want them to die. A contraption called the speculum orum would be used to force feed
the people that tried to starve themselves. Sadly, 10-20 percent of the slaves on the Middle Passage died
due to the poor conditions and diseases.
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African Slavery in the New World

Nation, Zulu. "United States and the Americas History." Universal Zulu Nation. Universal Zulu Nation, n.d. Web. 14 Mar.

2017.

Slavery began when the first slaves were brought over to Jamestown, Virginia in 1619. As this
chart shows British North American and the United States accounted for 500,000 or 4% of the total
11,328,000 slaves caught and enslaved all over for this time period. In total the United States would climb
up to about 4 million slaves that were later freed in the Civil War in 1865 due to the Union win. Slavery
became a big part of the American colonies because of the help they provided with farming tobacco and
cotton. A Dutch ship brought 20 slaves over to Jamestown, leading to a huge demand for these free
laborers throughout the American colonies. This high demand in slaves led to the Europeans depriving
Africa of their strongest men and women. Slaves were mainly needed in the South where they worked in
fields to grow mainly rice, indigo, and tobacco. The Cotton Gin was invented in 1793 and was another
factor that added to the slaves importance to the Souths economy. The North did not need slaves due to
their more industrial economic state and moved to have slavery abolished because of how it was similar
to Britain's oppression on them. This did not happen until later at the end of the civil war though, as I said
before.
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Columbian Exchange

Refoua, Serena. "5. THE COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE: Geography, World History." Look It Up!!Belmont High Library, n.d.

Web. 14 Mar. 2017.

The Columbian Exchange was a very important part in history and in the Age of Exploration. The
Columbian Exchange was when old world items, animals, and ideas were passed to the New World and
vise versa. Crops like wheat, barley, rice, and turnips were home to Europe and were not in the New
World. The image above also shows things like sugarcane, onions, grapes, peach, pear, and coffee beans
as being traded to the New World as well. Maize, white potatoes, sweet potatoes, and manioc were New
World crops that the Europeans had never seen before. The discovery and trade of these new crops were
obviously huge for both the New World and Europe. The new foods and crops allowed both areas to make
new things, and experience more foods. Animals such as horses, cows, sheep, and goats were not in the
New World. There were no working animals for farming in the New World like there was in Europe
which obviously would be a huge advantage for the Natives and settlers to now have. The New World
only had animals like alpacas, dogs, few fowl, and guinea pigs. The New World also did not have the
pathogens and diseases that the Old World had. When the Europeans came on the Columbian Exchange
they brought Malaria, Smallpox, Influenza, Typhus, Measles, and Whooping cough with them. The ideas
such as new ways to farm and toolmaking were spread from the Natives and the Europeans. The settlers
did not live peacefully with the Natives though and abused them, took land, scared of game and livestock,
and brought in alcoholism. Even so, the diseases that were brought over by the Europeans were the main
factor to kill the Natives. While the Columbian Exchange was hugely important to how we live now, it
was also devastating to the Natives who were exposed to the diseases and abuse.
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Social Structures in the New World

"C11 - AP World Review 2011." Google Sites. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2017.

The Spaniards had a lot of different backgrounds and mixes so these names/classes were
developed. The Peninsulares were at the top of the social structure. Peninsulares were Spanish-born
Spaniards residing in the New World or the Spanish East Indies. A creoles was a person born in New
Spain having a mix of European and black descent, especially in the Caribbean. Mestizos were people
born of a mixed race between a Spaniard and a Native American. The lowest class of the New World
social structure was the Africans(slaves) and natives. This social structure was based on your race and
background. Your abilities or contributions did not have an effect on what you would be labeled and how
others would treat and view you. This structure developed because the Spanish discovered the land and
thought that they were superior to the others. The creoles thought it was unfair to have the Peninsulares
placed above them just because they were born in, and had purely Spanish blood. Now this structure
would be clearly seen as ridiculous and and not be allowed, but it was not seen that way then. The initial
idea of having the Africans brought over to the Americas as slaves was basically always intended. The
Native Americans were forced to work, convert, and give over land and even though the trade of African
slaves happened a little later, it was always intended. With that being said, I do not think all colonist like
the creoles and mestizos always had the idea of being put below the Peninsulares.
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European Empires in the New World

Limited, TES Global, and Tangient LLC. "Home." Splashmans - The World in the 17th Century. Tangient LLC 165 10th Street Suite 50

San Francisco, CA 94103 415.863.8919, n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2017.

As this map shows, the Spanish, British, and French were the main European Empires to rule in
the New World. Even though the new indigenous lands and populations were practically ruled by Europe,
tensions and prices were rising. This was because nations economies started to boom in Europe, and each
wanted more power over the other. Plus, the Europeans expected the indigenous people to be converted to
Christianity. Between 1492 and 1892, the Spanish Empire settled across most of central America, the
Caribbean, Mexico, and much of North America. During the Spanish conquest they defeated huge
civilizations like the Inca, Aztecs, and Maya Empires. This was all basically started when Christopher
Columbus first landed in the New World, and told of its wondrous riches. John Cabots journey to the
New World in 1497 is what started Englands conquests and settlements in North America. The main
reason for Englands expansion through this area was to search for a Northwest Passage through the
continent. Doing this though led to Henry Hudson and Sir Walter Raleigh establishing the early
settlements of Virginia and New York. This idea of a Northwest passage to China and fur trade in Europe
led the French to go on expeditions to the Americas. Samuel de Champlain began the first French
civilization in Quebec, modern day Canada. Europe had a huge, booming economy and it was all do to
these new settlements and resources they took from the Americas.
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Effect on European Populations

"Effects of European Colonization: Christopher Columbus and Native Americans - Video & Lesson Transcript." Study.com. N.p., n.d.

Web. 17 Mar. 2017.

The expansion of territory boosted the European population a lot. This sketch of Jamestown, one
of the first European settlements in the New World, is a reason why their population skyrocketed. By
settling in new areas and exploring new areas the Europeans could gain a lot more resources. Jamestown
was a settlement in Virginia and the European inhabitants farmed crops and raised cattle. This gave more
food resources to the colony and they were able to trade with the European merchants when they came to
trade. Also the Europeans took over a lot of new territory between Portugal, Spain, and the English.
Spanish conquistadors like Hernan Cortes and Francisco Pizarro were able to easily take over the Aztec
and Inca civilizations. With superior weapon technology and steel armour, the Natives had no chance in
beating them. Plus, the smallpox disease had already ravaged their community, weakening their people
and government. Free labor also added to the reasons that their population increased. They used Native
Americans as free workers but mainly used the Africans as slaves. The slaves would do their work and the
Europeans gained all the produce. The gain of power, land, and use of slaves all added to the reasons for
population increase.
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Effect on European Economics

Whittemore, Jessica. "The Commercial Revolution: Economic Impact of Exploration and Colonization on Europe - Video & Lesson

Transcript." Study.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2017.

The European economy also boomed as a result of the discovery and settlements of the New
World. Gold, spices, and new trade routes all contributed to the growth of European countries
economically. The idea of becoming rich was obviously a huge motive for explorers to go to new lands,
but the idea quickly became a reality. As this picture shows the European explorations created the idea of
mercantilism. Mercantilism is the idea that nations economies compete with each other to be the richest
and most successful. Also, wealth started to be determined by money, and not the amount of land owned.
This plays into the idea of winning or being better than other countries by having more riches.
Countries wanted to have more precious metals, like gold and silver, than others. The way to be
successful was to export more than you import, so that you gain more than you spend. The discovery of
spices was also an important economic factor to the Europeans because they did not have spices like Asia.
By developing new trade routes directly to Asia, they could get the spices for a cheaper price by not
paying merchants from the Middle East at higher prices. Europe also gained wealth through means of
slavery and cruelty. Slaves were a huge aspect of income in the sense that they provided free labor and
were sold/traded. As I said before, taking over the Inca and Maya Empires gained Europe a lot of wealth
because they took all their gold and land.
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Explorer of the Year

"Ferdinand Magellan - Alchetron, The Free Social Encyclopedia." Alchetron.com. Ed. Tripti Joshi. CC BY-SA, 18 Jan. 2014. Web. 19

Mar. 2017.

Ferdinand Magellan was the most influential explorer of his time. He made the huge discovery
that the world was much larger than anyone thought and could be traveled by sea, which before people
thought was not possible because they thought you would fall off the earth. Ferdinand Magellan was a
Portuguese explorer, born in 1480. He was very skilled in navigation the ocean because he had done a lot
of expeditions, starting in 1505. He was also in many battles like the battle of Cannanore in 1506 and the
battle of Diu in 1509. The idea of riches, fame, and even spices compelled him to explore and make his
discoveries. Not only did he discover that it was possible to circumnavigate the the globe by sea, but he
also discovered a Western sea route to the spices islands. Ferdinand Magellan was also the first European
to cross the Pacific ocean. On March 6, 1521 his crew reached the Marianas and Guam and were robbed a
lot by the citizens that lived there. On the 16th he reached the Island of Homonhon in the Philippines,
becoming the first Europeans to reach the Philippines archipelago. Sadly on April 26, when he was sailing
with a small attack crew to try and convert the Datu Lapu-Lapu to christianity, he was hit with a bamboo
spear and died. Ferdinand Magellan was a very brave man that discovered a lot for Europe and the world
today. His discoveries and legacies will always be remembered throughout history.