Layal Barakat 9-14-14

Greed and Glory

Did you know that the first person to discover the Americas was actually Leif Erikson?
Most of the credit still goes to Christopher Columbus, who led the first journey by Europeans to
the Americas. The Native Americans, who already lived in the Americas before Columbus
stumbled upon it, weren’t sure what to think of the newcomers. In the end, the Europeans
impacted the Americas and the Native Americans greatly. Really, the Europeans kept coming
because of their greed and glory.
Christopher Columbus was the first European explorer to set foot in the Americas. In
reality, Columbus wasn’t aiming for the Americas—he was actually trying to get to India
quicker, by going west. He thought that the earth was spherical, and that he could get to India
by sailing the Atlantic Ocean. He planned an expedition. Before the expedition happened,
Columbus needed someone to fund his trip. He asked the King of Portugal, who was smart
enough to think that there wasn’t just ocean between Europe and India, and the king refused.
Columbus then asked King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, and they agreed, but it
wasn’t until six years later that Columbus got his ships. He set sail in August, 1492; towards
what he thought was a straight path towards India, not knowing that the Americas were
blocking his way.
The Native Americans didn’t know who were the people who came to the Americas, nor
why they came. The Native Americans were confused and curious about the newcomers. They
examined the Europeans and then welcomed them with their hospitality. The Europeans soon
turned on them and took their villages and took the Native Americans as slaves. Many Native
Americans also died of European diseases. Even though the Native Americans were friendly
with the Europeans, the Europeans didn’t give it back.
Not only did Europeans affect the Native Americans, but also the Americas as a whole.
The Europeans cut down many trees, because trees were scarce in Europe, and most buildings
in Europe at least had wooden supports. They also took many other natural resources, such as
gold. Europeans also brought horses, which lead to the evolution of the mustang. Horses were
one of the benefits of the Europeans’ arrival, but pigs were not. They would eat the Native
Americans’ crops, and it eventually evolved into the wild boar, which had tusks. The Europeans
also brought diseases, such as measles and small pox. The Europeans were used to these
diseases, but the Native Americans weren’t, so most of them eventually died. The Europeans’
impacted the Americas greatly.
Christopher Columbus was indeed the first European to discover and explore the
Americas. The Native Americans welcomed the newcomers to their land, not knowing that they
would turn on them. The Europeans’ affected the Native Americans (by diseases) and the
Americas (by bringing animals) a lot. No one is still sure to this day if the Europeans’ expeditions
to the Americas were for the better or worse for the course of history, but all of this chaos
came from the Europeans’ excessive greed and want for glory.