Colonization of the New World
The discovery and colonization of the “New World” was one of the most significant and influential events in the known history of mankind. It has shaped our present by changing the course of our past and is a time of such great significance that it would be all but impossible to understand today without at least some comprehension of the why 's of yesterday. What was it that drove such a myriad of people to risk so much to tame the wild and vast lands we now know as and call the Americas. What were the reasons, motivations, causes, events, and possibilities that captured the minds and hearts of so many different peoples from such divers backgrounds? What led them to leave their friends, families, and
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According to Howard Zinn it was for the Gold. Zinn claims that it was money and power that were driving forces behind Columbus. He tells us that Spain promised him a 10% cut of all the gold found, governorship of any new found lands, and the new title of Admiral.[2] Gold and the regulation thereof are the primary focuses of Columbus ' letter to the King and Queen of Spain, thought to have been written around the year 1492, but definitely written after the his initial discovery.[3] So whether wholly or in part it appears that riches and power were factors contributing to Columbus ' decision to risk so much. After all he made multiple trips across the Atlantic not just one. So apparently he was concerned with more than just the discovery of a trade route. Columbus ' discovery was made possible by the Spanish Crown therefore all new found lands were claimed in the name of Spain and a Spanish flag planted on the soil thereof in testament to this fact. Spain was still a catholic nation at this time and the Spanish monarchy still acknowledged the Pope as the dominant spiritual authority on the Earth. However it would not be long after Columbus ' discovery that all of Europe would be shaken to its very foundation and set ablaze in what we now call the Protestant Reformation. This revolution in spiritual thought was the result of a simple
When Christopher Columbus sailed to America he was happy and proud of himself because he was the first to discover the land which is now named america, and he was also happy because he found out that there were a lot of resources found on that land which he found was necessary to take and use. According to the document A “Day after day they looked for land;They dreamed of trees and rocks and sand” this shows that the purposely are trying to find land for them to dock and discover. Additionally according to the document A “Columbus sailed on to find some gold To bring back home, as he'd been told.He made the trip again and again,Trading gold to bring to Spain” this shows that he was there not just to discover land but to make riches too and
Ferdinand and Isabella knew that in order to bolster Spain they needed new sources of funding themselves. They turned to the pope and he gave them rights to build the Catholic Church in areas where the Moors had been driven from. He also published decrees giving them control over the funds in the Americas. The Church became a crucial utensil in developing royal absolutism. The New World also proved to be a great source of revenue for Spain (“Ferdinand V”).
Columbus noticed that some of these Indians had little golden ornaments in their noses and ears, This made him take some of the Arawak Indians that they help prisoner onto the ship and insisted they guide him to where they were the source of the gold was, this had lead him to sail to what is now Cuba then to Hispaniola.# There bits of gold were visible in the rivers. Columbus and his crew built a fort and left thirty-nine crew members there to collect gold and store all they would find.
Columbus’s big plan for Hispaniola since the beginning was to take advantage of the natives and take their land, and the gold he believed was located there. He built the first fort in the Western Hemisphere, and left some of his men to find and store gold there. Columbus had to ask for a little more help from their majesties, he convinced them by saying he would take them “as much gold as they need ... and as many slaves as they ask” (Zinn,6 ) Columbus’s plans affected the natives, in many ways; first of all they were going to lose their land, and also they were going to be taken captive for slave labor.
The main idea behind the voyage was to find a faster route to the Indies, as well as introduce Christianity and The King and Queen to the new world along with its inhabitants. As said by Columbus “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.” Like said, it shows that Columbus wished to find a faster route, so Spain could easily be able to obtained traded goods which would produce more profit for the country of Spain. This kind of shows that Spain needed to find this route due
The Europeans main goal revolved around the stability of power of the Spanish Crown. The Spanish Crown was focused on expanding their military so they needed resources such as gold to pay for the constantly increasing military budget. Columbus used this idea to help get resources such as, boats, men, food and weapons from the Spanish Crown. This is important because it describes the desperate need of gold that the Spaniards had which ultimately led to the gruesome acts they committed.
The advantage of working with foreign parties from Spain’s point of view is that Columbus was willing to go on the trip, and there was not a Spanish Explorer that would make the trip. King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella believed that they could benefit from Columbus’ journey west. Queen Isabella wanted land and riches and by sending Columbus west she might be able to gain land and riches from Asia through trade and conquering. Spain was mainly a Catholic nation. They had a strong interest in spreading their religion to any land that they controlled. Any new land that Columbus found and claimed would be claimed for Spain. The advantage for Columbus was that he got paid to go on the journey. He was paid less than a Spanish explorer would have been, so King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella hired Columbus instead
First and foremost, Columbus’ experience was of high value to the Spanish monarchy. Despite initially following in the footsteps of his father as a member of the wool weaving industry, Columbus was quick to pick up mapmaking and sailing as studies (Mariners Museum). Columbus was on the sea even as a teen, joining expeditions through the Aegean and Mediterranean seas (Don Quijote). It was difficult to find such an experienced and educated seaman in contemporary Spain. Many of the future influential conquistadors had yet to be born; the oldest was Francisco Pizarro, and even he was only sixteen years of age when Columbus set sail in 1492. With experience being such a valuable commodity, it was difficult for the Spanish monarchy to justify allowing Columbus to simply offer his skills to another country. Columbus’
To prevent possible death and punishment, he had to say what he did. It would also help later on with the Indians on any return trip if they had excellent relations with each other. His purpose of the narrative was the economic development of the new territory and to ensure his place in it. Not able to do it on his own, he needed to get more money from the king and queen of Spain. The reason he had to do that was Europeans had already traded with China and the Far East. However, they did not know anything of the New World other than what he and the rest of his crew had written. That is why Columbus had to sell them on the opportunities he discovered. That is why he ended his letter with, “In conclusion, to speak only of that which has been accomplished on this voyage. Which was so hasty their highness can see that I will give them as much gold as they may need if their highnesses will render me very slight assistance; moreover I will give them spices and cotton, as much as their highness shall command.” One could say that he was a land developer trying to sell the new world to the crown of Spain. It is now understandable now how he was able to secure funding for more voyages, and start the great exodus of explorers to the new world. Kupperman stated in her article “Reading Columbus's Diario, even in the imperfect form in which it has come down to us, is exhilarating; it allows us to participate in
In the movie the director continued to show Columbus as a greedy perpetrator who destroyed the lives of innocent humans and took a land that wasn’t his. Columbus was not seen as a hero who discovered America, the way he was presented in the movie is totally agreeable. It was clear that Columbus thought highly of himself. In his letter addressed to the king, he explains how the Indians believe he was chosen by God. Throughout the movie and in his own written letter, it is clear that his purpose was to get recognition from the King and Queen of Spain. While also trying to get as much gold as possible for his own selfish needs. In The letter of Columbus, he describes himself as being the only one who discovered everything. Furthermore, in the movie scenes of Columbus’s arrival and conquest of the indigenous people, he forces them to convert to Catholicism. They are exploited for seditious outrage. The Indians didn’t mind giving the Spanish gold or being slaves. But when the Spanish started to kill them they had to rebel.
1. What fundamental factors drew the Europeans to the exploration, conquest, and colonization of the New World? What was the impact on the Indians, Europeans, and Africans when each of their previously separate worlds “collided” with one another? What caused the shift from indentured servant to African slaves as the dominant labor force in the southern colonies?
Christopher Columbus was sponsored by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabel of Spain in 1492 to find an alternate trade route to Asia. The Reconquista was just wrapping up in Spain, and in hopes to continue the movement, the King and Queen encouraged Columbus to spread Christianity once he made landfall. Their goals for his voyage were similar to many at the time: find riches, spread faith, and claim any unconquered lands. Columbus was successful in all three, however, there is much controversy in the measures Columbus took to do so. Although Christopher Columbus caused the death of many indigenous people and ecological succession, his ultimate goal was to carry out the requests of the Spanish government, therefore he should not be found guilty because
Christopher Columbus is known for being an explorer and is said to have made one of the most important voyages in world history without even wanting to. Something else that is also believed is that he “opened up” the Americas to European nations, which changed the course of American history. Before he went on his voyage though, he was in need of resources. So he asked Portugal, France, Italy among many other countries but they all denied Columbus and thought his statement was incorrect. Columbus’ statement was that he had found a faster way to get to Asia than the Portuguese had, which was going around the continent of Africa. Columbus lived a majority of his life in Spain, so when it came to setting sail for the west, Spain was one of the first nations he asked for funding. Though it took Columbus a little more than a few years to convince a nation to fund his voyage, Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand from Spain subsequently granted to endow him in 1492. He would then leave for “Asia” on August 3, 1492. There are many unanswered questions and thoughts on why Spain decided to finally fund Columbus’ voyage, especially since he was an explorer that was born in Italy.
In this find, he gained money, people, land, and respect from the other countries. One of the big things that Columbus got out of this voyage was resources.
The founding of the New World fascinated many Europeans because of the possibilities of the economic, political, and social growth. Europeans packed their belongings and boarded the boat to new beginnings. Arriving in the Americas was not what they had expected. Already pre-occupied in the land, were the Native Americans. The Native Americans refused the Europeans colonization in the America’s, but not all colonies in the Europe just wanted to colonize with the Natives. The intentions of the Europeans colonies were all different, as the Dutch solely came for business transactions. The Dutch business transactions resulted in the change of economic, political, and social movements, changing the lives of the Native’s.