Hist 2111 Survey of United States History to 1877

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HIST 2111 Survey of United States History to 1877 During the early 1400s the Europeans sought to trade with Asia, which encouraged Christopher Columbus to begin his voyage in 1492. The Europeans conquest was about three things: gold, God, and glory. “Europeans were especially attracted by the lure of Asia, a near-mythical land of silks, jewels, and millions of “heathens” to be Christianized.” (Tindall, Shi, pg. 9). Although the motivation of the Europeans conquest was about gold, God, and glory neither outweighed the other. In my opinion, the driving force originally was about gold. This conquest was justified by the Europeans desire to obtain a trade root. When Columbus landed in the new world the original meeting was genuine however, greed would soon change the relationship with the Europeans and the Indies. It is apparent that when Columbus landed in the Bahamas he believed he was somewhere near the East Indies. The mission was to obtain gold, not glory, religion or slaves. In an attempt to prove that his voyage was successful, he brought back five of the Indies along with gold. When money is given including in today’s society proof of success or profit must be shown. This is the reason Columbus had to bring proof to Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand that the trip was a success. This is due largely to the fact that they funded the voyage. We see later that as a result of this encounter they dispatched seventy ships to America the next year. The initial desire of the Europeans was to obtain a trade root. The destination was set for Asia. This is where Christopher Columbus began to establish his purpose for the voyage. The goal of the trade root was to gain gold and spices. The Europeans encountering the New World would introduce them to a large variety of plants and animals such as sweet corn and turkeys. This is what brought about “The Great
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