The Kennewick man For many years, it was theorized that the peopling of the Americas began roughly 12,000 years ago, during the last ice age. As the theory states, what we know as the Bering Strait, was then called the Bering land bridge. This was a direct result of the ice age, as sea levels were 300-400 feet lower than they are today. The lower sea levels supposedly provided the uncovering of said land bridge, which in turn provided the pathway that Indians needed in order to migrate to lands where food was more available. This land bridge, connecting Siberia and Alaska was then traversed by people leaving Asia and thus settling into the Americas.
There were many factors that helped the growth of The British Empire such as early settlers and trading companies, however the Navigation Acts rapidly accelerated the success of the trading companies therefore expanding The British Empire. The Navigation Acts were a set of laws that kept trade in the hands of the British; this gave them ultimate power over most trade and gained them a lot of wealth and thus success. Government and war played a significant role in the growth of the British Empire which gave them more power such as the EIC winning a number of sea battles against the Dutch which granted another firmum which gave the company more effective trading. Trading companies helped the growth of the British Empire, as without these, there would have been no income, meaning Britain couldn’t gain more land and secure more footholds. The trading companies played a significant role in triggering the Navigation Acts, but it was the acts themselves that put trade in the hands of the British.
To what extent was Mercantilism the most important factor in the expansion of the British Empire? Intro * Can be argued strongly that Mercantilism was the most important factor in the expansion of the British empire * Although other factors such as trading companies and naval dominance and subsequent victory in conflict contributed to the consolidation and acceleration of empire * Mercantilism and mercantilist policies and legislature were the ‘launchpad’ that allowed these factors to take place and flourish, thus mercantilism was indeed the most important factor in the expansion of the British Empire, but was not the sole reason for expansion Para 1: Mercantilism * Mercantilist policies were the driving force behind the expansion of empire as they protected British trade and shipping (navigation acts 1696, molasses act 1733), taxed goods coming through British ports and favoured trade to British colonies. Allowed the empire to flourish and develop as they placed emphasis on trade and growth as the key to national strength. * Bank of England 1694 = entrepreneurialism, encouraged stockholders to invest in the empire and in trade which created more funds for further exploration and expansion * Allowed the development of industry and ports to process materials generated by trade such as sugar. Mercantilist legislation passed to expand ports such as Liverpool and Glasgow ensured more exports and imports could be carried out due to the new size and sophistication of the ports = extends trade, revenue and wealth, more funds for war and overseas domination Para 2: Trading companies also played a part in the expansion of empire but could not have flourished without mercantilism.
The discovery and exploration of the Americas led to an initially slow but exponentially increasing westward migration by European countries. Among all the countries were England and Spain who colonized the majority of what is now the United States Eastern Coast. Both intrigued by the rumors and stories of gold and riches that beset the new lands they each did their part in western colonization; and not without reciprocal influence. Initial English colonies were established not only with cliché intentions of religious freedom but also with hopes of new economic expansion through agriculture as well as tactical, advantageous military purposes in the ever-present conflict with Spain. Mainly all original westward exploration was due to desires for gold and riches and in the case of the English this was no exception.
The English and French Colonies in America The English and French were willing to venture for new life that could bring them wealth. The English were first to venture out for this new life. They were among the most important colonizers of the Americas. They set up local governments and a diverse economy. They farmed, fished and traded.
Progressivism is a kind of reform movement which tries to increase society’s prosperity, bring to modernism, innovation and increase the social justice. As Brinkley said “Progressivism created a remarkable period of political and social innovation.” (Brinkley, p 519) People, who defended this movement, are called Progressive, and they have lots of common features like coming from privileged backgrounds, being from towns and cities, having college educated, having a
Numerous factors triggered America’s climb into both economic and social expansion. For example, high tariffs were placed on America-made products, which then gave the US a stable and protected trade interest. In addition the Spanish – American war of 1898 was a major turning point in USA expansion. The war was based on the grounds that Cuba (a colony of both America and Spain) had been declaring independence from Spain, and the USA having created the Monroe Doctrine, which supported the Cubans fight for independence from Spain in The USA, was to be involved for what can only be described as for their own best interest, due to Cuba having a oil supply. And on February 15, 1898, the USS Maine sank in Havana, in which an explosion caused 266 deaths.
American Imperialism in the Nineteenth Century As a growing nation, the United States felt the need to continue expansion for the benefit of all citizens. Territorial development allows for growth in population and natural resources to produce goods and supply services for prosperity. To acquire or control territories, forcible means would sometimes be used, otherwise known as imperialism. This paper will describe imperialism more intently. Advantages of imperialism will be discussed, as well as some of the disadvantages.
With the wealth of the Americas Spain was able to finance nearly endless warfare in Europe to protect the Americas and bring Catholicism to the New World. In 1519 the promise for riches was fulfilled by Hernan Cortes’s march into Mexico. His expedition served as the model for Spaniards’ and other Europeans’ expectations that the New world could
Another Portuguese explorer was Da Gama. Da Gama captained the fleet of ships to reach India. There, they found many more spices and set up trading posts for Europe. This Journey opened a direct route to the overseas trade that helped for Portugal’s economy. Though Portugal was probably the largest country for exploration another center country was Spain.