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American History 1. The promise of new riches and the potential discovery of the fabled Northwest Passage were the primary objectives, which fueled the exploration of the New World. Yet these goals were not practical enough when the European nations decided to colonize the Americas. Apparently, a prosperous and enduring colonial empire depended on self-sustaining economic development (article) rather than an autocratic and rigidly controlled colony in which everything was to benefit the parent country. The degree of success in colonizing the Americas would be measured by this fact. As long as a country could quickly populate its colonies and establish a self-sufficient economy, it would be ahead in the race to colonize the New World.
Although the new riches and the Northwest Passage were still sought after, they werent the final motivations for colonization any longer. Each country also had their individual set of objectives for exploring the Americas. Spain, along with its quest for riches became determined to convert the "heathens" to Catholicism. The French and the Dutch stuck to the primary objectives of new riches and the discovery of the Northwest Passage. England, spurred by growing national rivalries with France and especially Spain, explored the New World for the purpose of harassing the Spanish and also in the hopes that it would not get left behind in the exploration race. Spain became the only country whose original intentions for exploring the New World translated into its final motivation for colonization.
The Spanish rigorously tried to convert the Indians and continued their search for silver and gold. England's initial quest for national superiority over Spain was added to its numerous motives for colonization, while France and Holland digressed the most from their initial intentions by setting up lucrative fur trading scenarios with the local natives in the frontiers of their colonies. Prior to England's victory over the Spanish Armada in 1588, English exploration had been limited by religious and political turmoil. There were only two notable English explorers during this period: the Italian John Cabot who was sponsored by the king of England to search for the Northwest Passage in 1497, and Sir Francis Drake who at the approval of Queen Elizabeth I, raided Spanish settlements and boats in the New World while circumnavigating the globe.
Newly Protestant England's motives for exploration were fueled by a sudden newfound rivalry between the Catholic nations of France and Spain. This sense of national pride and rivalry translated well to England's final motivations for colonization. The final Spanish defeat in 1604 established England as a great naval power and cleared the way for English colonization of America. (article) England's final motivation for colonization still included its sense of national greatness which was promoted by Richard Hakluyt: to extend the reformed religion, to expand trade, to supply England's needs from her own dominions, to provide bases in case of war with Spain, to enlarge the queens revenues and navy, to discover a Northwest Passage to the Orient, and to employ the growing number of people made idle by the surge of population growth. (article) This sense of national rivalry and looming greatness as well as the search for religious, political and economic freedom became the final motivations for the colonization of America by England. At the outset of the exploration of the New World, Spain had a very simplistic goal: God, Gold and Glory. Gold (i. e.
new riches) was at the forefront of every explorers mind as expeditions ranged from as far north as Northern California and as far south as the southern tip of South America during the 16 th century. After the discovery of sophisticated cultures on the mainland of Central and South America, the Spaniards decided to conquer these cultures. The first of the conquests began in present-day Mexico in 1519, when Hernando Cortes and his army arrived and systematically began to conquer the advanced civilization of the Aztecs. This was followed by numerous other conquests of the other major civilizations (e. g. the Incas and the Mayans) in the Americas by the Spanish.
Conquering these cultures yielded a wealth of Indian treasure which dramatically increased Spanish revenue. The logical next step for Spain after conquering such a vast area was to colonize the New World. Since they had to live with the native Indians, the Spanish sought the need to displace the pagan civilizations throughout the Americas with their Catholic-based culture (article). As New Spain came into existence, the motherland continually advocated the search for gold and the conversion of the Indians. Spain's initial motivation for exploring the New World was the search for riches, and when they decided on colonization that motive remained intact. Yet it also saw a new religious element added to their final motives for colonization: the quest to save the heathens.
This religious motive fit into the scheme of the Spanish plan for colonization since the Spanish were coexisting with the Indians in the first place. The French and the Dutch both had the same goal of searching for the Northwest Passage as a purpose for exploring the New World. Both countries also ended up with fur trading as their final motivation for settling the New World (although Frances colonies were considerably larger while Holland's dwindled under British pressure). Frances search for the Northwest Passage began in the early 16 th century, when the king of France authorized the expeditions of Italian, Giovanni da Verrazzano (1524) and Jacques Cartier (1534 - 1542). Both explorers skimmed the coasts of North America looking for the Northwest Passage but only claimed parts of the land for France. Nearly a century later in 1608, when France decided on colonization, Samuel de Champlain established a trading post in Quebec, an area previously claimed by Jacques Cartier.
From this hub, a lucrative trade economy was established as a means for colonization. In 1609 the Dutch began their exploration of America when they sent an Englishman named Henry Hudson to likewise search for the Northwest Passage. In this endeavor Hudson discovered the river (and later the bay) that bears his name. Of course the Northwest Passage was never discovered and therefore the Dutch decided to colonize. In 1614 Dutch trading outposts were established on Manhattan Island (New Amsterdam) and at the site of present-day Albany (Fort Orange). A profitable fur trade was carried on and became the main source of revenue for the Dutch West India Company, the joint-stock company that ran the colony.
The original intentions for the Dutch and the French was to search for the Northwest Passage, but as both nations decided to colonize they had to change their goals to establishing a viable market economy. The initial intentions of the European nations were preoccupied with exploitive and extractive economic objectives (article) but as colonization began England, France, and Holland realized the need to develop a viable market economy within their colonies. France and Holland colonies developed their economy through the fur trade while the colonies of England were able to develop an economy due to its freedom from the parent country. The original intentions of England, France, and Holland for exploration did not translate into their final motives for colonization because they realized those original intentions would not work. Spain's final motivation was transferable from the original intentions because Spain never realized they needed to change their priorities. 2.
British colonists that ventured out to settle in the new world away from England in 1607 all expected change from their monarch-ruling homeland. Though they intended on remaining loyal to their mother England, they still had say in what they wanted for the foundations of their nation. Everything that the colonists did, England was supervising and added in what the felt was necessary to keep the colonies always under their rule. England was constantly editing all that the colonists did and in turn this made the colonists rebel in 1775. Colonial religious and political ideas were one factor of which added to rebellion against the British. Many colonists had left England not only for the new money that the colonies pursued, but also for reasons dealing with spiritual oppression.
Queen Elizabeth made the official Church of England the Anglican Church, which upset mainly the Protestant and the Puritans. Both Protestants and Puritans thought that the Anglican Church was still too much like the Catholic Church that it had replaced and decided that they would practice their own beliefs in private. The colonies opened the door to religious toleration in which Puritans as well as others flocked to. The colonies did not adhere to royal influence compared to those back in England.
England allowed the colonies to manage the local affairs but reserved the right to veto anything they thought would go against them. The king chose governors to represent the colonies. Also, legislatures were formed as a system of control and government for the colonies. England officials at times felt as though their authority was diminishing within the colonies so they were always trying to create a better system to get them totally under their control.
One of these attempted systems was the formation of the Dominion of New England which basically was just trying to unify New York, New Jersey and all of New England. The colonists resented the idea and went in the opposite direction of some separation. These types of procedures that angered the colonists were considered when rebellion took place. At times, Britain did not tend to all of the colonies needs. They were ignorant and only concerned about the money received.
England benefited from the colonial trade because of the tight monitoring of imports and exports. Britain caused the unfavorable balance of trade for the colonies, which is an example of England's carelessness for the colonial benefit and the concern only of bringing profit to England. Mercantilism was a big profit for England, but a big debt to the colonies (in which goes alongside unfavorable balance of trade) that England decided to neglect. The colonies did not...
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Research essay sample on 16 Th Century Religious And Political
