The Colombian Exchange and its Effects.
The Columbian exchange was a new sea bridge that allowed a transatlantic trade of people, ideas, and goods. It helped the Spaniards bring over Christianity and exposed the New World to many iron technologies such as firearms and pans. Unfortunately, it also brought over many diseases that the Indians had never been exposed to before. The many diseases killed off the Indian population and caused the majority of the descendants to transform from Asians to Europeans and Africans. Later on in the 1700’s, the Columbia exchange benefitted the earlier establishments in the New World by allowing them to export their growing supply of tobacco back to England, eventually reaching more than 35 million pounds …show more content…
Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand had realized that the potential loss of sending Columbus across seas was smaller than what could potentially be gained, so in 1492, Christopher Columbus started his journey across the Atlantic in search of a gain for Spain. Although Columbus wasn’t the only explorer to try and find new riches, for the most part, he was the only one with any success. After realizing what treasures Spain had found, France and England had begun to send their own explorers over to the New World. In 1535 France sent Jacques Cartier on a voyage up the St. Lawrence River, and later in 1541, he returned to the region bringing a group of settlers. The English took a shot at finding some riches as well, and in 1576 Martin Frobisher set sail to try and find the Northwest Passage. Frobisher returned to England bringing back what he thought was tons of gold, but in reality it proved to be worthless and didn’t benefit England causing their expedition focus point to shift South to the Northern part of New Spain. One major usage of the Columbian exchange was the transport of African people over to the New World. Many of the early settlers at Chesapeake Bay transferred from housing servants to purchasing slaves. Slaves became a popular demand since they would never become free, and their live expectance was longer than an indentured servant’s sentence. Since children of a slave …show more content…
It also brought over Christianity in the Spanish empire in the New Mexico and Florida areas. Many Spanish missionaries sought to convert Indians not just into Christians but also into Spaniards as well. Ideas were another non-material item to be transported. The Columbian exchange caused, and still causes, many interactions between the people and their ideas. Europeans were introduced to foods such as corn and potatoes which became a part of their daily diets, especially for the poor. Overall, disease was the biggest non-material item on the Columbian exchange that had the largest impact on both the New and Old world. Columbus’s sailors were infected with syphilis that they received from the women of the New World; delaying some of his travels. Small pox, measles, and other diseases killed the majority of Indians from the settlers coming over from the New World. It eventually killed off many of the Asian descendants and allowed the Europeans and Africans to become the dominant descendants who inhabited the area. In conclusion, the Columbian exchange was and still is a major trade route across the Atlantic. What is being shipped on the trade route may have changed over time, but the exchange is a major reason for why our world is the way it is today. It allows us to transport common factors in everyday life such as cars, food, and oil. On the other hand, it had many advantages and disadvantages for the New World.
The Columbian exchange was a new sea bridge that allowed a transatlantic trade of people, ideas, and goods. It helped the Spaniards bring over Christianity and exposed the New World to many iron technologies such as firearms and pans. Unfortunately, it also brought over many diseases that the Indians had never been exposed to before. The many diseases killed off the Indian population and caused the majority of the descendants to transform from Asians to Europeans and Africans. Later on in the 1700’s, the Columbia exchange benefitted the earlier establishments in the New World by allowing them to export their growing supply of tobacco back to England, eventually reaching more than 35 million pounds …show more content…
Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand had realized that the potential loss of sending Columbus across seas was smaller than what could potentially be gained, so in 1492, Christopher Columbus started his journey across the Atlantic in search of a gain for Spain. Although Columbus wasn’t the only explorer to try and find new riches, for the most part, he was the only one with any success. After realizing what treasures Spain had found, France and England had begun to send their own explorers over to the New World. In 1535 France sent Jacques Cartier on a voyage up the St. Lawrence River, and later in 1541, he returned to the region bringing a group of settlers. The English took a shot at finding some riches as well, and in 1576 Martin Frobisher set sail to try and find the Northwest Passage. Frobisher returned to England bringing back what he thought was tons of gold, but in reality it proved to be worthless and didn’t benefit England causing their expedition focus point to shift South to the Northern part of New Spain. One major usage of the Columbian exchange was the transport of African people over to the New World. Many of the early settlers at Chesapeake Bay transferred from housing servants to purchasing slaves. Slaves became a popular demand since they would never become free, and their live expectance was longer than an indentured servant’s sentence. Since children of a slave …show more content…
It also brought over Christianity in the Spanish empire in the New Mexico and Florida areas. Many Spanish missionaries sought to convert Indians not just into Christians but also into Spaniards as well. Ideas were another non-material item to be transported. The Columbian exchange caused, and still causes, many interactions between the people and their ideas. Europeans were introduced to foods such as corn and potatoes which became a part of their daily diets, especially for the poor. Overall, disease was the biggest non-material item on the Columbian exchange that had the largest impact on both the New and Old world. Columbus’s sailors were infected with syphilis that they received from the women of the New World; delaying some of his travels. Small pox, measles, and other diseases killed the majority of Indians from the settlers coming over from the New World. It eventually killed off many of the Asian descendants and allowed the Europeans and Africans to become the dominant descendants who inhabited the area. In conclusion, the Columbian exchange was and still is a major trade route across the Atlantic. What is being shipped on the trade route may have changed over time, but the exchange is a major reason for why our world is the way it is today. It allows us to transport common factors in everyday life such as cars, food, and oil. On the other hand, it had many advantages and disadvantages for the New World.