Individualism In The Middle Ages

Prior to the European age of exploration and conquest, the continent underwent many changes that lead to the desire and capability to begin exploration. The continent suffered a dark age of little innovation and great illness during the Middle Ages with the Black Death killing millions and spreading rapidly, and the Hundred Years’ War rampaging the continent increasing violence. By the 1350s, however, a new age of enlightenment descended upon the continent. The Renaissance spurred a new sense of creativity and individualism in an attempt to rebuild the declining continent. The development of Humanism reshaped the continent and its people. Artists like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Erasmus, and Plato focused on the use of ancient antiquities …show more content…
As trade began to expand by the middle of the fifteenth century, competition on how to obtain cheaper and faster trade developed among states around the Mediterranean. Europe had a lack of goods to trade and compete with in the growing trade of desired and luxurious Asian goods and belief of finding a route or other items from foreign trade served as a major source of motive for states such as Spain. Especially states trying to avoid traveling through expensive taxes of Sultans in the Middle East. In states like Spain not only did the monarch and integrity of the country receive rewards of riches, conversion, and colonization, but the explorers had motives of personal gain from their hard work. The explorers were often promised a commission and a ruling position over the gained territory by monarchs like Isabella and Ferdinand who write to inform Columbus of his reward, for the land is “discovered and conquered by your [the explorer] means and conduct” (Doc 1). Christopher Columbus had the possibility of great personal gain from one journey, continued commission of the profits and governance over discovered land, but he was not the only explorer. Others like Bartholomew Diaz and Vasco de Gama shared the same interest in their journeys of explorations in the 1490s. Other state monarchs had motives to rid the country of criminals like Fra Soncino describes to a Duke of Milan in 1497, “to make London a greater place for spices” about John Cabot’s journey (Doc. 3). By doing this he allows more space and money from taxes to be spend on the development of businessmen and merchants. The method of removing criminals and unproductive society members would continue into the eighteenth century with the establishment of Georgia to rid England of criminals in 1730. This would develop to escaping a country to the