Discovery of America: causes and consequences

In this lesson from a TEACHER we will dwell on the causes and consequences of the discovery of America one of the most important events in Western Europe and around the world. We have to know that until 1492 there was no evidence that there was more land behind the Atlantic Ocean, due among others to the belief that the earth was flat. So although now there are some theories by which populations previous to that of the Castilians could arrive, we must know that none of the above achieved what this, that is, settle and relate to the populations natives.

Index

1. Causes of the discovery of America
2. Political consequences of the discovery of America
3. Economic consequences of the discovery of America
4. Other important consequences

We started this lesson on causes and consequences of the discovery of America going into history. Before Christopher Columbus got permission from the Catholic Monarchs to embark on his journey across the ocean Atlantic, we will find another kingdom that ventured to explorations by sea, this being the neighboring kingdom of Portugal. This kingdom opted for Africa, a vast continent which they decided to skirt in order to reach the East and with it the silk and spices route.

The Genoese sailor, Christopher Columbus, had the idea that the diameter of the earth was less than what is known today and, therefore, he thought that he could reach the East earlier by sailing to the West. In this way, the journey of said sailor in the Portuguese court is known in which he would not find any fortune.

The sailor decided to go to the neighboring kingdom, that is, to Castile and expose the Catholic kings the idea of ​​him. There were several occasions for which the Castilian monarchs denied him his idea, largely due to the lack of guarantee of success and because they were focused on finishing the Reconquest.

After the conquest of Granada, it was the moment by which the Castilian monarchs decided to listen to the idea of ​​the Genoese in the well-known capitulations of Santa Fe In 1492, they gave the position of governor of all the lands found to Christopher Columbus, in addition to part of the benefits in the commercial income that occurred in that place, in addition to obtaining the title of admiral (these agreements took time since the Catholic Monarchs were the first authoritarian European monarchs, that is, they thought that above them there could only be God).

In this other article by a PROFESSOR we discover you when Christopher Columbus discovered America.

The discovery of America by the Crown of Castile, made this kingdom became the most important in Europe Well, in a short time it took control of a vast territory full of possibilities, which would allow for more than two centuries to be the hegemonic power in the whole world.

From the first moment, the Catholic Monarchs and their descendants were protectors of the Indians whom from practically the beginning they treated as subjects of the Crown and therefore not as slaves. In this way the population graph in the Empire grew in great numbers. Although it is true that, initially, until the arrival of Felipe II, a series of conquest campaigns were carried out, being the more important the conquest of the Aztec Empire by Hernán Cortés and the conquest of the Inca Empire at the hands of Francisco Pizarro.

Within this point we cannot forget the different epidemics that occurred on the continent due to the diseases that Europeans brought to the new lands, in which caused the death of thousands of indigenous people, who did not have the necessary antibodies to fight the infections brought by the Castilians.

In this other lesson we discover a summary of the biography of Christopher Columbus.

Another consequence that occurred as a result of the discovery was the discovery by the Castilians of great silver mines (especially), as were the mines of Potosí or those of Mexico, which generated enormous wealth for the Castilian Crown, being the fundamental element for pay for the famous European wars of Carlos I or of his son Felipe II, who would create the famous real de a ocho (which we can assimilate to what would be the dollar at the moment).

On the other hand we must know that the Spanish created a closed trade with their "colonies", that is, overseas lands could only trade with Castilla, which created the galleon system for a or twice a year to bring products to the new lands and bring the products and metals from there to the metropolis. In this way, the other European kingdoms were prevented from freely trading with the new land, although that was only left in the inkwell, because we know that since illegality they traded with other countries.

That together with piracy would end up bringing down the commercial system imposed by Spain for its overseas territories.

But the discovery of America also led to other consequences in areas such as religion or agriculture. We will analyze it below:

Religion

The expansion of the Catholic Church throughout America was due in large part to the need to evangelize that the Castilian monarchs saw the new population mass that existed in the new land. The natives were treated as "young children" by the Church and therefore were not considered heretics because they had their own beliefs. For this reason, large evangelistic expeditions were carried out throughout the continent, the most famous being the Jesuit missions.

If it is true that we will find the Holy inquisition Spanish in the new lands, but this institution had no authority over the indigenous population and could only act in the face of possible cases of Judaizers or properly Castilian heretics.

farming

The relationship between cultures could soon be seen in the transfer between different continents of food species that did not occur elsewhere. Being brought to the peninsula foods as normal in our kitchens as they were the corn, sweet potato, pumpkin, tomato, chocolate, peanuts / peanuts, vanilla, avocado, potato / potato, gum and tobacco.

In the same way, the Castilians soon also brought with them elements that there were not in the new lands and that they soon saw that they grew with great quality in said lands, these coffee, sugar cane, barley, oats or rye. In addition, they also brought animals such as the donkey, the donkey, the horse, the chickens, the rabbit, the sheep and the cow.

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