England Vs Spain In The Race To Explore The New World

2 Pages 623 Words

“England vs Spain in the race to explore the new world”
Europeans were among the most wealthiest people in the late 1400’s into the 1500’s. They lusted for gold, spices, furs and other luxury goods from different parts of the world. These goods primarily came from Asia and Africa.
Before the search for an alternate route to the East, most Europeans concentrated on Mediterranean trade which was monopolized by the Italians.
European countries would have to go through them to acquire eastern goods. Late in the thirteenth century a fleet of Genoese ships found a route through the Straight of Gibraltar to get from Southern Europe to Northern Europe. They went this way instead of using the old land route which was much slower. At this time exploration of new routes to the east were not even an issue. Mediterranean trade was so profitable that there was no need to search for an alternate route.
Although in the 15th century the bubonic plague hit Europe killing about a 1/3 of the population. So many people died that most people had no clue to how long they would live. Most people realized this and took this opportunity to take great chances like embarking on dangerous sea voyages. They thought it was a good idea since they were probably going to die anyway.
When Columbus tried to get the Portuguese, who were thriving on African exploration, to sponsor an expedition to the west he was turned down. So he moved on to Spain where he explained to them his plan. He even tried to persuade the Royal Courts of England and France. Finally, in 1492, Spain granted to fund Columbus’ exploration.
In 1497 the King of England who had previously rejected Columbus’ request for sponsorship sent a sailor named John Cabot to look for an alternate route to the Indies. Cabot reached the tip of Newfoundland and thought it was part of Asia. He rushed back to England to tell them and arranged an even bigger fleet to go back. John C...