Britain, France, Spain, and the Netherlands established colonies in North America. Each country had different motivations for colonization and expectations about the potential benefits.
What was the first European settlement in North America?
European Colonization of North America. The invasion of the North American continent and its peoples began with the Spanish in 1565 at St. Augustine, Florida, then British in 1587 when the Plymouth Company established a settlement that they dubbed Roanoke in present-day Virginia. This first settlement failed mysteriously and in 1606, the London ...
What are the European colonies in North America?
List of European colonies in the Americas British and (before 1707) English. Courland (indirectly part of Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth). Danish. Dutch. French. Knights of Malta. Norwegian. Portuguese. Colonial Brazil (1500–1815) became a Kingdom, United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the ...
What is European colonization of the Americas?
Colonialism portal. The European colonization of the Americas describes the history of the settlement and establishment of control of the continents of the Americas by most of the naval powers of Western Europe.
What territories did the English colonize in North America?
The English eventually went on to control much of Eastern North America, The Caribbean, and parts of South America. The British also gained Florida and Quebec in the French and Indian War. Other powers such as France also founded colonies in the Americas: in eastern North America,...
What was the first site of enslavement of Africans in North America?
1525: Estêvão Gomes enters Upper New York Bay. 1526: Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón briefly establishes the failed settlement of San Miguel de Gualdape in South Carolina, the first site of enslavement of Africans in North America and of the first slave rebellion.
Where did Columbus sail?
1502: Columbus sails along the mainland coast south of Yucatán, and reaches present-day Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. 1503: Las Tortugas noted by Columbus in passage through the Western Caribbean present-day Cayman Islands.
What happened in the late fifteenth century?
Late fifteenth century. 1492: Columbus sets sail aboard the Niña, Pinta, and Santa Maria. 1492: Columbus reaches the Bahamas, Cuba and Hispaniola. 1492: La Naviad is established on the island of Hispaniola; it was destroyed by the following year. 1493: The colony of La Isabela is established on the island of Hispaniola.
When did the Spanish reach New Mexico?
1598: Spanish reach Northern New Mexico. 1600: By 1600 Spain and Portugal were still the only significant colonial powers. North of Mexico the only settlements were Saint Augustine and the isolated outpost in northern New Mexico. Exploration of the interior was largely abandoned after the 1540s.
When was the first European settlement in North America?
The first European community in North America was established c. 980 - c. 1030 by the Norse Viking Leif Erikson (b. c. 970 - c. 980) in Newfoundland at the site known today as L'Anse aux Meadows. This settlement was temporary, however, and the Norse left to return to Greenland after a little over a year, inspiring no further expeditions to the site. Although Norse artifacts have been found along the east coast of North America – suggesting further explorations – this has not been established as evidence of a widespread Norse presence in the Americas.
Who claimed the region of Brazil?
The region of modern-day Brazil was claimed for Portugal in 1500 by the Portuguese aristocrat and mariner Pedro Álvares Cabral (l. c. 1468 - c. 1520) while parts of modern-day Canada were claimed for France after its exploration by the Florentine seaman and explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano (l. 1485-1528, who mapped the entire eastern seaboard of North America) in 1524, leading to the establishment of the colony of New France in 1534.
What were the most important plants that the indigenous people introduced to the colonists of North America?
Among the most significant plants introduced by the indigenous people to the colonists of North America was tobacco. The wealth Spain acquired from their colonies and the enslavement and sale of indigenous people encouraged England to establish their own presence in the New World. The first two colonies – Popham and Roanoke Colony – failed but ...
Why did the first colonists settle on Roanoke Island?
The first settlement was established in 1585 on Roanoke Island, because the ships could not reach the mainland owing to a storm, under the leadership of Ralph Lane (d. 1603). The indigenous people were, at first, friendly, but when the colonists' supplies grew low and the natives had tired of helping them for nothing in return, Lane attacked and killed their chief. Afterwards, low on food and outnumbered by the natives, the colonists accepted a ride back home with Francis Drake who was passing by after another raid on the Spanish.
What was the process of European colonization of the Americas?
The European colonization of the Americas was the process by which European settlers populated the regions of North, Central, South America, and the islands of the Caribbean. It is also recognized as the direct cause for the cultures of the various indigenous people of those regions being replaced and often eradicated.
What is the Columbian exchange?
of the University of Texas at Austin, referring to the cross-cultural transmission of animals, crops, disease, technology, cultural values, and human populations between the Americas, West Africa, and Europe.
When did the colonization process begin?
The process of colonization developed fairly quickly between 1492-1620, with others arriving in larger numbers between c. 1620 - c. 1720, and still others afterwards up through the early 20th century. As more Europeans arrived, more land was required by them, steadily forcing Native Americans onto reservations as the immigrants enlarged their settlements.
What countries were involved in the colonization of the Americas?
During this period of time, several European empires —primarily Spain, Portugal, Britain, and France —began to explore and claim the natural resources and human capital of the Americas, resulting in the displacement and disestablishment of some Indigenous Nations, and the establishment of several settler-colonial states.
Which two kingdoms were part of the non-European world?
In the 1494 Treaty of Tordesillas ratified by the Pope, the two kingdoms of Castile (in a personal union with other kingdoms of Spain) and Portugal divided the entire non-European world into two spheres of exploration and colonization.
Why did the population of the Americas drop?
After European contact, the native population of the Americas plummeted by an estimated 80% (from around 50 million in 1492 to eight million in 1650), mostly as the result of outbreaks of Old World disease.
Why did the Dutch want independence?
The Netherlands had been part of the Spanish Empire, due to the inheritance of Charles V of Spain. Many Dutch people converted to Protestantism and sought their political independence from Spain. They were a seafaring nation and built a global empire in regions where the Portuguese had originally explored. In the Dutch Golden Age, it sought colonies. In the Americas, the Dutch conquered the northeast of Brazil in 1630, where the Portuguese had built sugar cane plantations worked by black slave labor from Africa. Prince Johan Maurits van Nassau-Siegen became the administrator of the colony (1637–43), building a capital city and royal palace, fully expecting the Dutch to retain control of this rich area. As the Dutch had in Europe, it tolerated the presence of Jews and other religious groups in the colony. After Maurits departed in 1643, the Dutch West India Company took over the colony, until it was lost to the Portuguese in 1654. The Dutch retained some territory in Dutch Guiana, now Suriname. The Dutch also seized islands in the Caribbean that Spain had originally claimed but had largely abandoned, including Sint Maarten in 1618, Bonaire in 1634, Curaçao in 1634, Sint Eustatius in 1636, Aruba in 1637, some of which remain in Dutch hands and retain Dutch cultural traditions.
How did the colonization of the Americas affect the Caribbean?
According to scientists from University College London, the colonization of the Americas by Europeans killed so much of the indigenous population that it resulted in climate change and global cooling. Some contemporary scholars also attribute significant indigenous population losses in the Caribbean to the widespread practice of slavery and deadly forced labor in gold and silver mines. Historian, Andrés Reséndez, supports this claim and argues that indigenous populations were smaller previous estimations and "a nexus of slavery, overwork and famine killed more Indians in the Caribbean than smallpox, influenza and malaria."
Why was the rapid rate at which Europe grew in wealth and power unforeseeable in the early 15th century?
The rapid rate at which Europe grew in wealth and power was unforeseeable in the early 15th century because it had been preoccupied with internal wars and it was slowly recovering from the loss of its population which was caused by the Black Death. The strength of the Turkish Ottoman Empire held on trade routes to Asia prompted Western European monarchs to search for alternatives, resulting in the voyages of Christopher Columbus and the accidental re-discovery of the " New World ".
Which country founded the colonies in the Americas?
France. France founded colonies in the Americas: in eastern North America (which had not been colonized by Spain north of Florida ), a number of Caribbean islands (which had often already been conquered by the Spanish or depopulated by disease), and small coastal parts of South America.
What was the first major change in Europe that brought about the emergence of North American colonies?
One of the main changes in Europe that brought about the emergence of North American colonies was the arrival of the Renaissance (Perry 326). This movement was characterized by a cultural revolution which brought back a renewed interest in the humanities. The Renaissance began in the fourteenth century and lasted until the sixteenth century. The era differed from the Middle Ages on two accounts. First, the Renaissance marked the revival of Ancient Greek and Roman arts. Second, the era promoted and encouraged individual accomplishments and worldly endeavors. It was the second difference that brought about Age of Exploration (Perry 345).
What was the main change that led to the settlement of North American colonies?
Another important change that occurred in Europe which led to the settlement of North American colonies was the emergence of strong monarchies (Perry 373). The political atmosphere in Europe had changed since the medieval times, as monarchs assumed more power beginning in the sixteenth century. The rise to power of European monarchs eventually contributed to the dispute over religion, which was one of the reasons why North American colonies were created.
What colony did the Puritans settle in?
Aside from the Puritans who founded the Plymouth colony, there was another group of Puritans who settled in the Northern colony (Perry 422). Like the Puritans before them, this group also suffered religious discrimination in England (Perry 423). In addition, they were also persecuted for their political endeavors. These Puritans were known to have established the Massachusetts Bay Colony (Perry 422). In the colony, the Puritans sought to settle permanently and build their own community (Perry 423).
What were the major changes that led to the settlement of the colonies?
The settlement of the North American colonies were caused and influenced by major changes in Europe. The first major change in Europe was cultural in nature: the emergence of the Renaissance. The Renaissance was significantly different from the medieval period which succeeded it, as it brought back humanism and the focus on human interests. The revival of human pursuit encouraged the European countries to embrace a culture of great accomplishment. The pervading atmosphere of human accomplishment led to the Age of Exploration, another major change in Europe. Inspired by the Renaissance, this epoch was marked by the fervor of European nations to discovery and exploration. The motive behind the journey to unconquered territories was the pursuit of wealth. In this pursuit, settlement of colonies became possible. Another important change in Europe was political: the emergence of strong monarchies. The strength of monarchs eventually led to religious disagreement. The dispute forced people out of England and into the colonies to create communities wherein they could practice their religious beliefs. This also resulted in the settlement of colonies. These are the important changes which caused the settlement of North American colonies.
What inspired the English to establish a colony?
The victory and wealth of Spain inspired English colonists to get involved in a similar pursuit. A group of merchants from London provided funds for an English colony to be established (Perry 422). The settlement was referred to as Jamestown, a name derived from King James I. Jamestown, which is the first colony, is actually present day Virginia (“Colonial America”; Perry 422). The English colonists hoped to accomplish what the Spanish colonists have achieved (Perry 422). They wanted to gain wealth through the retrieval of gold or other treasures. Unfortunately, the colonists did not anticipate the difficulties in Jamestown; as a result, many people died. It was only under the leadership of Captain John Smith that the colony managed to survive (Perry 422).
Is the United States a superpower?
At present, the United States of America is the world’s leading superpower. Today it is a nation of authority and great influence. However, before the United States of America became the nation that it is today, it initially started as territories under the rule of powerful European nations. The country now recognized as the United States originated from some of the North American colonies. What were the events which occurred in Europe that led to the foundation of the colonies? This research paper aims to discuss the important changes which occurred in Europe that eventually led to the settlement of colonies in North America.
What was the Spanish base for exploration in the 1500s?
wave of Spanish exploration in the Ameri-cas followed the Treaty of Tordesillas. Because Columbus had landed in the Caribbean, the Caribbean islands became Spain’s base for exploration in the early 1500s.
How did the Spanish colonists use Native Americans as laborers?
Land and labor At first, Spanish colonists tried to use Native Americans as laborers. Under Spain’s encomiendasystem, landowners received grants from the king, which gave them the right to control the people of a certain area. The word encomienda comes from the Spanish word for “entrust.” Under the encomienda sys- tem, the king expected the landowners to con- vert the Native Americans to Christianity and teach them European ways. The Native Ameri- cans, for their part, were to work as laborers. Officially, Native Americans were to be treated humanely. In reality, many were en- slaved and worked to death on huge estates called haciendas. As Native American popula- tions declined from disease and ill treatment, landowners came to depend upon the labor of enslaved Africans. Indians and Africans also were forced to work in the silver mines that came to dominate New Spain’s economy.
What did the Conquistadors bring to America?
Conquistadors traveled to America in the 1500s. Bringing horses and guns from Spain, they conquered huge Native American empires.
Which Queen gave her sea captains unofficial permission to raid rival ships and ports?
Under the rule of “Good Queen Bess”—Elizabeth I—England developed a strong navy. Elizabeth I gave her sea captains unofficial permission to raid rival ships and ports.
Which two countries wanted to colonize?
French and Spain wanted to exploit, England wanted to colonize. France and Spain depended more on their mother countries than the English colonies did. France and Spain were more controlling over their colonies than England was.
Which country was given the right to lands east of the line?
Line drawn on the map by Pope Alexander VI that divided the world in half, giving Portugal rights to lands east of the line and giving Spain the lands west of the line
What was the result of European settlement and diseases?
European settlement and diseases devastated indigenous populations and led to a scramble for lands on a continental scale that resulted in a checkerboard of Euro-American societies from the Hudson Bay in northern Canada to Tierra del Fuego, an island group off the southern tip of South America.
Which two countries took possession of the New World?
In the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, the decision by Spanish and Portuguese monarchs to take possession of the New World and establish colonies governed by the crown required the transfer of large settler populations.
How many emigrants were there in the first century?
Annual rates of emigration climbed steadily across the three centuries, from 2,000 annually before 1580, to 8,000 per year in the second half of the seventeenth century, and between 13,000 and 14,000 per year in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Three principal phases of movement can be identified. The first century and a half was dominated by Spanish and Portuguese emigrants, who made up 87 percent of the 446,000 settlers leaving Europe between 1492 and 1640.
What were the three main phases of migration?
Three principal phases of movement can be identified. The first century and a half was dominated by Spanish and Portuguese emigrants, who made up 87 percent of the 446,000 settlers leaving Europe between 1492 and 1640. The second phase, lasting from 1640 to 1760, saw a three-fold increase in numbers of emigrants.
Where did the Spanish emigrate from?
Whether free or unfree, emigration from Europe to America was intensely regional. During the sixteenth and first half of the seventeenth centuries, the origins of Spanish emigrants were heavily skewed toward the southwest. Andalusia alone contributed between one-third and one-half of all migrants from Spain. In the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the character of Spanish emigration changed dramatically, with far higher numbers of people moving from the poorer provinces of the north coast, the east, and from the Balearic and Canary Islands.
How many settlers made their way to the American Middle Colonies?
Only about 23,000 settlers made their way to the American Middle Colonies and 21,000 to New England. English immigration represented the transfer of a massive labor force to America, which was essential for the development of staple agriculture—sugar and tobacco—in the West Indies and Chesapeake.
What was the dominant form of white migration during the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries?
As mentioned above, free migration was the dominant form of white movement during the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries and in the period after 1750. A key characteristic of the second half of the eighteenth century was the increasing numbers of skilled and independent migrants opting to leave Europe against a background of growing prosperity and trade. As American commerce flourished and channels of communication were strengthened, the cost of passage fell and colonies became increasingly attractive and accessible.
Overview
Sixteenth century
• 1501: Corte-Real brothers explore the coast of what is today the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador
• 1502: Columbus sails along the mainland coast south of Yucatán, and reaches present-day Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama
• 1503: Las Tortugas noted by Columbus in passage through the Western Caribbean present-day Cayman Islands
Before Columbus
• 986: Norsemen settle Greenland and Bjarni Herjólfsson sights coast of North America, but doesn't land (see also Norse colonization of the Americas).
• c. 1000: Norse settle briefly in L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland.
• c. 1450: Norse colony in Greenland dies out.
Late fifteenth century
• 1492: Columbus sets sail aboard the Niña, Pinta, and Santa Maria.
• 1492: Columbus reaches the Bahamas, Cuba and Hispaniola.
• 1492: La Navidad is established on the island of Hispaniola; it was destroyed by the following year.
Seventeenth century
• 1604 – Acadia – French
• 1605 – Port Royal – French
• 1607 – Jamestown – English
• 1607 – Popham Colony – English
Eighteenth century
• 1701 – Cornwallis – French
• 1701 – Detroit – French
• 1702 – Mobile – French
• 1704 – Delaware separated from Pennsylvania
See also
• British colonization of the Americas
• French colonization of the Americas
• Russian colonization of North America
• Spanish colonization of the Americas
Columbus, Portugal, & The Spanish Conquest
France & The Netherlands
- The colony of New France was founded in modern-day Canada by the French explorer Jacques Cartier (l. 1491-1557) in 1534. France would also claim land holdings in the regions of modern-day South America, the Caribbean, the state of Louisiana, and elsewhere. Cartier's mission, like Columbus', was to navigate a maritime passage to Asia and return to France with gold. On his fir…
Early English Colonies
- England, impressed by the wealth Spain was able to acquire from the New World, considered establishing their own colonies there but, first, found it easier to have privateers (state-sponsored pirates) stop Spanish vessels returning from the Americas and seize their cargo, among them Sir Francis Drake(l. c. 1540-1596), known to the Spanish as “the Dragon” for the ferocity of his attac…
Conclusion
- The Jamestown colony barely survived the first few years, losing 80% of its population in only a few months, primarily because those who made up the expedition were either upper-class aristocrats who refused to work for their food or lower-class laborers who had no skill in farming. The colony was saved first by Captain John Smith (l. 1580-1631), a soldier, sailor, and adventure…
Overview
During the Age of Exploration, a large scale European colonization of the Americas took place between about 1492 and 1800. Although the Norse had explored and colonized areas of the North Atlantic, colonizing Greenland and creating a short term settlement near the northern tip of Newfoundland circa 1000 CE, the later and more well-known wave by the European powers is what formally constitutes as beginning of colonization, involving both the continents of North Americ…
List of European colonies in the Americas
There were at least a dozen European countries involved in the colonization of the Americas. The following list indicates those countries and the Western Hemisphere territories they worked to control.
• British America (1607–1783)
• British West Indies
Overview of Western European powers
Norse explorers are the first known Europeans to set foot on what is now North America. Norse journeys to Greenland and Canada are supported by historical and archaeological evidence. The Norsemen established a colony in Greenland in the late 10th century, and lasted until the mid 15th century, with court and parliament assemblies (þing) taking place at Brattahlíð and a bishop located at Garðar. The remains of a settlement at L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, Canada…
Christianization
Beginning with the first wave of European colonization, the religious discrimination, persecution, and violence toward the Indigenous peoples' native religions was systematically perpetrated by the European Christian colonists and settlers from the 15th-16th centuries onwards.
During the Age of Discovery and the following centuries, the Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires were the most active in attempting to convert the Indigenous peoples of the Americas t…
Religion and immigration
Roman Catholics were the first major religious group to immigrate to the New World, as settlers in the Spanish and Portuguese colonies of Portugal and Spain, and later, France in New France. No other religion was tolerated and there was a concerted effort to convert indigenous peoples and black slaves to Catholicism. The Catholic Church established three offices of the Spanish Inquisition, in Mexico City; Lima, Peru; and Cartagena de Indias in Colombia to maintain religious …
Disease and indigenous population loss
The European lifestyle included a long history of sharing close quarters with domesticated animals such as cows, pigs, sheep, goats, horses, dogs and various domesticated fowl, from which many diseases originally stemmed. In contrast to the indigenous people, the Europeans had developed a richer endowment of antibodies. The large-scale contact with Europeans after 1492 introduced Eurasian germs to the indigenous people of the Americas.
Slavery
Indigenous population loss following European contact directly led to Spanish explorations beyond the Caribbean islands they initially claimed and settled in the 1490s, since they required a labor force to both produce food and to mine gold. Slavery was not unknown in Indigenous societies. With the arrival of European colonists, enslavement of Indigenous peoples "became commodified, expanded in unexpected ways, and came to resemble the kinds of human trafficki…
Colonization and race
Throughout the South American hemisphere, there were three large regional sources of populations: Native Americans, arriving Europeans, and forcibly transported Africans. The mixture of these cultures impacted the ethnic makeup that predominates in the hemisphere's largely independent states today. The term to describe someone of mixed European and indigenous ancestry is mestizo while the term to describe someone of mixed European and African ancestry is