Ap World History Dbq

In between 1450 CE and 1750 CE, the discovery of the New World and the development of European colonization ultimately led to the deterioration of Amerindian communities, through severe diseases and excessive mining. Meanwhile, other regions of the globe, specifically East Asia and Europe, began to improve in cultivation techniques that eventually led to the vast amounts of crops that were being grown. This was essential in order to maintain their growing populations and economy. After the discovery of the Americas, European settlers began to establish colonies in the New World once they came to the realization that the new lands were rich with silver and fertile soil. Spanish conquistadors used the native people as slaves in order to extract …show more content…
As a result, worldwide wars were brought upon several countries, followed by the making of treaties and the emergence of new, more powerful political states. During this time period, the Spaniards sought to gain power not only through the establishment of silver mines and sugar plantations, but also by developing colonies in the New World. This brutal Spanish colonization caused outbreaks of war and murder between the Amerindians and the colonists, and since the Europeans were more equipped with guns and weaponry, they were able to take over the Aztec and Incan empires. Meanwhile, conflict between the Protestants and the Catholics flourished when Ferdinand II attempted to lessen the religious activities of his people, which resulted in the Thirty Years’ War. Over the course of the period, other major powers took part in the war, including Sweden, France, Spain, and Austria. As a result, the Peace of Westphalia treaty was signed and the religious influence on European politics came to a minimum. Spain, France and England were then able to rise and become powerful political figures, through the monarch’s centralization of government and new forms of taxations and fees. Overall, tension between religious views and the European dominance in the Americas caused great conflict, resulting in long-standing wars and …show more content…
Once the Spaniards had discovered that the Americas were rich in silver and fertile soil, they began to extract substantial amounts of silver, establishing silver mining industries along with sugar plantations. At first, the Spaniards enslaved the natives in order to obtain their precious goods, however, after the Spaniards had exchanged loads of goods between the Old and New World, disease was spread among the natives, killing more than half of their population. Due to the lack of slaves, this epidemic led to the emergence of the Atlantic Slave Trade, where African men and women were traded as cargo between the coast of Africa and the Americas, and forced to work in the mines. The Atlantic trading system and the African’s brutal slave labor were essential to the power of the Spaniards, as they relied on the value of silver and sugar for their wealth. The trading between Africa to the New World, and the New World to the Old World, is described as one of the first times that the two hemispheres had any sort of communication, while also highlighting the rise of sea-based trade. The exploration of Christopher Columbus and Hernan Cortes, along with many other explorers, ultimately led to a shift in global trading

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