The Renaissance Was a Rebirth for Europe

The renaissance was a rebirth for Europe. The plague was coming to an end, learning and knowledge were not only encouraged but grew, and there was a new found interest in trade and exploration. Successful expedition became a source of pride for the now more centralised States in Europe, these expeditions became a source of status among the elite and the Monarchs of these people often with the Spanish leading the way. In 1492 there was a huge boom in exploration when Columbus discovered the new world, although that is not what he intended on doing, nor was the first one to discover this land. Prince Henry the Navigator's expeditions along the west coast of Africa opened and increased trade with that section of the world. For many years the natives of America were only touched briefly here and there by Europeans and others on expeditions and only for short periods of time, now for the first time European explorers and later colonists would greatly impact the lives of the Native American people. The European interaction, settling, and colonisation of the Americas and Africa only grew over time.

With the discovery of new lands there was a major change in the European Homefront. The change that for many that would have the greatest impact is the arrival of the Middle class. Before this during the feudal period the nobles had full control of everything and the peasants were suppressed and lead a rather dismal life underneath the wealthy land owning population. During this time a new merchant class arose, and the control of the governments wealth which was traditionally held by nobles, became more spread out with the new Middle class merchants who were able to turn a profit and make something of themselves. This newly gained wealth would eventually lead to conflicts with the government one example of this occurring was in the 1789 French Revolution.

There were many instances of social change in the New World, one of the causes was European illness and the native people's immune system not able to combat these illnesses. Diseases such as small pox and the measles ravaged the native population due to the lack of tolerance and previous exposure to the diseases. One isolated situation Cortez during his conquest of the Aztec people intentionally gave the people disease ridden blankets, and similar tactics allowed Pizzaro to vanquish the Inca people. Once conquered the people went from lives of luxury, living in large populated cities, and themselves having control over large and flourishing empires to lives in slavery and servitude, the Native people of North America would face a rather similar fate although less centralised and set up into small tribes. Columbus in his 1492 expedition to the New World, and capturing of the native Haitian people and forcing them to mine for gold set a precedent for future expeditions. This mentality of the Europeans greatly hurt their relationship with the native people and lead

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