Spain arrived in the Americas unexpectedly and Portugal wanted to go through Africa to shorten the route to India’s spices but in each case they caused damage to the culture and the people living in the discovered regions. That being said, the Europeans, in both cases, damaged the previously unexplored land, in different ways and levels of extremity. When Portugal went into Africa they enslaved a total of 12 million people (Stearns). and brought in foreign goods that made an impact on their culture. In the Americas, Spain brought disease and advanced warfare that the Native Americans could not compete with.They in no way could have, they didn’t stand a chance Portugal stumbled into the Sub-Saharan Africa. Originally, the explorative voyage was charted to go around Africa to Asia, so the Portuguese could avoid trading through the …show more content…
The Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, sponsored Columbus’ journey west in hopes that he would find this new trade route. Instead of reaching the Orient, Columbus unknowingly stumbled on a new continent, the Americas. Thinking he had arrived in India, he traded with the native people and was excited to find new items to exchange. The Native Americans, Christopher Columbus claimed: “were very friendly to us, and perceived that they could be much more easily converted to our holy faith by gentle means rather than by force, I presented them with… trifles of small value, wherein with they were much delighted, and became wonderfully attached to us” (Columbus). This positive trade experience was reported back to Spain and created excitement for further expeditions. This was the start of Europeans trading, exploring, and colonizing the