Dr. Richard M. answered • 04/12/15
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Dr. Richard English, History, Test Prep Language, Edit & Proof
Your answer would begin with the Treaty of Tordesillas of 1494.
If you need a short answer …
Simply explaining the treaty will do: a) that it followed Columbus's return after his journey in 1492 to find a sea passage to the lands to the east of Europe. Of course we know now a shorter route does not exist that is shorter than an overland route, but in those days the earth was not known to be as large as it actually is, and it was considered easier to travel by ship than by mule train — even with the constant danger of being lost at sea in a storm.
Your answer would explain how the two dominant nations of Portugal and Spain (known as Castile in those days) would be convinced to avoid fighting it out over who controlled the non-Christian world outside of Europe. So, it was decided (by the Pope Alexander VI, of all people) that Spain would control all of the Western Hemisphere and Portugal would control the Eastern Hemisphere, at least those parts not destined to become European nations.
(Interesting that when the Pope divided the world in to halves, he bit off the eastern tip of what would become Brazil and the rest of Brazil's territory would fall into the Western Hemisphere. Technically Spain could have said Brazil needs to be divided into two halves with the bigger, inland portion going to Spain. But that didn’t happen and all of modern day Brazil recognizes itself as a former colony of Portugal.)
If you need a longer answer such as an essay or research paper …
You might use the following structure:
1. Develop the “why” that Spain felt desperate to explore the new world. You could write a few paragraphs explaining why Columbus was sent out in 1492 to begin with. Cite Spain’s need to discover new sources for gold, among other riches. You can find examples of how much Spain’s wars up to that time had cost, and how little wealth she had left. Her interest in ship exploration exploded in the 1400s and ships cost money to build. No other nation, except Portugal, could rival her and she wanted to be the best. This part of the “why” is every bit an example of greed, and an almost self-destructive compulsion with it.
2. A very interesting force that pushed exploration of the non-Christian world was the need to spread the Catholic religion. The full pressure of this need might be hard for us to understand today with our appreciation for freedom of religion. In the 1400s, however, the pressure for Catholicism to spread — particularly in the face of danger Catholics feared from the followers of Islam — was huge. You could build a very good case that this need to spread religion was a big part of the “why.”
3. Then, you might develop Spain’s all-consuming, big-headed, inflated notion of itself as a world leader. This might be a bit easier for us to relate to given that recent history has nations such as Germany from 1932 on, and the Soviet Union from 1945 on have made no secret about wanting to dominate the entire world. Spain simply felt it was superior to any other nation, and given the vast territories their explorers and armies dominated, they may have been right.
In opening paragraph or in your conclusion you can cite the well-known expression that you might find in almost any history book or encyclopedia as an answer:
“Why? FOR GOLD, FOR GOD AND FOR GLORY!”
Hope this helps. Best wishes.
If you need a short answer …
Simply explaining the treaty will do: a) that it followed Columbus's return after his journey in 1492 to find a sea passage to the lands to the east of Europe. Of course we know now a shorter route does not exist that is shorter than an overland route, but in those days the earth was not known to be as large as it actually is, and it was considered easier to travel by ship than by mule train — even with the constant danger of being lost at sea in a storm.
Your answer would explain how the two dominant nations of Portugal and Spain (known as Castile in those days) would be convinced to avoid fighting it out over who controlled the non-Christian world outside of Europe. So, it was decided (by the Pope Alexander VI, of all people) that Spain would control all of the Western Hemisphere and Portugal would control the Eastern Hemisphere, at least those parts not destined to become European nations.
(Interesting that when the Pope divided the world in to halves, he bit off the eastern tip of what would become Brazil and the rest of Brazil's territory would fall into the Western Hemisphere. Technically Spain could have said Brazil needs to be divided into two halves with the bigger, inland portion going to Spain. But that didn’t happen and all of modern day Brazil recognizes itself as a former colony of Portugal.)
If you need a longer answer such as an essay or research paper …
You might use the following structure:
1. Develop the “why” that Spain felt desperate to explore the new world. You could write a few paragraphs explaining why Columbus was sent out in 1492 to begin with. Cite Spain’s need to discover new sources for gold, among other riches. You can find examples of how much Spain’s wars up to that time had cost, and how little wealth she had left. Her interest in ship exploration exploded in the 1400s and ships cost money to build. No other nation, except Portugal, could rival her and she wanted to be the best. This part of the “why” is every bit an example of greed, and an almost self-destructive compulsion with it.
2. A very interesting force that pushed exploration of the non-Christian world was the need to spread the Catholic religion. The full pressure of this need might be hard for us to understand today with our appreciation for freedom of religion. In the 1400s, however, the pressure for Catholicism to spread — particularly in the face of danger Catholics feared from the followers of Islam — was huge. You could build a very good case that this need to spread religion was a big part of the “why.”
3. Then, you might develop Spain’s all-consuming, big-headed, inflated notion of itself as a world leader. This might be a bit easier for us to relate to given that recent history has nations such as Germany from 1932 on, and the Soviet Union from 1945 on have made no secret about wanting to dominate the entire world. Spain simply felt it was superior to any other nation, and given the vast territories their explorers and armies dominated, they may have been right.
In opening paragraph or in your conclusion you can cite the well-known expression that you might find in almost any history book or encyclopedia as an answer:
“Why? FOR GOLD, FOR GOD AND FOR GLORY!”
Hope this helps. Best wishes.
