World History: New global connection

Question

Discuss how the scientific revolution and renaissance paved the way for a European exploration and colonization. In addition, identify some potential reasons why Europe became a world colonizer rather than any other continental powers.

Answer 1

The scientific revolution gave Europe technological advantages over civilizations during the Age of Exploration. The most significant were shipbuilding and guns. There were other civilizations throughout history that gained technological advances before the rest of the world, but neighboring peoples would adopt their advances. For example, the Sumerians were the first at many things including a complex system of writing, but they were conquered by their neighbors who adopted the Sumerian advances. In contrast, the Europeans could arrive in places like South Africa or the Bahamas and encounter people who had zero exposure to European technology. Shipbuilding exacerbated Europe's other advantages like metallurgy and firearms. Guns were so deadly that they changed the nature of European warfare. European ships allowed the countries of Europe to encounter people who had never adjusted their fighting tactics to the impact of guns.