Exam questions in History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Exam questions in History - Essay Example Analyzing the factual evidences and the historical facts, it becomes lucid that Columbus enjoys a distinction among the explorers which is not completely substantiated by his deeds. It is a fact that he initiated some important explorations which helped the European explorers to establish their imperial superiority in the land. However, it does not adequately establish his role as the chief explorer of the European desires and, in fact, he fell short of his ultimate goals. "Christopher Columbus is an unlikely figure to be considered the discoverer of America and the leading symbol of European exploration overseas... None of this is certain and probably never will be... By contrast, Columbus...knew what he was looking for--a sea passage that would carry him to the fabled wealth of China by sailing west from Europe. This is not what he found." (Marshall, 1998, p 16). The most essential irony of his life and explorations is that Columbus, all through his life, failed to recognize that h e had not reached the Orient but had stumbled upon vast lands totally new to the European mind. Thus, Columbus was a failure in achieving his ultimate goal and was a self-conscious explorer driven by the craving for discovery. It was never Columbus but others who found the full significance of his discoveries. In short, the profound popularity of Christopher Columbus is not completely substantiated by his actions. A. Module 1, Q 2: The actions of the Spanish, French, English, and Dutch explorers and colonizers and their impact on the native peoples, the environment, and Europe. Explorations and colonization by the European explorers including the Spanish, French, English, and Dutch explorers have influenced the course of human history in general and that of the native peoples in particular. These sea-faring nations of Europe were determined to enlarge their influence on the rest of the world through their explorations and colonization in the early fifteenth century. The main motive of these explorations and colonization was profit and the native peoples needed to suffer for the advantage of the European nations. The impact of the actions by the European explorers was favorable to the Europe, while the native peoples and their environment were adversely affected. The European explorers such as the Spanish, French, English, and Dutch attempted to discover better trade routes to Asia and the trade interests in home nations increased tremendously. Explorations were also fueled by the interest for colonization by the European nation, along with the quest for kno wledge about the new lands. The entire Europe has been enjoying the fruits of the explorations and colonization by the early explorers, while the colonized and explored lands of Asia, Africa, and America have been deeply disfavored by these explorations. "The nineteenth century was the great age of European expansion. For 300 years, following the voyages of Columbus, Da Gama, and Magellan, the shadow of the European hegemony had been moving across the oceans. For ten generations hardy explorers, traders, and colonizers had been hoisting sail in the harbours of the Old World to lay the broad