Prince Henry and Christopher Columbus were responsible for the exploration of new lands in Africa and in North America. As for Henry, he navigated with his seamen to the south from Portugal. His objective was to collaborate with a leader in North West Africa who had built a strong Christian foundation in the African region. He was the one who was responsible for the African slave trade. His contributions included the creation of caravels, small ships that could sail faster according to the seventeenth century ( “Early Globalization: The Atlantic World, 1492-1650”).
Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy, but was known for his exploration of the new world, which was North America, and his expedition was supported by the Spanish. He first landed in the lands of the Bahamas, thinking he had reached the Indian lands and thus named Indos. He later went to Haiti, where, in these two lands, he exploited the natives with the help of the Columbus men that he was flanked with through his three ships (Moral). The ships were Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria, which he used to navigate through the seas as he reached the new worlds of North America. On Columbus’s Third Voyage, he landed in Jamaica, and on his fourth, he landed in Honduras, which are situated in South America and Central America, respectively.
Columbus benefited from the sponsorship of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, who were staunch Catholics. Columbus, after his exploration of the new world, returned to Spain very rich and brought with him various products that were not produced in Europe. Still, he was later stripped of his riches when the Spanish realized the inhuman behaviours that he did while in the new world. Prince Henry had sent fifteen to explore the west coast of Africa but failed. The sixteenth expedition was fruitful, and they managed to explore and siphon the gold and other natural resources in Africa. Hence, at that point, Portugal was desperate for Golgoldnd, and they found it, and that is when they started making their first coins.
Colombian Exchange
It was a trade term used to describe the exchange of commodities and services across the Atlantic. The Europeans brought plants, diseases, and animals, which changed the lives of the New World regions. Hence, at that time, sugar proved to be a very valuable product. Europeans competed for the New World lands for the purpose of sugar plantations since, in Europe, the climatic conditions were harsh for the plantations, whereas Africa was commonly known for labour. The Europeans saw tobacco as a cash crop; hence, they started cultivating it for sale since it was known to improve concentration and enhance wisdom. On Columbus’s second voyage, he brought domestic animals with him, which transformed the lives of the new world. Hence, diseases such as chicken pox, smallpox and mumps were brought with the Europeans. In comparison, a sexually transmitted disease was also traversed in the trade, which was syphilis. Hence, the Colombian exchange brought advantages and disadvantages to both parties involved, which were Europe, Africa, and America (The Colombian Exchange).
To conclude this discussion, the Colombian exchange was responsible for bringing in different products and services across the continents. Benefits included America’s introduction of domestic animals such as pigs, cattle, and chickens, as well as diseases such as smallpox, malaria, and yellow fever. Europe benefited from farm produce such as pepper, potatoes, tobacco, and cassava. Hence, this kind of trade introduced led to the cultivation of capitalism (The Colombian Exchange).
Works Cited
“Early Globalization: The Atlantic World, 1492-1650”. The Americas, Europe, and Africa (2006): 15-18.
Moral, A. “Renaissance Men: Christopher Columbus and Prince Henry.” Prezi (2014): 1-7.
“The Colombian Exchange.” Old and New World Collide Khan Academy (2013): 47-49.
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