Europeans Reach the Americas  For centuries Europeans had explored North American without making any permanent places to live or work (settlements)  When Christopher Columbus visited America he found a Native American group named the Taino  The Taino were generous to Columbus and his men but Columbus was not interested in their culture and was looking for gold  Although Columbus never really found gold but Spain (the country he worked for) and Portugal wanted to add new land to their expanding empires

Impact of Christopher Columbus’s voyages New lands claimed for Spain Native Americans caught disease from Spanish Spread Christianity "The New World." The New World. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Aug

Impact on Native Americans  Soon after Columbus’s voyages other explorers came from Spain in search of gold and land  Without meaning to do so the explorers introduced deadly new diseases to Native Americans who had no natural resistance to European disease  In Mexico, the Spanish found a large city with temples, a place, and buildings built on an island in the middle of a lake, this city was the center of the Aztec Empire  The Spanish saw the Aztecs as a source of gold and silver to increase the economic might of Spain  Eventually the Spanish destroyed the Aztec city, killed its ruler, and brought smallpox disease killing thousands of Native Americans

Smallpox For centuries Europeans had been exposed to outbreaks of disease. These outbreaks built up the resistance to diseases in the Spanish who had arrived at the time of Columbus’s voyages and the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs. Having never so much as been exposed to influenza (the flu) the Aztecs and many other natives died by the millions within a decade of European contact. Aztec victims of smallpox "Cortes Part6 MexicanHistory.org." Cortes Part6 MexicanHistory.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Aug

“The Arrival of Cortes” Native Americans forced to work as slaves Christianity brought to natives Resistance to Spanish rule was met with violence “Images of Murals by Diego Rivera in the Palacio Nacional De Mexico” Images of Murals by Diego Rivera in the Palancio Nacional De Mexcio. N.p., n.d., Web. 01 Aug

Other European nations come to America  The Spanish empire in America allowed it to become very wealthy native people continued to suffer as other nations arrived  In the late 1500s England decided to set up permanent settlement in America when Sir Walter Raleigh sent an expedition to present- day Virginia and North Carolina  English colonists found life hard fighting with Native Americans and had trouble finding food  France sent explorers to present-day Canada and visited the Great Lakes with Native Americans leading as guides  France valued the fur trade most and made allies with the Native Americans who traded furs with the French. The French treated Native Americans with respect learning their language and ways of life unlike other European settlers

The Lost Colony John White helped to settle Roanoke in the Spring of After a few months White went back to England for supplies. War with Spain kept White from returning for three years. By then the colony was deserted and White found an empty fort. The only clues to be found was the word “Croatoan” the name of a nearby island carved into a post and the letters “Cro” etched into a tree. Theories as to what happened to the more than 100 English colonist range from Native American attacks, disease, or perhaps the colonist tried to sail home. No one knows and the colony has since been known as the “lost colony.” "The New World." The New World. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Aug Basu, Tanya. "Have We Found the Lost Colony of Roanoke Island?" National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 06 Dec Web. 30 July 2014.

The need for a labor force  No one knows exactly how many Native Americans died after European contact brought diseases  The Native population north of Mexico was about 10 million before Columbus arrived  After just 10 years the population would drop to less than one million  The drop in population played a major role in a demand for an alternative source of workers  Sugar plantations became profitable to the Spanish and tobacco plantations were a economic benefit for the English as well  With a lack of Native American workers people suggested Africans as workers  With immunity to European disease Africans were enslaved by European colonists and brought to America to meet labor needs

Works Cited "Cortes Part6 MexicanHistory.org." Cortes Part6 MexicanHistory.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Aug "Images of Murals by Diego Rivera in the Palacio Nacional De Mexico." Images of Murals by Diego Rivera in the Palacio Nacional De Mexico. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Aug "The New World." The New World. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Aug Basu, Tanya. "Have We Found the Lost Colony of Roanoke Island?" National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 06 Dec Web. 30 July 2014.