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The Effects of Christopher Columbus

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The Effects of Christopher Columbus
The Effects of Christopher Columbus

In 1492, Christopher Columbus landed in the new world; the Native Americans lives were altered through the introduction of the Columbian Exchange, Cultural changes and loss of their homeland. Columbus's discovery of the new world sparked colonization of the Americas. There was an ample amount of vast, arable land thus creating economic opportunity for the wealthy and the common-man. The people longing for this opportunity intruded on the Native American's land and completely changed their way of life.
When Christopher Columbus discovered the new world, it caused the two different worlds (The Americas and Europe, Asia, Africa) to collide hence creating the Colombian Exchange. The Columbian Exchange is the world wide exchange of people, plants, animals, diseases and ideas. An example of a domesticated animal brought to the Americas, are Horses. When horses were transported from Europe to the Americas. When introduced to the Indians, Horses became a major part of the culture of the Plains Indians. Horses improved hunting and allowed them to shift the a Nomadic lifestyle. A crop that had effect was Tobacco. The Indians were introduced to smoking the crop and it became part of their lifestyle. In addition, Disease is a large cause of the devastation of the Native Americans. The Indians fell victim to illnesses such as Yellow Fever, Smallpox, and Malaria; 90% of the Natives died. As a result, the Indians did not create a good labor source to work on plantations. For this reason the importation of African slaves began. With the importation of slaves, labor was easier to obtain. Therefore farmers wanted to acquire more land for their plantations, causing conflict and violence with the Native Americans.
Cultural changes were another effect of Columbus's arrival in the Native Americans. Prior to his arrival, the Native Americans were isolated; separated from the rest of the world by the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The Native American

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