Why Did Europeans Began Their Exploration Between 1492-1667

There are many reasons why the Europeans began their exploration between 1492-1667. But the three main reasons were finding gold, new trade routes, and spreading Christianity. Gold was a huge deal to the Europeans, it was a way of showing a country's wealth back then because the item was so rare. When the Europeans first got there they wanted to know where the Native Americans were keeeping their gold. Lots of Native Americans were killed and enslaved because of this. New trade routes were very important too because it was a way of getting goods you didn't have in the area you lived in. The Europeans used Native Americans as enslaved cargo for trade routes and lots of items such as fruits, grains, tobacco, and coffee, were transferred between
the Americas and Europe. The Europeans spreading christianity had a negative effect on the Native american since they were forced to convert to christianity. The Native Americans had to live inside the missions, which separated them from their cultures and families. Many Native Americans who tried to leave were punished, they had to do labor work such as farming and construction, adopt european dress, diet, living arrangements and give up their self government.