Title: The Turning Point: European Conquests of the Americas (1492-1800)
Headings: The Turning Point: European Conquests of the Americas (1492-1800)
The Turning Point: European Conquests of the Americas (1492-1800)
Content: The Turning Point: European Conquests of the Americas (1492-1800)
The Turning Point: European Conquests of the Americas (1492-1800)
“The discovery of America, and that of the passage to the East Indies by the Cape of Good Hope, are the two greatest events recorded in the history of [human] kind”
—Adam Smith, in The Wealth of Nations (Marks 5)
Adam Smith, the founding father of free-market economics, argued that these were the two most important game-changing moments in history: Columbus’ discovery of a route to the Americas in 1492 and Vasco da Gama’s feat of sailing around southern Africa to find the sea route to Asia in 1498. Historians have traditionally agreed with Smith that these were two of the most important turning points in world history. They go a long way in explaining the gradual ascent of a wealthy, powerful, and imperial Europe. These events led to the emergence of the first-ever completely global market, one that fierce international rivals sought to dominate. Europe eventually found itself at the center of the global economic network, commanding large empires. In the next section, we’ll look at Europe’s discovery of a route to the “New World” in the Americas and explore why it is so important in understanding modern imperialism. The most important motive for early European exploration across the Atlantic was the dream of enormous riches.