My 7th grade social studies teacher made it perfectly clear and memorable what all European explorers wanted.. Gold, glory and God. The European explorers wanted to find areas where they could profit off of natural resources (gold being the most appealing for obvious reasons). The explorers also seeked to colonize and spread their fame throughout the world. Also the way to get a government funded trip, especially for Spain (huge fans of Columbus) was to spread Christianity. But the big underlying reason Spain was so desperate to go west was to find a new route to Asia since the fall of Constantinople ended to infamous Silk Road, the most popular trade route at the time. The consequences of Columbus’s expedition was he spread European diseases since Natives there had been isolated from most diseases that wiped out Europe and Africa. You can find more consequences and reasoning if you find the consequences of colonialism. Hope this helps!
