Of course, while technology and military strategy helped assist the Spaniards in their conquest of Mexico, one cannot overlook how important European diseases were in the conquest of the New World. Diseases such as the bubonic plague, measles, smallpox, chickenpox, typhus, and influenza had been circulating in Europe for approximately 2000 years. These diseases are referred to as virgin soil epidemics, because the populations at risk had no previous contact

However, as officials issued these directives, they were convinced that the initial scheme was defective principally because it had relied excessively on the educational efficacy of model settlements which would be erected within an Irish environment (Leerssen, 1986). Therefore, it came to be assumed that such settlements could never endure if left in isolation, and Spenser's idea, that the entire country would have to be subjected to a scheme

Imperialism and African Colonization: Imperialism is empire building and occurs when one state is more powerful than the other state's obstacles (such as peoples, geographic obstacles, physical obstacles and technological obstacles) to expansion. Imperialism became a popular cause for the first time in Western countries in the 1890s due to a significant degree by propaganda that sought to make nationalism and imperialism popular (Pieterse par, 2). Towards the end of the

Spanish Missions in California The purpose of this paper is to introduce and discuss the Spanish missions in California between 1700 and 1800. Specifically, it will look at how the missions were founded, the Spanish motivation to found them, and the secularization of the missions. CALIFORNIA MISSIONS One of Spain's traditional ways of conquering a new country was to establish missions to bring the "savages" who lived there the "true" faith. Jesuit missionaries

Colonization: A Necessary Evil? Harold Larrabee in his essay "The Enemies of Empire" poses many difficult, thought provoking questions regarding colonization. After reading the discussion of American colonization presented in the book "The American People: Creating a Nation and Society" the ambiguities of the situation become more apparent. Diverse rationale for the colonization of a nation have been around since the inception of the concept. Some viewed colonization as a moral duty,

Spanish Conquests of Inca and Aztec Empires The Spaniard's conquest of Inca and Aztec Empires are two of the most important chapters regarding the history of colonization in Americas. After Christopher Columbus had discovered America in 1492, he was able to convince the European traders to see America as a land of great opportunity. Even though there were other European countries like France, England and Italy who were setting up colonies