"The Impact of the Columbian Voyages on Europe"
The voyages of Christopher Columbus in the late Fifteenth Century mark a watershed in the history of the world. The tidal wave created by this earthshaking event washed over the entire globe and its aftershocks produced ripples that have not subsided to this day nor does a cessation of their consequences appear imminent. However, for all of the enormity of the effects, most historians view the consequences from a decidedly Euro-centric basis. They see and report the Encounter (as I shall call these voyages and their aftermath) as though Europe (that is, the western third of the Eurasian continent) alone acted on the outside world and mutual interchange did not take place. Granted, they mention what they see as side effects that affected Europe, but, and this holds even for European historians, they do not grant these very high priority in influencing European history.
Most historians seem to believe that the changes in and expansion of Europe had their origins in Europe and that they would have come about in the absence of the Encounter. These historians presume the changes inherent in the Renaissance engendered and precipitated the course Europe took. They treat the consequences of the Encounter on Europe as peripheral or in passing, as if they had little importance for the subsequent history within Europe. I contend that this is an erroneous perspective and that the effects have central significance to the course of European history. Recently, a few historians have given this perspective some additional emphasis, realizing that the changes wrought had far greater magnitude, more lasting duration, and greater significance to the course of European history. Using the works of these historians and the snippets fo ...