Causation in Period 1 examines the transformative impact of transatlantic voyages from 1491 to 1607.
The Columbian Exchange is central: it moved crops like maize and potatoes to Europe, boosting European populations, while diseases like smallpox devastated Native populations.
This exchange reshaped agriculture, demographics, and economies on both sides of the Atlantic.
European expansion was driven by intense competition for resources, leading to political and economic shifts within Europe itself.
The Spanish Empire's development brought forced labor systems like encomienda, altering social structures in the Americas.
Here's the cognitive trap: thinking Europeans 'discovered' empty land.
Native societies had complex political and trade systems long before European contact.
You must reframe your understanding: these interactions were not just European-led changes but reciprocal transformations that altered both continents.
Recognize how differing worldviews on religion, land use, and power defined these interactions.
The challenge is to trace these changes back to their roots in transatlantic contact, seeing how foundational they are for later American history.