After the discoveries of Columbus and the development of the Columbian exchange, the various European powers spent much of the 1600s extending and consolidating their hold on their various possessions in the New World. The Spanish worked to intensify their lose hold on much of South America and Mexico.

Driven for converts in part by the competition of Christian ideas stemming from the Reformation, missionaries were vital to the continued exploration. For instance, French missionaries explored much of what became of the Louisiana Territory. Missionaries also shaped the culture of the New World. In part through force and in part because of the seeming power of Christians and fusing of local traditions, Christianity spread through the indigenous inhabitants. It also took hold of places like the Philippines under Spanish control. The faith also grew in China until the Chinese Rites Controversy in which the emperor banned its practice and the Pope banned the continued worship of ancestors. Jesuits and other religious groups established schools for both those of European and Native descent. For the first time, it became a global religion and shaped lives all over the world.

Figure 8: A Map Including the New World and Asia

There was highly profitable trade to China and the Far East. However, European strength was limited, especially in China where the Chinese demanded gold and silver, much to the dismay to the Europeans, in exchange for Chinese goods of tea and silk that were increasingly in demand in Europe. The Dutch took possession of the rich East Indies that produced the spices that fetched high prices back in Europe.

People in History: Anne Bonney

Anne Bonney ( c1697 – c 1782) was a notorious female pirate. Coming from an illegitimate background, he father forced her to dress as a boy for much of her childhood while posing as his law clerk. She moved to America where she married a sailor and quickly began her pirate career under the command of “Calico” Jack Rackam. With fellow female pirate Mary Read, she increased her raiding activity, taking over several small vessels and seizing a large amount of treasure. She was involved in several fights and quickly became well known and respected among her peers and authorities. She along with Read and others were captured in 1720. While others were quickly hanged, Read and Bonney were given stays of execution due to both being pregnant. Bonney was later released from prison and disappeared from history. Piracy shows the high level of trade taking place in the Caribbean at this time and the lack of proper oversight of the trade, as raiders, pirates and others continued to flourish.