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Colonization and Nation Building
What is the relationship between colonization and nation building? This
question has many answers. However, we will analyze it by discussing the greed factor.
Greed among rulers was the strongest relationship between colonization and nation
building.
Christopher Columbus : considered one of the greatest explorers of all
time. Like every other explorer, Columbus had many reasons for his exploration. However,
it is made obvious by studying the history of Columbus' explorations that his main motive
for exploration was greed. Columbus had the same desires as many explorers both before and
after him. He yearned for gold. He wanted land. He wanted power. The whole purpose for his
first voyage to what he thought was India, but turned out to be Central America, was to
gain land for Spain. It took quite a bit of sweet talking from Columbus to get the money
and ships needed for this voyage from Spain's Queen Isabella. But in the end, Columbus had
the chance to reach a goal brought on by greed : to gain riches. Queen Isabella had the
same motive. She wanted land for Spain, and that is the only reason that she ever gave him
the money and ships to make his voyage.
The English, like other countries, voyaged to the Americas in search of
riches. It wasn't until they got there that they realized that people already lived there.
It was at that point that greed took over the English. The English did something, that by
today's standards would be considered inhuman. They used a method of mass murder called
extermination. They used whatever it took to kill the most Native Americans possible in
the smallest amount of time. The English would not have done this had it not been for
extreme greed. They wanted the land that the Native Americans had and they wanted it as
soon as possible. This greed among the English did accomplish their task of taking land
quickly, but it also accomplished the murder of thousands of Native Americans.
Although it doesn't seem obvious at first thought, new laws in Europe
helped with the effort in nation building. With the new laws were the guidelines as to
were the laws were in effect. Often, a new law included a new area of land. This meant
that with each new law a king put forth, theoretically, he could gain more land. A newer
set of laws that were not made law by the king, took power from the king and said that he
did not have total control. This set of laws, the Magna Carta, is perhaps the most famous
set of written laws ever.
With the decline of feudalism came the development of monarchies. A
monarchy, form of government in which one person has the hereditary right to rule as head
of state during his or her lifetime, usually presents the chance for nation building. A
greedy king or queen can, if they have the forces needed, build their nation quickly and
effectively. Just like everyone and everything else, the monarch always had a reason for
nation building. Nine times out of ten, that reason was greed. The king wanted more people
to tax. The king wanted more land. The king wanted more trade routes to tax. All of these
are a part of greed. The king (or queen) wanted something that they didn't need and they
were willing to do almost anything to get it. Fight a war. Kill a thousand people. The
phrase 'Whatever it takes' meant the world to a monarch.
Greed. Whether it was colonization, as with Queen Isabella and
Christopher, or it was nation building, greed was the motive behind it nine times out of
ten. Christopher Columbus tried for years to make a voyage to what he thought was India,
and he was so diligent because he was greedy. The English murdered thousands upon
thousands of people because they wanted the land belonging to the Native Americans all to
themselves. These are two very good examples of greed within colonization. A king wants
more land, but he doesn't want a war. How does he get it? Why, he just thinks of some new
ridiculous law that will have no effect other than to give him more land. The end of
feudalism : not only the end of a great period of history, but also the beginning to the
major development of one of the most influential types of government ever : the monarchy.
The monarchy would prove to be a major force behind the building of many nations for
decades. Greed among rulers was the strongest relationship between colonization and nation
building : Is this fact? No, but I would like to see someone effectively argue against it.
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