Compare and Contrast Indians and Spaniards in North America

Essay by VicenteUniversity, Bachelor's November 2004

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In the Americas, many different groups have shaped its history, land, its culture and its society. Different groups like the Europeans, Africans and Native Americans have molded America to the America we know today. When Columbus first landed on America, he believed he had landed on the West Indies. He was trying to find a shorter route to East Asia but instead he discovered a whole new continent called America. He was representing the Spanish monarchy when he first landed so the Spanish monarchy was the first to claim theirs the land that was discovered. They were the first to set foot in today Mexico and Northern Mexico. They were the first to encounter with the Native Americans from this new world. Spaniards and Native Americans were the first to really interact with one another, interaction from the Old World and the New World. Although both were from totally different places, they shared some similarities as well as some differences.

The Spaniards main goal in the Americas was to bring back riches to Mother Spain. They were told of stories about abundance of gold, silver, and many other valuables that would make the Spaniards rich. They were also in search of cities with fabulous things like Cibola, the city made of gold, silver and other riches, the Garden of Eden, and the fountain of forever youth. They had other goals too, like converting the Indians to Christianity. Spaniards believed that God had blessed them with the discovery of a new land and chose them as the explorers, so they in return must Christianize the new people from these enchanted places to serve God.

As mentioned before, Native Americans and Spaniards shared many similarities as well as many differences. A similarity from both Spaniards and Native Americans is

that each...