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What role did religion play in the Age of Exploration and the treatment of the indigenous peoples?

Gaylene Northing

Hey there!

When it comes to the Age of Exploration and the treatment of indigenous peoples, religion played a significant role. Many European powers, primarily Spain and Portugal, used religion as a justification for their colonization efforts in the New World.

The Spanish, for example, saw themselves as a Christian nation that had a duty to spread Christianity to the indigenous peoples they encountered. They believed that the natives were heathens who needed to be converted to Christianity to be saved. This ideology was the driving force behind Spanish colonization efforts in the Americas.

Furthermore, the Spanish government issued a series of papal bulls, known as the Inter Caetera, which granted them the right to claim land and convert the natives to Christianity. The bulls stated that the Spanish had a divine right to claim the land and that they were doing the natives a favor by converting them to Christianity.

The Portuguese, likewise, saw themselves as a Christian nation with a mandate to spread the faith. However, they approached colonization differently from the Spanish. The Portuguese established trade with the natives to gain access to valuable goods like spices and gold. While their interaction with the indigenous peoples was not as focused on conversion efforts, they still saw themselves as a Christian nation acting in their best interests.

As for the treatment of indigenous peoples, religion played a significant role in justifying violence and subjugation. The Spanish, for example, used religion as a way to control the natives, taking their children away to be educated in Spanish schools and using violence and coercion to force conversion. The Spanish believed that they were saving the souls of the natives by converting them to Christianity and that any violence used in the process was justified.

The Portuguese, too, used violence to subjugate the natives they encountered. They were notorious for their brutality in Africa and South America, where they enslaved thousands of African and indigenous peoples to work on sugar plantations.

In conclusion, religion played a significant role in the Age of Exploration and the treatment of indigenous peoples. Many European powers saw themselves as Christian nations with a divine mandate to spread the faith to heathen peoples. They used religion to justify their colonization efforts and the subjugation of the natives they encountered. However, this approach ultimately led to the destruction of countless cultures and the loss of countless lives.