As the Windows On (Mapping the World) box on page 453 points out, the voyages of exploration described in Chapter 16 resulted in far more than a simple improvement in European's understanding of global geography. As Europeans spread outward, encountering new lands and new peoples, they forever altered the societies with which they came in contact. At the same time, Europe itself was transformed by the experience of expansion. Explore the evidence of European encounters with the New World described below and then respond to the essay question that follows. Examine Alejo Fernandez's painting, Our Lady of the Navigators, on page 451. What light does this painting shed on the motives and beliefs of European explorers? How did the religious views of Europeans shape their encounter with the New World and its peoples? The maps of Grazioso Benincasa and Hondius found on page 453 are strong evidence of the increasing sophistication of European map making. How did improved knowledge of global geography change European's sense of their place in the world? The eyewitness account of Vasco da Gama's arrival in Calicut, India (May 20-29, 1498) quoted on page 458 paints a picture of European material inferiority. How did Europeans respond to the discovery of their relative poverty? The discovery of previously unknown peoples and societies prompted many Europeans to reconsider what it meant to be civilized. Examine the image of Aztec human sacrifice on page 461, Théodore de Bry's engraving of European atrocities on page 463, the entry from Columbus' diary on page 464, and Bartolomé de las Casas description of the Amerindians on page 470. What do these conflicting accounts tell us about European responses to contact with the peoples of the Americas? Europeans quickly discovered that they could not fully exploit the economic potential of the New World without a vast influx of labor. Examine the graph depicting slave imports to the Americas on page 468, Olaudah Equiano's description of his own sale in a slave auction on page 470, and the response of a British physician to conditions on a slave ship on page 470. What affect did the importation of African slaves to the Americas have on European racial attitudes? The voyages of exploration provided impetus for the development of a new commercial economy in Europe. This, in turn, greatly accelerated the accumulation of wealth and the growth of Europe's population to previously unattainable levels. Study Jean-Baptiste Colbert's advice on finance on page 473, Adam Smith's economic arguments on page 473, the graph of Spanish silver imports on page 474, and the graph illustrating European population growth on page 478. How did the European economy of 1700 differ from that of 1500? What connection is there between economic and social change in this period? Study the image of Las Casas included below. How might the artists characterize the European encounter with the New World? What are the implication of the artist's depiction of Las Casas as a savior of the Indian people? [ Bartolomé de Las Casas] When you have finished reviewing the evidence, write a well-organized essay describing the impact of the voyages of exploration on the political, social, and economic life of Europe. Use the evidence you have just examined to support your claims and observations.