The sixteenth century was a time of exploration and expansion. Sparked by the Renaissance, the people of Europe began to question and investigate. The peoples' curiosity and desire for finer goods from Asia led them to take to the high seas in search of an easier path to the Orient. One of these courageous sailors was Christopher Columbus under the country of Spain. In his efforts to find Asia, Columbus accidentally stumbled across a new world. This new world contained other cultures and people very different from the Europeans. As a result of Columbus's discovery of the New World the very unique and ancient culture of the Native Americans was extinguished. It was a bad thing that the Europeans prevailed over these ancient tribes of the Americas.
             The Native American cultures made a large impact on Europe. The food products from the New World were very important to the people in Europe. "Native New World plants such as tobacco, maize, beans, tomatoes, and especially the lowly potato eventually revolutionized the international economy as well as the European diet," (Kennedy 14). These products were given to the early Europeans as gifts from the Indians. With these new goods Europe was able to feed its entire populace during the rapid population growth of the Old World (Kennedy 14). This food also strengthened the European economy allowing many traders to make high profits. Another important gift from the Americas was gold. "This flood of precious metal touched off a price revolution that increased consumer costs by 500 percent..." (Kennedy 17). This huge income of bullion helped traders to use a standard for currency and stimulated the economy. The encounter with the native cultures of the Americas brought prosperity, wealth, and land to the Europeans. Yet the Old World culture was the only one to profit.
             The invasion of the Europeans into the New World devastated the native cultures of...