Georgia's exploration
America was settled by the Europeans in search of Asia. they thought they would go around the world but never expected to find more land in the way! They thought it was Asia at first but they were only on some small islands south-east of Georgia. Later they colonized the land now known as Georgia. The Indians were in the middle of the Mississippian period and fought back with their weapons. They were no match for the guns and disease that the European's brought with them though. No one knows exactly how all the Indians died but they eventually did. Scientists suspect it was due to disease. They wanted to colonize they land because they thought it was Asia and that would give them an advantage. Also they wanted the resources found here. They later explored the America's for the 3 G's they were God, Gold and Glory. God was religion. They wanted to spread their religion of Christianity. Gold was gold and anything else that was valuable. They conquered many Indian groups for gold and anything else they thought was worth something. Glory was what made them famous, he conquered the entire Pacific ocean for Spain. That made him a hero to his country.
Hernando De Soto
Spanish Exploration
The initial exploration of Georgia and the new colony was mainly led by the Spanish. Hernando De Soto (Above) led and "army" of 600 men north and then west to the Mississippi river. It was there that Hernando De Soto died. In his wake he killed many Indians if not with his advanced weapons and armor it was with disease. The Spanish eventually just settled La Florida and stayed there. Although once they attacked Georgia and where defeated.
British Exploration
The British explored mainly just Georgia and South Carolina and a little north of them. South Carolina was a HUGE money maker for Britain but they had no way to defend it so, they made Georgia! It was just a buffer for South Carolina from the Spanish in the south until, Georgia was allowed to own slaves. Then it became an even bigger money maker than South Carolina. James Oglethorpe was the main British explorer, he was also the one that made Savannah and helped many people get or make new lives.
French Exploration
The French were not as interested in the new world as Britain and Spain but they still wanted a part of it. They explored the coast and barrier islands of Georgia and later moved north to Canada
Impact it had
The impact that Europeans had was very impacting to society in America. It caused most Indians to die of unknown reasons. Also Hernando DeSoto's log ended Georgia's prehistory by adding a written record in time. It also gave many country's new land to gain more money. It gave them more money based on the theory of mercantilism. Mercantilism is when a country(s) exports more than it imports in order to increase wealth. The Indians also introduced many Europeans how to grow cash crops like corn, Tomatoes, and Potatoes. This also made Europeans richer and more wealthy.
Spanish Missions
The Spanish setup Missions or villages in a new place to convert the people there to Catholicism. They forced the Indians to learn about Catholicism even though they didn't understand English and didn't want a new religion. Only a few Indians actually were converted to Catholicism, and only only a few of those stayed catholic. What the Spanish did to convert the Indians was setup a church outpost and move priests there then they brought in Indians and taught them about Catholicism.