The Age of Exploration profoundly impacted the Atlantic Ocean by driving increased exploitation of its natural resources and dramatically increasing the flow of people across its waters.
Key Impacts on the Atlantic Ocean
Building on the initial voyages of exploration, the subsequent era of colonization directly led to significant changes concerning the Atlantic. As detailed in historical accounts, exploration provided the impetus for colonization. This colonization effort grew from isolated outposts to larger, protected settlements and military garrisons throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. This expansion had two primary consequences for the Atlantic realm, according to the provided information:
- Increased Resource Exploitation: The growth of settlements led to a rise in the exploitation of natural resources from both land and sea. This indicates a significant increase in human activity focused on extracting wealth directly from the marine environment of the Atlantic.
- Increased Transatlantic Movement: Hand-in-hand with resource exploitation, there was also an increase in the flow of colonists to the Americas and the Caribbean. This resulted in a substantial rise in ship traffic and human migration across the Atlantic, transforming it into a major highway for people and goods.
These interconnected impacts fundamentally altered the human relationship with the Atlantic Ocean, transitioning it from a barrier to be crossed into a central stage for resource extraction and demographic shifts on a global scale.
Breaking Down the Impacts
Let's look closer at the specific impacts identified:
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Increased Exploitation of Sea Resources:
- Exploration paved the way for permanent settlements.
- Settlements required resources for survival and economic growth.
- This led to an increase in the exploitation of natural resources from... sea. This could include fishing, whaling, or other marine harvesting activities, though the specific resources are not detailed.
- The scale of resource extraction grew alongside the size and number of colonial settlements.
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Increased Flow of Colonists:
- Colonization necessitated moving people from Europe to the new territories.
- As colonies grew, the flow of colonists to the Americas and the Caribbean increased significantly.
- This transatlantic migration required numerous voyages, making the Atlantic a bustling corridor.
These changes initiated during the Age of Exploration set the stage for centuries of intense human activity across and within the Atlantic basin.
Summary of Atlantic Impacts
A simple overview based on the reference shows:
| Driver | Resulting Action | Impact on Atlantic Ocean |
|---|---|---|
| Age of Exploration | Provided impetus for colonization | (Indirect, foundational) |
| Colonization Growth | Led to larger settlements & garrisons (17th-18th C) | (Indirect, enabling) |
| Settlements Growing | Increased Exploitation of Resources | Increased exploitation of sea resources |
| Settlements Growing | Increased Flow of People | Increased flow of colonists |
The Age of Exploration, by initiating colonization, fundamentally transformed the Atlantic into a zone of heightened resource extraction and a major thoroughfare for human migration.
For further reading on this period, you might explore resources detailing the history of transatlantic voyages or the Columbian Exchange.
