Question

What was Queen Elizabeth I's main concern in initiating England's advance into the New World?

a. Finding a northern passage that would lead to Asia
b. Blocking the Spanish effort to eliminate Protestantism
c. Finding a place to send religious dissidents outside of England
d. Establishing an economically viable outpost on the Atlantic coast

Answer 1

Queen Elizabeth I was primarily concerned with obstructing Spain's attempts to suppress Protestantism by establishing an English presence in the New World, in part to support privateers that targeted Spanish wealth.

Step-by-step explanation:

Queen Elizabeth I's main concern in initiating England's advance into the New World was blocking the Spanish effort to eliminate Protestantism. Spain posed a threat to Protestant England through their extensive colonization and wealth accumulation in the Americas. As England eyed this wealth with jealousy, Elizabeth sought to establish a presence in the New World to serve as a counterweight to Spanish Catholicism and to support privateering against Spanish ships, a lucrative endeavor that brought significant spoils to England. Moreover, she was influenced by Richard Hakluyt's writings, which tied colonization to the spread of Protestantism and English wealth.