Question

Which religious movement in Europe led to an increased interest in colonizing the Americas?

Answer 1

The Protestant Reformation that began in the 1520s was the key religious movement in Europe that increased interest in colonizing the Americas, driven by the desire to spread Protestantism and the competition with Catholic nations.

Step-by-step explanation:

The religious movement in Europe that led to an increased interest in colonizing the Americas was the Protestant Reformation, which began in the 1520s. This religious fervor, alongside the rivalry between Catholic and Protestant Christians, spilled over into the Americas. English exploration and colonization, in particular, were fueled by religious motives, with figures like Richard Hakluyt the Younger and John Dee using the myth of King Arthur to justify the conquest and Christianization of the New World. The ultimate goal was to spread Protestantism and to glorify God as well as England, particularly under the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. This push was part of the broader European patterns of colonization where empires like Spain, France, and the Netherlands also sent missionaries to convert indigenous peoples and establish a foothold in the burgeoning global economy.

Answer 2

The Puritan Separatist movement.

Step-by-step explanation:

Puritan Separatists were English protestants who considered the English Church, the Anglican Church, to be too similar to the Catholic church, which England had recently abandoned during the reign of Henry VIII.

These Puritan Separatists were very influenced by the teachings of John Calvin, a Swiss pastor who promoted a particular strict version of Protestantism.

Puritan Separatists were persecuted in England, and many of them fleed, initially to the Netherlands. However, they did not feel fully at ease there, and for this reason, seeked an alternative. They took interest in colonizing parts of North America, and eventually obtained a charter, and founded the Plymouth Colony in what is now Massachussetts.