There were six countries – Spain, Portugal, England, France, Netherlands, and the Denmark-Norway Empire – that seriously pursued colonization in areas of the world that were generally unknown to Europeans until late in the 15th century. Fishing ships from all these countries had certainly been in Western Atlantic waters, but except for Spain and Portugal, land exploration and colonizing settlements didn’t begin until the early 1500s.
This Colonization Element referred to as the Doctrine of Discovery includes information about the ancient (15th and 16th century) Catholic Church edicts called Papal Bulls, and the English Royal Decrees called Letters Patents. Also included in this Element are brief reviews of the exploration, conquest, invasion, and occupation tactics and strategies used by the six colonizing countries.
The following are the individual articles of the Colonization Practices that constitute the Doctrine of Discovery. Although there is some cross referencing, in general, each article is an independent statement about a particular subject, person, or issue.
England’s Letters Patent and Grants
French Colonization Practices – New France
French Colonization Practices – Caribbean France
The Netherlands Colonization Practices
Denmark-Norway Colonization Practices
Portugal Colonization Practices
Spanish Colonization Practices
The 10 Rules of the Doctrine of Discovery
As I discover new information about the Doctrine of Discovery, additional articles will be included in the Colonization *Footnotes website and added to this Directory.