Explorers sailed west from Europe in the 1500s for various reasons. At first, explorers were looking for a shorter water route to Asia. They hoped that they would find this route by sailing west. For example, Christopher Columbus sailed westward in 1492 in search of such a route. Other explorers, such as John Cabot and Jacques Cartier, also sailed west looking for a shorter route to Asia.

As time passed, explorers discovered a new world, the Americas, and they realized that there were benefits to coming to the New World. They discovered minerals such as gold and silver. This encouraged European countries to support additional explorations, as these countries hoped to enrich their treasurers with these minerals. As the European countries claimed land in the New World, this gave people a chance to go there to spread Christianity. These missionaries realized that many people either practiced no religion or practiced a native religion different from Christianity. Thus, the missionaries saw an opportunity to spread Christianity.

Several European countries were in a competition for power, wealth, and land. The desire to be stronger than their rivals also fueled some of the explorations in the 1500s. Great Britain, France, Spain, and Portugal were some of the European countries that sponsored explorers to sail westward.