Answer:
To gain control over America's resources
Explanation:
Once the Americas were discovered, the interest among the European powers immediately skyrocketed for it, especially with all the stories of the treasures there. Every European country that was able to fund expeditions wanted to do so and gain control of the new lands.
The main motive behind the explorations and colonization was the gain access to the resources of the Americas. Initially, the interest was mostly focused on silver and gold, as they were very highly valued, so the colonizers wanted to gain access to the silver and gold that was manufactured, but also the mines.
As the time was passing, numerous other resources were discovered, so the Europeans were becoming more and more interested. Some of the most important things that attracted the Europeans were actually the fertile land and good climate which allowed for large scale production of cash crops. That was bringing in a lot of profit, so more and more Europeans flocked in the New World.
