What effect did the introduction of smallpox have in the Americas?

A.

It contributed to the defeat of American Indians.

B.

C.

It led to large numbers of deaths among European colonists in the Americas.

It allowed American Indians to quickly develop a resistance to the disease.

It resulted in the inability of Europeans to establish colonies in the Americas.

D.

A

Explanation:

The first epidemic that significantly affected the natives of the American continent was smallpox, brought in one of the ships of Christopher Columbus on his second visit to the New World. Native Americans were immediately infected as one of the populations susceptible to this disease, smallpox produced serious damage to the indigenous population, which had not been in contact with the disease.