The first colonists settled near the seacoast or on rivers because the major transportation was by:

Word of mouth

Explanation:

communication in colonial times was mostly by:

word of mouth.

the crusades are one of the most significant events in the history of europe and the middle east.   they were a series of religious wars carried out by christian crusaders from europe during the timeframe of the middle ages.   beginning in 1095 ce, the crusades saw european knights and noblemen travel to the middle east in an attempt to capture the holy land away from muslim people that had controlled the region for the previous centuries.   the term crusade means ‘cross’.   therefore, the europeans that became crusaders viewed themselves as ‘taking up the cross’.   in fact, many of the crusaders wore crosses on their clothing and armor as they made their pilgrimage to the holy land.

explanation:

2686-2181 bce-- "egyptian civilization developed along the nile river in large part because the river’s annual flooding ensured reliable, rich soil for growing crops."

1069-664 bce-- "ancient egyptians developed wide-reaching trade networks along the nile, in the red sea, and in the near east."