1. Social Studies 8 Spain Looks Westward

2. Columbus Columbus spent many years trying to convince European rulers to sponsor an expedition West to Asia. Portugal, England and France had already told him no, and now Spain had said no as well. Columbus felt defeated. He was forty years old, and now, his chances for fame and fortune were slim to none. Just when he thought hope was lost, he was called back to Spanish court and offered support from King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. Columbus set out from Spain immediately and landed in the Americas; not in Asia as he’d planned. This first expedition was just a trial run, and in order to continue his exploration and to fund a second, larger expedition, he would need to find gold; lot’s of gold. So Columbus wrote back to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, telling them of the large amounts of gold in nearly every river in the New World. King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella were thrilled, and eagerly supported another major expedition, from which Columbus was told to bring back large quantities of gold. There was only one problem. What was it? Columbus had only found a small amount of gold on the island of Hispaniola.

3. Worldviews: The Spanish and the Aztecs SimilaritiesDifferences Both cultures valued military service.Aztecs believed in modesty whereas the Spanish believed in flaunting their wealth. Both cultures were devoutly religious.The Aztecs were polytheists whereas the Spanish were monotheists. Both cultures believed in Expansionism.Unlike the Spanish, the Aztecs believed in human sacrifice. Both valued contributions to the nation.The Aztecs allowed women to rise to positions of power whereas women in Spain had very little social mobility.

4. Worldviews: The Spanish and the Aztecs The Spanish sent many missionaries to convert the Aztecs. Missionaries had the authority to teach and convert people to Catholicism, and this meant more supporters of the Catholic Church, and Church support of the Spanish. Considering the above information, explain the following statement: Spain’s worldview was predominantly economically motivated? The Spanish economy was in trouble in 1492. Spain had used up all of their gold and silver reserves and needed to find more to maintain their economy. Furthermore, Spain had armies to pay for protection and expansion, and armies were not cheap. Can you see how this left Spain with a double-edged sword/Catch-22? Among other things, the Spanish needed to expand their territory to find more gold, and other countries were involved in the race to find it. However, the Spanish needed gold to pay their armies so that they could expand. This meant that finding gold was imperative… or priceless!? :D Knowing Spanish worldview around the year 1500, would the Spanish have been supportive of conquering the Aztecs? Absolutely! Based on their worldview at the time, the Spanish would have supported any endeavours which increased the national gold supply or provided opportunities to convert people to the Catholic faith; the conquest of the Aztec Empire allowed for both. Case Study: The City of Potosi consisted of approximately 160 000 enslaved Indigenous forced labourers in the late 1500s and bankrolled the Spanish for hundreds of years. Spain became a very rich nation as a result, and boasted of their mistreatment of indigenous people around the world. Many other nations took this as an opportunity to circulate anti-Spanish propaganda (in the attempt to manipulate people by using distorted information), using Spain’s own accounts of its actions, in hopes of gaining support for their own expeditions and colonies.

5. Personal Worldviews in Spain How would these goals, or individual worldviews, have motivated Spanish individuals during the conquest of the Aztec Empire? Individuals were willing to take extreme personal risks because of their worldviews, especially when the risks involved the following: Gold/Wealth, Military, Religion, Personal Wealth, Fame/Glory Cortes, for example, mislead authorities to lead his own expedition to Mexico. Furthermore, Spanish nobles believed that they only had two ways to support themselves: through war and land - any other job would have been beneath them. As a result, many fought for their monarch and were rewarded for their services. Others owned land and took a share of the crops and livestock that the peasants raised. There was also a large class of lower nobles called hidalgos who had never owned land. Consequently, many nobles had fallen on hard times by the end of the Reconquista, partly because of their worldviews. There was a shortage of good farmland in Spain. Extremadura, for example, was a region in central Spain with land to spare, but it was barren and almost impossible to farm, and without the money to support the country in it’s military endeavours, many nobles were left unemployed. So how were these nobles going to support themselves? Some nobles became involved in business and commerce. Others went to the Americas to seek their fortune, as these were more acceptable options than to work with their hands as shopkeepers or shoemakers. During the late 1400s, personal worldviews in Spain were similar to those of the country, but two goals dominated the individual’s worldviews in particular: The desire to become personally wealthy The desire for fame and recognition

6. The Spanish Reconquista The Spanish had a saying, La geographia manda: the belief that Geography controls everything. So in the late 1000s, after being under Muslim control for over three centuries, when the Spanish saw a geographic weakness in the Muslim Caliphate (the area of jurisdiction of Islamic rulers), they began to expand their influence southward. Due to civil unrest and a series of ineffective leaders in Muslim controlled Spain, the unified Muslim state divided its territory into small independent areas called principalities. Who was El Cid and how was he involved in the Reconquista? He was a complex character in medieval Spain. He was a Christian knight who after being exiled, occasionally fought on the Muslim side, but was eventually welcomed home and became a revered Spanish national hero. A Chivalric Epic: The Poem of El Cid The 12th-century Spanish epic The Poem of El Cid celebrated the following aspects of El Cid’s career and legend: military success—A brilliant general, El Cid is never defeated in battle. loyalty—El Cid remains faithful to his king, even after the king unjustly accuses him of treason. fairness—He deals generously with defeated opponents. faith in God—El Cid is a good Christian who tries to live a morally upright life. All these qualities—skill in battle, loyalty, fairness, and faith in God—became part of the code of chivalry. This code was supposed to govern the behaviour of all Christian soldiers.

7. The Spanish Inquisition The Spanish Inquisition, simply put, was the creation of unique courts or tribunals, whose sole purpose was to seek out and try non-Catholics, who had converted to Catholicism, for heresy (being contrary to a particular religion). At this time, many people had converted from Islam, Judaism, and other religions to Catholicism, but not everyone was sincere about their conversion, and secretly opposed the Catholic Church or outright practiced other religions. King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella led the Spanish Inquest, and the Pope was so impressed by their religious devotion, that he named them Catholic Monarchs. Although the Pope during this time was in support of the Inquisition, what do you think John Paul II (1978-2005) meant when he called upon Catholics to recognize a time when “Christians departed from the spirit of Christ.” He was seeking forgiveness on behalf of Roman Catholics for the forced conversion of Indigenous peoples and acts committed by Christians during the Crusades and the Spanish Inquisition. Following the Spanish conquest of Grenada in 1492 - the last area in Spain under Muslim control since 1269 - and the defeat of the Muslims, the King and Queen of Spain ordered the expulsion of Jewish people from Spain, by way of the Spanish Inquisition. Muslims and Jews were given a choice—convert or be exiled (to be exiled is to be driven or forced out of a place). Some chose to leave Spain, while some pretended to convert. For years following, Muslims and Jews lived in constant fear that they would be discovered and punished by the Inquisition. Pope Alexander VI and Pope John Paul II

8. Review Slide Columbus landed in ___________, but meant to land in ________. The Americas, Asia. What was Columbus’ lie to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella? Columbus had only found a small amount of gold on the island of Hispaniola, yet he wrote to Spain of large quantities of gold. T of F: The Spanish worldview did not support the conquest of the Aztecs. F: their worldview supported any conquest that brought gold or aided their religion to prosper. Missionaries had the: authority to teach and convert people to Christianity. What does it mean to be economically motivated? To be motivated/driven by money. Why was the Spanish economy in trouble in 1492? The gold and silver reserves were almost entirely drained. The two things that dominated Spanish worldview in the late 1400s were: Gold and religion. Which of the two criteria above was the most significant? Gold. During the late 1400s, individual worldviews in Spain were dominated by two things: The desire to become personally wealthy and the desire for fame and recognition. In general, which factors of their worldview were the most likely to encourage the Spanish to take extreme personal risks? Gold, personal wealth, military, religion, fame, glory. Which social group fell on hard times after the Spanish Reconquista? The Spanish nobility. What was a Spanish noble called if they’d never owned land? A hidalgo. List three similarities between the Aztec and Spanish worldviews? Both valued military service, religion, power, contribution to society, etc. List three differences between the Aztec and Spanish worldviews? Modesty/Flashiness, social mobility, human sacrifice, mono/poly-theists, etc. The Reconquista was: the Christian reconquest of Spain from the Muslims. T or F: The Reconquista occurred over the span of 200 years. F: The Reconquista lasted more than 400 years. The area of jurisdiction of Islamic rulers is called the: Caliphate. La geographia manda is: the belief/theory that Geography controls everything. _______ was the creation of unique courts whose sole purpose was to seek out/try non-Catholics. The Spanish Inquisition. Who were the Catholic Monarchs? King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella Why were King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella named Catholic monarch? The Pope, Alexander VI gave them this title for their great efforts in advancing the Catholic faith. Muslims and Jews were given a choice between two things: convert or be exiled To be exiled is: to be driven or forced out of a place What was the last area in Spain under Muslim control in 1269? Grenada Following the Spanish conquest of Grenada in 1492 and the defeat of the Muslims, the King and Queen of Spain ordered: the expulsion of Jewish people from Spain, by way of the Spanish Inquisition. small independent areas. The City of _______ consisted of approximately 160 000 enslaved Indigenous forced labourers. Potosi Who mislead authorities to lead his own expedition to Mexico. Cortes Who was El Cid. A Christian knight who sometimes fought on the Muslim side. Who called upon Catholics to recognize a time when “Christians departed from the spirit of Christ.” Pope John Paul II Propaganda: attempts to manipulate people by using distorted information. ___________________was a set of values meant to govern the behaviour of Christian soldiers. The Code of Chivalry