1. The Age of Exploration
“What Columbus did to the Arawaks of the Bahamas, Cortez did to the Aztecs of Mexico, Pizarro did to the Incas of Peru, and the English Settlers did to the Powhatans and the Pequots” --Howard Zinn

3. How did Portugal take the lead?
Henry the Navigator
King’s Brother
Had vision for his country
Wanted to spread Christianity
Started a school of navigation at Sagres
Other Explorers
Bartholomeu Dias (down west coast of Africa)
Vasco da Gama (around Africa to India)
Christopher Columbus (not financed by king)
What is the religious make-up of Europe during this time?
Why did the king refuse to fund Christopher Columbus?
What was Portugal’s vision for colonization?

4. From Exploration to Empire (1492 to 1550)

5. More Exploration in the New World
Amerigo Vespucci—believed it was a new continent
Vasco Nunez de Balboa—explored eastern coast of Central America and walked to the Pacific
Ferdinand Magellan—searched for a strait to get to the Pacific; saw penguins; crew circumnavigated the globe

6. Why did Columbus win?
“Moreover, in 1492 Columbus did little that the Vikings had not accomplished around 1000 AD. The next year, however, owing to developments in Europe, Spain found it possible to equip Columbus with 1,200 to 1,500 men, 17 ships, cannons, crossbows, guns, horses, and attack dogs. Now Columbus proceeded to make history. He and the Spanish took over the island of Haiti, an ocean away from Spain, renamed it Hispaniola (“little Spain”), and then threw its inhabitants into serfdom and slavery. This was new. It was followed by even more stupendous feats: Spaniards subduing Peru and Mexico, Portugal taking Brazil, and eventually Britain taking the Atlantic coast of what is now the United States and Canada.” --James Loewen

7. What is the Columbian Exchange?
Disease
Syphilis
Smallpox
Chicken pox
Measles
Mumps
Malaria
Influenza
Tuberculosis
Cholera
Bubonic plague
Animals
Cows
Pigs
Sheep
Horses
Chickens
Goats
Turkeys
People
Plants
Corn
Potatoes
Cotton
Rice
Beans
Tomatoes
Chiles
Wheat
Tobacco
Rubber
Sweet Potatoes
Other Things
Guns
Steel tools
Silver
Fertilizer
Population growth in Old World
Repopulation of New World (Europeans, Africans)
Ideas
Christianity
Racially based slavery
Democracy (from Native Americans)
Hierarchy
Bureaucracy
Wilderness (as concept)

8. Syncretism: combining elements from different cultures to make something new

9. Spanish Conquistadors (soldier-adventurers)
Hernando Cortez
Sailed from Cuba to Mexico in 1519
Seized Tenochtitlan (Aztec capital) with help from other Native Americans
Moctezuma (Aztec leader) tried to get him to leave by offering gold
Francisco Pizarro
Landed on coast of Peru in 1531
Seized Cuzco (Inca capital)
Atahualpa (Inca leader) was kidnapped and killed
Juan Ponce de Leon
Sailed north from Costa Rica and landed in Florida in 1528
Fought with Native Americans and was killed
4 of 400 members of the crew made it back to Spanish territory eight years later
Francisco Coronado
Explored New Mexico, Arizona, Texas and Kansas in search of gold
Hernando de Soto
Explored the Southeastern United States and Mississippi River in search of gold

10. Spain’s Empire in the Americans
How could a few hundred Spanish soldiers defeat Native American armies many times their size?
Technology
Horses
Alliances
What kind of government did Spain develop to control its colonies?
Encomiendas system—land grants that included the right to demand labor or taxes from Native Americans
Spanish settlers started mines, ranches and plantations (large farms)
Dangerous conditions and brutal treatment of Native Americans led to depopulation
Spanish missions (religious settlements) were established by priests to convert Native Americans to Christianity (San Diego, Dan Antonio, San Francisco)
By 1517, the Spanish began importing African slaves to replace the Native Americans who had died
What social hierarchy existed in the Spanish colonies?
Peninsulares—colonists born in Spain; government officials and other high status jobs
Creoles—two Spanish parents; wealthy merchants and plantation owners
Mestizos—Spanish and Indian parents; low level ranchers, farmers, merchants
Mulattos—Spanish and African parents; lower level jobs
Africans and Native Americans; usually slaves