WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE, 1492-1590Out of Many Chapter 2

How did social change in Europe contribute to European expansion overseas?

The Expansion of Europe

First Contact We all know that Columbus’

journey in 1492 was the first time European explorers landed in the “new world”

But was it really?? There is archeological

evidence that suggests perhaps there were earlier encounters with the native people of the region, particularly in Newfoundland, by the Norse

Before Exploration: European Societies Agricultural; peasant farmers

During the centuries preceding European exploration of the Americas, Europeans were making great advancement in farming technologies Water mills, iron plows, livestock harnesses, crop rotation

Village people; lived in households Labor roles based on gender

Ladies were furnished with dowries, but usually left out of inheritance

Feudalism Roman catholic; some Jewish (fled Palestine) Poor diets, malnourished

Bread & porridge, seasonal veggies, and occasional fish/meat

After the Plague… The bubonic plague (“Black Death”) struck Europe

during the mid 1300s 1/3 of western European population died

European economy showed the ability to recover Commerce expanded to include trading in cereals,

timber, minerals, salt, wine, fish, & wool Stimulated the growth of markets & towns

By 1500, Europe had fully recovered from the plague

European monarchs aligned themselves with merchants which ultimately gave them an extraordinary capacity to generate capital for overseas expansion

The Crusades Series of great military battles

sanctioned by the Catholic Church to try & regain Palestine

Conquest by the end of the 11th century provided Europeans with access to new materials/spice like silk, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, & pepper

Asian civilization also provided new innovations that the Europeans adapted Compass, gunpowder, & printing

with movable type “three greatest inventions known

to man” –Francis Bacon

The Renaissance After the Crusades, Europeans now had access

to previously lost religious texts that had been conserved in Muslim libraries

The revival of interest in classical antiquity sparked the period of intellectual & artistic flowering in Europe during the 14th, 15th, & 16th centurieswas known as the Renaissanceperiod Human-centered perspective Critical component of the spirit

that motivated the explorationof the Americas

Portuguese Explorations Portugal was the first to send explorers off to distant lands Prince Henry, “the Navigator”

Started a school with the brightest geographers & instrument makers

By mid-fifteenth century, they knew the world to be spherical Idea that Columbus thought the world was flat when he sailed on

his voyage is a myth Created a faster & better-handling ship called a caravel & later

armed it with cannons Portuguese explored the Atlantic coast of NW Africa Colonized the Atlantic islands of the Azures and the

Madeiras 1488, Dias rounded Cape of Good Hope (South Africa) to

find a new trading route with Indies 1498, Da Gama reached the Indies Established the Atlantic slave trade

Columbus Reaches the Americas

Columbus wanted to find a shorter trade route to the Indies by sailing west across the Atlantic

Needed royal backing, but denied by Portuguese, French, & English monarchs Said Columbus’ calculations were wrong

Finally gets approval from Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand of Spain (Castile & Aragon) Nation thrived on military conquest &

they were looking for new land to conquer

Myth: Queen Isabel pawned her royal jewels to finance the trip

Fact: Italian merchants invested in the trip

Columbus embarked on “the Enterprise of the Indies”

Columbus’ Intentions

Very commercial, but more than that Goal was to occupy & settle any lands

Wanted to claim them by right of Conquest for Spain Intentions were also very much imperial

The Voyage The vessels left Spain in August 1492 Stopped for some time in the Canary Islands before

moving eastward In October, came upon the

Bahamas Explored the islands of Cuba

& Hispaniola before headingback to Spain to tell of hisdiscoveries

Probably the most importantdiscovery that Columbus made wasthe clockwise motion of the Atlantic currents & wind patterns

He would make a total of 4 voyages to the Americas before his death in 1506

The Tainos Tainos were the native people of the

Caribbean Columbus brought a group of them back with him to

Spain According to Columbus, they were “of a very acute

intelligence” and had “no iron or steel weapons” Proposed that they could be made into slaves Were treated very poorly by Spaniards

Stole food Abused the people Took women from their husbands & families Captured and sent to be slaves in Spain (most got sick &

died) In 1942, there were approx. 300,000 Tainos. But, by the

1520s, they had effectively been eliminated as a people

What factors contributed to the defeat of the Aztecs and Incas by European forces?

The Spanish in the Americas

Spanish Invasion of the Americas

By the early 1600s, the Spanish had created a huge and wealthy empire in the Americas

First stages were very violent Natives did not have the same quality/strength of weapons as

the Spanish Forced into labor (essentially slavery)

Bahamas – depleted of population in search of slaves Hispaniola – depleted of gold resources Puerto Rico, Jamaica, & Cuba – invaded in search of gold 1511: Spanish invaded C. America 1517: Spanish landed in Mexico & ran into the Aztecs Hernan Cortes overthrew the Aztec empire

Superior military weapons Made alliances with natives who were unhappy with the Aztecs Aztecs also suffered from a smallpox epidemic

Opposition to Violence Not all Europeans agreed with the treatment of the native

peoples in the Americas “On what authority have you waged a detestable war against these

people, who dwelt quietly on their own land?” “Are these Indians not men...Are you not obliged to love them as

you love yourselves?” In 1500, Columbus was shackled and sent back to Spain as a

prisoner for the way he was treating the natives & running the colonies

Bartolome de Las Casas Moral figure in early history of the Americas “the entire human race is one” cruelties against the natives essentially genocide

Not all natives died at the hand of war Some died due to lack of food Low birthrates

Too tired from work; induced abortions; killed their own kids Smallpox & other diseases

Intercontinental Exchange Passage of diseases

Smallpox, influenza, plague, measles, & typhus Precious metals

Took artifacts from the natives & melted them down Silver from Mexican & Peruvian mines (used for coins)

Crops/Food Corn & potatoes = miracle food that helped end famine

in Europe New to Old:

Tobacco, Vanilla, Chocolate, Cotton Old to New:

Sugar, Rice, Coffee, Horses

The First Europeans in N. America

Ponce de Leon First to go to North America in search of more slaves Landed in Florida; claimed all of the land for Spain

There were many invasion attempts from the Spanish, however, they were typically pushed back by the natives

Their presence had introduced epidemic diseases that depopulated & undermined the natives in southern North America

The Spanish were searching forCibola – the city of gold When they failed to locate it, they

lost all interest in the southwest partsof North America

Spanish “New World” Empire By 1600s some 250,000 European immigrants

had settled in the Americas Spain & Portugal the primary colonizers at the

time Treaty of Tordesillas

Divided the Americas between Spain & Portugal Spain got the better end of the deal

Few Spanish women came to the new world, so many Spanish men married natives creating a mixed race (mestizos or mulattoes)

Made up one of the largest empires in this history of the world

What differences were there among Spanish, English, and French patterns of colonization?

Northern Explorations & Encounters

Northern Explorations & Encounters French

Looking for NW passage to the Indies Found the St. Lawrence river – connected them to Great

Lakes, & ultimately the OH & MS rivers Encounters with Natives

Woodland Indians More about commerce than conquest

Indians appreciated the textiles, glass, copper, & ironware the Europeans had to offer

Europeans interested in furs – supply depleted in Europe Somewhat uneven trades: furs would sell for 10x-20x the

amount in Europe Spread of epidemic diseases Indians adapted metal knives, kettles, & firearms to their

way of life

Northern Explorations & Encounters English

John Cabot, Italian sea captain Explored the coast of

Newfoundland in 1497 Never followed up on

his explorations Had too many

problems at home

Protestant Reformation German priest Martin Luther publically proclaimed his

differences with the Roman Catholic Church Declared eternal salvation a gift from God, not related to

works/service Attracted followers all over NW Europe who were

persecuted by Catholic authorities John Calvin developed the theory of predestination

Stated that God had selected a chosen number of men/women for salvation, while condemning the rest to eternal damnation

Huguenots, French followers of Calvin, were behind the first French attempts at colonization in the new world

Worried the Spanish; though they had no intentions of colonizing FL, they were fearful of the threat against their gold/silver routes

16th Century England King Henry VIII

Support the Catholic Church at first Became frustrated with the amount of land & property

Rome held in England When Rome would not annul Henry’s marriage to

Queen Catherine (daughter of Isabel & Ferdinand), hedenounced the Catholic Church

Queen Elizabeth After Henry’s death, her younger brother & older sister

both took the throne and died Tolerated a variety of views within the church Spanish monarch swore to overthrow her

Irish Invasion England needed a place for all of the uprooted citizens

that were homeless in the major cities Decided to subdue Irish Catholics & settle the homeless

there on their lands (“wild Irish”)

English Claims In the 1570s and 1580s, under

Queen Elizabeth, England challenged Spanish shipping in both the Atlantic & Pacific oceans

Sir Francis Drake Attacked Spanish ships Seized gold and silver Attacked Spanish settlements on

the coast of Peru Sir Walter Raleigh

1587, Attempted to establish a settlement at Roanoke Island (off NC coast)

Venture failed Both were known as “sea

dogs”

The Spanish Armada, 1588 King Philip II of Spain was outraged that England was

attempting to invade the “new world” Sent a fleet of 130 ships to invade the British Isles England chose the cloak of a storm as their opportunity

to attack By defeating the large Spanish fleet, England had gained

a reputation as a major naval power

Conclusions The Spanish opened the era of European

colonization in the Americas with Columbus’s voyage in 1492

By the end of the 16th century, however, they had not succeeded in establishing any lasting colonial communities.

Left it open for other countries to colonize.

“Not So” You are going to be divided up into 5 groups. As a group, either assign one person the task

of reading, or decided to break up the reading amongst the group members

Once you have finished reading the article, have a group discussion about your thoughts on the article.

Break up into pairs (it’s ok if you pair up with someone from another group)

As a pair, you will answer the following questions on a sheet of paper.

Discuss the following questions as they apply to the article: What appears to be the author’s motive or purpose in writing

about this issue? Does the author take a position on the issue? What evidence does the author give to support his position?

Make sure to fully describe the type of evidence he uses and give specific examples from the article. Facts? Opinions? Cause/Effect Relationships?

What does the author conclude about the issue & controversy?

State YOUR conclusion, being sure to include the following: Do you agree or disagree with the author’s position and the

evidence he offered to support it? Were any of the facts, opinions or cause/effect relationships faulty? Did his arguments and evidence convince you of his position?

What other evidence can you cite pertaining to this issue (such as your textbook, other readings or material presented in class)? Give SPECIFIC examples and sources of the other evidence that you use to support your conclusion.