Age of Exploration Flashcards
Which European country was the leader in developing and applying 15th century sailing innovations?
Portugal
How did Prince Henry of Portugal influence exploration?
He sponsored exploration into the Atlantic and down the African coast.
What was the purpose of the Treaty of Tordesillas signed by Portugal and Spain?
It essentially agreed to move the line of demarcation that the pope made slightly more west.
Bartolomeu Dias captained the first European ship to sail what route?
Africa’s tip— the Cape of Good Hope.
What did Vasco da Gama succeed in gaining for Portugal?
He gained the knowledge of knowing that you could get to India by ship, although it was dangerous.
The Line of Demarcation established a boundary between which two regions?
Portugal and Spain
Who conquered the Aztec empire?
Cortes
As part of the Columbian Exchange, which of the following was carried west across the Atlantic to the Americas?
Europeans brought wheat, grapes, livestock, and horses to the Americas.
Which city was originally founded as a settlement by the Dutch?
New Amsterdam
Name the four reasons that the Spanish were able to conquer the Aztecs?
the Aztecs had never seen horses which they feared
the conquistadores brought small pox with them that devastated the
population
the Spanish had guns and cannons which far outmatched the Aztec
weapons
Cortes recruited the natives to fight for him and spy for him
What was one result of the loss of native lives to disease?
Enslavement of Africans due to depletion of Native Americans.
How did Bartolemé de Las Casas affect race relations in the Americas?
He said that the Natives should be treated better: after this Africans were used as slaves instead of the natives.
According to the balance of trade, how could a nation increase its wealth?
According to the theory of mercantilism, a nation could increase its wealth and power in two ways. First, it could obtain as much gold and silver as possible. Second, it could establish a favorable balance of trade, in which it sold more goods than it bought.
Where did Christopher Columbus believe that he had landed?
India
Why was it difficult to keep a candle lit in the cargo hold?
Probably because of the tight pack of slaves (lack of space, lack of ventilation?).
Columbus promised gold to the first sailor to see land in order to prevent what from happening?
Mutiny
What was the name of the native girl who helped Cortes?
Malinali
How were sharks affected by all of the people thrown over the side of the slave ships?
Sharks changed their feeding habitats to follow the oceanic trade routes (the free food).
What did Bartholomeu Dias sail around?
Tip of Africa, aka the Cape of Good Hope.
How did Prince Henry the Navigator get his nickname?
He got together a group of different people to study navigation.
What is the term describing the practice of overfilling a slave ship with captives?
Tight pack
What was the Columbian Exchange?
Transfer of products from continent to continent.
What did Ferdinand Magellan attempt to do?
Circumnavigate the world
What role did African society play in the Atlantic Slave Trade?
They served by capturing their fellow Africans to sell for slavery. They were also slaves themselves.
What three things motivated the Spanish Conquistador?
God, gold, glory.
How does a joint-stock company work?
Organizations that sold stock, or shares, in the venture enabling large and small investors to share the profits and risks of a trading voyage.
The “New World” was renamed after which explorer?
Amerigo Vespucci
What is the Middle passage?
The segment of travel between Africa and the Americas of slaves.
Who introduced the grid system to map making?
Ptolemy
Which culture invented the magnetic compass?
China
What is mercantilism?
The theory that a state’s power depended on its wealth.
What was the name of the first permanent English settlement in North America?
Jamestown
What was the main cause of the decrease of the native population in the Americas?
Disease
Which explorer was the first to sail around the southern tip of Africa to India?
De Gama
Name the first European country to explore the Atlantic Ocean in search of a sea route to Asia
Portugal
Who conquered Atahualpa and the Inca Empire?
Pizarro
Which early European explorer is the first to sail around the southern tip of South America?
Magellan
Who inspired the Age of Exploration by recruiting sailors to search for a water route to the eastern spice trade areas?
Henry the Navigator
Which early European explorer was the first to see the Pacific Ocean and name it the South Sea?
Vasco Núñez de Balboa
Name three improvement to navigation during the early Age of Exploration
Lateen
Masts
Rudder
(Also caravel?)
During the Atlantic Slave trade, which group made up the majority of kidnapped African individuals?
War captives, criminals?
How did the Atlantic Slave Trade lead to a racist view of the African people by the Europeans?
Didn’t see them as equals.
What would the kidnapped Africans do to avoid being taken to the Americas on a slave ship?
Mutiny
Name three ways that kidnapped Africans were treated by their captors
Viewed like animals
Worked to the bone (lots of labor)
Poor health conditions
What was African society like before the start of the Atlantic Slave Trade?
They were strong and prosperous in environment and agriculture.
Name three ways that the African Slave Trade negatively impacted African society
Dwindled population
Not enough people to grow crops so they starved
Death and suffering
Name three ways that Malinali helped Cortes
Interpreter
Advisor
Lover
Name three ways that women were treated on the slave ship
Sexually abused
Beaten
Separated from loved ones
When was a slave “mutiny” most likely to take place during the Middle Passage?
Right when they got onto the ship
What happened to the enslaved Africans after they arrived in the New World?
The captains usually sold their captives directly to planters or specialised wholesalers by auction.
