AMSCO Ch 1: 1491-1607 Flashcards
corn
WXT • ENV
a crop cultivated particularly by the Mayas and Aztecs; this crop helped establish a major food supply for groups of people, ultimately transitioning North American nomads into settled civilizations
horses
WXT • ENV
this animal was introduced to the Americas during the Columbus Exchange; the Lakota Sioux tribe used them to assist in hunting buffalo, which became their primary source of food over farming
disease
WXT • ENV
the deadliest thing that was brought to the Americas by the Europeans; this was the main reason population of Native Americans began to exponentially decrease, resulting in the easy conquering of Indian tribes and settlements
encomienda system
WXT
this was instituted by the King and Queen of Spain to take advantage of Native Americans doing labor in exchange for being treated well and cared for by the Spaniards the land is given to
asiento system
WXT
after disease wiped out many Native Americans, a tax was placed for every slave imported to America, known as this
slavery
WXT
this practice became prominent due to Europeans seeing Native Americans as “lesser humans,” resulting in the continuous exploitation of them
land bridge
PEO
once existing between Siberia and Alaska, this is widely believed to be the main source of North American migrants as they moved from Asia to America
Adena-Hopewell
PEO
this culture, centered in what is now Ohio, is famous for the leader earthen mounds it created, some as large as 300 feet long
Hokokam, Anasazi, and Pueblos
PEO
these North American natives settled in the Southwest, evolving into multifaceted societies supported by farming and irrigation systems
Lakota Sioux
PEO
this large tribe took advantage of the use of horses to hunt game such as buffalo
Mayas
ID • POL
between 300 AD and 800 AD, this civilization built remarkable cities in the rain forest of the Yucatán Penninsula; this civilization had a highly organized society, carried on extensive trade, created calendars based on scientific observation, and cultivated crops that provided a stable food supply, particularly corn
Aztecs
ID • POL
this civilization was the second major one in the Americas, developing a powerful empire in Mexico and Central America; this civilization had a highly organized society, carried on extensive trade, created calendars based on scientific observation, and cultivated crops that provided a stable food supply, particularly corn
Incas
ID • POL
this civilization was the third major power in the Americas, existing almost simultaneously with the one north of it; existing in Peru, this major empire had a highly organized society, carried on extensive trade, created calendars based on scientific observation, and cultivated crops that provided a stable food supply, particularly potatoes
conquistadores
ID • POL
Spain owed its expanding power to these people, who took over the Aztec and Inca empires, securing Spain’s initial supremacy in the Americas; these folk sent back ships filled with gold and silver, making Spain the richest nation in Europe at the time, and inspired other nations to make similar quests
Hernan Cortés
ID • POL
this conquistadore in credited with the conquest of the Aztecs in Mexico
Francisco Pizarro
ID • POL
this conquistadore in credited with the conquest of the Incas in Peru
New Laws of 1542
ID • POL
Bartolomé de Las Casas, a spanish priest that once owned Indian slaves, became an advocate for better treatment of Native Americans; he persuaded the king to pass this legislation, which would end Indian slavery and halt forced labor; however, Conservative Spaniards convinced the king to repeal parts of this legislation
Roanoke Island
ID • POL
Sir Walter Raleigh of England attempted to establish a settlement here in 1587; the venture failed
printing press
WOR
this invention, which came during the Renaissance in the 1450s, aided the spread of knowledge across Europe, allowing for easier communication of news and important things
Ferdinand and Isabella
WOR
these two leaders of Spain conquered the city of Granada, and in the peak of their dominance, funded Christopher Columbus and his expedition to America; like similar monarchs of other nation-states, they used their power to search for riches abroad and spread the influence of their version of Christianity to new overseas dominions
Protestant Reformation
WOR
in the early 1500s, certain Christians in Germany, England, France, Holland, and other northern European countries revolted against the authority of the pope; this conflict caused religious wars between those who revolted and those who remains loyal, creating a religious motive for exploration and colonization as expansion became more prevalent
Henry the Navigator
WOR
this person, also known as the Prince of Portugal, was the monarch in charge of the Portugal nation-state; like similar monarchs of other nation-states, he used his power to search for riches abroad and spread the influence of their version of Christianity to new overseas dominions
Christopher Columbus
WOR
most famous for discovering America (but also not really), this person sailed the Atlantic for another trade route to Asia via sea in 1492; he died in 1506 still believing he had found a new trade route
Treaty of Tordesillas
WOR
this agreement between Spain and Portugal started as a line drawn by the pope, allowing for both countries to obtain new land; this line was moved by the two countries in this agreement, signed in 1494
nation-state
WOR
these are what replaced large, sprawling civilizations that were breaking apart and falling; countries in which the majority of people shared a common culture and a common loyalty toward a central government
Algonquian
PEO • POL
this group had the largest language in the Native American culture, which consisted of over 400 languages in 20 different language families
Sioun
PEO • POL
this group had one of the largest languages in the Native American culture, which consisted of over 400 languages in 20 different language families
Iroquois Confederation
PEO • POL
this group, an alliance between the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and Mohawk tribes, was a political union of the five tribes, a powerful force in the Mohawk Valley of New York that battles rival Indians and Europeans
longhouses
PEO • POL
a place where multiple families related through a mother all lived together, a place that could be as long as 200 feet
John Cabot
ENV
an Italian sailor contracted by King Henry VII of England to claim territories in the Americas, exploring the coast of Newfoundland in 1497; his explorations went mostly unnoticed as England’s political and religious conflicts in the homeland kept them occupied
Jacques Cartier
ENV
this French explorer assisted in making claims in the Americas, exploring the St Lawrence River extensively from 1534-1542
Samuel de Champlain
ENV
the first permanent French settlement in America was established by this man in 1608 in Quebec; the success of the fortified village and this person’s exceptional leadership led to the nickname “Father of New France”
Henry Hudson
PEO
this person, an experienced English sailor, was hired by the Dutch to make claims in the Americas on their behalf; he sailed up a broad river that was later named after him, establishing New Amsterdam
Bartolomé de Las Casas
CUL
this person, once a Spanish priest and Indian slave owner, convinced the king to institute the New Laws of 1542, allowing for better treatment of Native Americans; most parts of these laws were repealed after complaints from conservative Spaniards
Valladolid Debate
CUL
this formal debate took place 1550-1551, where Bartolomé de Las Casas went head to head with Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda about the treatment of Native Americans. Las Casas argued that Indians were humans like Spaniards, and thus did not deserve the harsh treatment they were receiving, while Sepúlveda argued that they were not equal to humans, and as lesser than, they benefit from the encomienda system; while neither side won the debate, it is significant in the establishment of basic rights on behalf of Native Americans
Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda
CUL
this Spanish priest took part in the Valladolid Debate, arguing against Spanish priest Bartolomé de Las Casas that Native Americans were less than human, this benefitting from working for the Spaniards under the encomienda system
