unit 1

Question 1

Christopher Columbus

Answer 1

• Italian-born navigator who found fame when he landed in the Americas(Oct. 12, 1492)
• Set sail on behalf of Spain with three ships: the Nina, the Pinta, and his flagship, the Santa Maria
• Originally, he sailed west across the Atlantic Ocean to find a water route to Asia
• Columbus was convinced that he had found the waterway that he sought and that the Americas were actually an extension of China
• Returned from his expedition with gold, encouraging further exploration

1451-1506

Question 2

Amerigo Vespucci

Answer 2

• Italian member of a Portuguese expedition
• Explored South America
• Discovery suggested that the expedition had found a “New World”
• After an account of Vespucci’s 1497 expedition was published, a cartographer mistakenly thought that Vespucci had led the expedition and had landed in the New World before Christopher Columbus; the cartographer named the continent America

1454-1512

Question 3

Treaty of Tordesillas

Answer 3

• Commitment between Spain and Portugal
• Created a Papal Line of Demarcation, which divided the New World: east of the line for Portugal and west of it for Spain
• Portugal also received the easternmost part of what is currently Brazil, when it “discovered” the land in 1500
• Later, the Papal Line affected colonization in Africa and Asia

1493

Question 4

New Spain

Answer 4

• Spain tightly controlled empire in the New World
• Mainly located in North and Central America, including the Caribbean and Spanish East Indies
• To deal with labor shortages, the Spaniards developed a system of large manors (ecomiendas) using Native American slaves under conquistadors
• With the death of Native American slaves, Spaniards began importing African slaves to supply their labor needs

1400s and 1500s

Question 5

Mercantilism

Answer 5

• Prevailing economic philosophy of the 1600s that held colonies existed to serve the mother country
• Founded on the belief that the world’s wealth was sharply limited and, therefore, one nation’s gain was another nation’s loss
• Each nation’s goal was to export more than it imported in a favorable balance of trade; the difference would be made up in their possession of gold and silver, which would make the nation strong both economically and militarily
• Mercantilists believed economic activity should be regulated by the government

1500s-1700s

Question 6

Queen Elizabeth I

Answer 6

• Protestant successor to Queen Mary (England)
• Popular leader and the first woman to successfully hold the throne
• Invested in English raids on the Spanish New World; Spain responded with the Spanish Armada
• Established Protestantism in England and encouraged English business

1533-1603 (ruled 1558-death)

Question 7

The Spanish Armada

Answer 7

• Fleet assembled by King Phillip II of Spain to invade England
• The Armada was defeated by the skill of British military leaders and by rough seas during the assault
• England’s victory over Spanish forces was one of the great achievements of Queen Elizabeth I, as it established England as an emerging sea power
• Its defeat helped bring about the decline of the Spanish empire

1588