Columbus's Voyage Flashcards

Flashcards about Columbus's voyage

The Silk Road

A network of caravan roads and pathways that connected East Asia with Europe and the Middle East, facilitating the trade of valuable goods.

The Ottoman Empire

The empire that gained control of the Silk Road routes in the 15th century, imposing high tariffs on goods and prompting Europeans to seek alternative trade routes to Asia.

Christopher Columbus

The European explorer who believed that sailing west from Europe through the Pacific Ocean would lead to Asia (specifically Japan), unaware of the Americas' existence.

King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella I of Spain

The Spanish monarchs who funded Columbus's voyage with the promise that profits would be used to reconquer Jerusalem.

Jerusalem

The holy land seized by the Infidels/Muslim’s in 638 CE, and in 969 CE, The Fatimid Caliphate enforced strict rules disallowing Jewish and Christian believers into Jerusalem

Columbus' actions in Santo Cerro

The actions of Columbus who demanded of the Taino people above the age of 14 must give the Spanish voyagers a tribute of gold the size of a hawks bell every three months and if not they would have body parts cut off, or be tourtured

"They should be good servants and intelligent, for I observed that they quickly took in what was said to them, and I believe that they would easily be made Christians”

Columbus' justification for exploitation due to converting others to Christianity

Caonabo

The Taino's chief who retaliated against the Spanish with raids and was eventually captured and killed.

Encomienda system

The system that allowed the Spanish to freely enslave non-Christian Taino people for free labor, leading many Taino to flee.

Syphilis

The disease that spread from the New World to the Old World, characterized by genital ulcers, rashes, tumors, and severe pain.

The Atlantic Slave Trade

The trade involving the transportation of approximately 12 million Africans to the Americas between the 15th and 19th centuries to provide labor for economic enterprises.

Approximately 2 million

The amount of Africans who died in the voyages to the Americas across the Atlantic Ocean.