AP World History: 1450-1750 — New World Economy Vocabulary List

World Economy

Established by Europeans by the 16th century; based on control of seas, including the Atlantic and Pacific; created international exchange of foods, disease, and manufactured products.

Christopher Columbus

Genoese captain in service of the king and queen of Castile and Aragon; successfully sailed to New World and returned in 1492; initiated European discoveries in Americas.

Ferdinand Magellan

(1480-1521) Spanish captain who in 1519 initiated first circumnavigation of the globe; died during the voyage; allowed Spain to claim the Philippines.

Dutch East India Company

Joint stock company that obtained government monopoly over trade in Asia; acted as virtually independent government in regions it claimed.

British East India Company

Joint stock company that obtained government monopoly over trade in India; acted as virtually independent government in regions it claimed.

Lepanto

Naval battle between Spanish and the Ottoman Empire resulting in a Spanish victory in 1571.

Core Nations

Nations, usually European, that enjoyed profit from world economy; controlled international banking and commercial services such as shipping; exported manufactured goods for raw materials.

Mercantilism

Economic theory that stressed governments' promotion of limitation of imports from other nations and internal economies in order to improve tax revenues; popular during 17th and 18th centuries in Europe.

Vasco de Balboa

(c. 1475-1519) First Spanish captain to begin settlement on the mainland of Mesoamerica in 1509; initial settlement eventually led to conquest of Aztec and Inca empires by other captains.

Francisco Pizarro

Led conquest of Inca Empire of Peru beginning in 1535; by 1540, most of Inca possessions fell to the Spanish.

New France

French colonies in North America; extended from St. Lawrence River along Great Lakes and down Mississippi River valley system.

Seven Years War

Fought both in continental Europe and also in overseas colonies between 1756 and 1763; resulted in Prussian seizures of land from Austria, English seizures of colonies in India and North America.

Treaty of Paris

Arranged in 1763 following Seven Years War; granted New France to England in exchange for return of French sugar islands in Caribbean.

Cape Colony

Dutch colony established at Cape of Good Hope in 1652 initially to provide a coastal station for the Dutch seaborne empire; by 1770 settlements had expanded sufficiently to come into conflicts with Bantus.

Calcutta

Headquarters of British East India Company in Bengal in Indian subcontinent; located on Ganges; captured in 1756 during early part of Seven Years War; later became administrative center for all of Bengal.