APUSH Period 1 (1491-1607)

European-Italian Christopher Columbus 1942

Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer who is credited with discovering America in 1492. He was sponsored by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain to find a new trade route to Asia, but instead he landed in the Caribbean islands. Columbus made four voyages to the Americas and opened up the New World to exploration and colonization by Europeans.

King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain

King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella were the monarchs of the Kingdom of Spain. They are best known for sponsoring Christopher Columbus's voyages to the New World.

What made the voyage to the Americas possible?

* Improvements to technology that came from the Renaissance era like Gunpowder and Sailing compasses
* Improvements in shipbuilding and mapmaking
* The invention of the printing press that aided the spread of knowledge across Europe

What were the reasons to go to America?

* God - Europeans believed it was their duty to bring Christianity to the non-believers of the world.
* Glory - Individual explorers competed for fame and honor for both themselves and their countries.
* Gold - Nations were always looking for new sources of wealth.

The Columbian Exchange

The Columbian Exchange was a period of biological and cultural exchange between the Old and New Worlds following Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas in 1492. It involved the exchange of plants, food (beans, corn, sweet and white potatoes, tomatoes, and tobacco) animals, diseases (syphilis, measles, smallpox), and ideas between the two hemispheres.

Treaty of Tordesillas 1494

The Treaty of Tordesillas was a 1494 agreement between Spain and Portugal that divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between them along a meridian 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde islands. This treaty aimed to prevent conflict between the two nations over newly discovered lands during the Age of Discovery.

Asiento System

The Asiento System was a contract between Spain and other European countries, allowing them to import African slaves into Spanish colonies in the Americas. This required the Spanish to pay a tax to their king on each slave they imported to the Americas.

Encomienda System 1512

The encomienda system was a labor system implemented by the Spanish in the Americas during the colonial period. It granted Spanish colonists the right to demand tribute and forced labor from the indigenous people living in a particular area. In exchange, the Spanish were supposed to protect the indigenous people and convert them to Christianity. However, the system was often abused and led to the exploitation and mistreatment of the indigenous population.

Sir Walter Raleigh

Sir Walter Raleigh was an English explorer, soldier, writer, and politician who is best known for his expeditions to the Americas and for introducing tobacco and potatoes to England. Sir Walter Raleigh, attempted to establish a settlement at Roanoke Island off the North Carolina coast in 1587, but the venture failed. He was also a favorite of Queen Elizabeth I and played a significant role in the English colonization of North America. However, he fell out of favor with the queen and was eventually executed for treason.

Spanish Policy

* Many natives died from forced Spanish labor and diseases


* Rigid class system developed dominated by pure-blooded Spaniards
* Bartolomé de Las Casas became an advocate for better treatment of Native Americans

Bartolomé de Las Casas

An advocate for better treatment of Native Americans

(Persuaded the king to institute the New Laws of 1542 which ended Indian slavery, halted forced labor, and began the encomienda system)

Bartolomé de Las Casas was one of the first advocates for the abolition of slavery in the New World and is known for his extensive writings on the atrocities committed against the indigenous peoples by the Spanish colonizers.

English Policy

* Initially - Massachusetts - English and Native Americans coexisted, traded, and shared ideas (how to grow corn, hunt in the forests, traded furs, iron tools, and weapons)


* Native Americans saw their way of life threatened as the English began to take more land and forced tribes to move away from the coast

French policy

* viewed Native Americans as potential economic and military allies - looking for furs and converts to Catholicism


* Maintained good relations
* Built trading posts throughout the St. Lawrence Valley, the Great Lakes region, and along the Mississippi River
* Exchanged french goods for furs to control the fur trade
* Posed as less of a threat to the native population than other Europeans

Indentured servants

Immigrants who agreed to work for a certain period in exchange for passage to the New World. They were under a contract and had limited rights.

Valladolid Debate

A 16th-century debate over the rights of Native Americans in Spain's colonies in the Americas.

The Dutch West India Trading Company

The Dutch West India Trading Company was a Dutch chartered company that traded with the Americas and Africa from the 17th to the 18th century. It was instrumental in the colonization of the Americas and the transatlantic slave trade.