European Colonization of the Americas: Spain, France, England, and Key Events

Spain

The first European country to set up colonies in the Americas.

The Dutch and the English

Countries that followed Spain in colonizing the Americas.

Christopher Columbus

Explorer who made 4 voyages exploring and colonizing new areas.

The Spanish Conquest

The transformation of the Americas by Spain, with a huge impact on Europe and Asia.

Taino

Indigenous people living in Hispaniola when the Spanish arrived.

Taino's initial reaction to the Spanish

They were friendly at first, but attitudes changed when the Spanish wanted their land and gold.

Spanish demands on the Taino

They forced the Taino to turn over gold and work as slaves.

Taino population decline

They were wiped out by disease.

Conquistadors

Spaniards who traveled to the Americas to gain wealth, conquer land, and find gold.

Conquistadors' actions towards Indigenous people

They seized their land, forced them to pan for gold, and converted them to Christianity.

Spanish advantages over Indigenous people

Guns, cannons, metal armor, horses, and immunity to diseases like smallpox.

Horses as an advantage

They were tall in battle, carried supplies long distances, and frightened Indigenous people.

Beast of Burden

A large animal used to carry supplies.

The Great Dying

Massive Indigenous deaths from European diseases, reducing the population permanently.

Francisco Pizarro

Conquistador who conquered the Incas in Peru.

Hernán Cortés

Conquistador who conquered the Aztecs in Mexico.

Cortés's initial location before invading Mexico

Cuba.

Cortés's landing in Mexico

1519.

Cortés's expedition size

About 600 men, 16 horses, and a couple of cannons.

Cortés's main goal

To capture the capital of the Aztec Empire, Tenochtitlan (Mexico City).

Malinche

An Indigenous woman who helped Cortés by serving as translator and gathering allies.

Montezuma

The leader of the Aztecs when Cortés arrived.

Montezuma's gifts to Cortés

He sent gifts because he thought Cortés might be the returning god Quetzalcoatl.

Cortés's reaction to Montezuma's gifts

He became more eager to explore and conquer.

Cortés's arrival in Tenochtitlan

Montezuma welcomed him.

Spanish demands from Montezuma

Conversion to Christianity and more gold and silver.

Conflict among the Spanish in Mexico

Another group of Conquistadors arrived seeking gold and silver.

Montezuma's fate

He was killed during the conflict.

Cortés's control over the Aztecs

He defeated the Aztecs, destroyed Tenochtitlan, and built Mexico City.

End of the Aztec Empire

The Aztecs were weakened by smallpox.

France and England

The two European nations that dominated large areas of North America by 1700.

Early 1500s

The period when French exploration of North America began with fishing ships harvesting cod off Newfoundland.

Jacques Cartier

The first European to navigate the St. Lawrence River in 1534.

Eastern Canada

The territory claimed for France by Jacques Cartier.

Main goal of French explorers

To partner with American Indian allies for trade and exploration.

Jesuit missionaries

Individuals who tried to convert American Indians to Christianity in New France.

Samuel de Champlain

The founder of Quebec in 1608.

Farming in New France

Difficult due to the harsh Canadian climate that deterred peasants from farming.

Profitable industries in New France

Fur trapping and fishing, which became more profitable than farming.

King Louis XIV's control over New France

Strengthened in the late 1600s by appointing officials, sending soldiers and settlers, and excluding Protestants.

French territory by early 1700s

Extended from Quebec to Louisiana.

French population in North America

Remained small due to harsh conditions and limited settlement opportunities compared to English colonies.

Search for a sea passage to India

The motivation for the English to explore westward in the late 1400s.

John Cabot

The individual who claimed Newfoundland for England in 1497.

Colonization along the Atlantic coast

Began to be focused on by England by the 1600s.

Jamestown

The first permanent English colony in North America, founded in 1607.

Challenges faced by Jamestown

Starvation, disease, and dependence on American Indians for survival.

Mayflower Compact

The first written framework for self-government in the colonies, signed in 1620.

Plymouth Colony

Established by the Pilgrims seeking religious freedom.

Survival of Plymouth Colony

Achieved with help from local American Indians and new settlers.

Motivations for English colonization

Included commercial ventures and religious havens in the 1600s and 1700s.

Dominant economic activity in New England colonies

Fishing and shipbuilding.

Production in the Middle Colonies

Primarily grain.

Economy in the Southern Colonies

A plantation economy based on enslaved labor.

Self-government in English colonies

Practiced through elected assemblies that advised governors.

Colonial democratic ideals

Influenced by Judeo-Christian values, Greco-Roman traditions, and English legal rights.

Colonists' view of themselves

As 'freeborn Englishmen' entitled to rights and representation when opposing British policies.

European powers in North America by the 1600s

Spain, France, England, and the Netherlands.

American Indians' response to European rivalries

Tried to play European powers against each other to their advantage.

French and Indian War

The conflict that pitted British forces against the French and their Native American allies (1754-1763).

Conflicts between British settlers and American Indians

Increased due to the growing British population expanding west into contested lands.

Treaty of Paris (1763)

The treaty that ended the French and Indian War.

Outcome of the Treaty of Paris (1763)

British dominance in North America and loss of French power.

Effect of the Treaty of Paris on American Indians

Further marginalized their territories and influence.