Period 2: European Colonization Contextualization

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers the historical context of European colonization in the Americas between 1491 and 1754, including Spanish, French, Dutch, and British expansion.

Christopher Columbus

The explorer who embarked on a journey for Spain to sail to the Indies but instead discovered the Americas, leading to encounters with new people, languages, and cultures.

Primary Motivations for Settlement

The three main reasons for settling in the Americas during the 17th century were the desire for wealth, the spread of Christianity, and the need to escape persecution.

Juan Ponce de Leon

The Spanish explorer who claimed Florida for Spain in 1513.

St. Augustine

A permanent Spanish settlement established in Florida; it remained small due to a lack of gold/silver, native decline from disease, and hurricanes.

Santa Fe

The capital of New Mexico established by the Spanish in 1610.

Father Junipero Serra

A member of the Franciscan order who, by 1784, helped establish a chain of missions along the California coast.

Samuel de Champlain

The founder of Quebec in 1608, which was the first French settlement located on the St. Lawrence River.

Louis Jolliet and Father Jacques Marquette

The explorers who mapped the upper Mississippi River for France in 1673.

Robert de La Salle

The explorer who reached the Mississippi basin in 1682 and named the region Louisiana.

New Orleans

A prosperous French trade center established in 1718 at the mouth of the Mississippi River where it enters the Gulf of Mexico.

Henry Hudson

The explorer who, in 1609, sailed up a broad river while searching for a Northwest Passage, establishing Dutch claims to the region.

New Amsterdam

The Dutch colony established in 1626 following the claims made by Henry Hudson's expedition.

Jamestown and Plymouth

The first two British colonies founded along the Atlantic coast of North America.

Indentured Servants

A source of labor employed by Europeans that became common in the colonies but was ultimately not very profitable.

African Enslaved Laborers

The labor force the British began importing to the 13 colonies, following the example of the Spanish, after attempts to enslave Native Americans failed.