AP Euro Vocab 1.6-1.7

Astrolabe

Used to determine location at sea based on the altitude of the sun or a star above the horizon.

Cartography

The making and studying of maps.

Colbert, Jean Baptiste

French politician who was finance minister under Louis XIV; reformed French tax system to strengthen government.

Colony

Separate land controlled by a parent country, usually used for enriching the parent country by providing raw materials for production.

Compass

Chinese instrument to aid in directional location by indicating which way is north.

Exports

Goods sold to other nations.

Favorable balance of trade

Exporting more than is imported.

Imports

Goods bought from other countries.

Jesuits

Catholic religious group working as missionaries around the world, focused on education and converting non-Catholics to Catholicism.

Lateen sails

Triangular sails developed by Arab sailors, allowing more flexibility for sailing regardless of wind direction.

Marco Polo

Venetian merchant who published an account of his travels across Asia in the 13th century.

Mercantilism

Measurement of wealth by the accumulation of gold and silver by a nation.

Navigation

The science of plotting the course of a ship.

Ottoman Empire

Had control of trade routes connecting Asia and Europe.

Portolani

Detailed charts that provided ship captains with accurate information about location and distance between European ports.

Quadrant

Used to determine location on the sea based on the altitude of the sun or a star above the horizon (smaller version of astrolabe).

Sternpost rudder

Steering device attached to the ship's main beam at the rear to make a ship more maneuverable.

Alcabala

A tax on the sale or exchange of property.

Asiento

Contract between the government of Spain and another entity to supply Spain with enslaved Africans for the Americas.

Aztec Empire

Ruled most of what is now Veracruz on the Gulf of Mexico; conquered by Spanish conquistador Cortes.

Cabot, John

Venetian explorer working for England who reached the eastern shore of Canada in 1497.

Cartier, Jacques

First European to explore the St. Lawrence River in Canada (1534-36).

Columbus, Christopher

Italian explorer who sailed west across the Atlantic seeking a route to Asia, exploring the Bahamas and Cuba.

Conquistadors

16th-century Spanish "conquerors" who subdued indigenous populations in the Americas.

Corregidores

Magistrates who worked to strengthen royal authority and carry out justice in the name of the monarch.

Cortes, Hernan

Spaniard who conquered and destroyed the Aztec Empire.

De Balboa, Vasco Nuñez

Spanish explorer who crossed the Isthmus of Panama in 1513, first European to see the Pacific from the eastern shore.

De Champlain, Samuel

Founded successful Quebec as a fur trading post in eastern Canada in 1608.

De las Casas, Bartolome

Spanish Dominican priest who protested against the forced labor of the encomienda system.

De Verrazano, Giovanni

Italian navigator who explored the Atlantic coast from North Carolina to Newfoundland in 1524.

Encomienda

System where large landowners forced indigenous people to work on plantations for food and shelter.

Inca Empire

Major indigenous empire of South America conquered by Francisco Pizarro.

Indians

Name given to indigenous people of the Caribbean by Columbus, who believed he was near India.

Jamestown

First colony established by the English in Virginia in 1607.

Magellan, Ferdinand

Set out in 1519 to explore the eastern coast of South America and the Pacific Ocean; first to circumnavigate the globe.

New Amsterdam

Colony established in 1624, stretching from the mouth of the Hudson River to Albany, New York.

New France

Area of Canada first claimed by Samuel de Champlain for France.

New Spain

Centered around the Mexican conquest of the Aztec Empire, including Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean.

New World

Lands of South America first explored by Amerigo Vespucci.

Pizarro, Francisco

Spanish conquistador who conquered the weakened Incan Empire.

Reconquista

The final conquering of Muslims at Granada in 1492, leading to the expulsion of Jews and Muslims from Spain.

Seven Years War

War between Great Britain and France (1756-1763) resulting in France giving up territory in the New World