European Exploration and Colonial Trade

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering early European exploration, colonial motives, trade networks, and mercantilist policies.

Mercantilism

An economic condition or policy in which one side of trade has the upper hand.

Navigation Acts

Laws set by England requiring colonies to trade only with England, eliminate colonial competition, and exclusively use ships constructed by England.

Salutary Neglect

A situation where, because the King or England’s Army was absent from the colonies, the colonists acted in their own best interests rather than those of the mother country.

French Colonization

European colonization characterized by searching for the Northwest Passage, profiting from the fur trade, and establishing positive relations with Native Americans while adopting their customs.

Spanish Colonization

European colonization driven by the pursuit of "Gold, God, and Glory," marked by the enslavement of Native Americans and forced religious conversion.

English Colonization

European colonization motivated by religious freedom and economic opportunity, which profited from tobacco despite early struggles and pushed Native Americans off their land.

Triangular Trade

A historic trading network that operated as a combination of mercantilism and the slave trade.

Columbian Exchange

The system of trading and exchange established between America and Europe.

Middle Passage

The transatlantic journey that transported enslaved people from Africa to the Americas under extremely harsh and crammed conditions.

Manufactured Goods

The primary category of commodities sent from Britain to the Americas within colonial trade networks.

Natural Resources

The raw materials shipped from the Americas to Britain under colonial trade policies.

Enslaved People (Transatlantic Trade)

Individuals forcibly taken and sent from Africa to the Americas as part of the transatlantic slave trade.