UNIT 4: TRANSOCEANIC INTERCONNECTIONS

Hernan Cortes

Spanish conquistador that conquered the Aztec empire; Spanish rule in Mexico

Great Dying

Native American population loss due to disease and colonization; social collapse + colonized easier

Little Ice Age

Period of cooler temperatures globally; famines, political unrest

General Crisis

Extensive conflict and instability; little ice age, economic pressure

Columbian Exchange

The transfer of plants, animals, and good between the Old and New World; developed agriculture, populations, economy

Mercantilism

(Economic) colonies exist to benefit colonizer country

Encomienda system

Spanish labor system imposed on indigenous people; exploitation + decline of natives

Hacienda system

Indigenous laborers worked on large estates; replaced encomienda, land-owning elite

Creoles

People with Spanish ancestry born in Americas; hold power, below Peninsulares

Peninsulares

Spaniards born in Spain that live Americas; have top government + church positions in colonies

Mestizo

People with Indigenous and European ancestry; influential in Spanish America

Mulattoes

People with African and European ancestry; part of colonial hierarchy

Indian Ocean commercial network

Connected East Africa, Middle East, India, Southeast Asia; center of pre-European trade

Trading post empire

Empire based around controlling trade; used by Portuguese to dominate trade

Philippines (under Spanish rule)

Southeast islands colonized by Spain; Christian, Pacific Trade

Manila

Capital of Spanish Philippines and a center for silver trade; connect American to Asian market

British East India Company

Company with control of trade in India; colonial force, British rule

Dutch East India Company

Dominated spice trade in East Indies; rich, powerful, government-like

Japan’s Closed Country Edict of 1635

Tokugawa policy limiting foreign trade and influence; isolate

“Silver drain”

Silver from Europe + Americas going to China; connect global economies

Piece of eight

Spanish silver coin used in global trade; first global currency

Potosi

Big silver mine in Bolivia; wealth, global silver trade

Fur trade

Europeans and Indigenous peoples exchanging fur pelts; promote Indigenous economy

“Soft gold”

Also known as fur in trade; valued in Europe + China, explore Siberia + North America

Transatlantic slave system

Forceful transport of Africans for labor to Americas; plantation economies

African diaspora

Africans split up in the Americas because of slavery; create new culture / society

Maroon societies / Palmares

Communities of escaped African slaves; colonial slavery resistance

Signares

West African / mixed women who traded with Europeans

Benin

West African Kingdom that limited slave trade; kept independence + resisted European pressure

Dahomey

West African kingdom that engaged in slave trade; power + wealth