APUSH U1: Chp 1

Canadian Shield

First part of the North American landmass to emerge above sea level.

Incas

Highly advanced South American civilization that occupied present-day Peru until it was conquered by Spanish forces under Francisco Pizarro in 1532. The Incas developed sophisticated agricultural techniques, such as terrace farming, in order to sustain large, complex societies in the unforgiving Andes Mountains.

Aztecs

Native American empire that controlled present-day Mexico until 1521, when they were conquered by Spanish Hernán Cortés. The Aztecs maintained control over their vast empire through a system of trade and tribute. They came to be known for their advances in mathematics and writing and their use of human sacrifices in religious ceremonies.

Cahokia

Mississippian settlement near present-day East St. Louis, home to as many as twenty-five thousand Native Americans.

Three-Sister Farming

Agricultural system employed by North American Indians as early as 1000 C.E.; maize, beans, and squash were grown together to maximize yields.

Caravel

Small regular vessel with a high deck and three triangular sails. Caravels could sail more closely into the wind, allowing European sailors to explore the western shores of Africa, previously made inaccessible due to prevailing winds on the homeward journey.

Columbian Exchange

The transfer of goods, crops, and diseases between New and Old World societies after 1492.

Treaty of Tordesillas

Signed by Spain and Portugal, dividing the territories of the New World. Spain received the bulk of territory in the Americas, compensating Portugal with titles to lands in Africa and Asia.

Encomienda

Spanish government's policy to "commend," or give, Indians to certain colonists in return for the promise to Christianize them. Part of a broader Spanish effort to subdue Indian tribes in the West Indies and on the North American mainland.

Noche triste

June 30, 1520. "Sad night," when the Aztecs attacked Hernán Cortés and his forces in the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlán, killing hundreds. Cortés laid siege to the city the following year, precipitating the fall of the Aztec empire and inaugurating three centuries of Spanish rule.

Mestizos

People of mixed Indian and European heritage, notably in Mexico.

Conquistadores

Sixteenth-century Spaniards who fanned out across the Americas, from Colorado to Argentina, eventually conquering the Aztec and Incan empires.

Battle of Acoma

Fought between Spaniards under Don Juan de Oñate and the Pueblo Indians in present-day New Mexico. Spaniards brutally crushed the Pueblo peoples and established the territory as New Mexico in 1609.

Pope's Rebellion

Pueblo Indian rebellion that drove Spanish settlers from New Mexico.

Black legend

False notion that Spanish conquerors did little but butcher the Indians and steal their gold in the name of Christ.

Ferdinand of Aragon

Married Isabella of Castile to unite Spain.

Isabella of Castile

Married Ferdinand of Aragon to unite Spain.

Christopher Columbus

Sailed the ocean blue in 1492. Spanish

Francisco Coronado

Looked for golden cities, but found adobe pueblos in Arizona and New Mexico. He found the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River and herds of buffalo.

Francisco Pizarro

Crushed the Incas of Peru in 1532 and gained loot.

Bartolome de las Casas

Spanish missionary who said that the encomienda system was "a moral pestilence invented by Satan."

Hernan Cortes

Cuban who was sailing to Mexico. Went to Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan for gold and wealth. Ended up taking over the empire.

Malinche

A female Indian slave who knew both Mayan and Nahuatl. Hired by Hernan Cortes.

Moctezuma

Ruler of Aztecs. Believed Cortes was a god and allowed him to enter the capital.

Givanni Caboto

Sent by English to explore the northeastern coast of North America.

Robert de la Salle

Mississippi River in 1716. French

Father Junipero Serra

21 missions of California