Spanish Conquistadores in America

Reconquista

Centuries-long Christian effort to drive Moors off the Iberian Peninsula

Obsession with status

Result of military and religious confrontations during the Reconquista

Conquistadores

Spanish conquerors who swept across the Americas in the 16th century

Aztec and Incan empires

Great empires extinguished by the conquistadores in the Americas

Private expeditions

Military conquest organized by small groups of men in the New World

Motives of conquistadores

Varied reasons including seeking royal titles, spreading Christianity, and acquiring wealth

Horses and gunpowder

Technological advantages used by the conquistadores against the Indians

Spoils distribution

Uneven division of captured wealth among conquistadores

Crown control

Gradual tightening of Spanish crown's control over the New World, replacing conquistadores

Mestizos

Offspring of Spanish conquistadores and Native American women in Latin America

Reconquista impact

Shaped Spanish society with religious zealotry and disdain for manual labor

Mainland kingdoms

Rich territories discovered by the Spanish in the Americas beyond the Caribbean

Cortés and Pizarro

Prominent Spanish conquistadores who led expeditions in the Americas

Wealth aspirations

Desire for riches among conquistadores in the New World

Disease impact

Spread by the conquistadores, weakening indigenous populations

Spoils division disparity

Unequal sharing of captured treasures among conquistadores

Colonial administrators

Replaced conquistadores in the New World to enforce crown control

Scarcity of Spanish women

Led to many conquistadores marrying Native American women

Mestizos as a bridge

Offspring of Spanish and Native American unions forming a cultural link in Latin America