Latin America Notes

What happened in 1492 in Spain?

The king of Spain got very rich bc he forced the Jews to either convert to Christianity or leave and give him all their money

What did the King of spain use all his money for?

To send Columbus to sail west to reach Asia

Where did Columbus initially land?

Landed in the Caribbean, he though it was India.

What type of jobs did Jews usually have?

Businessmen or bankers bc Jews were not allowed to own farm/land

How did disease spread in the Americas?

Columbus and his crew brought over many new diseases like flu, common cold, aids. Wiped out the Aztecs. Europeans got syphilis from americans

How did disease influence the population of Mexico?

1500s= 20 million

1515= 2-3 million

Conquistadors came from?

They were Spaniards that came to Mexico

Important person that was a Conquistador?

Cortes, he burned his boats when they landed in Mexico

What did the tribes think abouit the Conquistadors when they arrived at Mexico?

They were shocked about their horses and were hopeful they would help them fight back against the Aztecs

Who was the leader of the Aztecs in 1519?

Montazuma

How did the Aztecs welcome the spaniards?

Threw them a huge banquet and threw around splattered human blood (Spaniards were like wtf if wrong with these people…..)

How did the Spaniards beat the Aztecs?

Small pox broke out and killed many Aztecs while fighting

Who overthrew the Conquistadors?

Pizarro

How did the Incas farm on mountains?

Built little decks on side of hill

Who wanted to mine silver in the mountains?

The conquistadors- they made the Indians mine the silver and many died from mercury poisoning and bad diseases spread bc close together

What year did the Portuguese try to sail around Africa and how long did it take?

Left in 1450s and arrived in 1498

• filled boat with crap ton of PEPPER and alcohol bc didn’t have many types of alc at home

What was Mexico City known as?

Tenotchtilan

Aztec religion/culture

very violent, believed they had to kill someone everyday in order for the sun to rise

• Cannibalism was built into their religion

What did Europeans think when they “discovered black people”?

Thought black=evil and it was the mark of Hamm

What killed most of the Indians and what percent died?

Disease (yellow fever, malaria, small pox) all came over AT ONCE

• 95% died within 50 years

• 3-5 million in south america/mexico lived

• 300,000 in NA lived

Why was the social order so complex?

Bc of interbreeding between different races

Social Order Ranking

1. Portuguese/Spain

2. Port/Spain born in America (Peninsulares)

3. European+Indians= Mestizos

4. European+African= Mulatios

5. Indians

6. Indians+Africans

7. Free blacks

8. Slaves

9. 
   

Octaroons vs Quadroons

Octaroons= 7/8 European

Quadroons= ¼ black

Peninsulaires

People that were born in Spain that moved to Latin America

Creoles

people with Spanish parents, but born in LA

• mad bc ruled by peninsulaires

Latifundias

huge farms owned by rich that poor worked on in Latin America

British vs French Enlightenment

British:

1. Unalienable rights- rights everyone had

2. Separation of powers- supported unail rights

French:

• equality for all whites (no social ladder)

Independence revolution

Creoles were fed up with the peninsulaires ruling over them

Simon Bolivar was the leader: supported enlightenment, no slavery, said that if slaves joined his rebellion then they are free

Napolean in 1808

Overthrew king Ferdinand VII and took away catholic church/aristocracy→ peasants rebelled against Napolean→Creoles formed Juntas

What happened when king Ferdinand VII gained control again?

He ordered Juntas to give up their power to his→Refused and stared a REVOLUTION

Simon Bolivar

led independence movement, told slaves if they joined him they would be freed

Goals: stop slavery, Independence, unite SA into one country, and have a Democracy

• Spain divided SA into colonies, and when he tried to combine them, they turned the colonies into separate countries bc didn’t want to give up their power

• Realized a democracy wouldn’t work bc who is able to vote???

Toussaint Louverture

ran St. Domingue

• led slave rebellion and defeated whites (didn’t slaughter them)→slaves were freed but the economy collapsed→brought indentured servants but not as brutal→Napoleon took over and brought BRUTAL slavery back→Dessalines and Christoph led rebellion→yellow fever killed french fast→Des and chris defeated them and changed name to “Haiti”

Simon Bolivar vs Toussaint Louverture

SB: independence rev against SPAIN, was a wealthy CREOLE, wanted to unite SA

TL: fought against slavery from FRENCH(neopolatin lol), Haitian revolution,

Why didn’t Subsistence farming work?

bc of external threats (economy crahed so danger french would come for $$$ or british would try to overthrow them- Toussaint has to start slavery again)and internal tension

Who took over after Dessalines and Christoph overthrew the French in Haiti?

Dessalines took over and turned against Mulato’s, so Christoph fled bc he was a Mulato→Dessalines started slavery again and killed thousands→Christoph came back and overthrew Dessalines→Christoph committed suicide and Boyer took over

Conservatives vs liberals (now vs in LA)

Conservatives Now: Laissez-faire, don’t try to reg businesses, people produce goods to meet a need, traditional family values, Protectionism, isolationism, and cut immigration

Liberals Now: personal freedom, gov intervention in market, progressive tax, moving towards socialism

Conservatives in LA: mostly Iberians (spanish/port), church, and aristocracy

• Organic state, low social mobility, we all have a role to play and are happy with it (Gods will)

• AGAINST Laissez faire, wanted gov reg

Liberals in LA: middle class, owned mines/sugar plants, SUPPORTED Lassiez-faire bc didn’t want regulations on their slaves, supported Democracy