Unit 1

Cahokia

The largest pre-Columbian settlement north of Mexico, significant for representing a complex Native American society.

Iroquois League

A political alliance of North American tribes that influenced democratic principles in America.

Tenochtitlán

The capital of the Aztec Empire, serving as their religious and political heart.

Aztec Empire

A Native American civilization in central Mexico, whose fall to Spanish conquistadors marked the beginning of European colonization in the Americas.

Reconquista

An effort led by Ferdinand and Isabella to expel Muslims from Spain, establishing Catholicism as the dominant religion and paving the way for Spanish colonization in the Americas.

Conquistadores

Spanish explorers and soldiers who established new colonies and trade routes, spreading Christianity and Spanish culture.

Columbian Exchange

The exchange of goods and people between the Old World and the New World, which led to increased trade and food production globally.

Encomienda

A Spanish labor system rewarding conquerors with the labor of conquered non-Christian peoples, resembling a form of feudalism.

New Laws (1542)

Laws created by the King of Spain in response to Bartolomé de las Casas, aiming to reform the treatment of Indigenous peoples in the Americas.

Black Legend

The unfavorable image of Spain and Spaniards, depicting them as cruel and intolerant.

Pueblo Revolt (1680)

An uprising of Pueblo people against Spanish colonizers due to harsh treatment.

New France

A French colony in North America that existed from 1534 to 1763, influential in Canadian history and culture.

New Netherland

A Dutch colony in the 17th century that grew dramatically and became a major North Atlantic trade port.

Virginia Company

A joint-stock company chartered by King James I that founded the first permanent English settlement in America, Jamestown.

Roanoke Colony

An early English settlement that mysteriously disappeared without a trace.

Powhatan Confederacy

An alliance of Native American tribes.

Headright System

A land distribution policy granting settlers parcels of land for each person they brought, encouraging immigration and large plantations.

Puritans

English Protestants seeking to 'purify' the Church of England, later relocating to establish Plymouth.

Pilgrims

English settlers who sailed to North America on the Mayflower in 1620, founding the Plymouth Colony.

Mayflower Compact

A document signed by Pilgrims establishing a self-governance system for their new colony.

Christopher Columbus

An Italian explorer credited with discovering the Americas for Spain.

Hernán Cortés

A Spanish conquistador who overthrew the Aztec Empire and claimed Mexico for Spain.

Bartolomé de las Casas

A Spanish priest who advocated against the mistreatment of indigenous peoples during the Spanish conquest.

Francisco Pizarro

Spanish conquistador known for conquering the Inca Empire in Peru, which enriched Spain.

Samuel de Champlain

French explorer who founded New France and Quebec City.

Henry Hudson

An English explorer known for his search for a Northwest Passage, discovering the Hudson River and Hudson Bay.

Elizabeth I

Queen of England who presided over the Golden Age and established the Church of England.

Sir Walter Raleigh

Explorer who founded Roanoke Island during the reign of Elizabeth I.

John Smith

An English explorer crucial to establishing the Jamestown colony with interactions with Native American tribes.

Pocahontas

Daughter of Powhatan who mediated relations between Jamestown colonists and her people.

John Winthrop

A prominent Puritan leader and first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, envisioning America as a 'city upon a hill'.