2.1 Early Explorers of Texas

Early Explorers of Texas

• Essential Question: How does conflict impact people, culture, and geography?

Vocabulary

• Colonization: One country takes control of another, usually by force, to gain resources and control.

• Conflict: A struggle or disagreement between two or more people.

• Culture: The beliefs, values, and practices shared by a group, guiding their behavior.

• Exploration: The act of investigating or examining new territories.

• Conquistadors: Spanish or Portuguese soldiers/adventurers who conquered new territory during the Age of Discovery.

• Consequences: Results of an action, which can be positive or negative.

• Sufficient: Enough to meet a need or achieve a goal.

Trade Routes

• In the late 1400s, Europeans sought new trade routes to India and East Asia.

• They aimed to avoid traditional land routes through the Ottoman-controlled Middle East due to high fees.

• Navigation tools of the time were not accurate enough for ocean travel; sailors stayed near coastlines.

Key Explorers and Voyages

• Christopher Columbus (1492): Proposed westward sailing across the Atlantic to reach Asia, led to his famous journey from Spain with three ships.

• Bartolomeu Dias (1488): First European to sail around the southern tip of Africa, suggesting a possible sea route to Asia.

Expansion of European Influence

• After Columbus, other Spanish explorers repeated his voyage, claiming lands and resources for Spain.

• Spanish exploited superior weaponry to build an extensive empire in the Americas despite millions of native inhabitants.

Conquistadors

• Soldier-explorers helped secure vast lands for Spain, gaining wealth and glory for themselves.

• Example: Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca, the first European in Texas, initially intended to conquer but became a trader after shipwrecking in Galveston.

Cabeza de Vaca's Journey

• Joined a large expedition in 1528; his stories about Texas cattle amazed the Spanish.

• His journey began the Age of Contact, leading to significant cultural exchanges and impacts.

Francisco Vásquez de Coronado

• Sent by Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza to verify tales of wealth (7 Cities of Cibola).

• Found villages instead of gold cities—his exploration yielded no treasures but reported good farming prospects in Texas.

European Rivalries

• Following Spain's discoveries, France challenged Spain's dominance in the New World.

• Rene-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle: Claimed the Mississippi River Valley for France, named it Louisiana after King Louis XIV.

• La Salle's expeditions in the late 1600s led to the establishment of trading posts and conflicts with Spanish interests.

Lasting Impact of Exploration

• Spain aimed to convert natives, gain wealth, and expand their empire while France focused on trade and exploration.

• The competition for territorial control and the various impacts of these explorations shaped the historical trajectory of Texas and its interactions with indigenous peoples.