History of Spanish and European Exploration in the Americas
Early Transatlantic Exploration and the Norse Settlement
The Spanish were not the first to explore the Americas transatlanticly; Norse explorers from Iceland and Greenland arrived significantly earlier.
Exploration occurred at least years before Columbus’s voyage, and potentially earlier than that.
Leif Erikson landed on a region he named Vinland, identified as present-day Newfoundland, situated just north of modern-day Maine.
Archaeologists have found evidence that these Vikings built permanent structures and brought livestock with them to the settlement.
Evidence from the site includes a variety of artifacts, such as tools; it is highly likely that women were part of the expedition.
Evidence for these events is documented in the saga of Eric Thoretto mine; Eric is the father of Leif Erikson.
The Norse settlement was temporary, lasting perhaps years. The reasons for its abandonment are contested, though theories include:
Inhospitable native populations.
Poor soil quality.
Geopolitical Context in 15th-Century Europe
Several centuries passed between the Norse expeditions and the establishment of further colonies in North America.
During this period, Christian Europe was focused on the expansion of the Muslim Ottoman Empire.
The Ottomans captured Constantinople, the eastern capital of the Roman Empire, and expanded through the Balkans, nearly reaching Venice.
A major military engagement pushed the Ottomans back from France.
On the Iberian Peninsula, the forces of Christian Spain engaged in a centuries-long effort to remove African Muslims (Moors).
This effort concluded in and was designated the Reconquista (The Reconquest).
The Voyages and Errors of Christopher Columbus
Columbus operated using faulty mathematical calculations; while he could determine latitude, the ability to calculate longitude was not developed until the late eighteenth century.
Columbus estimated the distance to Asia westward to be miles, whereas the actual distance is approximately miles.
After a near-mutiny by his crew, the expedition landed in The Bahamas, naming the site San Salvador.
Columbus encountered a peaceful group known as the airlock Indians; he named them Indians because he believed he had arrived in India.
He explored Cuba (believing it was Spain) and Hispaniola, where he engaged in trade for gold-laden jewelry.
In , he returned to Europe, receiving a hero's welcome and securing funding for additional expeditions.
Importance of his work: Although he did not land in North America, his explorations in South America and the West Indies established the first permanent settlements in the region.
The Conquest of the Incan Empire
Francisco Pizarro was a veteran of Balboa's expedition—a dangerous mission where only out of men survived.
Pizarro negotiated a governorship with the Spanish government prior to his conquest, bringing men and horses.
The Incan Empire was significantly weakened by measles and influenza epidemics before the Spanish arrival.
A civil war between the sons of the deceased Incan leader led to Atahualpa taking power after executing his brother.
Atahualpa underestimated the Spanish forces and permitted Pizarro and his soldiers to enter Incan territory without resistance.
Pizarro captured Atahualpa and approximately a year later took control of the capital, Cuzco.
Atahualpa attempted to secure his release by raising a massive ransom including:
of gold.
of silver.
After the ransom was paid, Pizarro executed Otahuwafa (Atahualpa).
The execution occurred via gueridine (strangulation with an iron collar); Otahuwafa agreed to be baptized prior to the strangulation as an alternative to being burned.
Population Decimation and Territorial Claims
European diseases played a catastrophic role in the decline of native populations.
The Tainos of Hispaniola and Puerto Rico declined from in to just by .
Similar population collapses occurred in the mainland across Florida and Alabama.
Territorial Allocations:
Pedro Fabrado claimed Brazil for Portugal, which is why Brazilians speak Portuguese today.
Spain claimed the remainder of the territory.
Spanish Interest in North America:
Despite a dominant position for nearly years, Spain lacked overall interest in North America, focusing instead on the gold and riches of Central and South America.
Spanish presence in Florida was strategic, intended to prevent the French from threatening Spanish holdings in the Caribbean.
Competing Claims:
France ignored the Treaty of Tordesillas; Jacques Cartier claimed present-day Canada for France.
England, as a Protestant nation, also ignored the Pope's treaty; John Cabot claimed Newfoundland and the area near the St. Lawrence River for England.
Global Comparisons and the Role of China
Compared to contemporary Asian powers, Europeans were less advanced in navigation.
The Chinese possessed larger ships and superior navigational instruments but did not pursue overseas settlements.
Conservatism in Chinese governance prioritized internal stability over exploration.
Even in the late eighteenth century, the Chinese Emperor rejected Western products brought by Lord McCartney (telescopes, chronometers, spinning machinery), viewing Westerners as "barbarians."
Trade Imbalance: There was a massive gold and silver drain from Europe to the Orient because Asians had little interest in buying Western products, while European demand for Orient goods was extremely high.
Spanish Motivations and the Conquistador Tradition
European interest was fueled by Marco Polo, a Venetian trader whose late writings on the Silk Road and the wealth of Cathay (Mainland China), India, Persia, and Japan profoundly impacted the European psyche.
The Reconquista provided Spain with a highly trained, well-equipped military and a tradition where military leaders were granted dominion over conquered territory.
Success in exploration provided a route to wealth for the Hidalgos (lower nobility); many explorers were poor and risked everything for personal gain.
Hernando Cortez: Led the first major attempt to conquer the mainland (Mexico) with more than Spanish soldiers, Cubans, and fewer than horses.
Cortez utilized a captive mistress, Dona Marina (also known as Lama Linche or Elamalinche), as an interpreter and intermediary.
The Aztec leader, Montezuma II, allowed the Spanish into the capital of Tenochtitlan, possibly because he believed Cortez was the returning deity Quetzalcoatl (the feathered serpent).
Conflict escalated when Spanish troops under Cortez massacred hundreds of Aztecs during a religious festival while Cortez was away fighting a Cuban force sent to arrest him for exceeding his authority.
Cortez ultimately retook the city via siege, aided by local tribes hostile to the Aztecs and the spread of smallpox.
Explorations of the Gulf Coast and Florida
Nervez (Narvaez) Expedition: Attempted to conquer lands north of the Gulf of Mexico with volunteers and horses, landing at Tampa Bay.
The expedition struggled with hunger and guerrilla attacks from native populations as they moved toward Apalachicola.
Local Native Americans used bows capable of penetrating of wood and Spanish armor.
Only survivors remained after an ordeal; one survivor, Cabeza de Vaca, stayed alive by eating deer dung, lizards, and worms, and by convincing natives he had healing powers (by breathing on them and making the sign of the cross).
Fernando de So (DeSoto) Expedition (–):
Included infantry and cavalry.
Adopted protective gear from native traditions (cotton quilted jackets with leather on top).
Brought pigs as a portable food source to avoid the starvation faced by Nervez.
Brought neck collars and chains to enslave Native Americans as porters.
The Battle of Myvilla (Mabilla):
Encountered Chief Tascaloosa in modern-day Alabama.
Tascaloosa ambushed the Spanish, resulting in Spanish deaths and wounded.
The Spanish lost all their looted treasure in this battle, which took place near modern-day Selma, Alabama, in .
De So to died of a fever in and was buried in the Mississippi River.