• Maritime Empires: Powerful European states like Spain, Portugal, England, France, and the Netherlands that expanded overseas via naval power and colonization.
• Caravel: A small, fast ship developed by the Portuguese, great for long voyages and exploration.
• Astrolabe: A tool used by sailors to navigate by the stars.
• Magnetic Compass: A navigation tool that always points north, improving ocean travel.
• Columbian Exchange: The transfer of crops, animals, people, and diseases between the Old World (Europe, Asia, Africa) and the New World (Americas).
• Triangular Trade: A system where Europe sent goods to Africa, Africa sent enslaved people to the Americas, and the Americas sent raw materials to Europe.
• Middle Passage: The brutal, deadly journey of enslaved Africans across the Atlantic Ocean.
• Joint-Stock Company: Businesses where investors shared profits and losses, making colonization less risky (e.g., British East India Co.).
• Mercantilism: Economic system focused on building national wealth by controlling trade and colonies.
• Encomienda System: Spanish labor system using Native Americans for work on plantations and in mines.
• Hacienda System: Large Spanish estates that produced crops using coerced labor.
• Syncretism: The blending of religions or cultures (ex: Vodun, Sikhism).
• Diaspora: People leaving or being forced from their homeland and forming new communities.
• Resistance Movements: Uprisings by native peoples or enslaved populations against colonial powers.
Q&A:
Q: What technological innovations made transoceanic travel possible?
A: Caravel ships, the compass, the astrolabe, and new sailing techniques like lateen sails.
Q: What were the effects of the Columbian Exchange?
A: Population collapse in the Americas (due to disease), new crops in Europe (like potatoes), and new animals in the Americas (like horses).
Highlights:
• European empires shifted from land-based to sea-based power.
• Global trade expanded.
• African slave trade intensified.
Conclusion:
Unit 4 was all about new global connections—especially across the Atlantic and Pacific. Technology and trade built powerful empires and changed life everywhere, especially for indigenous peoples and Africans
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