Transcript The Conquest of the Americas

The Conquest of the Americas
The Conquistadores
OVERVIEW
• Fall of the Aztec and Inca Empires
• Spanish Conquistadores in Florida
• Reason for Spanish Exploration in
Southwest (North America)
• Economies, Government, and Social
Structure of Spanish colonial society
What is a Conquistador?
• Definition:
– Spanish soldiers who led
military expeditions in the
Americas.
– Derived from the term
Conquista which was
Spain’s attempt to gain
control in the Americas and
Asia Pacific for a political
and economic advantage.
– Justified their expeditions
in the Americas, which
were often-times brutal,
with their Roman Catholic
faith and cultural views.
Cortes and the Aztecs
• Hernan Cortes, conquistador
– Sent by the Spanish governor
of Cuba to present day Mexico
in 1519.
– Went in search of Moctezuma
II.
• King of the Aztec Empire
• Rich Civilization with millions
of people.
• Malintzin was an Aztec
civilian and interpreter for
Cortes
• Capitol fell to Cortes after
Moctezuma died and then the
city suffered form small pox
Pizarro’s Conquest of the Inca
• Francisco Pizarro
– Arrived in Peru in 1531
• Inca Empire
– Geographically covered most
of the western side of South
America, form present-day
Columbia to Chile
– Atahualpa was the ruler
• Pizarro and Atahualpa
– Pizarro takes Atahualpa
prisoner and is paid gold for
his ransom, but Pizarro
murders him anyway.
• Inca Empire is conquered in
1534 after the death of
Atahualpa and an epidemic of
small pox.
Conquistadores in Florida
•
•
First effort
– Juan Ponce de Leon
• Reached present day Florida in
1513
• Attempted to found a settlement in
1521 (failed)
•
Second Effort
– Panfilo de Narvaez
• In 1528 reached Florida
• Starving, he and his crew try to
escape Florida in make-shift rafts
• Only a few survived
– Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca
reached the Texas coast
– Cabeza de Vaca wandered for 8
years living with Natives until he
found some Spanish soldiers
coming out of Mexico in 1536.
•
http://www.geocities.com/smbuala
w01/Cabeza_de_Vaca.html
Sailed on Columbus’s second
voyage.
Hernan de Soto
• Sought Gold in North
America
• First europeans to
cross Mississippi
River
• Became ill and died
near the mouth of the
Mississippi
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado
• Traveled to New
Mexico in 1540
• Captured Zuni town of
Cibola
• Was in search of gold
and other riches
• Only found buildings
and corn.
Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo
• Sailed along California
coast in 1542-43
• In search of gold and new
route to China
• Did not return from
voyage because he died
in 1543
• Fought with Cortes in the
defeat of the Aztec. (was
a master of the crossbow)
• Served as governor of
Guatemala.
Class Assignment
• Groups will create a
graphic organizer
identifying the
following
conquistadores:
•
•
•
•
•
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•
Cortes
Pizarro
Ponce de Leon
Cabeza de Vaca
De Soto
De Coronado
Cabrillo
Assignment Directions
• On the graphic organizer give key events that
happened on their voyages, dates of journeys,
and reasons for exploring.
• Then on a blank map of the Americas create a
color-coded key identifying each route and
explorer with a specific color.
– Be sure color code the exploration route with the map
key
– Label the locations
– Record the end result of exploration next to the
location on your maps