Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Independence High School Global History Regents Mr. Wisell Unit 1: The First Global Age CW 1-4: European Exploration and Expansion (Assignment B) The explorers from Europe may have been curious about the world or may have wanted adventure. In most cases, they desired riches for themselves and their countries. On their explorations, they often came upon civilizations in the new lands. However, the explorers did not think about the rights of the people already living on the land. Instead, they forced their own culture on them, often making slaves of them. For centuries, the rest of the world did not know about the Americas or the people living there. Then the Vikings landed in North America. They met American Indians, but the Vikings did not stay long in North America. Much later, European explorers found the continent by accident. What they were really looking for was a quicker route to India and the Far East. The place they found instead seemed like a land of wealth and plenty. It seemed well worth exploring and conquering. What Was Christopher Columbus Looking for and What Did He Find? Christopher Columbus set sail from Spain in August 1492. He was not out to prove the world was round, as stories often tell. He was also not out to conquer new lands. Columbus was looking for a water route to Asia. He believed that by sailing west he might find a shorter route to the treasures of Asia. He had convinced Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of Spain to support his voyage. Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand gave Columbus three ships for the voyage. They were the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. Columbus sailed westward. Instead of reaching Asia, Columbus landed on an island in the Bahamas. There it was—a new world where no land should have been! Columbus claimed the land in the name of Spain. He named the land San Salvador. Columbus thought he had reached an island off the coast of India. That is why he called the people living there “Indians.” It was not too many years before the people realized Columbus was wrong about the land’s location. Those islands Columbus explored are called the “West Indies.” Many places in America have been named after Columbus. The word America, however, comes from the name of another explorer, Amerigo Vespucci. He was a European explorer who reached the mainland of South America in 1500. A mapmaker honored his accomplishment by naming the Americas after him. What Did Portuguese Explorers Discover? Other explorers searched for that water route to Asia. The Spaniards and the Portuguese led the way in voyages of discovery. In 1497, Vasco da Gama sailed around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope. Vasco da Gama was a Portuguese noble and sailor. He became the first explorer to reach India by a sea route. Another Portuguese explorer, Pedro Cabral, set out for India in 1500. He sailed wide of Africa and found Brazil. Thanks to Cabral, Brazil was claimed in the name of Portugal. In 15919, the Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan began a voyage around the whole world. His own king had refused to give him money for his trip. However, the Spanish king agreed to supply five ships and 241 men. Magellan sailed around South America and across the Pacific. However, Magellan himself did not make it all the way. In 1521, people in the Philippine Islands killed him. However, one of the ships, the Victoria, completed the trip around the world. With only 18 survivors, it returned to Spain in 1522. This was the first ship to have sailed completely around the world. The Victoria’s voyage was the first proof that Earth is round. What Things Did Spanish Conquistadors Bring to South America? Europeans quickly realized what a prize they had found in the new lands. They thought it did not matter that people already lived there. Europeans did not recognize that the natives had civilizations and cultures of their own. Europeans wanted the new lands for themselves. When the Spanish conquistadors (conquerors) arrived in Mexico and South America, they found great civilizations. The conquistadors brought guns and horses to help them claim gold. The American Indians have neither one. Hernando Cortes attacked the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan in 1521. The Spaniards soon conquered all of Mexico. They called it New Spain. In South America, Francisco Pizarro attacked the Inca Empire in 1532. Again, the Indians were no match for the new enemy they did not understand. The Spaniards tried to make the Indians accept the Christian religion. Many Indians who refused to burned to death. The Spaniards treated the Indians cruelly in other ways, too. They used Indians as slaves, working them harder than animals. Many Europeans thought these people were only savages. The Europeans caused the Indians to suffer in yet another way. The Europeans brought their diseases with them to the Americas. Thousands of American Indians died from the new diseases. Independence High School Global History Regents Mr. Wisell Unit 1: The First Global Age CW 1-4: European Exploration and Expansion (Assignment B) 1. Why did European explorers want to explore the rest of the world? 2. What was Christopher Columbus looking for? What did he find? 3. What did Ferdinand Magellan’s voyage accomplish? Why was it so important? 4. Why were the Spanish conquistadors so easily able to defeat the Aztec and the Inca? Write the letter of the answer that correctly completes each sentence. 5. Columbus named the land he discovered ____. A. Bahamas B. West Indies C. San Salvador D. Brazil 6. The Spaniards and the ____ led the way in voyages of discovery. A. Dutch B. Portuguese C. French D. English 7. Spaniards tried to convert the Indians to the ____ religion. A. Muslim Buddhist B. Hindu C. Christian D. 8. The Europeans brought ____ with them to the Americas. This caused thousands of American Indians to die. A. diseases religion B. ships C. horses D. 9. A ____ king supplied five ships and 241 men on Magellan’s voyage. A. Spanish B. Dutch C. French D. English 10. Columbus called the people living on the island he explored ____. A. Americans B. Aztecs C. Incas D. Indians