Effects of the Conquistadors

Effects of the Conquistadors

Spanish Settlements • Hernan Cortes- captured the Aztec Empire • Francisco Pizarro- captured the Inca Empire • New Spain- Spain’s government wanted to control migration to the Americas and create a Spanish Empire

Spanish Empire

Social Structure • These explorers convinced people from Spain to come to the Americas and settle o Social structure: • Peninsulares- Born in Spain • Creoles- Born in the New World to Spanish parents • Mestizos- People born to Spanish and Native American parents • Mulattoes- People born to Spanish and African parents

Spanish Treatment of Native Americans and Slaves • In 1650, the Spanish Empire was made up of 3-4 million people- 80% were Native Americans • Forced Labor o Encomienda System- a system which gave settlers the right to tax local Native Americans or to demand their labor in exchange for protecting them and converting them to Christianity

*****More often, the Spanish treated the Native Americans as slaves and were cruel and abusive toward them****

Plantations

• Plantations- large farms that grew just one kind of crop oPlantations made a lot of money for the owner, but required a lot of labor which was done by Native Americans

Diseases • Millions of Native Americans died due to diseases they got from contact with the Europeans within years of the arrival of Columbus • Due to a decreasing population of Natives, and therefore a decreasing labor force, the Spanish agreed to turn to slaves from West Africa for labor

Middle Passage • The voyage across the Atlantic Ocean that brought slaves from Africa to the Americas

Search for the Northwest Passage • Northwest Passage- a non-existent water route through North America that would allow ships to sail from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean

Search for the Northwest Passage • Many Explorers tried looking for the Northwest Passage o English-sent John Cabot- he led England to the Americas o French- sent Jacques Cartier- he claimed parts of Canada for France o Dutch- sent Henry Hudson- landed in New York (Hudson Bay/ Hudson River) o None of these explorers found a Northwest Passage, however their explorations led to increased European interest in North America o People began to have interest in creating colonies in North America