2º A BILINGÜE: CLASE DEL 11 DE JUNIO DE 2020
Good morning everybody!
Last Tuesday, we studied the culture, architecture and art in Spain during the Early Modern Age. Today, we are going to pay attention to the discovery and conquest of America. You can find it in your textbook in pages 184, 185 and 186.
6. DISCOVERY AND CONQUEST OF AMERICA.
First of all, we are going to learn and listen to the vocabulary related to this part of the unit:
CARTOGRAPHY: science of the study and drawing of maps. (Cartografía: ciencia que estudia y dibuja los mapas).
CARAVEL: fast, light ship with square and triangular sails that can carry up to 60 tonnes. (Carabela: tipo de embarcación utilizada de gran tamaño y capacidad, con velas cuadradas y triangulares).
CASA DE CONTRATACIÓN: institution founded in 1503 and based in Sevilla, responsible for governing Spanish trade with America.
CONSEJO DE INDIAS: body that advised kings on matters related to America.
VICEROYALTY: extensive land governed by a viceroy or a king's representative; in the early centuries of Spain's colonisation of America there were two viceroyalties: New Spain with Mexico city as its capital, and Peru with Lima as its capital. Later, from 18th onwards, there were another two viceroyalties. (Virreinatos).
MESTIZO: person mixed race or culture, especially Spanish and Native American.
At the end of the 15th century, Spain and Portugal discovered and occupied new territories that had been unknown to Europeans before. These geographical discoveries were due to serveral factors:
1. The Turkish presence in the Eastern Mediterranean made it necessary to look for a new route to Asia.
2. Advances in cartography and in navigation, like the use of the caravel, made journeys across the Atlantic easier.
3. Traveller's tales awoke the desire in others to discover new lands.
4. Many Europeans saw the discovery of new land as an opportunity to get rich.
The Portuguese salied along the coast of Africa and they reached the Cape of Good Hope. Meanwhile, Christopher Columbus set off from Spain on his journey of discovery across the Atlantic Ocean with the intention of reaching the East Indies (Asia), but instead reached America. He made a total of four journeys to America and, when he died in 1506, he still did not know that it was a new continent.
When the Spanish arrived in America, the continent was inhabited by several indigenous cultures: the Aztec (in Mexico); the Maya (in the Yucatán Peninsula); and the Inca (in Peru).
- The conquest and colonisation of America.
The conquest of America was a short process. The number of Spanish conquistadores was not very large, but they had horses, guns and they were helped by the surprise factor and by fighting between the indigenous people themselves.
After the conquest, the colonisation of the American continent began. New institutions were created, such as the Casa de Contratación, the Consejo de Indias or the viceroyalties.
- Consequences of the discoveries.
* POLITICAL:
Spain and Portugal became big colonial empires. Spain, in fact, became the biggest empire in the 16tn century thanks to the discovery of America.
In Spain, laws were passed to defend the native American people from frequent abuse by the colonisers.
* ECONOMIC:
Large quantities of gold and silver reached Europe from America. Not only metals arrived to Europe, but also did new corps (tomatoes, tobacco or cocoa). In addition, Europeans also introduced new animals and cropst to America.
* SOCIAL:
The indigenious people decreased in number because of wars and new diseases transmitted by Spanish and overwork. Many Spanish people emigrated to America and mixed with the indigenous population. This produced a large number of mestizos.
* CULTURAL:
The discovery of America enabled humans to understand better the true dimensions of the world. Also, Spanish culture and the Christian religion were introduced into America.