Portuguese exploration

 Portuguese mariners navigated an eastward route to Africa, establishing a foundation for a

trading empire
 Colonized the western coast of Africa and eventually the eastern coast of South America
o Merchants used these outposts as debarkation points for subsequent journeys
 Trading posts in China and Japan as well
 Although a huge landmass was not established, these colonies were strategic holdings which
gave them unrivaled nautical trade routes and a global empire of trading posts
o This introduced them to African slave trade; exporting African slaves along with African
ivory and gold
o Portuguese islands become home to sugar plantations; operated by African labor to
produce highly profitable commodity for Euro consumers
Spanish exploration and conquest
 Established first Euro settlements in the Americas, beginning in the Caribbean, and by 1600
extending throughout Central and South America
o Most famous of these explorers are Christopher Columbus, Hernan Cortes, and
Francisco Pizarro
 The marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile in 1469 unified Catholic Spain, and
began a process of building a nation competing for world power
 Interested in regaining catholic power within the Iberian Peninsula; done so in 1492, completion
of the Reconquista
o Afterwards leading to expanding their power
 Goal to expand Catholicism to gain a commercial advantage over Portugal
o Ferdinand and Isabella sponsored extensive Atlantic exploration
o Sponsorship of Columbus; they understood the Portuguese would soon reach Asia, in a
competitive race to reach the Far East
 Columbus landed in the Bahamas, believing he landed in the East Indies; called the native Tainos
the term “Indios” – termed as “Indian”
 Columbus’ 1493 letter, the probanza de merito (proof of merit), described his “disvoery” of a New
World; reports and letters written by Spaniards in the New World to the Spanish crown, designed
to win royal patronage
o Historians try to understand the context and the culture in which was written by
conquistadors
o Useful in illustrating the expectation of wealth among the explorers, as well as their views
of the native peoples in which they would not pose an obstacle to colonization
o Columbus believed that the Americas were part of Asia
 An Italian, Amerigo Vespucci, sailing for the Portuguese crown, explored the South American
coastline; unlike Columbus, he realized the Americas were not part of Asia
 King Joao II began negotiations with Spain, resulting in the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494 drawing
a north-to-south line through South America – Portugal acquiring territory to the East, and West to
Spain
 Columbus’ discovery opened a floodgate of Spanish exploration
o Hernan Cortes hoped to gain hereditary privilege for his family, in tribute payments and
labor from natives; he arrived in 1504 on Hispaniola
o Cortes entered the capital of the Aztec (Mexica) Empire in 1519, where he was
astonished by the sophisticated causeways, gardens and temples of the city; however,
freighted by their sacrificial practice in their religion
o What fascinated Cortes was the Aztecs wealth in gold
 Cortes
o Took hostage of the people of Mactezuma
o People of Tenochtitlan revolted against interlopers in their city, driving Cortes to the shore
o Cortes formed alliances slowly with natives, whom were against the Aztec
o The Spanish brought smallpox into the valley of Mexico, paying a heavy toll on the
people in Tenochtitlan; this played a huge role in the city’s demise
 o Malintzin is a controversial figure in history because she maintained a physical
relationship with him, and helped him conquer the Aztecs; without her Cortes would not
have been able to communicate with the Aztecs
 Francisco Pizarro
o Went to the Caribbean in 1509, in hopes of receiving wealth and titles
o Pizarro founded Lima, Peru; like Cortes he not only combated natives, but competitors as
well
 Hernando de Soto
o Explored the Southeastern Americas in search of gold
o Brought himself and the natives disease; he died in his expedition
o To no avail, gold was not found
The Spanish Golden Age
 Gold and silver from the Americas fueled the golden age
 Led to the Spaniard renaissance-like era

Religious Upheavals in the Developing Atlantic World

 Until the 1500s, the Catholic Church provided a unifying religious structure
o Not only controlled learning and scholarship, but also finances; taxes were levied on the
faithful
 Martin Luther in 1517 and John Calvin in the 1530 brought the reform efforts
o Catholic dominance came under attack as the Protestant Reformation
Martin Luther
 German Catholic monk who took issue with the Catholic Church’s practice selling indulgences
(documents that absolved sinners of their errant behavior)
 Objected to the Catholic Church’s taxation of ordinary Germans and the delivery of the Mass in
Latin
 Europeans called for reforms o the Catholic Church before Luther
 He compiled a list of what he viewed as needed Church reforms; this was known as The Ninety-
Five Theses
 Instead of making reform while being part of the Catholic Church, instead it triggered a movement
called the Protestant Reformation that divided the Church
John Calvin
 French lawyer that advocated making the Bible accessible to ordinary people
 Fled Catholic France and led the reformation movement
 Calvinism emphasized human powerlessness before an omniscient God and stressed the idea
of predestination (the belief that God selected a few chosen people for salvation while everyone
else was predestined to damnation)
Protestantism in England
 Luther’s idea that scripture should be available in everyday language of worshippers inspired
English scholar William Tyndale to translate the Bible into English in 1526
 King Henry VIII established a Protestant state religion
o Due to his desire to have a boy with Catherine; however, this did not occur, so he sought
an annulment to their marriage, but the Pope refused
o This led to him creating the national Protestant church; this allowed him to annul his own
marriage – then marrying Anne Boleyn
o Anne Boleyn and Henry did not have a male heir, and Henry accused her with adultery,
sentencing her to death
o Jane Seymour had a son, Edward, whom ruled for a short time
o Mary, the daughter of Henry VIII and his discarded first wife Catherine, then came to the
throne, committed to restoring Catholicism; nicknamed “Bloody Mary” – many execution
of Protestants
o Queen Elizabeth brought power back to the Church of England, establishing it as the
state church, retaining the hierarchical structure
 Some English members began to agitate for more reform; known as Puritans, they worked to
erase all vestiges of Catholicism from the Church of England
o Became an increasing state pressure to conform
o Many crossed the Atlantic in the 1620s and 1630s instead to create a New England, a
haven for reformed Protestantism