Unit 4

caravel

small, highly maneuverable used by the Portuguese and Spanish in the exploration of the Atlantic; used for long voyages at great speed from 15th - 17th centuries; used for exploration, not trade

carrack

large trading merchant ship operating in European waters (especially by the Portuguese) 14th- 17th century

fluyt

Dutch sailing vessel that allowed them to control the Baltic trade; designed to facilitate transoceanic delivery with max space and crew efficiency; used from 16th to 17th centuries

Henry the Navigator

(1394-1460) Portuguese prince who promoted the study of navigation and directed voyages of exploration down the western coast of Africa; sponsored seafaring expeditions to search for an all-water route to the east; imported enslaved Africans

Vasco da Gama

Portuguese explorer.; 1497-1498 he led the first naval expedition from Europe to sail to India, opening an important commercial sea route for Europeans

Ferdinand Magellan

Portuguese navigator who led the Spanish expedition of 1519-1522 that was the first to sail around the world.

trading post empire

imperial dominance based on control of trade rather than on control of subject peoples; practiced by Europeans in the Indian Ocean as they took over trade from Arab and Muslim merchants

Christopher Columbus

Italian navigator who discovered the New World (in 1492) in the name of Spain while searching for a direct sea route to access Indian Ocean trade

Columbian Exchange

exchange of plants, animals, diseases, and technologies between the Americas and the rest of the world following Columbus' voyages.

Mercantilism

economic system where nations sought to increase their wealth and power by obtaining large amounts of gold/silver and by exporting more goods than they imported; colonies were crucial in the accumulation of wealth; prevalent from 16th - 19th centuries.

The Great Dying

the devastating demographic impact of European-borne epidemic diseases (like smallpox and measles) in the Americas following European conquest; anywhere from 50-90% of indigenous peoples were killed by European diseases

chattel slavery

absolute legal ownership of another person, including the right to buy or sell that person; the form of slavery utilized in the Americas during the transatlantic slave trade

mita system

economic system in Inca society where Inca subjects paid "taxes" with their labor and what they produced for a set period of time each year; later exploited by the Spanish as they forced Incas to mine silver

indentured servitude

worker bound by a voluntary agreement to work for a specified period of years often in return for free passage to an overseas destination; before 1800 (19th century) most were Europeans; after 1800 most indentured laborers were South or East Asians

encomienda

grant of land made by Spain to a Spanish settler in the Americas, including the right to use local indigenous peoples as laborers on the farm

hacienda

Spanish estates in the Americas that were often plantations; they represent the gradual removal of land from peasant ownership and a type of feudalistic order where the owners would have agreements of loyalty but would retain control over the actual land; continued into the 20th century.

joint-stock company

exploration company made up of a group of shareholders; each shareholder contributed money to the company and received some share of the company's profits and debts; used by European rulers to finance exploration and were used by rulers to compete against one another in global trade

royal chartered monopoly companies

groups of private investors who paid an annual fee to France and England in exchange for a monopoly over trade to Indian Ocean colonies

Vodun

New World syncretic faith that combines the animist faiths of West Africa with Roman Catholic Christianity; evidence of the syncretism created when European and African beliefs merged in the Americas; AKA voodoo

Santeria

originated in Cuba, a religion that blends African traditions and Roman Catholic beliefs/practices; evidence of the syncretism created when European and African beliefs merged in the Americas

casta paintings

Spanish-commissioned paintings that showed the racial mixing of New World families; illustrated the importance of European ancestry in the social hierarchy of Latin America

mestizo

term used by Spanish authorities to describe someone of mixed native American and European descent

mulatto

term used in Spanish and Portuguese colonies to describe someone of mixed African and European descent.

Creoles

Descendants of Spanish-born but born in Latin America; resented inferior social, political, economic status.

peninsulares

Spanish-born upper class individuals who immigrated to Latin America; highest social class and given special privileges and the highest political positions in Latin American governments

the Fronde

series of violent uprisings during the early reign of Louis XIV (1648 - 1653) caused by growing royal control and increased taxation; inspired Louis XIV to take total political control in fear of a future uprising

Nat Turner's Rebellion

a rebellion of enslaved Virginians that took place in Southampton County, Virginia led by former enslaved person Nat Turner in 1831; one example of resistance to existing authorities in the Americas

British East India Company

British joint-stock company that controlled most of India during the period of imperialism.; controlled the political, social, and economic life in India for more than 200 years.

Dutch East India Company

Dutch-chartered joint-stock company that controlled the spice trade in the East Indies.

Triangular Trade

three-way system of trade during 1600-1800s whereby Africa sent enslaved people to the Americas, the Americas sent raw materials (like sugar, tobacco) to Europe, and Europe sent guns and rum to Africa in exchange for enslaved Africans

coercive labor

any labor system that involves force (slavery, chattel slavery, serfdom, Spanish run mita system, and indentured labor)

bullion

gold and silver in the form of bars