Overview
This lecture covers the early period of Atlantic globalization (1492–1650), focusing on European exploration, colonization, religious upheaval, colonial rivalries, labor systems, and the Columbian Exchange between the Old and New Worlds.
Early European Exploration and Conquest
- Portuguese exploration led by Prince Henry the Navigator established Atlantic trade outposts and initiated the Atlantic slave trade.
- Spain unified under Ferdinand and Isabella, completed the Reconquista, and sponsored Columbus’s 1492 westward voyage.
- Columbus thought he reached Asia but landed in the Bahamas, calling the natives "Indios."
- Spanish conquistadors, including Cortés and Pizarro, conquered sophisticated American empires through alliances, warfare, and disease.
- Spain built a vast empire, exploiting native labor and resources, especially gold and silver.
Religious Upheavals in the Atlantic World
- Protestant Reformation, starting with Martin Luther (1517) and John Calvin, divided European Christianity.
- England’s break with the Catholic Church led to the Church of England under Henry VIII and later Puritan movements.
- Spain remained a staunch Catholic power, fighting Protestant England and the Dutch Republic for religious and colonial dominance.
- Religious wars and intolerance led to violence, such as the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre.
Challenges to Spanish Supremacy
- England, France, and the Dutch began to explore and colonize the Americas, seeking wealth and religious freedom.
- English attempts: John Cabot, privateers, failed Roanoke colony, Jamestown (first permanent colony, 1607), and New England Puritan settlements.
- French exploration under Cartier and Champlain led to Quebec and good relations with indigenous groups; focus was on fur trade.
- Dutch established the Dutch West India Company, founded New Netherland, and became major commercial players.
Labor, Commerce, and the Columbian Exchange
- Europeans needed labor for plantations and mines; native encomienda system and African slavery became widespread.
- Bartolomé de Las Casas denounced the brutal treatment of natives, leading to the "Black Legend" of Spanish cruelty.
- Mercantilism dominated economic thinking—colonies existed to enrich the mother country and trade was strictly controlled.
- Commodification transformed native goods like silver, tobacco, and cacao into global commodities.
- The Columbian Exchange transferred plants, animals, people, and diseases across the Atlantic; diseases devastated indigenous peoples.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Conquistador — Spanish explorer/conqueror in the Americas.
- Encomienda — Spanish system granting colonists the right to Native labor.
- Mercantilism — Economic theory that colonies exist to benefit the mother country by controlling trade and accumulating wealth.
- Columbian Exchange — Widespread transfer of plants, animals, people, and diseases between the Old and New Worlds.
- Protestant Reformation — 16th-century religious movement breaking Catholic unity and leading to Protestant churches.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Review textbook Chapter 2 for additional examples and primary sources.
- Prepare notes on key explorers, differences among Spanish, English, French, and Dutch colonies, and effects of the Columbian Exchange.
- Be ready to discuss how disease, labor systems, and religious conflicts shaped early American history.