Lecture Notes: Viking and Aztec Impact on World History

Introduction to Exploration

• Human history is marked by the struggle for new lands, opportunities, wealth, and power.
• Current journey: mankind risks everything for a new world.
• Story highlights Vikings and Aztecs' impacts on history.

The Viking Expansions

Viking Longboats

• Designed for speed and ruggedness, capable of navigating treacherous waters.
• Facilitated Viking exploration and conquest across Europe and beyond.

Thorvald Erikson's Expedition

• First Europeans to land in the Americas.
• Encountered Native Americans, including Inuit, who were skilled hunters.
• Thorvald Erikson first European to die on American soil.

Native American Civilizations

The Aztec Empire

• Tenochtitlan: Capital of Aztec Empire, larger than European cities.
• Aztec culture: Sophisticated, with laws, education, and philosophical depth.
• Rituals of human sacrifice to appease gods and maintain cosmic balance.

European Exploration and Expansion

Constantinople and the Ottoman Turks

• Constantinople under siege by Ottomans, changing global trade dynamics.
• Fall of Constantinople to Mehmet II marks a shift in power between East and West.

Exploration for New Trade Routes

• Bartolomeo Dias discovers the Cape of Good Hope, opening a sea route to India.
• Columbus's expedition mistakenly discovers the Americas, initiating global exchange.

The Aztec Encounter with Europeans

Hernan Cortes and the Conquest of the Aztecs

• Cortes captures and exploits Emperor Montezuma.
• Smallpox introduced by Europeans decimates the Aztec population.

Conclusion

• The exploration and conquests led by Vikings and Europeans reshaped global history.
• New trade routes and the collision of old and new worlds resulted in significant cultural and economic changes.