Mr. Schwind · Study guide · 1415–1580
Where the explorers went, who paid for their voyages, when they sailed, and how the Americas changed because of it.
From the study guide
If you understand where the explorers went and the cultural changes they brought to the places they colonized, you will do fine on the test.
| Explorer | Sailed for | Explored | Years | 14001450150015501600 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prince Henry the Navigator | Portugal | Sponsored voyages to the Canary Islands, Azores, West Africa | 1415–1450s | |
| Christopher Columbus | Spain | The Caribbean (he thought it was the East Indies); 4 voyages | 1492–1502 | |
| Vasco da Gama | Portugal | First to reach India by sea | 1497–1521 | |
| Hernán Cortés | Spain | Conquered the Aztecs of Mexico | 1504–1521 | |
| Ferdinand Magellan | SpainPortugal | Strait of Magellan; first to circumnavigate the globe | 1505–1521 | |
| Francisco Pizarro | Spain | Conquered the Inca Empire in Peru | 1524–1540 | |
| Jacques Cartier | France | First European to navigate the St. Lawrence River | 1534–1542 | |
| Sir Francis Drake | England | First to circumnavigate the globe in one expedition | 1577–1580 |
Eight explorers, in order
Each map is drawn from real coastlines. Trace the route with your finger and say out loud who sailed it, for which country, and when.
Remember"The Navigator" stayed home and sent the ships.
RememberIn 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue, then three more times.
RememberDa Gama went around Africa to get to India.
RememberCortés → Aztecs → Mexico.
Heads-up: the guide says the crew made it back to Portugal. Their ship, the Victoria, actually landed in Spain.
RememberHis expedition went around the world. Magellan himself did not make it home.
RememberPizarro → Peru. Both start with P.
RememberCartier → Canada, for France.
RememberDrake finished his own trip around the world. Magellan did not.
What is the difference?
The Columbian Exchange went two ways, between Europe and the Americas. The Triangular Trade had three legs, and only the Triangular Trade carried enslaved people.
A two-way exchange of goods and traditions between Europe and the Americas.
A three-way exchange of goods, traditions, and human cargo: from the Americas to Europe to Africa and back to the Americas.
Questions from the guide
Encomienda
Like a plantation, but it used the local Native population as its source of labor. The guide says workers were paid for their work.
Missionaries
Christian missionaries tried to convert the local population to Christianity.
Slavery
Plantations needed huge numbers of workers. As Native people died from disease (like smallpox) and overwork, plantation owners brought enslaved Africans across the Middle Passage.
What were the major empires, and where were they?
AROUND 800
The Yucatán Peninsula: southern Mexico and Central America.
AROUND 1500
Central Mexico. Capital: Tenochtitlan, today's Mexico City. Conquered by Cortés in 1521.
AROUND 1500
The Andes Mountains along the west coast of South America, centered on Peru. Capital: Cusco. Conquered by Pizarro in 1533.
Multiple-choice questions taken straight from the study guide, plus map questions where you name the explorer from the route alone. You see the answer after each question.
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