western civilization chpt. 13

Ferdinand Magellan

A Portuguese explore born in 1480. His crew was the first to sail around the world beginning in 1519, although he died in 1521 before the final leg of the journey.

Francisco Pizarro

A Spanish conquistador and the conqueror of the Inca Empire in Peru, he lived from 1475 to 1541.

Gerardus Mercator

A cartographer who created one of the first modern atlases and came up with a new way to produce accurate globes.

Christopher Columbus

A sailor from the Italian town of Genoa. He landed with his crew in the Americas in 1492 while on the voyage for a shorter route to Asia.

Colonialism

A system in which countries have outposts in other areas that provide raw goods and materials; also a location for people to immigrate to. There is frequently a monopolistic relationship between an outpost colony and its mother country.

Encomienda System

A system of patronage in the early Spanish colonies in the Americas, where native peoples were supposed to be taken care of by Spanish overseers. Many native people were taken advantage of in this system.

Montezuma

An Aztec emperor during the Spanish conquest.

Mercantlism

An economic philosophy that calls for a protectionist stance on the part of government by imposing tariffs on imports and exports. Countries follow this philosophy to expand their economic areas of influence.

Capitalism

An economic system that is based on the investment of capital in privately owned industries that are operated for profit.

Conquistador

Part of a group of warriors from Spain who fought to bring South America under Spanish control. Many of these warriors had fought against the Muslim Ottoman Empire in earlier times.

Hernando Cortes (1485-1547)

The conquistador who led the troops that conquered the Aztec Empire in Mexico.