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Who was Montezuma?
Aztec king during the time conquistadors arrived in 1519
Who were the Aztec?
Native Americans who lived in the mountains of central Mexico
Who were conquistadors?
Spanish adventurers/explorers who wanted to conquer the New World for Spain
Who were the Inca?
a Native American kingdom in Peru (named after the king of Peru)
Who was Juan Diego?
a poor Aztec boy who the Virgin Mary appeared to as an Aztec princess in 1531
the first ever Native American saint
What did many conquistadors unfortunately do?
many (but not all) made Native Americans slaves, and many of the indigenous died
Who were the Pizarro brothers?
greedy and cruel conquistadors who conquered the Inca in 1532 (main bro was Francisco Pizarro)
Who was Hernando de Soto?
Spanish explorer who discovered the Mississippi River for Europeans and explored FL, GA, AL, AR (but no gold)
he also spread God to the tribes he encountered
Where did the Latino / Hispanic come from?
most people in Latin America today are a mixture of Native American and Spanish: intermarriages led to Latino/Hispanic ethnicity/race
What's encomienda?
the right of a conquistador to demand taxes or labor from Native Americans living on the land
this system turned Native Americans into slaves in many cases; many Native Americans died
What was Tenochtitlan?
The amazingly beautiful Aztec capital city in the middle of a large marsh connected to mainland by bridges; today it is Mexico City.
Who was Vasquez de Coronado?
explored the southwestern U.S. (AZ, NM, TX, OK, KS, CO) for the first time (but no gold)
his assistant discovered the Grand Canyon
brought 5 Franciscan friars who wished only to bring the treasure of Jesus to the tribes
Who was Hernan Cortes?
Spanish conquistador who conquered the Aztec Empire
What were the "Seven Cities of Cibola" apparently like?
Seven cities covered in gold
What major mistake did Bartolome de las Casas make?
he suggested replacing Native Americans with enslaved Africans – he thought they could endure the labor better
later, he passionately rejected that opinion and apologized for his mistake
What are the four reasons why so many Native Americans were conquered by very little Spaniards?
guns and cannons (Native Americans didn’t have that technology yet)
horses and dogs (horses were brought to the Americas; Native Americans had never seen them before)
diseases (Native Americans had no immunity for smallpox and measles)
many Native Americans hated the Aztecs for conquering them, so they helped the conquistadors
What good things did Hernan Cortes do?
saw himself as a conqueror for Spain AND the Kingdom of Christ - he wanted the Aztec to learn the Catholic faith with the help of Franciscan friars
he helped stop the cruelty of the Aztec/Mesoamerican religion
he conquered an entire empire (with a lot of help, including Native American allies)
he built one of the most beautiful cities in the world
How was the Aztec religion harsh and violent?
priests sacrificed 20,000 victims (mostly enemy captives) per year on top of temples
priests cut out beating hearts and put them in a stone idol’s mouth
ball game: a game played on courts with a rubber ball in Mexico and Central America; captive slaves played against each other and the losing team was killed and eaten
What negative things did Hernan Cortes do?
he imprisoned Montezuma on suspicion of killing 2 Spaniards; Montezuma was killed trying to stop his people from attacking the Spanish in a riot started by Cortes's assistant
in conquering the Aztec, their capital was destroyed and thousands died
many historians argue he was more focused on imperialism and riches than evangelization
he, like other conquistadors (purposefully or not), were part of the reasons thousands of Native Americans died or enslaved
How did Spanish rulers try to treat Native Americans with dignity?
The Catholic Monarchs Fernando and Isabella, Emperor/King Charles, and rulers after them cancelled encomienda to stop the worst abuses and viewed Native Americans as Spanish citizens (equal in rights to Spanish people); they were piously Catholic as well.
What was the enormous results of Our Lady of Guadalupe?
~10 million Native Americans converted to Catholicism in 10 years!
Our Lady converted Mexico, and it’s one of the most Catholic countries to this day
What's special about the imagery of Our Lady of Guadalupe?
Mary’s an Aztec princess: this meant that Christianity was for everyone – including Native Americans
Mary stands before the sun with her hands pointing, in Aztec fashion, toward the heavens where Jesus rules
the Aztecs understood this meant they shouldn’t worship the sun god anymore because Jesus was more powerful
What positive things did Spanish priest Bartolome de las Casas do?
gave up his servants and devoted his life to fighting for Native Americans’ rights; condemned the cruel treatment
he passionately rejected his racist opinion and apologized for his mistake
successfully pleaded in front of the queen, king, and emperor to stop conquistadors from hurting Native Americans
was given the title of “Protector of the Indians”
some say he was the first ever human rights activist in the Americas
to this day, Native Americans in Latin America consider him as one of the greatest friends to their race
Who was Ponce de Leon?
Spanish explorer who led the 1st Spanish landing in Florida (but no gold)
What's the story of Our Lady of Guadalupe?
Juan Diego: a poor Aztec boy who the Virgin Mary appeared to as an Aztec princess in 1531; he tried to convince the local bishop
opened his tilma and fresh roses (impossible in winter) that Mary gave him fell out; the image of Our Lady was on his tilma
Mary said the tilma/image should be called “Our Lady of Guadalupe” – it is still in the church built for her in Mexico City
Our Lady of Guadalupe is the Patron of Mexico; Juan became the first Native American Saint in 2002
Our Lady converted Mexico