Maritime Empires
Name two European powers that established maritime empires in the Americas.
Spain, Britain, France, the Netherlands, and Portugal
What was at the top of the colonial Latin American pyramid?
Peninsulares: Spanish-born Europeans
What time period does the Transatlantic Slave Trade cover?
1450-1750/1800s
What was a key Protestant idea?
Faith-based salvation, Bible as authority
Name one key thinker
Galileo, Newton, Copernicus, Boyle, Cavendish, Princess Elizabeth, etc.
Define mercantilism in your own words
Government-controlled trade to accumulate wealth/gold for the state
What is a key feature of European absolutism?
Divine right, centralized power in monarch
What was the primary economic focus of Spanish colonies?
Silver mining and plantations (sugar, tobacco, cotton, indigo)
Define "Mestizos" and their typical role.
Mixed Spanish-Indigenous; artisans/laborers with some mobility.
Name one impact of the slave trade on African societies.
Family separation, depopulation, rise of warfare for captives
Name a Catholic response to the Reformation.
Counter-Reformation: Unity, Jesuit Education, defending sacraments, defending church leadership
What old belief did heliocentrism challenge?
Geocentrism: Earth-centered universe
Name a drawback of capitalism.
Wealth inequality, exploitation of workers
What were some features of Iroquois Constitutionalism?
Consensus-based, Great Law of Peace, shared power among nations
What was a key difference in colonial goals between England and France?
England focused on settler colonies for land/religion; France on fur trade/economic alliances with natives
How did the casta system exploit Indigenous Amerindians?
Through labor systems like encomienda/mita, forcing tribute/labor.
How does Rhiannon Giddens’ song ‘At the Purchaser’s Option’ show how people were treated like property or objects to be bought and sold?
Inspired by ad for enslaved woman/baby, showing people as property
How did propaganda differ in style?
Protestant: Simple/clean; Catholic: Rich/decorative
How did discoveries change views of the universe?
Shift to empirical evidence, reason over tradition/church authority.
Who was affected by mercantilism's drawbacks?
Colonies: Forced to export raw materials, no free trade
Compare women's roles.
Similarity: Influence in decisions; Difference: Iroquois women chose leaders, European limited to advisory
Explain how mercantilism shaped Dutch trade companies.
State-supported monopolies like the Dutch East India Company aimed to accumulate gold/silver through controlled trade
Compare the status of Creoles vs. Mulattos.
Creoles: Wealthy but politically limited; Mulattos: Urban trades but discriminated against due to African ancestry
Compare artistic vs. historical interpretations in Giddens' work.
Music humanizes experiences like resistance/loyalties, while history focuses on economic systems.
Explain Martin Luther's role.
Challenged corruption with 95 Theses, sparking Protestant split
Describe Newton's contributions.
Laws of motion/gravity; challenged Aristotelian physics
Compare stakeholders in both systems.
Mercantilism: Kings/monopolies benefit; harms colonies. Capitalism: Entrepreneurs benefit; harms workers via low wages
How did each approach war/peace?
Iroquois: Council for unity/peace; Europe: King's absolute decision, often for expansion
What did reforms (e.g., Bourbon/Pombaline) change in governance for Spain and Portugal?
Centralized control, reduced church power, economic modernization
Explain a continuity in social practices for enslaved Africans.
No rights, bottom of hierarchy, used in plantations/mines across empires
What long-term cultural legacy descended from enslaved peoples?
Musical traditions, storytelling, blending African/European elements
What was a long-term impact of the Reformation?
Religious wars, rise of monarch power, spread of literacy via Bible access
Explain the role of humans in cosmological beliefs pre-Revolution.
Central in God-created world; post: Part of mechanistic universe.
Give a modern connection to capitalism.
Wealth gaps in tech industries, invisible hand in free markets
Explain a similarity in governance for equality/stability.
Both aimed for stability: Iroquois through balance, Europe through strong rule