Unit 4 Most Important Concepts Flashcards
(15 cards)
Q: What innovations made transoceanic exploration possible in the 15th and 16th centuries?
A: Caravel, astrolabe, magnetic compass, lateen sail, and improved cartography.
Q: Which European countries led early exploration efforts?
A: Portugal and Spain.
Q: What was the Columbian Exchange?
A: The exchange of plants, animals, diseases, and people between the Old and New Worlds.
Q: What were major effects of the Columbian Exchange?
A: Spread of diseases to the Americas, introduction of new crops to Europe and Africa, and the rise of plantation economies.
Q: What role did African states play in the Atlantic Slave Trade?
A: Some African rulers traded enslaved people with Europeans in exchange for goods like guns and textiles.
Q: What is mercantilism?
A: An economic policy where nations sought to increase wealth through colonies, exports, and accumulation of precious metals.
Q: What was the encomienda system?
A: A labor system in Spanish colonies where colonists could demand tribute and forced labor from indigenous people.
Q: What were joint-stock companies?
A: Businesses owned by shareholders that funded exploration and colonization (e.g., British East India Company).
Q: How did maritime empires expand during this period?
A: Through conquest, colonization, and the establishment of trade networks.
Q: Name at least three maritime empires that expanded from 1450 to 1750.
A: Portuguese, Spanish, British, French, and Dutch.
Q: What was the impact of European colonization on indigenous populations in the Americas?
A: Massive population decline due to disease, warfare, and exploitation.
Q: What was the Middle Passage?
A: The brutal sea journey enslaved Africans endured from Africa to the Americas.
Q: What role did silver play in global trade?
A: Spanish silver from the Americas was traded to Asia, especially China, influencing global economies.
Q: How did cultural syncretism appear in colonies?
A: Blending of European, African, and Indigenous traditions in religion, language, and art.
Q: What were some resistance movements to European colonization and slavery?
A: Maroon societies in the Caribbean, indigenous revolts like the Pueblo Revolt.
