CONQUEST AND COLONISATION IN THE AGE OF EXPLORATION
l All land discovered to the west of this line was Spanish, and all land to the east of the line was Portuguese. As the line ran down through South America, Brazil became Portuguese while the rest of the continent belonged to Spain.
Spain and Portugal created their own empires out of the lands they conquered. Most of the Spanish and some of the Portuguese empire collapsed in the early 19th century when South American countries got their independence. The rest of the Portuguese empire collapsed in the 1970s.
Assessing Your Learning
1. Name the Portuguese prince who inspired the voyages of exploration. 2. Name the Spanish king and queen who supported the Spanish explorations. 3. Which of the following were Portuguese explorers and which explored for Spain? (i) da Gama (ii) Magellan (iii) Cabral (iv) Diaz (v) Columbus
4. Who were the conquistadors? 5. Which one of the following was agreed by the Treaty of Tordesillas? (i) Spain and Portugal agreed to divide the spice trade between them
(ii) Spain and Portugal agreed to divide the newly discovered lands between them
(iii) Spain and Portugal agreed that Africa should be controlled by both of them
Conquest – The Decline of the Native People
How did the conquest of the New World by Spain and Portugal impact on the native people?
According to the Treaty of Tordesillas, all of the land of the new continent, except Brazil, belonged to Spain. Spanish adventurers – known as conquistadors (conquerors) – began the conquest of these lands. They were seeking gold and silver.
Cortés and the Aztecs
Hernán Cortés was responsible for the defeat of the great empire of the Aztecs, based in Mexico.
Cortés was in charge of an expedition of 11 ships and 500 men which sailed to Mexico in 1519.
As he marched inland, native tribes who had been conquered by the Aztecs helped him. They did not like the heavy taxes and slavery imposed on them by the Aztecs. Many were also sacrificed to the Aztec gods.
Aztec Empire of Mexico Inca Empire of Peru
Tenochtitlán (Mexico City)
Evaluate the impact of Spanish and Portuguese conquest in the New World