Colonial American Heritage

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

9. Georgia: A Southern Colony

Georgia, the 13th and last colony, was founded by a group of Englishmen whose
business plan was based on a grand and noble idea. They wanted to help poor
people in England stay out of debtors' prison. In England, at this time, people who
couldn't pay their bills went to jail. James Oglethorpe inspired wealthy Englishmen
to give money to help establish a colony where the poor could build better lives
instead of going to jail.

King George II and his government liked this plan because the Georgia colony
would help keep the Spanish from moving north out of Florida. Georgia would
stand between Spanish Florida and the rest of the British colonies to the north.

However, the Englishmen's plan depended on getting the cooperation of settlers.
Unfortunately, there weren't many poor debtors who wanted to start new lives in
the wilderness of North America. Some thought prison would be a safer place.

Instead of an army of debtors, the colonists who went with Oglethorpe to Georgia
in 1732 were adventurers much like the settlers in the other colonies. In addition,
many Protestants, Catholics, and Jews came to Georgia in search of religious
freedom.

As many had feared, life was difficult in Georgia. The Spaniards in Florida wanted
to control Georgia, and they continually attacked the new settlements. The
Georgians fought them off without any help from the other British colonies. To
make matters worse, Oglethorpe had specific ideas about how the colonists
should live. Oglethorpe envisioned that his new colony would be a perfect society,
and he established laws against drinking alcohol and owning slaves to fulfill this
vision. He also believed that the settlers should live on small farms and learn to
farm their land themselves.

Unhappy about Oglethorpe's rules, the settlers weren't about to go along with his
strict views on society. They wanted to farm large plantations and own slaves like
the wealthy planters in neighboring colonies. They disliked Oglethorpe's other
rules as well.

After 12 years of governing the colony, Oglethorpe returned to England. In 1752,
the people of Georgia elected an assembly.

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

Lesson Summary

In this lesson, you read about the settlement of the 13 English colonies in the
Americas.

Settlers and Slaves Settlers had many reasons to come to America in the 1600s
and 1700s. Two important reasons were freedom of religion and the chance to
start a new life. However, even though colonists treasured freedom for
themselves, they had Africans brought to the Americas by force to work as slaves.

Regional Development The New England, Middle, and Southern Colonies had
distinctive geographies and natural resources. As a result, different ways of life
developed in each region. Colonies also varied in their form of government, but all
were democratic to some degree.

New England Colonies Religion and geography were key influences in these
colonies. Although Puritans sometimes disagreed, they hoped to establish model
communities based on their religious faith. New England's forests and coastline
made lumbering, ship-building, and trade very important to the region's economy.

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

Middle Colonies These colonies were geographically, culturally, and religiously
diverse. Catholics, Quakers, Anglicans, and members of other Protestant faiths all
found homes in this region.

Southern Colonies In these colonies, climate and geography encouraged the
planting of cash crops and the development of large plantations. In time, slave
labor would become a major part of this region's economy.

Reading Further

A Colonial Cast of Characters

Many kinds of people settled the English colonies of North America. There were
Pilgrims and planters, merchants and craft workers, enslaved Africans and
indentured servants. Some came seeking freedom and opportunity, while others
came because they had no choice. All of them contributed to life in the colonies.
Here are four of their stories.

It was November 1620, and William Bradford had just arrived in America after a
long and difficult journey aboard the Mayflower. However, the ship had not
reached its intended destination.

Bradford was one of the leaders of a group of Separatists on theMayflower. The
Separatists, who called themselves Pilgrims, had broken away from the Church of
England and were seeking religious freedom in America. They had been granted a
patent—a royal permit—to settle in Virginia, but violent storms had blown their
ship off course. Now, they sat off the coast of what would become
Massachusetts, hundreds of miles from Virginia.

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

Winter was coming, so the Pilgrims decided to found their colony there, which
they called Plymouth, after a coastal city in England. However, another group of
people on board had different ideas. They had not come to America for religious
reasons, but to own land. Since they had not reached Virginia, they argued that
they were not bound by the terms of the patent and said that no one had the
“power to command them.”

Facing a possible rebellion, Bradford and the other Pilgrim leaders drew up an
agreement, which we call the Mayflower Compact, to unite the colony. By signing
this document, the members of the new colony agreed to form a “civil body
politic,” or a form of representative government. They agreed to obey “just and
equall laws” created “for the generall good of the Colonie.” This was the first
written framework for self-government in the English colonies.

Bradford, who later became governor of Plymouth Colony, had always been ruled
by kings and had never lived under any form of self-government. But he did have a
strong belief in his rights. The idea of the “rights of Englishmen,” rooted in Magna
Carta (a 13th-century document limiting royal power) and the English Bill of
Rights, would be a foundation for self-rule throughout the colonies.

Margaret Hardenbroeck: Dutch Trader

William Bradford came to America to practice his religion and build a new society
based on religious principles. Margaret Hardenbroeck came for a very different
reason. She moved to the colonies to do business, and she became very successful.

Hardenbroeck was born in the Netherlands and moved to New Amsterdam, the
Dutch colonial city that later became New York, in 1659. Unlike most colonists
who didn't have jobs when they reached the Americas, Hardenbroeck worked as
an agent for her cousin, a merchant in Holland. Hardenbroeck sold goods like
cooking oil and vinegar and bought furs to send back to Holland, quickly
establishing her a reputation as a skilled trader.

New Amsterdam was a growing trade center at the time, which reflected the
commercial spirit of Holland, a country that thrived on trade. The city had an open,
tolerant feel, and it was a place where people of different religious and national
backgrounds could live and do business.

Hardenbroeck benefited from this commercial spirit, as well as the more relaxed
Dutch attitude toward women's rights. In Holland, women could get an education,
own property, and conduct business on their own. These were not rights that
existed for women in England at the time.

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

Not long after Hardenbroeck arrived, she married a wealthy merchant. When he
died soon after, she inherited his land and business. In a short time, she had
become one of the wealthiest citizens in the colony.

A year later, Hardenbroeck married another trader. Together, they continued to
expand their business and soon owned a fleet of ships that moved goods from the
colonies to Europe and the West Indies and back. They also owned a lot of land,
including a plantation in Barbados.

After England took control of New Amsterdam in 1664, Hardenbroeck maintained
good relations with her English rulers. English law allowed her less freedom to
manage her own affairs, but her business continued to thrive. She remained one of
the colony's leading citizens until her death in 1691.

Olaudah Equiano: Enslaved African

Most people came to the colonies of their own free will, but coming to America
was not always a choice. Many black Africans were captured in their homelands
and sold to slave traders, who would then pack them onto ships and transport
them to the American colonies. This journey, known as the Middle Passage, was
horrific for the enslaved Africans.

One man who made this journey was Olaudah Equiano (oh- LAU-duh ek-wee-

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

AHN-oh). In 1789, he wrote a book about his life, The Interesting Narrative of the
Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African, Written by Himself. He
described his early life in Africa, his enslavement, and his eventual freedom.

Equiano was born in the kingdom of Benin, in West Africa. His father was a village
chief, and Equiano was expected to follow in his footsteps. When he was 11,
however, he was kidnapped, taken to the coast, and loaded onto a slave ship,
where he was beaten and chained to the deck alongside other slaves. “I inquired of
these what was to be done with us,” he wrote. “They gave me to understand we
were to be carried to these white people's country to work for them.” Equiano
was initially relieved since he had believed that the white men meant to kill him,
but his trials were not over yet.

When the ship was about to set sail, the Africans were put into cramped, horrible
quarters below deck, and Equiano recalled that:

The closeness of the place and the heat of the climate, added to the
number in the ship, which was so crowded that each had scarcely room
to turn himself, almost suffocated us . . . The shrieks of the women and
the groans of the dying rendered the whole a scene of horror almost
inconceivable.

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

Equiano spent several weeks at sea before arriving in Barbados. He was then sent
to a plantation in Virginia, where, after less than a month, he was sold to an
English naval officer. Equiano traveled the world as this man's servant, and after
seven years he was able to buy his freedom. He was relatively fortunate compared
to the hundreds of thousands of Africans who were forcibly brought to America
and never knew freedom again.

Matthew Lyon: Indentured Servant

Another large group of people came to the colonies as indentured servants. In fact,
around half of all European colonists arrived as indentured workers. Similarly to
enslaved Africans, some of these people were kidnapped and brought against their
will. Others were convicts who were transported in chains. Most indentured
servants agreed to come voluntarily, however, and to work for several years to pay
off their ship passage. One of these people was a young Irishman named Matthew
Lyon.

Lyon was just 14 when he came to the colonies in 1765. Under the terms of
indenture, young people were supposed to work until age 21. However, Lyon

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

bribed the ship captain to say that he was 18, so when Lyon was auctioned to a
buyer in New York, he was only sold for a three-year term of service.

Lyon was too clever to remain a servant for even that length of time, however,
and a year into his service, he arranged to buy two bulls from a local farmer,
promising to pay the farmer when he was free. Lyon sold the bulls to his master in
exchange for his freedom and went to work for the farmer to pay back his debt.

Lyon next got a job at an ironworks in Connecticut. He married the owner's niece,
and they eventually settled on land to the north that would later become part of
Vermont. There, Lyon joined the Green Mountain Boys, a volunteer fighting force
set up to protect settlers' rights, and at the start of the American Revolution in
1775, this force captured Fort Ticonderoga, a British fort in upstate New York.
Lyon became an officer and led troops in two more important battles of the
revolution.

After the war for independence was won, Lyon served as a legislator in the new
state of Vermont, beginning a long career in politics and government. From his
early days as an indentured servant, Lyon had worked hard to build a new life in
America. Like others who came to the colonies, his spirit and determination helped
form the new American nation.

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

America, Land of Opportunity: The Origins of the Free Enterprise System

You may often hear the term free enterprise in connection with the American
economy. A free enterprise system has two important qualities. First, private
individuals, rather than the government, own the businesses and farms that
produce goods and services. Second, the economy is allowed to operate with a
minimum of government regulation. This type of economy is also called a free
market system.

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

The free enterprise system is a democratic way to organize an economy. In a
democracy, people vote for what they want. In a democratic economy, buyers
“vote” by deciding to spend their money on some goods rather than others. Goods
that get lots of votes (money spent on them) continue to be made. Goods that no
one wants to buy stop being made. In addition, prices go up or down depending on
the supply of goods and how many people want them.

America's free enterprise system goes back to colonial days. As colonists made
their way to America, many hoped to become wealthy. In fact, the chance to make
profits motivated many of the organizations that sponsored colonial settlement.
To be sure, the British government imposed some restrictive trade policies, as did
some of the colonies. But for the most part the economy of the colonies
developed free of government regulation.

In 1776, the year the Declaration of Independence was written, English
philosopher Adam Smith published a book called The Wealth of Nations. Smith
explained and praised the benefits of the free market system. His words inspired
many Americans. People believed that, in the United States, a person could climb
rapidly up the economic ladder through hard work and initiative. In addition, a free

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

market went well with democratic ideas.

The free enterprise system greatly benefited Americans in the new nation and
continues to do so today. There are three main reasons why.

• Profit is an extremely strong motivator. Entrepreneurs (people who start
businesses) are willing to take enormous risks in order to become wealthy.

• Quality products thrive in the marketplace because consumers prefer them to
inferior ones. Thus, the free enterprise system commonly produces high-quality
goods.

• Creative individuals are drawn toward new ideas. The next invention may lead
to a pot of gold. As a result, the United States may well be the most innovative
nation on Earth.

Governor John Winthrop’s “City Upon a Hill” Sermon (1630)

John Winthrop was a member of England’s gentry class because his father had
once bought land from King Henry VIII. The gentry was one of the powerful social
classes in England. Winthrop went to college and studied law. He became a lawyer
and for many years lived as a gentleman on his country estate.

In the 1620s, England began to pass laws that made it difficult for Puritans to
worship in the way they wanted. Winthrop was a Puritan. Many Puritans decided
to leave England and travel to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in what later would
become America. Winthrop was elected the colony’s governor in 1629.

As he sailed to his new colony on the ship Arbella in the spring of 1630, Winthrop
wrote a lengthy religious sermon titled “A Modell of Christian Charity,” in which he
presented himself and his fellow colonists as being joined together in an
agreement with God and with one another. Winthrop felt that God was directing
the colonists to build “a Citty upon a Hill” that would be an example for others
who wanted to live a Christian life. That is why this part of the sermon has its own
name.

Below is the section of ““A Modell of Christian Charity” that is known as
Winthrop’s “City Upon a Hill” sermon.

Now the onely way to avoyde this shipwracke, and to provide for our posterity, is to
followe the counsell of Micah, to doe justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with our
God. For this end, wee must be knitt together, in this worke, as one man. Wee must
entertaine each other in brotherly affection. Wee must be willing to abridge ourselves

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

of our superfluities, for the supply of other's necessities. Wee must uphold a familiar
commerce together in all meekeness, gentlenes, patience and liberality. Wee must
delight in eache other; make other's conditions our oune; rejoice together, mourne
together, labour and suffer together, allwayes haueving before our eyes our commission
and community in the worke, as members of the same body. Soe shall wee keepe the
unitie of the spirit in the bond of peace. The Lord will be our God, and delight to dwell
among us, as his oune people, and will command a blessing upon us in all our wayes.
Soe that wee shall see much more of his wisdome, power, goodness and truthe, than
formerly wee haue been acquainted with. Wee shall finde that the God of Israell is
among us, when ten of us shall be able to resist a thousand of our enemies; when hee
shall make us a prayse and glory that men shall say of succeeding plantations, "the Lord
make it likely that of New England." For wee must consider that wee shall be as a citty
upon a hill. The eies of all people are uppon us. Soe that if wee shall deale falsely with
our God in this worke wee haue undertaken, and soe cause him to withdrawe his
present help from us, wee shall be made a story and a by-word through the world. Wee
shall open the mouthes of enemies to speake evill of the wayes of God, and all
professors for God's sake. Wee shall shame the faces of many of God's worthy servants,
and cause theire prayers to be turned into curses upon us till wee be consumed out of
the good land whither wee are a goeing.

I shall shutt upp this discourse with that exhortation of Moses, that faithfull servant of
the Lord, in his last farewell to Israell, Deut. 30. Beloued there is now sett before us life
and good, Death and evill, in that wee are commanded this day to loue the Lord our
God, and to loue one another, to walke in his wayes and to keepe his Commandements
and his Ordinance and his lawes, and the articles of our Covenant with him, that wee
may liue and be multiplied, and that the Lord our God may blesse us in the land whither
wee goe to possesse it. But if our heartes shall turne away, soe that wee will not obey,
but shall be seduced, and worshipp and serue other Gods, our pleasure and proffitts,
and serue them; it is propounded unto us this day, wee shall surely perishe out of the
good land whither wee passe over this vast sea to possesse it;

Therefore lett us choose life
that wee, and our seede
may liue, by obeyeing His
voyce and cleaveing to Him,
for Hee is our life and
our prosperity.

__________________________________________________

• "City Upon a Hill" excerpt from "A Modell of Christian Charitie" by Governor

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

John Winthrop, 1630. Reproduced in Journal of the American Education Society,
November, 1840. p. 220.

Entire Selection: http://books.google.com/books?id=F0EwAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA1-
PA213&lpg

Accessed March, 2017

Mercantilism

Around 1630, the English merchant Thomas Mun identified one way to add to
England's national wealth. He wrote, “The ordinary means to encrease our wealth
and treasure is by Foreign Trade, wherein we must ever observe this rule: to sell
more to strangers than we consume of theirs in value.” Mun knew that exports
brought money into the country and imports took money away. This
understanding was a key element in the economic policy known as mercantilism.

Mercantilism is sometimes referred to as “merchant capitalism” because merchants
promoted it and benefited from it. This early form of capitalism arose in the 1500s

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

and 1600s, along with European nation-states and the strong monarchs who
unified them. In this time of near-constant warfare, a state's power rested on its
ability to keep and equip a large army and navy. Fighting wars was a costly
business. Government leaders came to realize the value of having lots of money.

The various ways in which European governments acquired money came to be
known as mercantilism. Thus, mercantilism was not a strict economic theory with
certain rules. Instead, it reflected an evolving set of economic policies put forward
by nations to serve their own interests.

National Economic Policies

One such national economic policy called for gathering and holding as much gold
and silver, or bullion, as possible. By 1600, Spain had clearly proven the value of
this policy. It had already extracted an enormous amount of gold and silver from
its American colonies, and it had grown powerful as a result. Other states, lacking
access to gold and silver mines, sought bullion by creating a favorable balance of
trade—by exporting more and importing less. More exports meant more money in
the nation's treasury.

To accomplish this goal, states took greater control of their nations' industry and
trade. They aimed at being self-sufficient, producing all of their own needed food
and manufactured goods. They also insisted that their colonies serve the nation as
sources of raw materials and as markets for finished goods.

England was at the forefront in developing such mercantilist policies. It applied
mercantilist ideas to its American colonies through a series of navigation acts.

The Navigation Acts

The Navigation Act of 1651 was the first major law passed by Parliament to
protect English businesses against foreign competition. This and other navigation
acts passed over the next 100 years regulated colonial trade for the benefit of the
mother country, England. Provisions of these navigation acts included the
following:

• Only English or colonial ships, with crews that were at least 75 percent English,
could carry imports into or exports out of any English colony.

• The colonies could not import any European goods unless the ship carrying
them had been reloaded in an English port.

• A duty, or tax, had to be paid on tobacco, sugar, rice, molasses, and other
specified products when shipped from one colony to another.

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

T H E E N G L I S H C O L O N I E S...

Because these laws were at first loosely enforced, merchants in the colonies often
ignored them. For example, New England ship captains would carry sugar and
tobacco to ports in New France (Canada). There they would trade for European
goods. Such illegal activities, including the smuggling of goods into the colonies,
made many merchants rich.

Lax enforcement of the navigation acts ended with the British victory in the
French and Indian War in 1763. Before the war, the navigation acts were used to
control trade, and American colonists agreed, at least in principle, that Great
Britain as the mother country had the right to do so.After the war, however, the
British Parliament began strict enforcement and also passed laws such as the
Sugar Act and the Stamp Act to raise revenue. To the colonists, who had no one to
speak for them in Parliament, this was taxation without representation and a
violation of their rights as English citizens. Colonial protests eventually led to the
American Revolution.

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

European Exploration and Settlement

How did Europeans explore and establish settlements in the Americas?

Introduction

Europeans had no knowledge of the people of the Americas, half a world away, or
the land where they lived. When Europeans looked west, they saw only a vast
ocean.

Europeans were far more interested in the lands that lay to the east. In the late
1200s, a young man named Marco Polo traveled through Asia with his father, a
merchant and trader from Venice, Italy. Marco Polo spent 17 years in China. When
he returned to Venice, people flocked to hear his stories of “the Indies,” as India
and East Asia were then known. He was called “the man with a million stories.”

Eventually, a writer helped Marco Polo put his adventures into a book that
described the wonders he had seen in China. It told of rich silks and rare spices,
gold and jewels, and luxurious palaces.

When Marco Polo's book was published, very few people in Europe could read.
However, those who did read it were fascinated by its description of riches to the
east. Merchants and traders were eager to find the fastest way to get there. The
land route Polo had traveled was long and dangerous. His tales inspired explorers
to find an alternative route by sea.

Some explorers would seek a route to China by going around the southern tip of
Africa. But a few brave souls looked to the west for another route. Such a trip took
courage, for no one knew how far west sailors would have to sail to reach Asia or
what monsters and terrors might await them far from Europe's shore.

In this lesson, you will learn how Christopher Columbus faced these dangers and
sailed west to find a route to China. As you will see, his unexpected discovery of
the American continents led to competition among European nations to explore
and profit from these lands. You will also learn how Europeans established
settlements in the American continents and, in the process, changed both Europe
and the Americas.

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

Social Studies © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute
Vocabulary
colony
Columbian Exchange
conquistadors
coureurs de bois
missionaries
slavery

Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

1. Spain Starts an Empire

Marco Polo's book continued to be read over the next two centuries, a time of
great change in Europe. The rediscovered writings of ancient Greeks and Romans
inspired a new interest in learning and art. This period of lively new thinking has
become known as the Renaissance, a word that means “rebirth.”

During this time, the invention of the printing press made books, including Marco
Polo's, more available. As Europeans learned about the world beyond Europe, they
became eager to explore these far-off lands.

Columbus's Discoveries One of the people who was inspired by Marco Polo's
writings was an Italian seaman named Christopher Columbus. After studying maps
of the world, which at that time did not include the Americas, Columbus became
convinced that the shortest route to the Indies lay to the west, across the Atlantic
Ocean.

Columbus looked for someone who could pay for the ships and men he needed to
test his idea. Eventually, he was able to convince King Ferdinand and Queen
Isabella of Spain to sponsor a voyage.

In August 1492, Columbus sailed west with three small ships.After more than a
month at sea, his sailors raised the cry of “Land!” The land turned out to be a small
island in what we now call the Caribbean Sea.

Columbus was thrilled. In a later letter, he wrote, “I write this to tell you how in
thirty-three days I sailed to the Indies with the fleet that the illustrious King and
Queen . . . gave me, where I discovered a great many islands, inhabited by
numberless people.” Mistakenly believing that he had reached the Indies,
Columbus called these people Indians.

In reality, the islanders were native people who spoke a language called Taino (TIE-
no). The Taino lived in a peaceful fishing community. Never had they seen people
like the ones who had suddenly appeared on their shores. Yet they were friendly
and welcoming. Columbus wrote, “They are so unsuspicious and so generous with
what they possess, that no one who had not seen it would believe it.”

Columbus promptly claimed the island for Spain and named it San Salvador, which
means “Holy Savior.” From there, he sailed on to other islands. Convinced that
China lay nearby, Columbus sailed back to Spain for more ships and men.

He made four trips to the Caribbean, finding more islands, as well as the continent

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

of South America. Each time he discovered a new place, he claimed it for Spain.
Columbus died still believing he had found Asia. Later explorers quickly realized
that he had actually stumbled on a world previously unknown to Europe—the
continents of North and South America.

The Columbian Exchange The voyages of Columbus triggered a great transfer of
people, plants, animals, and diseases back and forth across the Atlantic Ocean.
This transfer, which still continues today, is called the Columbian Exchange. The
Columbian Exchange brought valuable new crops such as corn, potatoes, and
squash to Europe. These foods greatly improved the diet of the average European.
Many Europeans also found new opportunities by crossing the Atlantic to settle in
the Americas. They introduced crops such as wheat and rice to these lands, as well
as domesticated animals like horses, cows, pigs, and sheep.

For American Indians, however, the exchange began badly. The Europeans who
came to America brought germs that lead to outbreaks of smallpox and other
deadly diseases amongst the American Indian population. Historians estimate that
in some areas, European diseases wiped out 90 percent of the native population.

Slavery Comes to America This high death rate led Europeans to enslave
Africans to work in the Americas. Many laborers were needed because some of
the Spanish settlers in the Caribbean had started gold mines. Others raised sugar,
a crop of great value in Europe. At first, the settlers forced American Indians to
work for them. But as native people began dying in great numbers from European
diseases, the settlers looked for a new workforce. Before long, Europeans
enslaved Africans to replace dying American Indians as laborers.

Slavery had existed around the world since ancient times. Often, people who were
on the losing side in wars were enslaved, or treated as the property of their
conquerors. By the late 1400s, European explorers in West Africa were trading
guns and other goods for enslaved people captured by African traders.

In the 1500s, European slave traders began shipping enslaved Africans to the
Caribbean for sale. Over the next three centuries, millions of Africans would be
carried across the Atlantic on a terrible voyage in crowded, disease-infested ships
that could last anywhere from weeks to months. Many died before it was over.

When the Africans arrived in the Americas, they were sold to their new enslavers
at auctions. Many perished from disease and overwork. Those who survived faced
a lifetime of forced labor as slaves.

Cortés Conquers Mexico After Columbus's voyages, Spain began sending
soldiers called conquistadors (kahn-KEES-tah-dors), across the Atlantic. Their

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

mission was to conquer a vast empire for Spain. The conquistadors hoped to get
rich along the way.

In 1519, Hernán Cortés (ehr-NAHN kohr-TEHZ) arrived in Mexico with horses and
500 soldiers. There he heard about the powerful Aztecs who ruled much of
Mexico. When Cortés and his men reached the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán
(taynoch-teet-LAN), they could not believe their eyes. A beautiful city seemed to
rise out of a sparkling lake. One Spaniard wrote, “Some of our soldiers even asked
whether the things that we saw were not a dream.”

The Aztecs were unsure what to make of the strangers. They had never seen men
dressed in metal armor and riding horses. Some mistook Cortés for the great Aztec
god Quetzalcoatl (kwetzul- kuh-WAH-tul) and welcomed him as a hero. They
would soon realize their mistake.

With the help of American Indians who hated their Aztec rulers, and with the
spread of smallpox—which killed large numbers of Aztec warriors— Cortés
conquered Tenochtitlán. The Spaniards pulled the city down and used its stones to
build Mexico City, the capital of a new Spanish empire called New Spain.

Pizarro Conquers Peru Smallpox also helped another Spanish conquistador,
Francisco Pizarro (fran-SIS-co pi-ZAR-oh), conquer an empire in South America. In
1532, Pizarro encountered the powerful Inca Empire in present-day Peru.
Smallpox had reached Peru many months before Pizarro, killing thousands of Incas
and leaving their empire badly divided.

With this division, Pizarro entered the Inca Empire's capital city of Cuzco. Pizarro
demanded that the Inca ruler, Atahualpa (ah-tuh- WAHL-puh) convert to
Christianity and swear his loyalty to the king of Spain. When Atahualpa refused,
Pizarro took him hostage but promised to release him in exchange for gold. To
save their ruler, the Incas filled three rooms with gold and silver treasures. Pizarro
killed Atahualpa anyway and took over the leaderless Inca Empire. From there,
Spanish conquistadors conquered most of South America.

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

2. The Spanish Borderlands

In both Mexico and Peru, conquistadors found gold and silver riches beyond their
wildest dreams. Hoping for more, they pushed north into lands that are now part
of the United States.Because these lands were located on the far edges of Spain’s
North American empire, they were known as the Spanish borderlands.

Florida One of the first Spanish expeditions into North America was led by a
man named Juan Ponce de León (wahn PAHN-suh day lee-OHN). He had sailed
with Columbus to the Caribbean and made his fortune by discovering gold on the
island of Puerto Rico. Despite his wealth, Ponce de León couldn’t stop thinking
about American Indian rumors of a “fountain of youth” that made old people
young again. Restless for more adventure, he set off to find the truth about these
tales of everlasting youth.

Ponce de León landed on a sunny peninsula of North America in April 1513.
Because he had sighted this lush new land on Easter Sunday, he called it La Florida,
meaning “flowery.” (The name is short for “flowery Easter.”) Eight years later, he
returned to Florida with 200 men to establish a Spanish settlement, or colony.

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

American Indians in the area used poisoned arrows to drive off the invaders.
Instead of finding a fountain of youth, Ponce de León died from a poisoned arrow
in his stomach.

The “Seven Cities of Cíbola” Another legend sparked new Spanish expeditions
into North America. An old European tale told of the “Seven Cities of Cíbola” (SEE-
buh-luh). These cities were said to be so fabulously rich that the streets and
houses were decorated with gold and jewels. When the Spanish heard the
American Indians tell similar tales, they became convinced that the Seven Cities of
Cíbola were somewhere in North America.

Spanish explorers first looked for the seven cities in Florida and presentday Texas.
They found plenty of adventure, but no golden cities. Then a Spanish priest named
Marcos de Niza claimed to have seen a shimmering golden city in what is now
New Mexico. He raced back to Mexico City with the news.

The Coronado Expedition In 1540, a famed conquistador named Francisco
Vásquez de Coronado (VAHS-kehz day kohr-uhNAH-doh) set out from Mexico
City with a large expedition and de Niza as his guide. Their goal was to find the
legendary golden cities.

After traveling north more than 7,000 miles, the expedition found an American
Indian pueblo. A pueblo is a village of apartment-like buildings made of stone and
adobe rising four and five stories high. To de Niza, this might have looked like a
golden city. But to Coronado, it was a “little, crowded village . . . crumpled all up
together.” The enraged expedition leader sent the priest back to Mexico City.

The Coronado expedition continued north onto the Great Plains before giving up
the search for golden cities. Disappointed, Coronado reported to Spain,
“Everything is the reverse of what he said, except the name of the cities and the
large stone houses . . . The Seven Cities are seven little villages.”

Settling the Borderlands As conquistadors explored new territories, they claimed
the areas for Spain. By 1600, the Spanish borderlands extended west from Florida
across present-day Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California

At first, Spain did little to encourage settlement in these far-flung areas.But when
rival European nations also began to show an interest in the land, small bands of
soldiers were sent to these regions to protect the claims. The soldiers lived in
walled forts called presidios (preh-SEE-dee-ohs).

In 1565, for example, a Spanish naval officer named Pedro Menéndez de Avilés
(muh-NEN-dez day ah-vuh-LACE) was sent to Florida to protect the area from

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

French explorers. Menéndez successfully drove the French out of their Florida
base and built a fort on the peninsula’s Atlantic coast. Menéndez named the fort
St. Augustine. Over the years, Spanish soldiers based at St. Augustine successfully
defended the fort—and Spanish claims to Florida—from both French and English
rivals. Today, St. Augustine is the oldest permanent settlement founded by
Europeans in the United States.

Catholic missionaries, or religious people who try to persuade people toconvert to
their religion, accompanied the soldiers to the borderlands. The missionaries built
settlements, called missions, where they taught local Indians new skills and
preached the Christian faith. Each mission grew its own food and produced most
of what the inhabitants of the missions needed to survive far from towns and
trading centers.

Hardy bands of settlers also moved into the borderlands, where they established
towns and farms. Juan de Oñate (ownYAH-tay), who had made a fortune mining
silver in Mexico, led the settlement of New Mexico. In 1598, Oñate brought 400
settlers and 7,000 animals from Mexico to New Mexico. The long overland
journey took a year and a half to complete.

At first, the Pueblo Indians of New Mexico welcomed the newcomers.
Unfortunately, the Spanish repaid the Indians’ kindness with cruelty. The Pueblo
people were made to work for the settlers as slaves. Catholic priests ordered the
whipping of Pueblo religious leaders who continued to practice their traditional
rituals. Such treatment led the Pueblo people to rise up in revolt and drive the

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

Spanish out. Twelve years would pass before Spanish settlers returned to New
Mexico.

During the 1600s and 1700s, settlement of the Spanish borderlands proceeded
slowly. But in time, the language, religion, and culture of Spain spread across much
of what is now the American Southwest.

Impact on American Indians The arrival of Spanish settlers had a greatimpact on
the native peoples of the borderlands. The Pueblo people, for example, learned
from the Spanish how to use new tools, grow new foods, and raise sheep for wool.
In turn, the Pueblo people introduced the Spanish to new techniques for growing
crops in the desert soil.

From Florida to California, some American Indians converted to the Catholic faith.
The converts often lived and worked in and around the missions, growing crops
and helping to maintain the churches and other buildings. However, even converts
often continued to practice their traditional religious rituals as well.

Unfortunately, wherever the Spanish settled, they brought with them diseases to
which native peoples had no resistance. Smallpox, measles, and influenza often
wiped out entire villages. Before Coronado’s expedition, there had been more
than 100 thriving American Indian pueblos in New Mexico. By 1700, only 19
remained.

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

3. New France © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

Level: A

3. New France E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

As Spanish colonies sent ships loaded with gold and silver home to Spain, all of
Europe watched with envy. Spain seemed to become richer and stronger every
year. Other nations wanted their share of riches from the Americas. But none was
strong enough to challenge Spain’s American empire. They would have to seek
their fortunes in areas not yet claimed by Spain.

Claiming New France In 1534, France sent Jacques Cartier (zhahk cahr-TYAY) to
explore the Atlantic coastline of North America. His goal was to find a Northwest
Passage. This passage was an all-water route through the continent to the Pacific
Ocean. Such a route would provide a shortcut for ships sailing west to Asia.

Cartier failed to find such a passage. But he did claim land for France in what is
now Canada. The claimed land would later be called New France. Cartier did
discover something almost as valuable as Spanish gold. He found beaver fur.
Beaver hats were a trendy item in Europe. French hat makers were willing to pay
high prices for beaver pelts.

Settling New France The first settlement in New France was founded by Samuel
de Champlain (duh sham-PLANE). In 1608, Champlain sailed up the St. Lawrence
River. He built a trading post he called Quebec (kwuh-BEK). Quebec would be a
base for French explorers, soldiers, missionaries, traders, and fur trappers for the
next 150 years.

From Quebec, fur trappers pushed west in search of beaver pelts. They called
themselves coureurs de bois (kuh-RUR duh BWAH). This means “wood rangers” in
French. Catholic missionaries followed the trappers in hopes of converting more
people.

Like the Spanish borderlands, New France failed to attract large numbers of
settlers. The harsh climate of New France discouraged French farmers from
crossing the Atlantic. Also, the colony granted the best land along the St. Lawrence
River to French nobles. The nobles planned to rent it out to farmers. The few
settlers who did come soon got tired of renting. So they left their farms to search
for furs.

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

American Indian Business Partners The French were more interested in furs
than farming. They did not try to conquer the Indians and put them to work as the
Spanish had done. Instead, the French made American Indians their business
partners.

After founding Quebec, Champlain made friends with the nearby Indians,
especially the Huron. French fur trappers lived in Huron villages. They learned the
Huron language and married Huron women. They learned how to survive for
months in the wilderness from the Huron. But the friendship exposed the Huron
to diseases. These diseases swept through their villages and killed many of them.

Champlain even helped the Huron attack their enemy, the Iroquois. He later
wrote,

I marched some 20 paces in advance of the rest, until I was within about
30 paces of the enemy . . . When I saw them making a move to fire at us,
I rested my musket against my cheek, and aimed directly at one of the
three chiefs. With that same shot, two fell to the ground; and one of
their men was so wounded that he died some time after . . . When our
side saw this shot . . . they began to raise such loud cries that one could
not have heard it thunder.

The surprised Iroquois had never seen or heard gunfire before. So they fled in

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

terror. The Iroquois would be the bitter enemies of the French from that day on.

Claiming Louisiana The search for furs led the French far inland from Quebec.In
1673, two explorers, Father Marquette (mahr-KET) and Louis Joliet (zhal-YAY),
explored the great Mississippi River. They hoped this waterway would be the
Northwest Passage. But they discovered that the river flowed south toward the
Gulf of Mexico instead of flowing west to the Pacific Ocean. The explorers
returned to New France disappointed.

Robert Cavelier de La Salle explored the entire length of the Mississippi River nine
years later. On April 9, 1682, he planted a French flag at the mouth of the river and
claimed everything west of the Mississippi River. La Salle named this vast area
Louisiana for the French monarch, King Louis XIV.

4. Jamestown: The First English Colony

Columbus's voyages inspired John Cabot, an Italian living in England, to seek his
own western route to Asia. In 1497, Cabot, who had moved to England from
Venice, sailed west across the Atlantic. He landed in Newfoundland, an island off

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

the coast of Canada. A fellow Venetian living in London wrote of Cabot's brief
landing,

He coasted for three hundred leagues and landed; saw no human beings,
but he has brought here to the king certain snares which had been set to
catch game, and a needle for making nets; he also found some felled
trees, by which he judged there were inhabitants, and returned to his
ship in alarm . . . The discoverer . . . planted on this newly-found land a
large cross, with one flag of England and another of St. Mark [the patron
saint of Venice] on account of his being a Venetian.

Like Columbus, Cabot mistakenly believed he had landed in Asia. The flag that
Cabot planted in 1497 to claim the land he found opened the way for more English
settlers who wished to create a new life in North America.

The Lost Colony of Roanoke Nearly a century after Cabot, an English noble
named Sir Walter Raleigh tried to start a colony on Roanoke Island off the coast of
present-day North Carolina. American Indians on the island welcomed the settlers
and gave them traps for catching fish. The newcomers, however, were more
interested in looking for gold than fishing. When their supplies ran low, they
returned to England.

In 1587, Raleigh sent a second group of colonists to Roanoke. Unfortunately, they
arrived too late in the season to plant crops. Their leader, John White, sailed back
to England for more supplies. While White was in England, however, fighting
broke out between England and Spain. As a result, his return to Roanoke was
delayed for three years.

When White finally reached the island, the colonists had disappeared. Carved on a
doorpost was the word CROATOAN. To this day, both the reason this word was
carved and what happened to the lost colony of Roanoke remain a mystery.

Settling Jamestown Twenty years went by before a permanent English colony
was established in America. In 1607, a group of merchants formed the London
Company to start a moneymaking colony in Virginia. The company crammed 105
settlers and 39 sailors into three tiny ships and sent them across the Atlantic. The
settlers were to ship back valuable goods such as furs and timber.

When they reached Virginia, the colonists settled on a swampy peninsula they
believed could be easily defended against American Indians or Spanish ships. They
called their new home Jamestown after King James I. What the settlers didn't
know was that the spot they chose to settle would soon be swarming with
disease-carrying mosquitoes. It was also surrounded by a large and powerful

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

American Indian tribe called the Powhatan.

To make matters worse, the Jamestown settlers were a mix of gentlemen and
craftsmen. None of them knew much about farming, nor were they willing to work
very hard at it. They thought they were in Virginia to look for gold, not to provide
for themselves.

As the food the settlers had brought with them disappeared, the settlers began to
trade with the Powhatan, bartering glass beads and iron hatchets for corn and
meat. But barter wasn't easy. Many Powhatan people decided they would sooner
kill the English—or just let them starve—than trade. Hunger and disease soon took
their toll. Every few days, another body was carried off to the graveyard.

John Smith was one of the members of the Jamestown expedition.A natural
leader, Smith took control of Jamestown in 1608. “If any would not work,”
announced Smith, “neither should he eat.” They were hungry, so they worked.

Smith wrote an account of how he met a Powhatan girl whose help saved the
colony from starvation. While scouting for food, Smith was captured by the
American Indians and brought to a smoky longhouse. Seated at one end, he saw
the powerful chief of the Powhatan tribe. The tribe greeted Smith with a loud
shout and a great feast. But when the meal ended, the mood changed. Smith was
about to be clubbed to death when a young girl leapt out of the shadows. “She got

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

[my] head in her armes and laid her owne upon [mine] to save [me] from death,”
Smith later wrote.

Smith's savior was Pocahontas, Chief Powhatan's favorite daughter.Historians
disagree about the details of how Smith and Pocahontas first met. They do agree,
however, that Pocahontas helped Smith save Jamestown by bringing food and
keeping peace with her people. “She, next under God,” Smith wrote, “was . . . the
instrument to preserve this colony from death, famine, and utter confusion.”

The Starving Time Jamestown's troubles, however, were far from over. In the fall
of 1609, after being injured in a gunpowder explosion, Smith returned to England.
The following winter was the worst one yet—so bad that it came to be known as
the “Starving Time.”

Without the encouragement of Smith and Pocahontas, the Powhatan refused to
trade with the settlers. The English ate dogs, rats, and even human corpses to
survive. By spring, only 60 of the 500 people Smith had left in the fall remained
alive.

When supply ships came the next spring, the survivors were ordered to abandon
their colony. Then three more English ships brought food, 150 new colonists, and
100 soldiers. Jamestown was saved again.

Jamestown Survives Although Jamestown was saved, the threat of conflict with
the Powhatans remained. In fact, they held several colonists prisoner. To force the
release of the prisoners and the return of weapons, the English kidnapped
Pocahontas and held her hostage. For a year, Pocahontas remained a prisoner.
During that time, she was taught English and adopted the Christian faith.

Among her teachers was a widower named John Rolfe. Rolfe had already helped
the colony survive by finding a crop that could be raised in Virginia and sold for
good prices in England—tobacco. The happy settlers went tobacco mad, planting
the crop everywhere, even in Jamestown's streets.

Rolfe helped again by making a marriage proposal to Pocahontas. Both the
governor of Jamestown and Chief Powhatan gave their consent to this unusual
match. Maybe they hoped the marriage would help end the conflict between their
peoples.

The union of Pocahontas and John Rolfe did bring peace to Jamestown.In 1616,
Rolfe wrote, “Our people yearly plant and reap quietly, and travel in the woods . . .
as freely and securely from danger
. . . as in England.”

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

5. New Netherland: The Short-Lived Dutch Settlement

While John Smith was struggling to save the colony of Jamestown, an English
sailor named Henry Hudson was exploring the coastline farther north for the
Netherlands. Henry Hudson's voyage was sponsored by Dutch merchants who
hoped to find the Northwest Passage. (The people of the Netherlands are called
the Dutch.)

In 1609, Hudson discovered a deep river full of fish and thought it might just take
him all the way across the continent. It didn't, of course, but he claimed the land
along its banks for the Netherlands. The river was later named the Hudson in his
honor, and the territory he claimed became known as New Netherland.

In 1621, Dutch merchants formed the Dutch West India Company to start a
colony in America. The first Dutch colonists settled along the upper Hudson,
where they built Fort Orange, near present-day Albany, New York. The new
colonists quickly found that there were good profits to be made in the fur trade.
They established trading posts along the Hudson River. The largest was on
Manhattan Island at the river's mouth.

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

Relations with American Indians In 1626, the Dutch West India Company sent
Peter Minuit (MIN-yu-what) to New Netherland as the colony's governor. Wanting
peaceful relations with the Indians, the company told Minuit that any native
peoples on Manhattan Island “must not be expelled with violence or threats but
be persuaded with kind words . . . or should be given something.”

Following orders, Minuit offered the island's Indians iron pots, beads, and blankets
worth about $24 (which is equivalent to about $500 today) in exchange for their
land. The American Indians accepted the trade because they didn't understand the
colonists' views of ownership and didn't believe that anyone could own land.

Dutch traders also made deals with members of the powerful Iroquois
Confederacy, an alliance of five Indian groups who lived across the northern
portion of New Netherland. The competitive tensions between the French and
Dutch had some advantages for the Iroquois Confederacy. The French had long
supplied the Huron, the Iroquois's great rivals, with guns in exchange for furs. It
made sense for the Iroquois to become partners with the Dutch, who supplied
them with the weapons they needed to stand up to the Huron.

This partnership also made sense for the Dutch. The French were their main rivals
in the European fur trade. For most of the 1600s, trade relations between the
Dutch and the Iroquois kept the French from moving into the fur-rich Ohio Valley.

New Amsterdam As the fur trade expanded, the Dutch settlement on
Manhattan swelled to over 1,000 people. In 1647, the Dutch West India Company
hired Peter Stuyvesant (STY-vuh-sunt) as the colony's new governor. When he
arrived at Manhattan, Stuyvesant declared that the settlement would be called
New Amsterdam, after the capital city of the Netherlands.

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

Stuyvesant had lost his right leg in battle, and he stomped around on a wooden leg
decorated with silver nails. People called him “Old Silvernails” or “Peg Leg Pete.”
Although he was a strong leader, Old Silvernails was generally disliked. When
Dutchmen who had been elected as city councilors disagreed with him, he called
them “ignorant subjects” and threatened to ship them back to the Netherlands in
pieces if they gave him trouble.

Despite his reputation as a grouch, Stuyvesant governed New Amsterdam for 17
years. During this time, he captured a nearby Swedish colony and invited its
settlers to live in New Amsterdam. By 1660, the colony had nearly 8,000 people,
including Europeans from many nations as well as enslaved Africans. New
Amsterdam also provided refuge for Jews who were seeking a place to practice
their religion freely.

New Netherland Becomes New York Stuyvesant's biggest problem was that the
English wanted to drive the Dutch out of North America. England's king, Charles II,
refused to recognize Dutch claims to New Netherland. In 1664, Charles gave his
brother, James, the Duke of York, ownership of all Dutch lands in America—if he
could conquer them.

James promptly organized a small invasion fleet to take the colony. When the

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

English arrived, they sent Stuyvesant a letter demanding his surrender. Stuyvesant
tore up the note and refused to consider giving up until New Amsterdam's chief
gunner reported that the city's supply of gunpowder was damp and useless.
Without firing a shot, the English took over New Netherland and renamed the
colony New York.

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

Lesson Summary

In this lesson, you read about the first European settlements in the Americas.

Discovery and Competition Explorers like Christopher Columbus were looking for
a westward route to Asia when they stumbled onto the American continents.
European nations competed to claim these new lands and the riches they might
contain.

Spain Spain claimed vast territories, including Mexico and the southwestern
portion of the future United States. In their search for gold and other treasures,
Spanish conquistadors conquered the Aztecs of Mexico and the Incas of Peru. The
Spanish also brought enslaved Africans to the Americas to plant and harvest crops.
In the American Southwest, Spanish missionaries worked to convert American
Indians to Christianity.

France The French staked a claim to much of present-day Canada, as well as
Louisiana, the territory west of the Mississippi River. Most French settlers were
more interested in trapping and trading furs than in farming or establishing large

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

settlements.

England The English based their claim to North America on John Cabot's 1497
voyage. After several attempts, the English established their first permanent
colony at Jamestown in Virginia.

The Netherlands The Dutch established a foothold in North America by founding
the colony of New Netherland. The English, however, drove the Dutch out and
renamed the colony New York.

Effects on American Indians For American Indians, the arrival of Europeans
brought many changes, including new technology and new ideas. But they also
brought deadly diseases that killed great numbers of the first Americans.

Investigating Primary Sources

Was Christopher Columbus a Hero?

Was Christopher Columbus a brave hero for introducing the Americas to Europe?
Or was he a greedy conqueror responsible for the deaths of millions of American
Indians? Or was he something in between? You will analyze two primary sources
that can help you evaluate Columbus's effect on the Americas.

At daybreak on October 12, 1492, on a small Caribbean island, a group of Taino
people observed from a distance as ships landed on their beach. Christopher
Columbus and his crew came ashore and planted Spain's flags in the sand. What
did the Taino think when they saw these foreign-looking strangers? We will never
know. The Taino had no written language, so their reaction has been lost to
history.

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

Most of what we know about the consequences of Columbus's voyages is based
on a few primary sources from the time. One of these sources is Columbus's ship's
log, or diary of his travels, which he wrote on his first voyage from Spain to the
Americas. He wrote it in Spanish in 1492, and it was translated into different
languages for people in other countries to read.

The log explains Columbus's purpose for making the voyage, which was to find a
new route to the East Indies that would give Spain access to the spice trade with
Asia. Along the way, he also hoped to discover gold and other riches, claim land for
Spain, and spread the Catholic religion.

The following primary source was written by Columbus himself. As you read, ask
these questions: How does Columbus depict himself in his writing? How does he
depict the Taino? What good does he expect to come from his voyage?

After reading the log, consider the following questions: By writing about this
important journey in a diary, what do you suppose Columbus wanted to
accomplish? For whom is Columbus writing this diary? What does this document
say about Columbus's treatment of and opinions about American Indians? How do

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

you think this source supports the claim that Columbus was a historic hero? What
kind of primary source might give evidence that contradicts this image of
Columbus as a hero?

Another Viewpoint from Bartolomé de Las Casas

If you do a lot of research, you will find that primary sources that cover the same
historical event sometimes reveal conflicting information. The effects of
Christopher Columbus's first voyage is the subject of another primary source, a
book called The Devastation of the Indies: A Brief Account, by Bartolomé de Las
Casas. However, this source presents a much darker viewpoint.

After hearing reports about Columbus's discovery, Las Casas joined other colonists
who planned to settle in the Indies. He received land in the Caribbean where
American Indian inhabitants lived. In this land, he began teaching the American
Indians about Christian principles to convert their faith, but he observed
circumstances there that were too disturbing to ignore.

Las Casas witnessed how life had changed for the American Indians, for disease,
overwork, and violence were destroying them. He eventually returned to Spain in
1515 and urged the government to demand better treatment of the natives.
Despite his attempts, American Indians continued to face violence and
mistreatment from the Spanish colonists.

Many years after visiting the Indies, Las Casas wrote The Devastation of the Indies
in 1542. It was important to him to present to Spain's king what he claimed was
the accurate description of the effects of Columbus's legacy. Las Casas admired
Columbus in many ways and did not blame him for all the harm endured by the
Indians. However, he recognized that Columbus had assisted in setting these
events in motion.

Las Casas accused the colonists of terrible behavior and explained the reason
behind the Spaniards' actions as their “greed and ambition, the greatest ever seen
in the world.” Las Casas' religious beliefs played a heavy role in his narrative. He
even warned the king that, in part due to the colonists' actions against the
American Indians, Spain would face punishment from God.

Read these excerpts from Las Casas' introduction to The Devastation of the Indies.
How does his portrayal of the American Indians in the first paragraph contrast
with his portrayal of the Spanish colonists? What metaphors does he use to
describe the colonists? And how do these metaphors support his argument?

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

Las Casas's efforts eventually met with success when the king of Spain issued the
New Laws in 1542. During the time, some Spanish people received pieces of land
that included the American Indians who inhabited it. The New Laws granted more
rights to these American Indians and gave restrictions to land owners. However,
the indigenous people continued to experience repression and suffering.

Now you have read two primary sources about the same event—the Spanish
arrival in the Americas. What positive and negative effects did it have for the
Americas? You can use both primary sources to examine Columbus's contribution
and answer this question: Was Columbus a hero? As you use each source to
support your claim, keep in mind: Who wrote the account, and why?

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

Spanish Exploration and Settlement in Florida

The world of Florida's Native Americans changed when Spanish explorers arrived.
In 1492, Christopher Columbus sailed from Spain. Spain is a country that lies
across the Atlantic Ocean from Florida. Columbus landed on an island to the south
and west of Florida. Soon the Spanish had taken over the island and many others
in the area. The native people who lived there were pushed aside. The Spanish
were ruthless in their search for gold and glory for their God and country.

Juan Ponce de León (wahn PAHN-suh day lee-OHN) was one of these Spanish
explorers. He found gold in the islands. But he dreamed of greater treasure.Ponce
de León was fascinated by a tale he heard from some native islanders. They spoke
of a fountain whose waters made old people young again. In search of this
“fountain of youth,” Ponce de León in 1513 became the first Spaniard to set foot
in Florida. Ponce de León gave Florida its name. It comes from the Spanish word
for flowers.

A man named Juan Garrido (wahn gah-REE-doh) may have joined Ponce de León
on his journey. Born in Africa, Garrido would have been the first person from that

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

land to reach Florida.

Ponce de León, Garrido, and the crew first landed on Florida's northeast coast.
Next, they sailed south through the Florida Keys. The explorers then headed north
along Florida's west coast. They landed and met members of the Calusa tribe. For
unknown reasons, this meeting was a tense one. The Spanish soon left Florida.

Ponce de León returned in 1521. This time, he came with 200 people, hoping to
build a settlement in Florida. Again, the Spanish fought with the Calusa. Again, the
Spanish fled.

The Spanish returned in 1528. In that year, Panfilo de Narváez (pahn-fee-loh de
nahr-VY-ez) arrived near Tampa Bay with a force of 400 men. He set out to
explore the land. After many battles with Native Americans, Narváez and his group
tried to escape Florida on rafts. Narváez and most of his crew died at sea. Only
four men lived to tell of their ordeal.

About ten years later, the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto (her-NAN-doh day
SOH-toh) traveled through Florida. De Soto landed near Tampa Bay in 1539. He

© 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute Level: A

E U R O P E A N E X P L O R A T I O N...

and his troops marched northward. They fought many terrible battles with Native
Americans as they went. In time, de Soto moved into what is now the state of
Georgia. He went on to explore much of what is now the southeastern United
States.

In 1559, Tristan de Luna (trihs-than de LOO-nuh) helped start a Spanish
settlement in Florida. The plan was to settle near what is now the city of
Pensacola. A hurricane sank many of de Luna's ships. This disaster helped doom
the settlement.

Spanish Settlement in Florida

The first Spanish explorers found death and disaster in Florida. In other parts of
the Americas, however, Spain had great success.Its soldiers conquered great
Native American empires. Its ships sailed to Spain with tons of gold and silver.

Spain did not want the French in Florida. In 1565, Spain sent Pedro Menéndez de
Avilés (PAY-droh muh-NEN-dez day ah-vuh-LACE) and 2,000 soldiers to destroy
Fort Caroline. Then, Menéndez de Avilés started a new Spanish settlement
nearby. He called it St. Augustine. He hoped the settlement would keep the
French away from Florida. Unlike early Spanish efforts in Florida, St. Augustine
was a success. The Spanish worked hard to keep the settlement going. Today, it is
the oldest surviving European settlement in the United States.

Next, the Spanish set out to control more of Florida.They made Native Americans
work as laborers. The Spanish also converted some Native Americans to the
Christian faith. The Spanish set up missions for this purpose.

A mission was like a Spanish village. It had a church, where priests taught Native
Americans the Catholic religion. It had farms, where Native Americans grew crops.
It had workshops, where they learned skills such as woodworking. A mission raised
its own food. It made all the things people needed to live the Spanish way of life.

Spain's rivals in Europe saw this success. They also wanted to find wealth in the
Americas. One of these rivals was the country of France. In 1564, 200 French
people sailed to the northeast coast of Florida. They started a settlement called
Fort Caroline.

Level: A © 2022 Teachers' Curriculum Institute