driven by the desire of northern princes to enrich their treasuries by seizing monastic land. One result was the formation of national Protestant churches in England, Scotland, Scandinavia, Switzerland, and Holland. SEE FIGURE 10 1519 Hernan Cortés Conquers Mexico Hernan Cortés was foremost in the generation of conquistadors that began the Spanish colonization of the Americas. He arrived in Hispanola in 1504 and in 1511 participated in an expedition that conquered Cuba. In 1518 the governor of Cuba gave him command of the third Spanish expedition to the mainland, and he set out in February 1519 with 11 ships, 500 men, 15 horses, and several cannon. Landing south of present-day Veracruz, he scuttled his fleet, made alliances with Indigenous tribes, and marched on Tenochtitlan, where, after some hesitation, the Aztec ruler Moctezuma peacefully received him. In a daring action Cortés took Moctezuma hostage, attempting to govern the city through him. Forced to retreat after a subordinate massacred Aztec protesters, he recaptured Tenochtitlan in 1521, claiming the entire Aztec empire for Spain. In ensuing years he amassed considerable wealth and conducted numerous forays in the region, including one to Honduras. Disputes with royal officials compelled him to return to Spain more than once to defend his reputation. 1549 Juan Cabrillo Claims California for Spain A Portuguese sailing for Spain, Juan Cabrillo was the first European to navigate the coast of present-day California. In 1539, Cabrillo was commissioned by the Viceroy of New Spain (Mexico) to lead an expedition along the Pacific coast in search of trading opportunities. In June 1542 he set out from Jalisco with three ships, passing the tip of Baja (lower) California within a month, landing in San Diego Bay in September, and reaching Santa Catalina Island in October. The explorers sailed as far north as Point Reyes and the Russian River before returning to Catalina for the winter. On Christmas Eve Cabrillo splintered his shin in a fall and contracted gangrene. He died in January 1543. Because it was difficult for the small ships of the 16th and 17th centuries to sail north against the prevailing winds and currents of the Pacific Ocean, it would be another two centuries before a permanent Spanish settlement was established in Alta (Upper) California at San Diego in 1769.
1492 Christopher Columbus Crosses the Atlantic; Jews and Muslims Expelled from Spain
The late 15th century was transformative for Spain. In 1492, after King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella authorized Christopher Columbus to seek Asia by sailing west, he ushered in the first lasting European contact with the Americas, and a lengthy period of European exploration, conquest, and colonization. That same year, Spain’s sovereigns, whose marriage in the 1470s had united the thrones of Aragon and Castile, completed their conquest of Moorish Granada and embarked on an unprecedented effort at national unification. Spanish Jews and Muslims were ordered to convert to Christianity, and in July 1492 the entire Jewish community, 200,000 people, was expelled. Most fled to Turkey, North Africa, and other parts of Europe, where they became known as Sephardim — Sefarad being the Hebrew name for Spain. Somewhat later Isabella gave Spanish Muslims a similar ultimatum — expulsion or baptism. Thousands considered baptism the only practical option. Thus Spain became nominally united and entirely Christian, yet culturally poorer.
Figure 9. Built by Justinian as a Christian cathedral in 537AD, Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom) was transformed into a magnificent mosque after the fall of Constantinople. Image courtesy of Library of Congress.
1517 Martin Luther Initiates Prostestant Reformation When Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses regarding the sale of indulgences on a church door in Wittenberg in 1517, he sparked a wave of protest, especially in northern Europe, against the
doctrines, ritual, and structure of the Roman church. The efforts of reformers to return the church to its original simplicity grew into the Protestant Reformation and created a permanent schism within Western Christianity. Luther, John Calvin, and other Protestant leaders taught that salvation is not earned by good deeds (works) but achieved only as a gift of God. They challenged the authority of the pope and priesthood by teaching that the Bible is the primary source of divinely revealed knowledge. Much of the passion on the part of Protestants originated in the hostility of simpler cultures to an Italian clergy competing with a worldly Renaissance, but the Reformation was also
Figure 10. This print depicts Martin Luther causing consternation in the streets of Wittenberg by nailing demands for reform to the door the church. Image courtesy of Library of Congress.
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