SOURCE2 A map indicating the division of the world under the Treaty of Tordesillas
ARCTIC OCEAN
Key
Treaty of Tordesillas
Treaty of Zaragoza
Territory of Portugal
EUROPE
ASIA
NORTH AMERICA
Territory of Spain
PACI F IC
OCEAN
AFRICA
PACI F IC
ATLANTIC
SOUTH AMERICA
INDIAN
OCEAN
OCEAN
OCEAN
AUSTRALIA
0 2000
4000
kilometres
Source: Map drawn by Spatial Vision. Map drawn by Spatial Vision.
SkillBuilder discussion Causes and consequences 1. Based on what you have read so far, explain why Spain and Portugal were rivals during Columbus’ voyage? 2. What did Pope Alexander VI’s 1493 decree grant Spain? 3. How did the Treaty of Tordesillas aim to prevent conflict? Predict whether it had succeeded in preventing conflict. Balboa: First to cross Spanish explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa is remembered as the first European to cross the Americas. Inspired by Columbus’ discoveries, he travelled to the New World in 1500 and helped set up settlements in the Caribbean. In September 1513, he crossed the isthmus of Panama and became the first European to see the Pacific Ocean. 6.4.5 Cortés: Man of ambition 6.4.4 Hernán Cortés was born in 1485 to a Spanish nobleman. After studying at university, he moved to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola at 19. Six years later, he joined the conquest of Cuba under Diego Velázquez. Cortés believed the Aztecs in Mexico had much to offer, especially gold. In February 1519, he sailed to Mexico and, after arriving, destroyed his ships to ensure his men did not have any thoughts about deserting. Marching towards the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlan, he encountered the Tlaxcalans, a kingdom resisting the Aztecs. Early encounters between the two civilisations were violent and movement was difficult for the Spanish because their horses and cannons struggled on rough terrain. However, as they fought their way to level ground, the Spanish gained the upper hand.
TOPIC6 The Spanish and the Americas 133
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