After Columbus’ first voyage, the Spanish conquered the Caribbean Islands very quickly. Later,
they explored the continent nearby. The most important expeditions were
those of Hernan Cortes, who conquered Mexico, and Francisco Pizarro, who
conquered Peru.
Francisco Pizarro
Hernan Cortes
Before the arrival of the Spaniards, a great
variety of peoples already lived in the Americas. They are called
pre-Columbian peoples. Although many were small tribes, others such as
the Incas, the Aztecs and the Mayans, had enormous empires.
Pre-Columbian peoples cultivated corn and developed many crafts. The Mayans were expert mathematicians and astronomers.
Geographical distribution of the Incas, Aztecs
and Mayans
Machu Picchu (Incas)
Chichen Itza (Mayans)
A drawing of Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztecs
In the 15th century, many people believed that the Earth was flat. However, Christopher Columbus was convinced it was round. He believed that you could arrive in Asia by sailing across the Atlantic Ocean to the west.
On 3rd August 1492, Columbus set off with three caravels from the port of Palos de la Frontera,
in Huelva. On 12th October, the expedition reached land. Columbus thought he had arrived in Asia, in the West Indies, but in fact, he had landed on an island in the Caribbean. Columbus named the inhabitants "Indians" and he never realised that he had discovered a new continent.
Years later another explorer, the Italian Amerigo Vespucci, proved that the territories that Columbus had discovered were part of a new continent and it was named America in his honour.
Interesting information about Columbus' life and the discovery of America:click here
The Catholic Monarchs, Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, unified Spain geographically and expanded their territories.
In 1492, they conquered the Kingdom of Granada. They also completed the conquest of the Canary Islands. They took the Kingdom of Naples in Italy and small territories in the north of Africa. Finally, in 1512, the Crown of Castile annexed the Kingdom of Navarre.
In 1492, the Catholic Monarchs financed the expedition of Christopher Columbus, which led to the discovery of America.
The Catholic Monarchs ensured long-term political stability in Spain by arranging strategic marriages
for each of their five children with the children of other monarchs in Europe.
Hola chic@s:
Parece que algunos tenéis problemas para acceder a los contenidos del blog con internet Explorer. Probad con otros navegadores como firefox, chrome o safari, a mí me funcionan bien.
These are the videos of the video mapping on Basilica of San Isidoro by French artist Xavier de Richemont that I told you about in our science class today. I do hope you enjoy them.
I was there on Saturday and it was simply amazing and beautiful
Living in a multicultural society implies understading and respecting that different cultures have different languages, religions and customs. In relation to the history of our own country, we have surfed the internet to learn more about Islam in class today. Here you have a summary of the key points we have found out.
Some facts about Islam:
The Koran (Qur’an) is the sacred text of Islam.
Muslims believe in one God, Allah.
Muhammad is their most important prophet.
Mecca is considered sacred by Muslims. It is the birthplace of Muhammad.
Every Muslim who can afford it must make the pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in his or her lifetime.
Muslims pray at five specific times towards the direction of Mecca each day. This practice is known as salat.
Fasting from food and drink must be performed from dawn to dusk during the month of Ramadan.
