Week 8

Conquest Era

The Conquest Era is the time period of Latin America which began around 1492 and ended 1572-1580 (depending on your sources).  It was a time period of exploration and the conquest of lands in the Caribbean, Central and South America and Mexico with the primary purpose of increasing wealth and power for the European backers of these explorations.

While researching general information of this time period, I was drawn to the articles and videos of this ancient and often mislabeled people, the Moors.

The Moors, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella

The Turning Point in World Power

  
In 711 AD, Islamic forces invaded Spain and began a new era of Spanish power, where for more than 700 years, most of Spain was ruled by Muslims.

Although modern Spanish history books have stereotyped Spanish Muslims, or Moors, as treacherous and blood thirsty, archeological evidence suggests that although there was fierce battles which occurred during the Arab invasion, most of the Spanish Visigoths welcomed the Arabs for their intellectual curiosity and for their ability to provide protection. This vibrant Arab culture valued education for all and stressed that "with knowledge, you can become what you want to be in the future" (video.google).  People converted to the Muslim faith because the culture offered wealth, social structure and intellectual power.  The Arabs brought with them expert artisans and woodcarvers along with a great sense of aesthetic beauty to their new homeland.  During the next 700 years, the Moors built impressive cities, developed a legal system, built up massive libraries, advanced science, mathematics and medicine and created universities.  Through trade and agriculture, they developed a wealthy, prosperous, and advanced civilization.  The Moors embraced scientific and mathematical learning and knowledge from other countries including the ancient Greeks.  During this period, the Moors were performing medical operations that wouldn't be seen in western civilization for another 400 years.  Archeologists have uncovered Arabic translations of ancient texts including the Bible and works from Aristotle.

The Moors development and use of the 9th century astrolabe, allowed precise navigational calculations through measurements taken of the sun, moon and stars.  This development allowed for accurate navigation from the night sky and furthered the push for exploration and also advanced sea travel, which set the stage for worldwide sea exploration and discoveries.

Muslim Spain had a great influence on the surrounding countries and cultures.  The language of chemistry and alchemy was developed from the Arabic languages along with the development of scientific and mathematical concepts such as algorithms and algebra.  Up until this time period, written representation of numbers was with the use of Roman Numerals and the Moors introduced the use of Arabic numbers (which are considerably similar to our current number system).  Oxford University in England was founded upon knowledge gained from Islamic Spain's city of Toledo, which served as the capital city of Visigothic Spain and was considered to be the intellectual hub of the country.

The turning point in this time period began in 1492 when world power shifted from the influence of the Muslim Moors to the Catholic monarchs.  King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella captured the Muslim city of Granada and drove out Islamic Spain.  The monarchs created regulations preventing Jews and Muslims from obtaining positions of power within the government.  The Inquisition was reinstated which was a state-controlled tribunal that enforced Catholicism throughout Spain.  The monarchs were obsessed with religious and cultural uniformity throughout the land and exiled those Jews and Muslims who refused to convert to Catholicism as a form of ethnic cleansing.  Many aristocratic Spanish families altered their family trees to intentionally remove any trace of Muslim heritage from their written past.  The stereotypical image of the brutal and barbaric Moor was more likely Catholic propaganda than truth as an attempt by the new Spanish monarchs to eradicate the influence of the Moors from Spain.

Modern Spanish history books continue to present this obsession with religious and cultural uniformity through negative stereotypes, which minimize or exclude Muslim influence and rule during this time period to create an illusion toward Catholic ideologies.

Around the same time King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella take control over Granada, Christopher Columbus unsuccessfully attempts to gain financial backing from Portugal for his expedition to explore eastern Asia by sailing west.  In 1492, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella agree to finance Columbus' expedition in an effort to challenge trade and exploration away from Portugal.


Resources
All of the on-line resources provided references for the information provided in their articles or I was able to confirm the information with an additional source.
Beck, Sanderson. Spnish Conquest 1492-1580.  http://www.san.beck.org/11-2-SpanishConquest.html


Christopher Columbus - Explorers, Pioneers, and Frontiersmen, 1451-1506.
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1033.html

King Ferdinand & Queen Isabella Spain. Kwintessential.

http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/articles/article/Spain/King-Ferdinand-&_Queen_Isabella-Spain/1012

Muslim Spain;  The Reconquest;  The Catholic Monarchs;  The Discovery of America. "Si Spain".  http://www.sispain.org/english/history/index.html

Solsten, Eric and Sandra W. Meditz, editors. The Golden Age:  Ferdinand and Isabella. Spain: A country Study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress. 1988.  http://countrystudies.us/spain/7.htm

Video.google.com. When the Moors Ruled in Europe.

htpp://video.google.com/videosearch?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&q=muslims%20of%20spain%2C%20history&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wv#

Part 2 - Classmates Review of Week 6

Beatriz researched the Aztecs who were wanderers and lived during the 14th through the 16th centuries.  They were conquered by Hernandez Cortez.


Brandon researched the Mayan civilization.  He learned that they used a slash and burn type of preparation for farming to clear the rainforest for farming. The soil is quite infertile and all nutrients were depleted within a few years.


Candace studied the Aztec civilization and that the translation for the Aztec city of Teotihuacan means "city where men become gods".


Jamison also studied the Aztec civilization and wrote how the Valley of Mexico was the center of the Aztec civilization.  He indicated that  Teotihuacan was the capital of the Aztec Triple Alliance.

Kathy researched the Guarani and wrote how they are related culturally to the Tupi but distinguished from them by their use of the Guarani language. She wrote how there are two official languages of Paraguay; Spanish and Guarani and that children in Paraguay are required to speak, read and write in both languages.

Michael researched the Mayan and wrote how they are known for having the only fully developed written language of Pre-Colombian Americas.


Nancy researched the Olmec civilization and indicated it was the oldest Pre-Colombian civilization and was a precursor to other Pre-Colombian civilizations.


Robert also researched the Aztec civilization and found that the original language of the Aztecs was Nahuatl (pronounced Nahua) and the influence of their culture and language spread as far north as the Yellowstone River and as far south as Panama.  


Shannon wrote about the Inca civilization.  The Inca's did not have a written language but still managed to create a huge empire.  They were able to achieve this through the use of quipus which were strings with knots tied in them in a certain pattern to denote something. However, after the Spanish conquered the Inca the knowledge of how to read/interpret these quipus disappeared and to this day the meaning behind the knots still remain a mystery.


Stacy wrote about the sophistication of the Mayan civilization and that in spite of their intellect and advancement, they had rituals and practices of human sacrifice.  They practiced human sacrifice in the belief this would sustain the sun and would also offer a human sacrifice in a hideous ritual where the person's heart would be cut out of the living sacrifice and offered to the priest who would anoint the faces of the Mayan idols with the blood of the sacrificed person. (Reminds me of the 2nd Indian Jones movie.)