The Road to Independence

Social Studies for 9th E.G.B.

Teacher: Mauricio Torres

THE ROAD TO INDEPENDENCE

• During the 1500s, the Europeans colonized most of the continent.

• They had enslaved natives first, then Africans.

• A new “race” was born, the “mestizos”, and also a new class: the creoles.

• Even though atrocities decreased, unfair treatment was still common.

EUROPEAN COLONIZATION

• Signed on June 7, 1494• It was an agreement

between Spain and Portugal aimed at settling conflicts over lands newly discovered or explored by Christopher Columbus and other late 15th-century voyagers.

TREATY OF TORDESILLAS

• The Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494 split the “New World” between Spain and Portugal. The world was polarized

• Although very little of the new lands had been seen, lines were slashed across the globe, giving most of North and South America to Spain and the easternmost area of what is now Brazil to Portugal. 

• The Treaty was sanctioned by a Papal decree, but future bulls moved this meridian back and forth, giving Spain control in Asia and allowing Portuguese expansion in Brazil.

WHAT DID IT DO?

After Spain set up the Colonies in the Americas:

• Creoles and mestizos grew discontent, because they were looked down upon, and not as equals even as far as not having the same rights as the Spaniards.

• Enlightenment ideas spread to the Americas.

• Revolutions in France and North America lit the fuse.

BUILDING THE ROAD

The Enlightenment:

• A movement of intellectual change that swept throughout Europe and North America during the 18th century.

• In short: New ideals that sought to bring change in the way we lived.

Political ideology:

• A fairly coherent and comprehensive set of ideas that explains and evaluates social conditions, provides a vision of the ideal society, and provides a program for social and political action.

• In short: A set of ideas designed to give a vision of a idealized society, including politics and social issues.

(PARENTHESIS)

• 1. Human autonomy is the means and end of Enlightenment• 2. The importance of reason 

a. Freedom means being able to think rationally for yourself. b. Reason will lead us to the truth.

• 3. Enlightenment is universalAll humans are equal by nature.

• 4. ProgressHuman history is the story of progress in the human condition. 

• 5. SecularismReligion and politics should be separated. One’s method of worship should be a private matter.

• 6. The centrality of economics to politicsA society’s well-being depends on how its economy is structured.

• 7. The ideal of popular governmentPeople are capable of ruling themselves. The aristocracy is not the only class that deserved to rule.

SEVEN CORE IDEALS

• The Spaniards lose power, due to the rise of other powers: England, Netherlands, Portugal, France, Prussia…

• The need to restore authority backfires.• Strong, South American leaders emerge.

SPAIN WEAKENS

• Identify:

• What were the consequences of the mixing of Spaniards and natives?

• Relate:

• What were the consequences of the events in Europe that helped promote new ideals in the Americas?

• Analyze:

• What was so important about the American and French Revolutions?

• What were the effects of the treaty of Tordesillas?

ASK YOURSELF

1. Search the meaning of these terms in the dictionary and write it down.

2. Write a sentence using those words, applying them to the context of this unit. Do not use sentences from other’s, create them on your own.

Terms:• Polarize• Creole• Mestizo• Enlightenment• Secularism

Do it all in the computer and print it.

VOCABULARY ASSIGNMENT

• Encyclopedia Britannica. (n.d.). Treaty of Tordesillas. Retrieved May 20, 2012, from Britannica: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/599856/Treaty-of-Tordesillas.

• Virtual Museum Canada. (n.d.). Treaty of Tordesillas. Retrieved May 20, 2012, from Beyond The Map: http://www.beyondthemap.ca/english/historical_divide_world.html.

• Knowles, R. (n.d.). Latin American Independence Movements. Retrieved May 20, 2012, from Slideshare: http://www.slideshare.net/rknowles/latin-american-independence-movements.

• North Arizona University. (n.d.). Core Ideals of the Enlightenment. Retrieved May 22, 2012, from Northern Arizona University's Web Server JAN: http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jo52/POS254/Enlideals.html.

BIBLIOGRAPHY