Introduction:
Growth and change were taking place all around the world in the late 1400s. In western Africa the markets of timbuktu were growing within the Songhai empire. China's Ming rulers were adding to the Great Wall, as Chinese workers produced more and more porcelain, a fine hand pottery, and silk.
In the Americas, meanwhile, both the Aztec and Inca empires were growing larger than any civilization that had been developed in the western hemisphere.
In 1492, Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic Ocean, opening up the Americas to European exploration. Within 40 years the Atlantic Ocean had become a vast highway crisscrossed by ships filled with people, trade goods, and treasure. Most of this traffic was controlled by just two European countries- Spain and Portugal. though these countries were small in size, their power stretched across the globe.
The Spanish and Portuguese were able to conquer the indians in the new world because of these three things: Steel, Disease, and guns. The appearance of horses also helped.
Assigned Short Readings: