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The Columbian Exchange

Driving Question: What were the causes of the Columbian Exchange, and what impacts did it have on the Eastern and Western Hemispheres?

There were complex networks of exchange long before Columbus reached the so-called New World. These networks were, of course, not old to the millions of Indigenous Americans who lived there. But the new connections between Afro-Eurasia and the Americas created a truly global network that would forever alter the world’s people, plants, and animals.

Learning Objectives

  1. Explain the causes of the Columbian Exchange and its effects on the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.
  2. Use the historical reasoning process of sourcing to evaluate the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire from two different perspectives.
  3. Assess the environmental and cultural effects of the Columbian Exchange on Afro-Eurasia and the Americas.

Vocab Terms:

  • cash crop
  • demographic
  • enslave
  • epidemic
  • indigenous
  • plantation system
  • staple crop
STEP 2

The Columbian Exchange

The arrival of Columbus in the New World changed everything, from the way people ate to the diseases they carried.

STEP 3

Crops that Grew the World

Humans have always moved plants and animals around with us. But after 1500, a biological exchange between the Old World and the New changed populations, trade networks, cultures, and environments around the globe forever.

STEP 4

The Disastrous Effects of Increased Global Interactions c. 1500 to 1600

Parts of the world benefitted by increased global networks. But the Atlantic slaving system as well as the sharp decline in indigenous populations in certain regions were among the devastating effects of this period.

STEP 5

Sourcing: Spanish Conquest of the Aztec Empire

It may not be surprising to learn that there are differing perspectives when it comes to the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire. Analyze the words of an Aztec poem to that of Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés to come to a deeper understanding of this event.

STEP 6

Graphic Biography: Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz

Colonial society in the Americas had a reputation for being strictly hierarchical, with race playing a big role in who held power, while rigid gender roles limited opportunities for women. The story of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz suggests things were sometimes a bit more complex.

STEP 7

Closer: Columbian Exchange

Would our eating patterns be completely different had it not been for the Columbian Exchange? Let’s find out by creating a menu that reflects life before and after the Columbian Exchange!

Extension Materials
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For more detail on the impacts of the Columbian Exchange, particularly in colonial Mexico City, check out the article below.
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Religious Syncretism in Colonial Mexico City

The 1500s saw an interaction of religions in Mexico City as a result of Spanish control—but just how well did they blend?