Spanish Conquistadors Dbq

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European explorers and conquistadors have greatly left their mark on the world today. From Columbus to Magellan, their names may be the most recognizable in history. Their discoveries and accomplishments from 1400 to 1700 C.E. explain why the era is known as the Age of Exploration, when European explorers and conquistadors decided to make advances in navigation and learn more about the world around them. Because of this, countries, continents, and cities have been named after many of these men who have changed the world to a great extent. Their actions and discoveries are still celebrated today, and the impacts of their voyages and undertakings have created a divided viewpoint of their historical legacy. Some people believe that the European …show more content…
To explain, Spanish conquistadors treated the Native Americans in North America with cruelty and only did it out of greed for power and wealth. As referenced in Document 10, a primary source, “A Brief Account of the Devastation of the Indies” by Bartolome de las Casas, “Yet into these sheep came some Spaniards who immediately behaved like wild wolves. The Spaniards killed and terrorized the native peoples in order to gain more gold and to make themselves richer.” This shows that the Spanish conquistadors were cruel and treated the Native Americans horribly, only for their gain, and proves why they should not be celebrated for massacring and killing people. Additionally, the Spaniards tortured and treated the Native Americans very badly, and then used the surviving natives as slaves. As stated in Document 10, “For example, they made bets as to who could split a man in half or could cut off his head or spill out his entrails with a single swing of a sword […] roaring with laughter the whole time […] they made some gallows where they hanged victims with their feet almost touching the ground […] then set burning wood just under their feet and burned them alive. The few survivors […] would then be divided up by the conquistadors to be slaves.” This proves just how brutal the European explorers were, and shows why they should not be glorified for the terrible acts of vindictiveness they committed. To sum up, the European explorers, conquistadors, and settlers from the Age of Exploration should not be celebrated in modern times because the explorers were avaricious and
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