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Section 3: pp. 77-78, "Settling New Spain." The Conquistadors were 15th century Spanish explorers and conquerors who sailed across the uncharted oceans. The desire to explore new worlds ... to gain political power ... to win fame and fortune .... all these factors motivated their actions which caused such great impact on the New World. Licensed by the Spanish Crown, they endured extreme challenges in order to search for "The Indies" and its coveted spices. The price of conquest was high – shipwreck, disease, starvation, warfare, and death. (retrieved on November 3rd 2009, http://www.pbs.org/opb/conquistadors/mexico/adventure2/a1.htm)

By the end of the century of 1550-1600, it was estimated that only 3 in 25 Native Americans survived the epidemics from smallpox and other diseases originally coming from Hispaniola, Puerto Rico and Cuba

// Mestizos // were people of mixed Spanish and Indian background who ranked lower than the // criollos // in New Spain’s social hierarchy and possessed little economic or political influence. Native American influences are reflected in most Mexican brilliantly colored folk art, dances, and the legal and educational systems denote their Spanish legacy. Perhaps the unique blend of Mexico’s European and Native American heritage is best symbolized by her patron saint, the dark-skinned Virgin of Guadalupe. // Indigenas // still occupy the lowest rung of Mexico’s social structure and recent uprisings in the Chiapas area tell of their ongoing struggle. Coupled with Mexico’s financial problems, some foresee a bleak future for these native peoples. Mexican poet and philosopher, Octavio Paz, once bemoaned "the perversion and destruction of traditional culture." He noted that whenever displaced // Indigenas // move to the cities, they forsake their traditional culture to embrace forms of an industrial culture that "are inferior to those of the US and Europe." Fortunately, efforts are now being made to preserve their rich traditions of land stewardship, herbal medicines, and social harmony. ( http://www.ask.com/bar?q=How+did+the+Native+Americans+influence+the+culture+of+New+Spain&page=1&qsrc=2417&dm=all&ab=0&title=Mexico&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.great-adventures.com%2Fdestinations%2Fmexico%2Fhistory.html&sg=igtcEQ%2BxJbbC9tfNcxCauWvlaIdjYqT%2F Zlvd1ALVirE%3D&tsp=1257356553920)


 * __Websites that could be used for your research:__ ** 

@http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/spanish-conquistadors.htm 

@http://www.pbs.org/opb/conquistadors/mexico/adventure2/a1.htm 

@http://latinamericanhistory.about.com/od/theconquest/a/09armsconquest.htm 

@http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/latinamerica/topics/spanish_conquest.html 

@http://kids.britannica.com/ 

@http://encarta.msn.com/ 

@http://everything2.com/title/Peninsulares 

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; msobidifontfamily: 'Times New Roman'; msobidithemefont: minor-bidi;">@http://www.answers.com/ <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;">

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; msobidifontfamily: 'Times New Roman'; msobidithemefont: minor-bidi;">@http://www.about.com/ <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"> <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; msobidifontsize: 12.0pt;">Included below is an example of researching, cut and pasting important information, paraphrasing the information, citing the website, and posting on your wiki for your group presentation. Mr. Martin-section 5: pp. 78-80, "Harsh Life for Native Americans." A key point that I found interesting is found on page 79 and how the priest Bartolome de Las Casas tried to intercede on behalf of the Native Americans for better conditions. I used the website: [] <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; msobidifontsize: 12.0pt;">In the search box at the top of the page, I typed in "Bartolome de Las Casas," and was given different options of researching this individual and I chose the first option. []


 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-weight: normal; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; msobidifontsize: 12.0pt; msobidifontweight: bold;">I found something very interesting in that it showed that Las Casas did more than petition the government for better conditions for the Native Americans, he actually tried to do something about. It also showed me that throughout history, there were always people who were involved with social justice even with the chance of placing themselves in great harm. **

**<span style="color: black; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">First Experiments: ** <span style="color: black; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Las Casas convinced Spanish authorities to allow him to try and save the few remaining Caribbean natives by taking them out of slavery and placing them in free towns, but the death of King Ferdinand in 1516 and the resulting chaos over his successor caused these reforms to be delayed. Las Casas also asked for and received a section of the Venezuelan mainland for an experiment: he believed that he could pacify the natives with religion, not weapons. Unfortunately, the region that was selected had been heavily raided by slavers, and the natives’ hostility to the Europeans was too intense to overcome. The Verapaz Experiment: ** In 1537, Las Casas wanted to try again to show that natives could be controlled peacefully and that violence and conquest were unnecessary. He was able to convince the crown to let him send missionaries to a region in north-central Guatemala where the natives had proved particularly fierce. His experiment worked, and the natives were brought under Spanish control peacefully. The experiment was called Verapaz, or “true peace,” and the region still bears the name. Unfortunately, once the region was brought under control, greedy colonists took the lands and enslaved the natives, undoing almost all of Las Casas’ work.
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-weight: normal; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; msobidifontsize: 12.0pt; msobidifontweight: bold;">(From the website) **
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; msobidifontfamily: 'Times New Roman'; msobidifontsize: 12.0pt;">

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">This is an example of my paraphrasing the above section from the website, citing my source, and how it would look on your expert group wiki:<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; msobidifontfamily: 'Times New Roman'; msobidifontsize: 12.0pt;"> <span style="color: black; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 120%;">** __Mr. Martin-section 5: pp. 78-80, "Harsh Life for Native Americans."__ ** <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; msobidifontsize: 12.0pt;">A key point that I found interesting is found on page 79 and how the priest Bartolome de Las Casas tried to intercede on behalf of the Native Americans for better conditions. I found something that I found very interesting section very interesting because it showed that Bartolome did more than petition the government for better conditions for the Native Americans, he actually tried to do something about. It also showed me that throughout history, there were always people who were involved with social justice even with the chance of placing themselves in great harm. Las Casas found that even with his interventions on behalf of the Native Americans, he needed to show the government that more needed to be done. He was allowed to take the remaining Caribbean natives to Venezuela to start a free town, but his first attempt failed due to slave traders and hostility from the local natives. His second attempt found him using missionaries in Guatemala to subdue the natives using peaceful means and was successful. That area of Guatemala is still called "true peace." Unfortunately, the greed of the colonists undid Las Casas work as they took native's land and enslaved many of the residents. (Retrieved on November 1, 2009 from []