Browse Items (35 total)

This depiction shows a 17th century tobacco plantation in Virginia. Tobacco was an extremely important cash crop and its production fueled many early colonies and was shipped across the world to fuel growing markets. Tobacco production was extremely…

The transatlantic routes are where The Golden Age of Piracy really thrived. When in need of men they would offer slaves the opportunity to join their crews, and when on the hunt for gold they would lay in wait for the opportunity to raid other ships…

As a young man, Henry Morgan was sold into indentured servitude in the Caribbean. After regaining his freedom, he would go on to be recruited by a pirate crew and later would leave a legacy of unprecedented pirate rampage. His power and prestige were…

Mary was English and Anne was Irish, they were both born to working families, and had similar upbringings. Both were accustomed to dressing like boys so they had no problem breaking into the pirate scene. They were as good at fighting, drinking, and…

A 1561 engraving of a Spanish conquistador on horseback. Horses were one of the animals brought to the new world by the Spanish, and their use was crucial in colonizing the Americas. The native populations had never seen horses before and Europeans…

The Caravel was an innovative new ship design that was extremely maneuverable and enabled the ship to sail into the wind, greatly increasing the potential for long voyages at sea. The caravel was critical in early Portuguese exploration of Africa as…

Sugar production was crucial in the Americas. Molasses and rum were sugar products with lucrative trades, and these products found their way across the world. Alcohol was often the only ready supply of clean drinks, and rum in particular was…

In this letter from Hernando Pizarro, he provides on update on Peru and how well the Spanish are succeeding in the conquest. During the time that this letter was written, Pizarro and his men had just arrived in Cajamarca, which is the main city of…

Fransisco de Xeres, secretary of Fransisco Pizarro, writes about how Pizarro and the Spanish military were able to capture Atahualpa, the king of the Incas. After being addressed by a Pizarro and a monk, Atahualpa was taken into custody. This led to…

This resource provides images and maps of how the Spanish structured the colonial administration, as well as what areas the administration governed. While the leaders of the administration were typically in Spain, viceroyalties were in charge of the…