New Worlds in the Americas: Labor, Commerce, and the Columbian Exchange

Review Questions

How could Spaniards obtain encomiendas?

  1. by serving the Spanish crown
  2. by buying them from other Spaniards
  3. by buying them from native chiefs
  4. by inheriting them

Hint:

A

Which of the following best describes the Columbian Exchange?

  1. the letters Columbus and other conquistadors exchanged with the Spanish crown
  2. an exchange of plants, animals, and diseases between Europe and the Americas
  3. a form of trade between the Spanish and natives
  4. the way in which explorers exchanged information about new lands to conquer

Hint:

B

Why did diseases like smallpox affect Indians so badly?

  1. Indians were less robust than Europeans.
  2. Europeans deliberately infected Indians.
  3. Indians had no immunity to European diseases.
  4. Conditions in the Americas were so harsh that Indians and Europeans alike were devastated by disease.

Hint:

C