History Vocabulary 5th and 6th grade Middle School

Timeline of Colonial Settlement

1492.. Christopher Columbus sets sail for the west....

1.     When did Christopher Columbus (Cristobal Colon) sail for the west?

1550..  Cortez Conquest of Mexico

2.     Which Spanish Conquistador conquered Mexico in about 1500?

1585..  Roanoke, VA, first English colony, first white baby in America (Virginia Dare).

3.      When was the first English colony attempted in America?

4.      Who was the first baby of English descent born in America?

1587..  Queen Elizabeth authorizes the execution of Mary, Queen of Scots, for allegedly plotting against her.

5.      Why did English Queen Elizabeth execute (have killed) Mary, Queen of Scots?

1588.. The Spanish Armada is defeated by England and the weather.

6.      What helped the English defeat the Spanish Armada?

1590..  Roanoke, Virginia, the "lost" colony disappears.

7.     What happened to the “Lost colony in 1590?

1595..  Shakespeare wrote "A Midsummer's Nights Dream".

8.     What play did William Shakespeare write in 1595?

1605.. Hawke's Gunpowder Plot. Efforts at terrorism in England by Catholics motivated by their persecution.

1606.  Australia discovered by Dutch explorer Willem Janszoon.

9.        When was Australia discovered?

10.      Who discovered Australia?

1607.  105 London Company sponsored settlers arrive in Jamestown, Virginia from England. The first permanent colony, was motivated by economic reasons (as opposed to religious reasons), only moderately successful.)

11.     Where was the first permanent colony located in 1607?

12.     Was the Jamestown colony successful?

13.     How was the Jamestown colony different from the one at Plymouth?

1609..  On an expedition of discovery, Samuel de Champlain and his Huron allies battled a band of Iroquis on the Ticonderoga Peninsula in present day New York.

1609..  Hendrick Hudson was the first to explore the Hudson River as far north as present day Albany, New York. He was sailing for the Dutch East India Company. (He wasn't the first European to discover the river, however. That distinction belongs a hundred years earlier, to Giovanni da Verrazzano, an Italian sailing under the French flag.)

14.     What Spanish explorer sailed up the Hudson River  in the early 1500’s?

1610.  King Henry IV of France assassinated. Succeeded by nine year old son, King Louis XIII, who ruled till 1643.

15.     When King Henry of France was executed in 1610, how old was his son Louis XIII who became the new king?

16.     How long did French King Louis XIII rule France?

1612..  King James version of Bible published.

17.     When was the King James translation of the Bible published?

1612.. Thirty Years War begins on the continent of Europe.  Actions in Bohemia, ruled by the Habsburgs since 1529, led to a revolt which opened a general conflict between Catholic and Protestant Europe that was the most destructive war in Western society before the World Wars of the 20th Century.

18.    What terrible war destroyed much of Europe during the 1600’s ?

1614..  Pochahontas married John Rolfe.

19.    Who did Pocahontas (Matoaka) marry in 1614?

1618.. Thirty Years War continues in Europe. Civil war in Germany spreads to become a European War. Protestants against Catholics. French against the Spanish. Netherlands against the Spanish. What a mess. Many parts of Germany and central Europe devastated by years of conflict.

1620.. The Mayflower lands at Plymouth Rock, MA with the Pilgrims

1621.. The next year, the Pilgrims celebrate the first Thanksgiving

1622.. Indian massacre of 300 plus settlers in Virginia

1626..  The Dutch buy Manhattan Island for $24, a presence is established, but no large settlements.

1629.. The earliest Puritans in Massachusetts.