A huge viceroyalty
Open the map in 1650 and zoom out over Mexico and Central America. Find the Vice-Royalty of New Spain. From Mexico City, how far do its borders reach to the north and to the south?
Open this view on the mapViceroyalty of New Spain · 1535-1700
New Spain: life in a colonial society
From 1535 a Spanish viceroy ruled from Mexico City, built on the ruins of Tenochtitlan. Students explore a society of Indigenous towns, Spaniards, Africans and people of mixed ancestry, with its silver mines and printing presses, and a nun who fought for the right to learn.
- Length
- 50 minutes
- Ages
- 12–15
- On the map
- 3 steps, AD 1650
- Live lesson
- 7 rounds, 3 on the map
- Worksheet
- Two A4 pages, with Classroom
- You need
- A projector; phones for live
Live lesson · new in Classroom
Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.
Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.
€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.
- 7 rounds
- 3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
- About 15 minutes
- Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
- A report
- Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
Introduction
5 minRead aloud
From 1535 a Spanish viceroy ruled from Mexico City, built on the ruins of Tenochtitlan. Students explore a society of Indigenous towns, Spaniards, Africans and people of mixed ancestry, with its silver mines and printing presses, and a nun who fought for the right to learn.
By the end of the lesson, students can
- Describe the extent of New Spain and locate Mexico City, Zacatecas and Acapulco.
- Explain how Indigenous towns, Spaniards and people of African and mixed ancestry fitted into colonial society.
- Give examples of how Indigenous people used Spanish law and writing to defend themselves.
Explore the map
15 minProject the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.
Silver in the north
Zoom in on Zacatecas, north of Mexico City, where rich silver mines opened in 1546. Who lived in these dry lands before the Spaniards came, and why might they resist?
Open this view on the mapLinked to Asia
Turn on Trade Routes and follow the Manila Galleon from Acapulco across the Pacific. Asian silk, porcelain and spices reached Mexico City this way. What does this tell you about New Spain's place in the world?
Open this view on the mapClass discussion
15 minPick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.
- The Spaniards rebuilt Mexico City on the ruins of Tenochtitlan. Why would they choose that spot?
- Spanish law separated a "republic of Spaniards" from a "republic of Indians", each with its own councils. Did this protect Indigenous towns or hold them down?
- Many Indigenous towns took land disputes to Spanish courts, using documents written in Nahuatl. Why might the courts be worth trying?
- In 1691 the nun Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz defended women's right to study. Why was that bold in her time?
- Paintings of the 1700s sorted people into "castas" by ancestry. What does it say about a society when it ranks people by their parents?
Game round
10 minPlay one round of Rule History as Tokugawa Ieyasu, who sought trade with New Spain across the Pacific in the early 1600s. Afterwards, discuss: why did rulers on both sides of the Pacific want this trade, and what did ordinary people in New Spain gain or lose from it?
Open Rule HistoryWorksheet
5 minThis worksheet comes with Classroom
€19 per month unlocks every worksheet, every live lesson and the class workspace. The free lesson prints without a subscription.