The Last Conquistador
Student Organizer Answer Key
1. Why did racial mixing occur during the time of Spanish colonization?
When the Spanish settlers came to what is now the United States, very few
women came with them. As a result, many Spaniards developed relationships
with Native American women, and from many of these relationships, mixed
race children were born.
2. Who was the “Last Conquistador”?
The Last Conquistador refers to a man named Juan de Oñate, a Spanish
colonist who was known for brutally subduing the Pueblo Indians.
3. What did the Spanish settlers do as a result of the racial mixing that occurred?
In response to the racial mixing that happened between Spaniards and Native
Americans, the Spaniards developed a class system based on color.
4. From where do the terms “mulatto” and “mestizo” originate? What do these
words mean?
These terms were used to describe people of mixed races. “Mulatto” refers to a
person with black and white ancestry, but can also include other ethnicities.
“Mestizo” refers to someone of mixed race.
5. What “color” were the people in charge in the Spanish colonies?
According to the video segment, the “whitest” people were in charge in the
Spanish colonies.
6. What did people do in order to keep their families “white”?
In order to keep their families as white as possible, Spaniards entered into
incestuous marriages, where they married family members in order to keep
their race “pure.”