Period 1: 1491-1607

What did Mayas, Incas, and Aztecs have in common?

They had organized societies, extensive trade, and created accurate calendars

What food did Central and South American tribes rely on?

• Mayas & Aztecs: corn/maize

• Incas: potatoes

What were social structures like in NA?

Men: hunted & made tools

Women: gathered plants, nuts, or grew crops

How many language families were there in NA?

20, which resulted in over 400 distinct languages among American Indians

Describe SW tribes like the Hohokam & Pueblos:

• They lived in caves, under cliffs, & in multi-story buildings

• Cultivated maize → irrigation systems & economic growth

  • Resulted in more wealth - creating social classes

Describe NW tribes like the Chinooks

• They lived in permanent longhouses and made totem poles to preserves stories

• Had rich diets from hunting, fishing, and gathering nuts/berries

  • The mountains they lived near provided a barrier & isolated them from other tribes

Describe tribes from the Great Basin/Plains:

• Most tribes hunted Buffalo for food, crafting tools, & clothing

• Nomadic tribes lived in tepees - easily transportable

• Farmer tribes settled by rivers and lived in earthen lodges - they grew crops like beans & traded

• They acquired horses in the 17th century, so tribes like the Sioux followed Buffalo herds

• Migration was common (e.g. Apache went south from Canada to Texas)

Describe Mississippi River Valley tribes like the Natchez:

• Rich diets from hunting, fishing, and agriculture

• Lived in villages of adobe houses & carved long canoes from Cypress trees

• Lots of permanent settlements

• Cahokia tribe was the largest midwest settlement (30k+)

Describe NE tribes

• Many moved to fresh land, since farming techniques exhausted the soil

• Iroquois Confederation: political union of 5 distinct tribes from NY - powerful during American Rev.

Describe Atlantic Seaboard tribes (NJ to FL)

* Descendants of woodland mound builders: built timber & bark lodgings near rivers
* Rivers + Atlantic Ocean = rich source of food

The 15-16th century Renaissance in Europe resulted in:

gunpowder, sailing compasses, and the printing press (for maps)

Queen Isabella & King Ferdinand united Spain under…

Christian faith & thus funded Columbus’s expedition

What was the Protestant Reformation?

A period in which early 16th century Christians in N. European country revolted against the Pope’s authority

* Resulted in various forms of Christianity → providing motive for exploration

Who blocked the main land route to Asia in the 15th century?

The Ottoman Turks

Portuguese Henry the Navigator did what?

Used a sea route to trade with Asia that went South along Africa’s west coast, and then East towards Asia

Columbus aimed to do what?

Sail West to find a shorter route to trade with Asia

What was the line of demarcation?

A line drawn by the Pope to separate territories claimed by Spain and Portugal

* Spain = west of line; Portugal = east

What was the Treaty of Tordesillas?

Portugal claimed Brazil & Spain the rest of the Americas

What was exchanged during the Columbian Exchange?

• European learned about beans, corn, potatoes, tomatoes, & tobacco; they contracted syphilis

  • Changed the diets of people in Eurasia → population growth

• Native Americans learned about sugar cane, bluegrasses, pigs, horses, the wheel, and guns

  • The native population rapidly declined due to disease like smallpox and measles, which they had no immunity to

As populations grew in Europe, what emerged?

Capitalism since there were new resources for trading

* Political power shifted to wealthy merchants

As capitalism emerged, what else did?

Joint-stock companies, which reduced individual risk and promoted economic growth

Spanish journeys secured Spain’s initial supremacy in the Americas because…

They had lots of gold & silver

* e.g) Cortés’ conquest of the Aztecs & Pizarro’s conquest of the Incas

What was the encomienda system?

Encomenderos (Spaniards) were granted a portion of land, and the Natives who lived on the land became laborers in farms/the mines

What caused the downfall of the encomienda system?

Catholics in opposition to the system (Bartolomé de Las Casas), Mestizos not being forced to work, & more enslaved Africans

What was the asiento system?

colonists paid a tax to the Spanish king for each slave they imported to America

What was the Spanish Caste system?

A rigid class system that was dominated by pure-blooded Spaniards

Who was Bartolomé de las Casas?

an advocate for better treatment of Indians who pushed the New Laws of 1542, which ended Indian slavery and led to the downfall of the encomienda system

What was the Valladolid Debate about?

the role of Indians in Spanish colonies

• Las Casas argued that Europeans were morally equal to Indians

• de Sepúlveda argued Indians were less than human

Initially, English settlers & Indians..

coexisted & traded

* e.g) Indians taught settlers how to grow corn, hunt, and traded furs for English goods like tools

What eventually happened between the English and Native Americans?

The English seized the Indians’ land for their growing population and expelled the Natives

The French viewed Native Americans as…

potential economic and military allies - so they built good relationships

* The French had trading posts in the Great Lakes & Mississippi River, they exchanged their goods for fur

How did Native Americans try to protect their cultures?

By making alliances with one European power or another or by migrating west

What were some of the underlying causes of the Columbian Exchange?

The 3 G’s: god, gold, and glory