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What were Native Americans like before European contact?

Native Americans lived in tribes across the Americas, each of their lives differed heavily based on the environment lived in. For example, people who lived by the coast relied on fishing while people who lived in the plains were more nomadic and relied on hunting and gathering. However, the large amount of diversity between the tribes meant that it's hard to pinpoint the native tribal life.

Christopher Columbus

Explorer/voyager who ACCIDENTALLY discovered the New World (the Americas) in 1492 and brought back native people to Spain as "trophies," thus introducing the idea and process of enslaving Native Americans. His voyages also kicked off the later mass settlements in the America.

Encomienda System

Spanish systems that gave landlords the ability to enslave and control the Native Americans to use as labor. This demonstrated Europeans' cruelty toward native people and caused the development of resentment of the natives which later led to revolts and uprisings like the Pueblo Revolt.

The Pueblo Revolt

1680: A revolt by the Pueblo tribe against the encomienda system (Spanish). It was temporarily successful, kept the Spanish away for a while, but they came back. However, the revolt did lead to less restrictions and looser rules.

Mestizos

Interracial people/people who are mixed race as a result of intermarriage between the Europeans and Natives. The Europeans benefited the most, although the natives did also receive some benefits including domesticated animals (horses were especially important), iron/metal goods, and newer technology such as weapons like guns. Culture exchanges included the natives being introduced to some form of Christianity or Catholicism, especially with many settlers attempting to convert them. However, the Europeans also brought along numerous diseases like influenza, Measels, and smallpox, causing epidemics to spread across the native populations, causing almost 90% (not too sure) of natives to die of disease. Europeans got many goods like fur and crops like maize, potatoes, etc., which became staples when sent back to Europe. Idea exchange included learning the natives' farming techniques which helped the settlers adapt to the new environment. Culture exchange included learning about the natives' religions though most colonies looked down on them thought of that as a "sin" or problem that should be solved through conversion. The last big factor of this collision was intermarriage which grew and caused the development of mestizos, or interracial people. This soon developed racial categories and a hierarchy.

Columbian Exchange

1492-1800s (?): The exchange of culture, goods, ideas, technologies, as well as diseases between the Old and New Worlds.

African Slave Trade

1526-1867: African people were shipped to the Americas as demands for labor became heavier since Native American populations decreased, and indentured servant prices went up.

Spanish Colonization

Goal: Get gold and get rich => spread Catholicism

Population: Large population, mostly men

Relationship with Natives: Violence, control/slavery (encomienda system), intermarriage

French Colonization

Goal: Trade (especially fur) & convert to Catholicism

Population: Small numbers, males

Relationship with Natives: Trade, mostly equal, more friendly and peaceful compared to others (Spanish and British)

British Colonization

Goal: Get gold and get rich, get religious freedom (Puritans, Separatists, etc.)

Settlers: Small number or large depending on colony, mostly men (other than Massachusetts Bay)

Relationship with Natives: Violence, control/slavery, exclusion, conversion, little intermarriage

Chesapeake Colonies

Areas: Maryland, Virginia

Known settlements: Jamestown

Environment: Marshy, hot/humid, fertile soil

Economy: Tobacco (plantations)

Labor force: Mostly indentured servants, later converted to slavery

Population/demographics: Mostly single men (smaller population, more intermarriage), unstable family structures, big wealth gap

Religion: Church of England

Goals: Find gold, get rich

Treatment of Natives: HORRIBLE (typical violence, control, land claim, etc.)

New England Colonies

Areas: Massachusetts, Rhode Island (first free religion), New Hampshire, Connecticut

Known settlements: Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth

Environment: Rocky, cold

Labor force: Family labor

Economy: Family farms, fishing (poor)

Population/demographics: Many families, more equal ratio of men to women, mostly middle class, smaller wealth gap

Religion: Puritans, Separatist

Goals: Religion freedom

Treatment of Natives: HORRIBLE (typical violence, control, land claim, etc.)

Middle Colonies

Areas: New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania ("haven" out of colonies, free religion, peaceful relations with natives, etc.), Delaware

Known settlements:

Environment: Mild weather, coast, plains, hills

Labor force:

Economy: Diverse (mostly agricultural), crops, minor include logging, textiles, etc.

Population/demographics: Pretty diverse, mostly middle class (smaller wealth gap)

Religion: Pretty diverse (Penn is Quakers but still free religion)

Goals: Free religion, economic reasons

Treatment of Natives: Penn was peaceful with Natives

Southern Colonies

Areas: Carolinas, Georgia

Known settlements:

Environment: Hot/humid, swampy, fertile soil (good for plantation)

Labor force: Majority slaves

Economy: Farming/agriculture, tobacco, rice, indigo

Population/demographics: Mostly slaves with fraction of wealthy landowners, big wealth gap

Religion: Mostly Anglican, few Catholic/Baptist (not giant role)

Goals: Economic (start plantations)/make profit

Treatment of Natives: Honestly, I think my best guess is typical violence and stuff, but there was also a lot of violence in slaves

Caribbean Colonies

Areas: Caribbeans

Known settlements: Barbados

Environment: Hot/humid

Labor force: Majority slaves

Economy: Sugar (plantations)

Population/demographics: Mostly slaves with fraction of wealthy landowners, big wealth gap

Religion:

Goals: Economic (exploit on sugar plantations)

Treatment of Natives: Honestly, I think most of the natives died by now and it was mostly violence on the slaves

Jamestown

1607: The first successful British settlement in Virginia led by John Smith. It's a charter colony meaning that the crown gave a group of people, in this case the Virginia Join Stock Company, to start and maintain a colony. The settlers struggled with surviving (The Starving Time), however they eventually grew due to tobacco.

The Starving Time

The period of time in Jamestown where colonists starved to death, nearly wiping out the colony.

John Smith

The leader of Jamestown who was captured by the Powhatan Indians and held captive for a short period of time. After his release, Smith later went to write two books about his capture, which contradicted each other. This sparked the debate of whether or not Pocahontas saved his life or not.

The Virginia Joint Stock Company

The company that owned the Jamestown settlement, they fell though

The Powhatan Uprisings (Not a YNTK or anything)

After the chief Powhatan died, his son led a series of uprisings against the colonists, but were eventually taken down.

Class Discussion Q: Did Pocahontas save John Smith's life?

No, most evidence points to either John Smith making up the Pocahontas story for fame since she knew the queen, or he misread the situation (situation being that he was in a ritual and Pocahontas was his sponsor).

Indentured Servants

Servants who signed a contract that bound them to a master, working for them in return for passage to the New World, shelter, and food (while they worked). They were later freed and most hoped to own their own land, however they were often too poor to afford any. This led to a rise in the lower (free) class. This also led to a greater demand for land, leading to more conflict along the borders with the natives, as well as just taking their land.

Bacon's Rebellion

1676: A conflict led by Nathaniel Bacon (freed indentured) between the Indians, lower class/indentured servants, and upper-class colonists. The indentured servants lived at the borders, not having enough money for land. The government banned expanding into native land in fear of conflict. However, the lower class constantly had conflicts with the Indians, leading to raids by the Doeg Indians. The government did not protect these people, and so they fought back. This led to anger from the government and the lower class frustrated, rebelled. This demonstrated how having a continuous flow of indentured servant was unwise and led to instable colonial relations. It also caused the greater need to restrict these people, leading to the transition and reliance on slavery.

Protestants

Those who protested against the Roman Catholic Church

Puritans

"English Protestants" who wanted to "purify" the Church of England/Anglican Church because they thought it was still too similar to the Catholic Church. Had NO wish to leave it though, just wanted to improve it.

Separatists

Radical Puritans who wanted to abandon the Church of England/Anglican Church

Pilgrims

A group of English Separatists who moved to Holland for religious freedom but left because they didn't like it there. So, they decided to go to the New World in the Mayflower. They landed in Plymouth, Massachusetts and wrote the Mayflower Compact. They survived due to the help of the native Indians, thus the first Thanksgiving. What came after it was war :). They also later joined with the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Mayflower Compact

1620: The agreement between the people on the Mayflower (signed by the men) which became one of the first demonstrations of democracy as well as one of the first political frameworks in the New World.

Plymouth

1624: Plymouth was the settlement created by the Pilgrims in Massachusetts.

John Winthrop

John Winthrop (1588-1649) was the leader of the Puritans when they moved to the New World, starting the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He started the idea of "A City on a Hill"

City on a Hill

A City on a Hill references to a beacon of light, essentially saying that John Winthrop wanted to make the Massachusetts Bay Colony/the New World a beacon of light. This concept became popularized in America where America was a "beacon of light" for those who were lost (Similar to the idea of an "American Dream").

Massachusetts Bay Colony

1629: An English settlement in present day Massachusetts Colony founded by John Winthrop. Its economy was mainly composed of family farms. The living conditions were slightly better due to more families and middle-class people making up the population. This led to less wealth gap.

Dissenters

Nonconformists who disagreed with the Puritan Church. These people challenged religious and societal norms in the Puritan colonies (Massachusetts), but were exiled because of it. Examples include Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson.

Roger Williams

1603-1683: A dissenter who disagreed with the Puritan church. He was exiled from the Massachusetts colony and went on to create the Rhode Island Colony, a colony that practiced religion tolerance, becoming an attractive place for people who seek for religious freedom.

Anne Hutchinsion

1591 baptized: A dissenter who fought and advocated for women's rights and education. She also believed that people did not have to prove and express their religious beliefs/commitment through external things like visiting church, but religion is more of an inner thing.

The Pequot War

A conflict in 1637 where Pequot Indians had conflict with the Massachusetts Bay colonies and their Native American allies (rival tribes). They burned down Pequot Indians' village, almost wiping them out.

King Philip's War

1675: "King Philip"/Metacomet led an uprising which almost wiped out an English settlement. This demonstrated the strongest of the Native American uprisings, but also how they were never strong enough to overpower the colonists.

William Penn

A Quaker who founded Pennsylvania, which became the "haven" among the colonies due to its religious tolerance. They also had peaceful relationships with the natives.

Quakers

Dissenters who followed William Penn to Pennsylvania. They seem to be milder people and less violent with the natives. They were guided by an "Inner Light". Women were = to men, democratic.

Pennsylvania Colony

1660s: The colony founded by William Penn and the Quakers. It was known as the "haven" among the colonies for its peaceful community and religious tolerance.

Caribbean economy

The Caribbean economy relied heavily on sugar plantations and sugar trade. Due to the harsh conditions of sugar planting, this led to the heavy reliance on slavery.

Caribbean demographics + effects

Sugar planting relied heavily on slavery, causing the slave population to outnumber the white population massively (4:1). There were few women. This led to instability in the population.

British relations with Native Americans

The British and the Native Americans have a "trading rivalry", or they hated each other but they also traded with each other. The British were greedy and always wanted to take more land from the natives, leading to a lot of border skirmishes. The British didn't even try to have peaceful relationships with the natives, and there was little intermarriage because they were disgusted of the natives since they were "savages" and "primitive beings", and they didn't want to mix with them (a little fear of getting influenced by them?). It's mostly just wanting to take the natives' land though.

Mercantilism

1500s, 1600s, 1700s: The concept of gaining wealth through establishing colonies and extracting its wealth by taking its raw materials like sugar and lumber. They repaid the colonies using finished products like run and furniture. This led to the competition for colonies and resources.

Indentured Servitude

Indentured servants were people who signed a contract giving them a paid passage to the Americas and in return, would have to pay off the debt through work. Most people wanted to own their own land after they were freed. However, as more they soon realized that their wishes were unrealistic, as most people were too poor to own land. This led to a lot of anger and frustration in the lower class. As more indentured servants migrated, the need for land also grew. This led to more border skirmishes with the natives. However, as time went on, the people in England became wealthier, Bacon's rebellion demonstrated the danger of using indentured servants, and people realized the harsh reality of living as an indentured servant, causing the indentured population to go down. IMPORTANT: This caused a lot of landowners to import slaves, leading to the slave trade booming in the colonies.

Role/place of women in the Chesapeake

Since death rates were very high in Chesapeake, the familial structure was very unstable and uncertain. The low population also led to less regulations on sexual intercourse, which meant more unmarried pregnancies. Even though most women give birth about 8 times, 5 out of 8 children would die at infancy due to the harsh conditions. Women who outlived their husbands also had the opportunity to take over his land.

Role/place of women in New England

In New England, death rates were low, with the longest life expectancy of around 70 years. This caused women to have more of a tradition "helpmate" position in the family. Most served as a housewife/servant in the house and focused on raising kids. They also gave birth to around 6-8 kids, but most end up surviving.

Role/place of women in the colonies

Generally, a lower status, most being unable to own land, and most were housewives. This treatment had been pretty universal in Europe before the formation of the colonies, making sexual inequality rooted in society. This view was part of the culture since the beginning and is the core cause of the fight for women's rights even today.

Birth Rates/Life Expectancy

Birth rates were high throughout colonies, but the survival through infancy depended on the colonies/conditions. The Chesapeake colony had low survival rates while the New England colony had high survival rates. Similarly, the Chesapeake colony had low life expectancy with the New England colonies having long ones up to 70 years.

Medicine in the colonies

Medicine was very primitive in the 17th and 18th century. Most believed in "hal..." which was the belief that there are 4 bodily liquids and sickness meant an imbalance between them. This led to very bad "healing techniques" of force vomiting, bleeding out, etc.

The Middle Passage

The Middle Passage is the middle leg of the Atlantic Trade which imported slaves from Africa to the Americas. This was the most brutal voyage in this trade system (it's honestly too brutal to put into words), with forcing the slaves to lie down in coffles/lines and stay there for the entire voyage (~2-3 months). Some didn't even make the brutal journey. This just demonstrated how much the Europeans dehumanized these slaves, and ultimately laid the groundwork for the abuse that laid ahead of them.

Evolution of Slavery in the Colonies

1670s: Slaves and indentured servants worked together on fields, there were less slaves and more indentured servants. Racial segregation/distinction wasn't prevalent then.

1670s: Bacon's Rebellion demonstrated the instability of using indentured servants, causing the landowners to have a need for stronger regulations over their laborers, thus the transition over to slaves. You can also say that one of the reasons there were so many harsh rules on slaves was because of this event.

1700s: The Chesapeake colonies reach the point where they no longer need any more imported slaves and can rely on natural birth to keep the population going. At the same time, the southern colonies still struggle with high danger working conditions and high death rates, meaning that they still needed more slaves to be imported.