Lap 1 Am Hist. Mini Test 1

Know how, when, and why early people came to the Americas:

The land bridge that was between Asia and the Americas. 15,000 to 20,000 years ago. Hunter-gatherers following herds of animals seeking food sources. 

Know what most determined the new lifestyles of early peoples:

Geography and environment, climate, social structure, diets, cultural practices. 

Know how the end of the Ice Age impacted the lifestyle/ diet of early Americans:

Large animals went extinct, encouraged permanent settlement, population growth, cultivation of crops like maize, beans, and squash

Know how the Treaty of Tordesillas impacted political control of the Americas:

Division of land, Spain controlled lands to the west of the line (North and South America), granting them early dominance. Portugal received lands to the east, gaining Brazil and African trade routes. 

Know benefits of the Columbian Exchange/ interaction with Natives:

Introduced new world crops, changing diets, gained new livestock, as well as new technology.

Know several conflicts/ issues between European settlers and the Natives:

Took their land, disregarded their culture, tried to convert them to Christianity and replace indigenous customs, brought disease, armed conflicts.

Know characteristics of the Middle Passage:

Unsanitary, extreme heat, poor nutrition, high mortality, dehumanization

Know reasons why the Virginia Company failed:

Failed to find gold, disease, starvation

Know how colonial society changed following Bacon’s Rebellion:

Shift to enslaved labor, indentured servants, stricter slave codes, western expansion against Indian removal policies. 

Know three ways the colonies were tied to Britain in the 1700s:

Navigation Acts, flow of raw materials, manufactured goods flowed back from Britain, governed by royal governors, adopted British consumer goods, religion, literature, press, social values.

Know the main issue causing the French and Indian War and how GB won:

Territorial conflict wanting control over the Ohio River Valley. British prime minister poured financial resources into the war and sent professional army forces; naval blockades cut off French supply lines, capture of key French strongholds.

Define Line of Demarcation

Imaginary line drawn dividing newly discovered lands between Spain and Portugal. 

Define: Separatist Puritans:

A fraction of Puritans who believed the Church of England was beyond reform and chose to completely separate from it.

Define: Head-right system:

Land gift/ award for bringing indentured servants to America. 

Define: Indentured servants

Laborers, voluntary migrants, working to pay off ticket to America.

Define: cash crops:

Crops that make money, not produced for local consumption by the farmer.

Define: Slave codes:

Laws that decide what slaves can and can’t do. 

Define: Middle Colonies:

Central region of the Thirteen Colonies known for its ethnic and religious pluralism, fertile soil, and massive grain production.

Define: Navigation Acts

A series of mercantilist laws passed by the British Parliament, requiring colonial trade to be conducted primarily on British ships and forcing certain valuable American goods to be shipped only to Great Britain or other British ports.

Contrast the two early motivations for English settlement in North America (VA/ Ply):

Virginia- Economic motivation. Plymouth- Religious motivation

Contrast the interaction between settlers and Natives in Virginia and New England:

Virginia- Relations quickly descended into brutal, open warfare over land encroachment; New England- Initial relations featured trade and diplomacy, but rapidly devolved into large-scale warfare. 

Relate the Pequot War and King Philip’s War:

Both wars represent escalating English aggression and Native resistance in New England.

Pequot War- Set the precedent of extreme violence and annihilation tactics by English colonists against Indigenous tribes.

King Philip's War- A direct long-term consequence of continued colonial expansion following the Pequot War, marking the final major unified Native effort to drive out English settlers from New England.  

Effect: results of cooperation and conflict between Natives and Europeans:

Cooperation: Enabled early survival for European colonists through native agricultural knowledge, fur trading networks, and temporary military alliances.

Conflict: Led to the drastic reduction of Indigenous populations via warfare, loss of ancestral lands, forced removal, and the eventual destruction of traditional native trade structures and tribal autonomy.

Contrast different settlement patterns, economics, and labor in VA and Plymouth:

Virginia:Settlement: Dispersed rural plantations along riverways. Economics: Agrarian economy based entirely on cash crops (tobacco). Labor: Heavily reliant on indentured servants initially, transitioning to enslaved African labor.

Plymouth (New England):Settlement: Concentrated, close-knit town centers centered around the church. Economics: Diversified economy featuring subsistence farming, fishing, lumber, and shipbuilding. Labor: Mainly family labor and local community cooperation, with minimal reliance on large-scale indentured servitude or slavery.

Contrast social characteristics (family/pop growth) in VA+ MA:

Virginia (Chesapeake): High mortality rates, unbalanced sex ratio (predominantly young single men), slow natural population growth initially dependent on continuous immigration, and fragile family structures.

Massachusetts (New England): High life expectancy, balanced sex ratio with settlers arriving as intact family units, rapid natural population growth, and strong, religion-centered community structures