1.4

Foundations of American State Development

• Historical Context and Transitions: Following the decline of the Olmecs in Mesoamerica and the Chavin in the Andes, several new civilizations arose, including the Mayans, Aztecs, and Incas. Simultaneously, the first large-scale civilization in North America emerged.

• Common Characteristics: Similar to civilizations in Afro-Eurasia, these American states developed strong government structures, large urban centers, and complex belief systems.

• Sources of Knowledge: Current understanding of these civilizations is derived from three primary sources:     * Archaeological evidence.     * Oral traditions.     * Writings by Europeans who arrived in the Americas after $1492$.

• Aztec Literary Heritage: One recorded surviving poem by the Aztec poet Nezahualcoyotl ($1402$-$1472$) emphasizes the love of nature and humanity: "I love the song of the mockingbird, / Bird of four hundred voices, / I love the color of jade / And the intoxicating scent of flowers, / But more than all I love my brother, man!"

The Mississippian Culture

• Emergence and Location: The first large-scale civilization in North America appeared in the $700s$ or $800s$ C.E. in the Eastern United States, specifically the Mississippi River Valley.

• Architectural Innovation: Unlike other cultures that utilized stone buildings, the Mississippians constructed enormous earthen mounds.     * The largest of these is Cahokia, located in southern Illinois.     * Some mounds reached heights of $100\,\text{feet}$ and covered areas equivalent to $12$ football fields.

• Government and Social Structure: Society was organized under a rigid class hierarchy:     * The Great Sun: A chief who ruled each large town.     * Upper Class: Composed of priests and nobles.     * Lower Class: Composed of farmers, hunters, merchants, and artisans.     * Bottom Class: Slaves, who were typically prisoners of war.

• Gender Roles: Men generally practiced hunting while women were responsible for farming.

• Matrilineal Society: Social standing was determined by the woman’s side of the family.     * Example: When a Great Sun died, the title passed to his sister’s son rather than his own son.

• Civilization Decline:     * Cahokia was abandoned around $1450$.     * Other large cities were abandoned by $1600$.     * Theories of Decline:         1. Flooding or weather extremes caused crop failures and agricultural collapse.         2. European diseases decimated the population.

Chaco and Mesa Verde Civilizations

• Environment and Adaptations: These cultures emerged in the Southwestern United States. Living in a dry climate, they developed systems for efficient water collection, transportation, and storage. Due to a lack of large trees, wood was scarce for building materials.

• The Chaco Culture: Known for building large housing structures from stone and clay, some containing hundreds of rooms.

• The Mesa Verde Culture: Known for constructing multi-story homes directly into the sides of sandstone cliffs using bricks.

• Decline: Both groups declined in the late $13th$ century as the regional climate became increasingly dry.

The Maya City-States

• Chronology and Geography: Mayan civilization peaked between $250$ and $900\,\text{C.E.}$ spread across southern Mexico, Belize, Honduras, and Guatemala.

• Demographics: Included approximately $40$ cities ranging from $5,000$ to $50,000$ people. At its height, the total population reached near $2\,million$.

• Political Structure: The primary form of government was the city-state, consisting of a city and its surrounding territory.     * Leadership: Usually ruled by men; however, women ruled when no male heir was available or old enough.     * Conflict and Tribute: Wars were frequent but rarely fought for territory. Instead, they were fought to gain tribute (payments from the conquered) and captives for human sacrifice in religious ceremonies.     * Divine Right: Kings claimed descent from gods and were believed to become one with their ancestor-god upon death.     * Administration: Kings directed elite scribes and priests. Commoners paid taxes (mostly crops) and provided labor and military service, as there were no standing armies.

• Science and Technology:     * Incorporated the concept of zero into their number system.     * Developed a complex writing system.     * Manufactured rubber from the liquid of rubber plants.

• Astronomy and Religion:     * Science and religion were linked; priests used the calendar to decide on war and ceremonies.     * Built precise observatories on pyramids, such as the one at Chichen Itza, allowing for a calendar more accurate than those in contemporary Europe.     * Deities: Honored many gods, specifically those associated with the sun, rain, and corn.

The Aztec (Mexica) Empire

• Origins: Originally hunter-gatherers from the north, they migrated to central Mexico in the $1200s$.

• Capital City: Tenochtitlan: Founded in $1325$ on an island in a swampy lake (now Mexico City) for protection.     * Population: Grew to almost $200,000$.     * Infrastructure: Built a network of stone aqueducts and a $150\text{-foot}$ Great Pyramid.     * Chinampas: Floating gardens built on Lake Texcoco to increase food production. They also used irrigation ditches and drainage systems.

• Government and Hierarchy: The state was a theocracy ruled by religious leaders.     * The Great Speaker: The emperor, who was the political ruler and divine representative of the gods.     * Social Order: Land-owning nobles (military leaders) > Scribes and healers > Craftspeople and traders > Pochteca (special merchant class trading luxury goods) > Peasants and soldiers > Enslaved people (often due to debt or crime punishment).

• Tribute System: Conquered people paid tribute (food, cloth, firewood, feathers, beads, jewelry), surrendered land, and provided military service. Local rulers often stayed in power as tribute collectors.

• Religious Practices:     * Worshipped hundreds of deities, often with dual male/female aspects.     * Sacrifice: Believed gods sacrificed themselves to create the world; human sacrifice and blood-letting were acts of atonement.

• Role of Women: Women were central to the tribute system as weavers of cloth. Some were priestesses, midwives, healers, merchants, or scribes to royal families.

• Decline Factors:     * Low technology level (no wheels or pack animals) made agriculture arduous.     * Over-expansion beyond reasonable governance.     * High resentment from conquered tribes due to tribute and sacrifice extraction, leading many to aid Spaniards in $1519$.

The Incan Empire

• Origins: In $1438$, Pachacuti ("transformer of the earth") began conquering tribes near Cuzco, Peru. His grandson, Huayna Capac ($1493$), focused on consolidating these lands.

• Organization: The empire was divided into four provinces, each with a governor and bureaucracy.

• The Mit'a System: Unlike the Aztecs, the Inca did not require tribute. Instead, they used mandatory public service for men aged $15$ to $50$ for agriculture and construction of roads.

• Religion:     * Inti: The sun god and most important deity. The Temple of the Sun in Cuzco was the core of Incan religion.     * Royal Ancestor Veneration: Dead rulers were mummified and thought to retain ownership of their property. New rulers had to conquer new land to acquire wealth, which motivated constant expansion.     * Animism (Huaca): Belief that elements of the physical world (mountains, rivers, or even stones) possessed supernatural powers.     * Priests' Role: Determined the gods' will through divination (e.g., studying coca leaves or spider movements), diagnosed illness, and predicted battle outcomes.

• Achievements:     * Quipu: A system of knotted strings for recording numerical data.     * Waru Waru: Terrace systems with raised beds and channels to store water and prevent erosion.     * Carpa Nan: A massive roadway system spanning $25,000\,\text{miles}$.

• Decline:     * Civil war of succession following the death of Huayna Capac.     * Arrival of Francisco Pizarro in $1532$.     * European diseases.     * The empire fell by $1533$, though outposts lasted until $1572$.

Comparative Summary and Continuities

• The Olmec Influence: Many historians argue that Mesoamerican cultures are related through the Olmec civilization. Features adopted by later cultures include:     * The feathered snake-god.     * Pottery styles.     * Ritual sacrifices, pyramids, and ball courts.

• Comparison Chart Data:     * Maya ($400$-$1517$): Mexico/Central America; Corn/Beans/Squash; Moderate trade; Polytheistic; City-states with kings; Writing, step pyramids, accurate calendar; Declined due to drought/deforestation.     * Aztec ($1200$-$1521$): Central Mexico; Corn/Beans/Squash/Tomatoes; Extensive trade; Polytheistic; Powerful king/Tribute system; Chinampas, step pyramids, accurate calendar; Declined due to European disease, rebellion, and Spanish attacks.     * Inca ($1200$-$1533$): Andes (South America); Corn/Cotton/Potatoes; Limited trade; Polytheistic; Powerful king/Mit'a system; Waru waru, roads, masonry; Declined due to disease, civil war, and Spanish attacks.

Questions & Discussion

• Primary Source Analysis: Codex Magliabecchi:     * Question: If you were developing an argument about the Aztec population's attitude toward human sacrifice, what evidence might you use from the illustration of an Aztec sacrifice ritual offering a heart to the war god Huitzilopochtli, and what argument might it support?     * Contextual Answer: Primary sources like the Codex provide firsthand records. An illustration might show the ritualistic precision or the religious solemnity, supporting an argument that sacrifice was a deeply integrated, pious necessity rather than mere cruelty, or conversely, it could be used to illustrate the power dynamic between the state and those sacrificed.