APUSH Pre-Columbian to Early Colonial Era Study Notes

Aztec empire / Tenochtitlán (1345–1521)

• Timeline: $1345-1521$; capital was Tenochtitlán.
• Arrival of the conquistadores and Hernán Cortés marked the start of the empire’s fall.
• Smallpox spread through the city and played to the Spanish advantage in the conquest.

Inca kingdom (early 1400s – mid 1500s)

• Location: Andes region, mainly in Peru.
• Timeline: $early 1400s$ to $mid 1500s$.
• Conquered by Pizarro in 1533, with help from other indigenous groups tired of Inca rule.

Mound builders / Cahokia (Adena-Hopewell) (c. 800–1250 CE; BCE–1400s)

• Indigenous society along and around the Mississippi River; also called Hopewell-Adena or Mississippians.
• Structure: hierarchical society with sedentary farming and long-distance trade.
• Cahokia was the capital at its height (c. $800-1250 ext{ CE}$); by $1250$ its population equalled London’s.

Hopi / Zuni / Pueblo

• Hopi: tribe in northeastern Arizona; advanced irrigation techniques; preserve traditional culture while integrating modern life.
• Zuni: tribe in west-central area near the Arizona border; kin-based organization with 13 matrilineal clans.
• Pueblo: Southwestern American groups; unique agriculture and cultural traditions.
• Pueblo formation linked to the end of the Medieval Warm Period.
• Note: Pueblo = town; reflects small-scale, manageable communities.

Native Americans of Eastern North America / Great League of Peace (Haudenosaunee)

• After the Medieval period, large cities were harder to sustain in Eastern North America.
• Great League of Peace (Haudenosaunee) formed to unite various groups.
• Confederacy included cooperation among multiple nations in the region.

Conquistadores / Cortés / Pizarro

• Conquistadores = conquerors; expansion driven by wealth, glory, and Catholicism.
• Hernán Cortés: arrived 1519; landed on the coast of Mexico and moved toward Tenochtitlán (Aztec capital).
• Francesco Pizarro: conquered the Inca kingdom in Peru a few years after Cortés (1533 for the Inca conquest).
• Relative driving forces: violence used to subdue natives; alliances with rival indigenous groups.

Christopher Columbus / Amerigo Vespucci

• Columbus (Genoa mariner): sponsored by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella; setting off westward aimed at reaching Asia/The Indies; explored the Bahamas, Hispaniola, and Cuba in 1492; returned with 17 ships and 1,000+ men to establish a Spanish outpost.
• Vespucci: Italian explorer; explored the south American coast in 1502; realized two unknown continents existed; the name "America" derives from Amerigo Vespucci.
• Terminology: term “Indians” persisted for indigenous peoples; Conquistadores sought wealth, glory, and to spread Catholicism; violence used to compel submission rather than purely civilizing efforts.

Columbian Exchange

• Definition: Transatlantic flow of goods and people that reshaped world ecosystems and cultures.
• Americas to Europe/Africa/Asia: corn ($Maize$), tomatoes, potatoes, tobacco, chili peppers.
• Europe/Africa/Asia to the Americas: wheat, rice, horses/livestock, and other crops.
• Disease transmission: germs and diseases brought by Europeans caused massive impacts on Native populations; disease amplified under conditions of forced displacement and labor.
• Native responses: quarantines, isolation, basic nursing/remedies to prevent spread.

Bartolomé de Las Casas / Black Legend / Casta system

• Bartolomé de Las Casas: Dominican priest; published accounts in the 1520s about atrocities against indigenous peoples; freed his own native slaves and preached against Spanish cruelty.
• Key ideas: asserted the humanity and liberty of indigenous peoples; argued for universal rights ("the entire human race is one").
• 1542 law: Spain prohibited enslaving natives after his warnings.
• Black Legend: Spanish reputation as brutal colonizers; used to justify European challenges to Spain’s dominance in the Americas.
• Casta system (AMSCO term): hierarchical sorting by race/heritage in colonial society.

Protestant Reformation (16th century)

• Martin Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses criticized church corruption and indulgences.
• Proposed that Christians should read and interpret the Bible themselves rather than relying solely on priests.
• Led to the establishment of Protestant churches separate from Rome; contributed to religious and political conflicts in Europe.

Repartimiento system

• Native towns required to provide a fixed amount of labor for Spanish mines or farms annually.
• Towns were governed by native rulers and had their own laws, provided annual tribute was paid.

Social/Racial hierarchy in the Spanish colonies

• 1st: Peninsulares — people of European descent who came from Spain.
• 2nd: Creoles — people of European descent born in the colonies.
• 3rd: Mestizos/Mulattoes — people of mixed descent (Native + European or African + European).
• 4th: Enslaved people — Native American and African laborers.

New France / métis

• New France: colonial stretch in North America; population smaller and more reliant on good relations with Native nations.
• Métis: people of mixed Indigenous and European (often French) ancestry; cultural and economic exchanges formed communities.
• Population and geography details from the period: alliances with Native nations were central to survival and expansion.

Pueblo Revolt (1680)

• Complete rebellion against Spanish rule in 1680; led by Popé (born ~1640s–1630s; died 1690); ~2,000 warriors participated.
• Attacks killed ~400 colonists, including 21 missionaries.
• Spanish were forced to abandon the colony; churches burned; Pueblo religious practices (including kivas) resumed.
• Aftermath: Spanish later allowed greater tolerance toward native religion and reduced forced labor.

New Spain / Spanish colonies

• Geography: colonies extended from the Andes to present-day Mexico, the Caribbean, Florida, and the southwestern United States.
• Scale: described as larger than the Roman Empire in some notes; extensive riverine frontiers along the Mississippi River valley and the St. Lawrence river.
• Demographics: colonial population remained relatively small; heavy reliance on Native American labor.
• 1700 estimates for New France: approximately $19{,}000$ white inhabitants; cautious emigration due to trade concerns; emphasis on alliances with Native nations.

New Netherland / New Amsterdam

• Henry Hudson (mid-1600s) explored and sailed into New York Harbor; first Europeans to navigate the Hudson River.
• Dutch claims established: New Netherland / New Amsterdam as a haven for Protestants and a diverse population.
• Social structure: greater independence for women (e.g., court access, property ownership, etc.); men often left possessions to widows and daughters.
• Economic and political ties: trade partners and allies with the Mohawks; population around $9{,}000$ in mid-1600s.

Transatlantic Trade / Exchange (Triangular trade)

• Definition: trade across the Atlantic among Africa, the Americas, and Europe.
• Nature: exchange of goods, crops, animals, people, and culture; cyclical trade routes and mutual influence across continents.

Little Ice Age

• Timeline: began around $1250$; climate cooling that affected agriculture and urban life.
• Effects: cities and large-scale agriculture became harder to sustain; increased social and political stress; some communities migrated to smaller towns and farms.

Medieval Warm Period

• Timeline: roughly $950-1250$; warmer climate that enabled agricultural expansion and urban growth.
• Consequences: longer growing seasons and more predictable weather contributed to urban development prior to the Little Ice Age.

Native American Societies (Leadership, descent, and culture)

• Leadership: often from specific families or clans; nations claimed land for hunting, gathering, and fishing.
• Land usage: land viewed as a resource rather than a monetary commodity.
• Leader’s legitimacy: tied to generosity toward followers and communal welfare.
• Social structure: less extreme wealth inequality than in Europe; many societies were matrilineal in descent (through the mother’s line) with women holding influence over marriage, sexuality, and divorce.
• Slavery and warfare: small-scale slavery and capture of war prisoners; enslaved status not necessarily inheritable; individuals could still become full members of the society.