New World

Early Colonization & European Contact (to 1600s)

Pre-Columbian Americas

  • Migration & Settlement

    • First peoples migrated from Asia via Bering Strait land bridge.

    • Spread into diverse regions: Eastern Woodlands, Great Plains, Pacific NW, etc.

  • Native Adaptations

    • Natives actively shaped environments (farming, controlled burns, mound-building).

    • Example: Mound Builders (Ohio Valley) built large earthworks, organized societies.

  • Mesoamerican Empires

    • Maya, Aztec, Inca = advanced civilizations with large cities, pyramids, temples.

    • Tenochtitlán (Aztec capital) rivaled or surpassed London/Paris in size and sophistication.

Columbus & the Age of Discovery

  • Viking Precedent: Leif Erikson reached N. America (~1000 CE), but no long-term impact.

  • Columbus’s Voyages (1492, sponsored by Spain)

    • Goal: westward route to Asia (not proving Earth was round).

    • Miscalculated Earth’s size; believed Caribbean islands were part of Asia.

    • Explored islands like Hispaniola; never reached mainland U.S.

    • Called natives “Indians” (from “Indies” or “en Dios” theory).

  • Impact: Opened Americas to European exploration → start of Age of Discovery.

Patterns of Colonization (Patricia Seed – Ceremonies of Possession)

Spain

  • Context: Recently completed the Reconquista (1492) → strong military society.

  • Encounters: Faced powerful empires (Aztecs, Incas).

  • Military advantages: steel weapons, gunpowder, horses, war dogs, and alliances with tribes against Aztecs.

  • Requerimiento: Spanish read a formal declaration demanding natives accept Spanish crown & Catholic Church (often meaningless in practice).

  • Colonization Model:

    • Led by soldiers + priests (conquest and conversion).

    • Goal: expand empire, spread Catholicism.

  • Society: Created mestizo/Latino populations (Spanish + native mixture).

France

  • Region: Canada, Great Lakes, Mississippi River valley.

  • Focus: Wealth from fur trade (beaver, deer, otter).

  • Colonization Model:

    • Led by traders + priests.

    • Jesuit missionaries tried to convert natives.

  • Relations w/ Natives:

    • More cooperative → alliances, intermarriage common.

    • Adopted some native customs.

    • Land agreements sealed by ceremonial covenants.

Portugal & Netherlands

  • Claim to Colonization: Based on navigational expertise (mapping, charting, exploration).

  • Portugal: Claimed Brazil, also active in Africa & Asia.

  • Netherlands: Focused on trade colonies (Caribbean, New Amsterdam/NY, Indonesia).

England

  • Colonization Model:

    • Centered on families, farming, permanent settlements.

    • Not just soldiers or traders → whole communities.

  • Goals: Recreate English society in the New World (towns, farms, churches).

  • Land Use:

    • Colonists believed land ownership = enclosure & cultivation (“improvements”).

    • Viewed land as “unused” or “virgin” (ignoring native use, also depopulated by disease).

  • Society:

    • Heavier land footprint than Spain/France.

    • Less intermarriage with natives.

    • More long-term growth and population.

Big Comparisons

  • Spain = conquest → soldiers + priests, empire & Catholicism.

  • France = fur trade → traders + priests, cooperation & intermarriage.

  • Portugal/Dutch = navigation/trade → mapping, commerce colonies.

  • England = settlements → families, farms, land replication of English society.