The Collision of Cultures

Chapter 1: AP

The Collision of Cultures

I.  America before Columbus

a.  The people of the Precontact Americas

i.  Long held belief that all early migration to America came across an ancient land bridge, over the Bering Strait, in Alaska – 11,000 years ago

ii.  Migrations were a development of the new stone tools – spears and other hunting tools – allowed for people to hunt and follow large land animals – that would regularly cross from Asia to the Americas

iii.  Migrants came from Mongolian stock – related to the modern day Siberia

1.  “Clovis” people (known as by scholars) – named after the town in New Mexico where archeologists first discovered their tools and weapons

iv.  New evidence

1.  Migrants from Asia – migrated as far south as Peru and Chile – suggesting they did not come by land but by boat by the sea

2.  Discoveries have suggested that Japan and Australia were populated by migrants who sailed their

3.  People were traveling long distances by sea

4.  The population of America was much more diverse then once thought

5.  Came from farther south in Asia than Mongolia – Japan and/or Polynesia

6.  DNA evidence also suggests that they were groups in the Americas that may have come from early Europe or Africa – thousands of years before Columbus

7.  The Archaic period – is a scholarly term for the history of humans in America during the period of about 5,000 years beginning around 8,000B.C.

a.  At the beginning of the period people supported themselves through hunting and gathering – stone tools

b.  Largest animals that humans had hunted became extinct

c.  People continued to hunt with spears – bows and arrows were not known in the Americas until 400 – 500 A.D.

d.  Later – population groups began to expand their activities and developed new tools to facilitate them

i.  Nets and hooks –fishing

ii.  Traps – smaller animals

iii.  Baskets – gathering berries, nuts, seeds, and other plants

e.  Agricultural communities – most important crop – corn – grew others beans and squash – led to sedentary communities – basis for larger settlements

b.  The Growth of Civilizations: The South

i.  Most elaborate of the civilizations emerged south of what is today the United States – in South and Central America and in present day Mexico

ii.  Incas:

1.  Peru – Created the largest empire in the Americas

2.  Small tribe in the mountainous region of Cuzco – early 15th century

3.  Powerful leader – Pachacuti (World Shaker)

a.  Incorporated 2,000 miles of land, in the western part of South America into his empire – using both persuasion and force

b.  His agents spread out and informed other tribes of the benefits of the empire – most local leaders agreed to ally themselves with the Incas

c.  The government was sustained by innovative administrative systems and a large network of paved roads

iii.  Mayan:

1.  Meso –Americans – people of what is now called Mexico and Central America

2.  Olmec people – complex society – around 1000 B.C.

3.  A more sophisticated society began to emerge around 800 A.D. in parts of Central America and the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico – in an area known as Maya

4.  Mayan civilization will develop: Written language, a numerical system (similar to Arabic), an accurate calendar, an advanced agricultural system and important trade routes into other areas of the continents

5.  Gradually the Mayans will be superseded by other Meso-American tribes who became collectively known as the Aztec

iv.  Aztec:

1.  Called themselves the Mexica (name eventually came to describe people of a number of different tribes)

2.  1300 A.D. they will establish a city – Tenochtitlan – site of present day Mexico City

3.  Greatest city created up to this point - population of 100,000 by 1500

4.  Aqueducts to connect the city and the surrounding areas

5.  Large and impressive public buildings, schools (all males attended), organized military, a medical system, and a slave work force gathered from conquered tribes – dominated Central Mexico

6.  System of tribute (heavy tax system – paid in goods such as crops or cloth or animals) and enforced by the military

7.  Developed a religion based on the belief that the gods drew their subsidence from human sacrifice – believed the only way the gods could be satisfied was by feeding them the living hearts of humans – as a result they sacrificed people – prisoners captured in combat

8.  The Meso-American civilizations were the center of civil activity in the region – culture and trade – disease and disunity make it difficult for them to survive the Europeans

9.  Do remain behind the Europeans and Asian cultures as far as technology goes –as late as the 16th century no American society had yet created a wheeled vehicle

c.  The Civilizations of the North

i.  The people of northern Mexico (present day United States and Canada) did not develop empires as large or political systems as elaborate as the Incas, Mayas, and Mexica

ii.  They did build complex societies:

1.  Subsisted on hunting, gathering, fishing or some combination of

a.  Eskimos – Artic Circle – hunting seals and fishing

b.  Hunters of the northern forests – nomadic – caribou and moose

c.  Pacific Northwest – fishing – salmon – permanent settlements along the coast – violent competition

d.  Far West – wealthy and densely populated communities – fishing, hunting small game, and gathering

e.  Many areas in North America – Agricultural

2.  Elaborate Communities

a.  Southwest

i.  large irrigation systems – farming on dry land

ii.  constructed towns – centers of trade, crafts, and religious, and civic rituals

b.  Chaco Canyon

i.  Densely populated

ii.  Stone and adobe structures that resemble apartments – called Pueblos

3.  Great plains

a.  Sedentary Farming – corn and other grains

b.  Permanent settlements

c.  Some nomadic tribes as well – hunting buffalo

i.  Only after the 18th century after Europeans had introduced the horse did hunting the buffalo become a way of life for large communities

ii.  Many of the farmers will leave to hunt the buffalo

4.  Eastern

a.  Forests – Woodlands Indians

b.  Greatest resources in the region

c.  Many different tribes

d.  Hunting, farming, fishing, gathering

5.  South

a.  Early on permanent settlements – trade networks based on corn and other grains

b.  Major cities based on trade

i.  Cahokia (near present day St. Louis)

1.  Peaked 1200 A.D.

2.  Population of about 10,000

3.  Complex of earthen mounds (Pg.7)

6.  North East

a.  Agricultural but nomadic – less fertile land and moved to find land

b.  Combo of farming and hunting

c.  Burned the forests and planted their crops amongst the ash – corn, squash, beans, pumpkins, and others

d.  Land became exhausted and filth from the communities accumulated they would move on and every winter the communities would break up and it was every family for themselves to forage until the spring – make come back to the community

7.  East of the Mississippi River

a.  Tribes linked – common linguistic roots

b.  Largest language group was the Algonquian – dominated the Atlantic seaboard – Canada to Virginia

c.  2nd largest language group – Iroquoian – upstate New York

i.  Iroquois – five distinct northern “nations” - Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and Mohawk and had links to the Cherokee and Tuscaroras – Carolinas and Georgia

d.  3rd largest language group – Muskogean

i.  Tribes of the southernmost region of the eastern sea board

ii.  Chickasaws, Choctaws, Creeks, and Seminoles

e.  Though connected they had only fragile alliances and when the Europeans came the tribes saw them as other invading tribes and needed to be resisted

d.  Tribal Cultures

i.  Enormous diversity of economic, social, and political structures

ii.  In the last century before the Europeans arrived – the Native Americans were experiencing an agricultural revolution just like the rest of the world

1.  Tribes were more sedentary – new sources of food, clothing and shelter

2.  Developing elaborate social customs and rituals – Religion was important – connected to the natural world around them – worshiped many gods

3.  Some had religious totems and others held festivals for harvests and major hunts

iii.  Tasks – divided by gender

1.  Women – caring for the children, preparing meals, and gathering certain foods was common amongst most of the tribes

2.  Other jobs – varied based on the tribe

a.  Pueblos – reserved farming tasks for men

b.  Algonquin, Iroquois, and Muskogees – women tended the fields while the men engaged in hunting, warfare, or clearing land

c.  Iroquois – women and children were left alone for long periods while men were hunting or fighting battles – thus women tended to control the social and economic organization of the settlements and played powerful roles in the family

II.  Europe Looks West

a.  Europeans

i.  Unaware of the Americas before the 15th century

1.  A few wanders – Leif Eriksson (Norseman) – and maybe others had a glimpse of the Americas but it was not common knowledge

2.  Europe in the Middle Ages (500 – 1500 A.D.) – not an adventurous civilization – divided into many different small duchies and kingdoms – provincial outlook – not looking beyond their own land

3.  Agriculture dominated, trade limited few looked beyond Europe for trade, Catholic Church exercised spiritual authority over the region

b.  Commerce and Nationalism

i.  Two important developments pushed Europeans to look for new lands:

1.  Population Growth of the 15th Century

a.  After the “Black Death” the population will rebound and grow

b.  Population growth led to the growth of land values, a new push for commerce, and an increase in prosperity

c.  Affluent landlords wanted to purchase goods from exotic regions and merchants will rise to meet their demands

d.  Trade increased as advances in navigation and shipbuilding will make long distance travel easier – develop new markets, find new products, and open new trade routes

2.  Rise of new governments

a.  United and powerful

b.  Strong new monarchs emerged and created centralized nation states – national courts, national armies, and national tax system

c.  Eventually the kings and queens will want to increase their wealth and power – wanted to enhance the commercial growth of their nations

ii.  Marco Polo

1.  Ever since his journeys to Asia –bringing back goods and even more important exotic stories

2.  Dreams of the Far East

3.  Commercial glory – led them to want trade with the Far East

4.  Problem – long and dangerous (Muslims gain control over parts of the overland route) route

5.  14th century the – maritime advancements – find a faster safer route to the Far East – sea route

6.  Found an audience with the New Monarchs and by the 15th century they were ready to finance the voyages of exploration

iii.  Portuguese

1.  Maritime power of the 15th century

2.  Prince Henry the Navigator

a.  He wanted to explore the western coast of Africa – not a sea route to Asia

b.  Wanted a Christian empire there to help his country against the Moors of North Africa and stores of gold

c.  Did not fulfill his hopes but his mariners went farther than he had dreamed

i.  Some as far south as Cape Verde

ii.  1486 – 6 years after Henry’s death, Bartholomeu Dias rounded the southern tip of Africa, The Cape of Good Hope

iii.  1497-1498- Vasco da Gama – around the Cape to India

iv.  1500 – Fleet bound for India – Pedro Cabral - blown off course and landed in Brazil

iv.  Christopher Columbus

1.  Born in Italy – but his sea faring experience was for the Portuguese

2.  Wanted to sail west and find a route to Asia, which he believed extended farther west than it really does

3.  But no support from the Portuguese

4.  He will turn to the Spanish:

a.  Not yet a maritime power like Portugal

b.  Marriage of two powerful regional leaders: Ferdinand (Aragon) and Isabella (Castile) created the most powerful monarchy in Europe

c.  Wanted to prove their power they will sponsor new commercial ventures (i.e. – CC)

5.  1492 – Queen Isabella will sponsor CC westward voyage

a.  90 men

b.  Three ships – The Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria

c.  August 1942 – heading towards what he thought was Japan

d.  10 weeks later – land

e.  Thought he had reached his goal – but was an Island in the Bahamas, pushed on and encountered Cuba – he assumed it was China

f.  He will return to Spain – triumphant? – bringing with him captured natives – he called the “Indians” because he believed they were from the West Indies in the Pacific

6.  1493

a.  Since he did not encounter the court of the Great Khan or the vast wealth that was in Asia

b.  He will lead a second voyage – larger expedition – landed in the Caribbean again and discovering a number of islands and he left a small short lived colony on Hispaniola

7.  1498

a.  Third voyage

b.  Reached the mainland of northern South America

c.  When he discovered the mouth of the Orinoco River he realized that a fresh water river of that size could only originate on a large continent and not on a suspected island off the coast of China

d.  He will believe the rest of his life that he was very close to the Indies and just had to find a way around this land mass which he will never do

8.  Very Religious

a.  Was completing Gods work as well as commercial interest

b.  A man destined to advance the coming millennium “ God made me the messenger of the new heaven and the new earth, and he showed me the spot where to find it”

9.  Amerigo Vespucci

a.  Europeans will completely ignore CC, when naming the New World and instead give the distinction to AV

b.  A Florentine Merchant – a member of a later New World expedition for the Portuguese – he wrote a number of vivid descriptions of the New World and recognized it as a new continent