Collision of Cultures and Native Civilizations

Collision of Cultures (16th Century)

• Conquest Model: European expansion viewed as a God-given right.
• Indian Voice (Holocaust Model): Europeans seen as invaders.
• Encounters Model: Cultural exchange, alliances, shared knowledge.

Native Settlements & Early Civilizations

• Traditional Theory: Natives arrived via Bering Strait (~12-15 thousand years ago).
• Recent Theory: First Americans may have arrived ~40,000 years ago from Asia/Europe.
• Early Civilizations:
  • Olmecs (Mexico, 1500 BCE): "Rubber people."
  • Mayans (250-900 CE): City-states, polytheistic, declined due to war, overpopulation, and drought.
  • Incas (12th century-1531): 12 million people, strong military, conquered by Cortés.
  • Aztecs (1248-1521): Tenochtitlan, largest city, highly structured society, war-like, conquered by Cortés.

North American Natives

• Clovis People (~15,000 years ago): Earliest arrivals, spear points found at Clovis, NM.
• Regional Groups:
  • Southwest: Anasazi, peaceful, advanced irrigation.
  • Great Plains: Nomadic, buffalo hunters (e.g., Sioux, Comanche, Apache).
  • Mississippian Culture (800-1400 CE): Cahokia, 15,000 people, mound builders.
  • Eastern Woodlands (e.g., Algonquian, Iroquoian, Muskogean): Farmers, fishers, village-based societies.

Europe Before Exploration

• Black Death (1347-1351): Killed 1/3 of Europe's population, disrupted feudalism.
• Renaissance (1400s): Rebirth of learning, humanism, scientific advancements (e.g., Da Vinci, Galileo).
• Printing Press (1450s): Johannes Gutenberg revolutionized information spread.

Age of Exploration

• Technology Advances: Improved ships, gunpowder, compasses.
• Major European Powers: Spain, Portugal, France, England.
• Spain Unification (1469): Ferdinand and Isabella unified Aragon and Castile.

Christopher Columbus (1492)

• Sailed west to Asia, landed in Bahamas.
• Left 40 men in Hispaniola (all died).
• Second voyage with 17 ships and 1400 men.

Spanish Empire & Conquistadors

• Treaty of Tordesillas (1494): Pope divided the New World between Spain and Portugal.
• Cortés (1519): Conquered Aztecs, used smallpox.
• Pizarro (1531): Defeated Incas.
• Encomienda System: Forced labor of natives by Spanish landlords

Columbian Exchange

• Exchange of goods and diseases between Europe and Americas.
• Items to Europe: Tobacco, potatoes, corn, tomatoes, chocolate, turkeys.
• Items to Americas: Horses, wheat, diseases (smallpox, measles).

French & Dutch Exploration

• French (Verrazano, Cartier): Explored Canada, established Quebec.
• Dutch: Focused on trade, settled in present-day New York.

English Colonization Attempts

• Roanoke Colony (1584): Mysteriously disappeared.
• 1588: English defeated Spanish Armada.
• Religious and Political Shifts in Europe: Reformation (1517), Calvinism, Treaty of Augsburg (1555).

Legacy of Spanish Colonization

• Spread Catholicism.
• Extracted wealth via mining (silver).
• Established missions.
• Created political instability in the New World.

England and Its American Colonies (1607-1732)

• Motivations for Colonization: Market for goods, fur trade, religious conflicts, send poor abroad, enclosure movement.
• Colonial Enterprise: Royal charters to Joint-Stock Companies, profits from raw materials to England.
• England's Political Traditions: Magna Carta (1215), Parliament creation.
• Religious Conflict & War: Puritans, English Civil War, execution of Charles I, Oliver Cromwell.

Settling the American Colonies

• Jamestown (1607): First English settlement, harsh conditions, starvation.
• Plymouth Colony (1620): Pilgrims, Mayflower Compact.
• Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630): John Winthrop's "City upon a Hill."
• Maryland (1634): Refuge for Catholics.
• Carolinas (1663-1720): Southern and Northern Carolinas.
• New Netherlands → New York (1664): British take over.
• Pennsylvania (1682): William Penn.

Colonial Conflicts

• Bacon's Rebellion (1676): Led by Nathaniel Bacon.
• Pequot War (1636-1638): Colonists vs. Pequot Tribe.
• King Philip's War (1675-1676): Chief Metacomet (Wampanoag).
• Iroquois League (Confederacy)

African Slavery

• 1619: First African slaves arrive in Virginia.
• Middle Passage: Harsh transport, high death rate.
• African culture persisted through folktales, religious blends.

Colonial Ways of Life (1607-1750)

• Reasons for moving to the New World: religious freedom, job opportunities, and slavery.
• Colonial Demographics: High population growth in America compared to Europe.
• Status of Women: Limited rights, responsible for household duties.
• Society and Economy: Southern prosperity depended on enslaved labor.
• New England: Fewer slaves, emphasis on biblical interpretation.

Colonial Cities (1775)

• Cities were hubs for politics, economy, and communication.

Enlightenment/Age of Reason

• Opposition to absolute monarchy.
• Shift towards science and rational thought.
• John Locke: Rejected divine right of kings.

Great Awakening (1730s)

• Religious revival.
• Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield.

From Colonies to States (1607-1776)

• New France: Samuel de Champlain, Quebec.
• French Settlement: claims extensive American interior.
• British System: More diverse government structure.

Government Regulation and Colonial Reaction (1763-1776)

• Government regulation of the nation's economy.
• Navigation Acts: Cargo regulations only on British ships.
• French and Indian War: Conflict between France and Britain in North America.
• Treaty of Paris (1763): British gain control of land east of Mississippi.
• Proclamation of 1763: British attempt to control colonial expansion.
• Stamp Act (1765): Tax imposed on all paper documents.
• Stamp Act Congress: Delegates from 9 colonies met.
• Growing Crisis: Townshend Acts, Boston Massacre, Boston Tea Party.
• Conflict Begins: Lexington and Concord.
• Push for Independence: Common Sense and Declaration of Independence.

Colonial Demographics (1790)

• British North America: Mostly white population.
• 1790 Population: 3.172 Million White Population.
• Race-Based Slavery: Present in all colonies, but concentrated in the South.

Princeton University

• Became a center for Great Awakening ideas and revolution.
• John Witherspoon: Signed Declaration of Independence, President of Princeton University.
• James Madison: Studied Enlightenment thinkers, first graduate student at Princeton University.