Introduction to US History/America Before Columbus

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INTRODUCTION TO UNITED STATES HISTORY I
AMERICA BEFORE COLUMBUS
AUTHORS:GEOFFREY D. PLOURDE, JASON OLIPHANT
LECTURER:GEOFFREY D. PLOURDE

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Introduction

Welcome to everyone reading this lecture. Before I get down to business, there are some preliminaries I would like to handle. I want to reiterate that you don't need prior historical knowledge to learn US History. Everyone had to start somewhere. In fact, due to the poor instruction of our primary schools (in the US), it is probably better that you don't know anything. The big key is that you need to approach this course with an open mind. Some of the information may shock you. Well folks, welcome to US History.

The first bit of shocking information is that Christopher Columbus is not the beginning of America. Regardless of what some texts say, there was a civilization in America. Before you think I am bashing Europeans, there is something you need to know about perspective. Humans have a funny way of seeing things. What one may see is not what may actually be the truth. To a European, the civilizations in America were heathen and not civilized. Imagine what the early Americans thought about the Europeans?

The real beginning of civilization in America occurred between 50 to 30 thousand years ago. At that time, Asia and America were still attached by a land bridge in the Bering Strait. The first humans to arrive were hunter-gatherers. These individuals followed animal herds for food. Therefore when animals started to explore America, hunter-gatherers followed the animals around America, eventually colonizing from the top to bottom. Over time the group dynamics of these tribal groups evolved based on the area they ended up in. Similarities can still be seen today in their customs, which is an indicator of a common origin.

These hunter-gatherers are not the only people who arrived. The Polynesians are believed by some scholars to have sailed to the mainland of America. If this is true, these people would have had an additional influence. A minority of historians believe that the cultures of the Ancient Mediterranean also may have visited America. There is no evidence to support this at this point in time, but that may change as new archaelogical discoveries are made.

As time went on, people settled down. Instead of hunting, they started to domesticate animals and farm. Three important crops to remember are corn, beans, and squash. Corn was the mainstay of American agriculture. While many tribes remained primitive in agricultural techniques, some rose above the pack. Irrigation systems were set up in South America. Customs were developed by observations that ensured a good harvest. Crop rotation was practiced to conserve the soil. All these techniques show that the natives were not as primitive as Europeans thought.

Not all cultures settled down. Some tribes continued to be hunter-gatherers. An example would be the Lakota of the United States. However, these tribes did not waste like Europeans. Moderation was evident in many societies. The first people were environmentalists before there was such a term. This allowed people to live in smaller areas with less of an impact.

Some revisionists like to claim that the first people were peaceful until Europeans brought conflict and slavery. This is not true. Some of the most advanced cultures had slaves and engaged in war frequently. The Aztecs butchered slaves as sacrifices to their gods. They were not kind people who spent their time smoking the peace pipe. This doesn't mean that America is as it was before Columbus. America was a different area. Large-scale mining only appeared with the Europeans. Also, horses came with Europeans. Before Columbus, warfare was fought on foot, and game was hunted from the ground.

This all shows that there was civilization before Columbus. These civilizations were very diverse and some civilizations were highly advanced. Despite their advances, they still suffered from warfare, inhumanity, and slavery because that is human nature.

This topic will not be highly important on the AP test. Most intro courses start with the colonies. The test focuses very little on this topic, if at all. It is still important to learn about because it is a fundamental basis of the America of today. So much of what we idolize comes from subjugating those who came before. This concludes the introduction.

The Americas Before Europe

Benjamin Franklin fancied the Iroquois Confederacy and their governmental practices

As mentioned previously, the "Americas" (consisting of present-day Canada, US and Central America) were not full of "lawless, blood-thirsty" natives - but entailed sophisticated and regulated civilizations and revolved around hunting and gathering. An example of an Indian tribe was the Mackinaw Indians, who hunted a variety of prey according to the seasons. In the winter, they would hunt for cod, seals and fished actively once the spring season came along (hunting additionally for moose and bear). In the summer, they would plant crops, such as corn and beans and hunt geese and duck. During the fall, eels and caribou were the popular choices.

An example of the Indian's understanding of their surroundings is the Three-Sisters planting method, where squash held moisture to support the corn, which allowed the beans to climb up.

Indians

The North American Indians were divided into 3 groups:

Eastern Woodlands
Great Plains
Western Tribes

The Iroquois (the Eastern Woodland Indians) created the Iroquois League (organized 5 tribes into 1 nation), consisting of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca and [soon] the Tuskarora - all located around present-day New York. The origins go back to a "peacemaker" who convinced an Onandaga chief to unite together under a common council of chiefs and village leaders. Each tribe represented one vote and agreement between all parties was required in order for a decision to take place. The significance of the Iroquois League is that it was more effectively run compared to its neighboring leagues, with the Iroquois implementing strategic governmental practices and making up for their poor administrative control with ruthless warfare. The league were against France as they not only allied with their enemies, the Algonquins, but also carried out several raids against them. In what turned out to be significant in the French and Indian War, the Iroquois partnered with the British and successfully maintained their small population of around 10,000 people.

Central American Civilizations

Olmecs (1200 - 400 BCE)

Historians have agreed that the heads represented Olmec rulers

These Mesoamerican civilizations originated in what is known as modern-day Mexico all the way to northern Panama. They were polythiestic and corn was a staple of their diet. They created the only written language in the Western Hemisphere at the time, created a math system and made a calendar that predicted eclipses and assisted them in planting crops. Trade was especially prevalent. The Olmec's were prominent from 1200-400 BCE, creating giant heads in La Venta, Mexico. Historians are not sure what led to the decline of the Olmecs after 400BCE, but their influence reigned on - giving the Mayans and the Aztecs something to "work with".

Mayans (2000 BCE - 900 CE)

A modern-day Chinampa

At its height in 500 BCE, Teotihuacan, located near modern-day Mexico City, was home to booming agricultural and exenstive trading. The Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon are major temples built in the city. Graveyards near the Temple of the Feathered Serpent suggested that humans were sacrificed religiously. Masters of architect and and a mathematical system (used for yielding crops and regulating the size), they met their demice through extensive droughts and poor farming soil.

Aztecs

Machu Picchu was branded a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983

In the 1300s, a couple of people[who?] moved down to Tenochtitlán and turned it into one of the biggest cities in the world. In 1519, Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés' men couldn't believe what they were seeing — something that only looked realistic in a dream. Unlike European cities, Tenochtitlán was well-kept and groomed — regulated through aqueducts and a trash system. Natives bathed on the daily and used chinampas to irrigate crops. Human sacrifice was very common in order to "appease the Gods"[who?].

Incas

An Incan Quipu

From modern-day Colombia to Chile, the Incas were a developing kingdom of their own in South America. Their clean, extensive roads, monitored by "chasquis", enabled effective transportation - especially for the Incan military when they were called upon. The Incas used quipus instead to keep records. The mita was a requirement where a peasant had to work with the Inca ruler for a couple of days on projects. The "lords" were usually the "feudal lords" or followed polytheistic beliefs.

Differently from their partners, the Incas didn't practice human sacrificing unless in dire emergencies.

Hiram Bingham III eventually rediscovered the lost city of Machu Picchu in 1911. The architect[who?] was insane[why?], especially knowing that it was all man-made.

The European Rivalries (15th-18th century)

Leif Erikson was busy exploring the world about the time the Mayans were creating their pyramids in 1000 AD. Beforehand, no one in Europe didn't care too much about exploring the new world. This changed until the Crusades attacked - there, the Europeans saw many prized possessions of the Muslims: silk, spices, tea, and perfumes. Afterward, the Europeans, realizing they were able to make millions through these possessions, wanted to figure out a way to get these goods for themselves. The European Renaissance and the advancement of technology made exploring the world possible.

The motives for European exploration are simply put as for God, Glory and Gold. Spreading Christianity, coming back home as a hero and exploring majestic places (as detailed in Marco Polo's Travels), and to bring riches back from the New World were all motivating aspects.

Christopher Columbus was inspired to embark on a groundbreaking mission. He brought a map, a ship, and food. This was made possible by advanced maps (his family was cartographers), advanced ships (squared sails, aerodynamics, transportable weapons), reliable compasses and use of astronomy/math, and increased financial investments. The Spaniard was supported by King Ferdinand I & Queen Isabella of Spain.

On Columbus' expedition, he found rattlesnakes, tomatoes, potatoes, maize/tobacco, and chocolate/vanilla. In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue.

Portugal

The Portugese had massive control of the trade system by controlling posts on various islands and coastal cities through their control of Africa, western coast of India, and South America. Sugar fueled the African trade system that the Portugese kick-started with the Portugese supplying manual labor on various sugar plantations.

Spain

King Ferdinand I and Isabella kicked out the Muslims from Spain in 1492 and wanted to spread Catholicism and gain an advantage over their rivals, Portugal. Present-day Haiti and the Dominican Republic, collectively known as "Hispaniola", was Columbus' destination and he termed the Taino natives as "Indians". The Treaty of Tordesillas determined that Portugal kept their land below the "imaginary line" and Spain kept above. Hernan Cortes, inspired, travelled and initially was shooed away by the Aztec civilization in 1504. Soon afterwards, Cortes partnered up with local alliances that disliked the Aztecs and captured Tenochtitlan in 1521 - renaming the capital to "Mexico City". In 1509, Francisco Pizarro unsuccessfully attempted to take over the Incas - but he founded Peru. From 1539 to 1542, Hernando de Soto attempted to find mountains of gold but died in his pursuit of the Southern portion of the USA. Francisco Vásquez de Coronado waged a ruthless killing campaign against the Southwestern USA natives, but it left him bankrupt.

Collectively, these accomplishments led to the Spanish Golden Age.

Bartolomé de Las Casas denounced Spanish violence in 1515 by speaking out against "encomienda" (legal right to labor). Rivals used this as justification to wage violence against the Spanish. African slavery was a major product of exploring the New World as they were used for sugar and tobacco fields.

England

The constant change from Protestantism (King Henry VIII) to Catholicism (Queen Mary) and back to Protestantism (Queen Elizabeth) left England very little time to actively explore, but they monitored and did what they needed to do. In 1497, Henry VIII sent John Cabot to North America. Privateers, such as Francis Drake, were commonly used to loot and destroy Spanish ships, a smaller aspect of the bigger motive of Queen Elizabeth: Stop the Spanish. In 1584, Sir Walter Raleigh tried to employ John White's group to Roanoke - but they disappeared in 1590. The fate of the "lost colony" isn't 100% proven to this day. Joint-stock companies were used quite often, notably the Virginia Company.

Although England were late to the "colonize land" race, but they claimed as many lands as they could. Barbados was an island that the England loved to use as it produced a lot of sugar. Some Englishmen that traveled to the US were Separatists who escaped England's religious corruption in order to spread Protestantism. In 1620, William Brandofrd and his men created Plymouth.

France

The first French explorer was Jacques Cartier (1534-1541), but he couldn't establish a colony because of the natives and a lack of adequate planning.

Samuel de Champlain is credited with discovering Quebec in 1608 and creating "New France". He created positive relationships with the natives, formulating an alliance with the Algonquin to fight their enemies: the Iroquois. Their aims were more economic as they focused more on creating trade posts. They traded beaver pelts and other furs for French goods. After 1635, the Spanish control of the Caribbean weakened and France took Guadalope and Martinique.

The Netherlands

After their independence in 1581, the Dutch were fast to make their names known in the race for colonization. They created the "Dutch East India Company, chartered in 1602 to trade in Asia, and the Dutch West India Company, established in 1621 to colonize and trade in the Americas." Henry Hudson, working for the Dutch, found the Hudson River in 1609. The Dutch set up several trading posts in North America, specifically in "New Amsterdam" in New York. The Dutch also claimed some islands in the Caribbean, such as Aruba, and made themselves known in the 17th century.

Slavery

Slavery has always been a thing even before the colonization of America! Chattel slavery, where slaves were bought and sold like property, was prevalent in the Middle East. The slave trade of Europe began with Portugal's exploration of Western Africa in 1444. Slavery became popular in the New World as workers were needed to mandate tobacco, sugar, rice and cotton. The major difference in the New World was that slavery was based on skin colour as the Africans were easy to identify by their skin colour. The natives were not reliable "slaves" as they died off due to the European diseases. Since the Southern colonies needed permanent slaves to mandate the tobacco and rice fields as opposed to the North's lack of need for workers due to their climate, inherited slavery became a thing. Conclusively, skin colour and inheritance of slavery is what differed from slavery in the Old World and set the tone of American history for the years to come.

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