HIST 1100 Chapter 1-4: Colonial America Outline Chapters 1-4
Chapters 1-4
Colonial America A Short Introduction
Outline
I. Encounters
A. First Settlers
1. Arrived 12,000-15,000 years ago, from Asia
a) Small hunting parties
b) Came in small boats or walked over an ice bridge
c) Spread all over the Americas
d) Known as Paleo-Indians
e) Eventually split into many tribes.
2. Arrived 9,000 years ago
a) Became the Apache and the Navajo
3. Arrived 5,000 years ago
a) Settled Arctic coast and Alaska
B. Archaic Indians
1. Developed structured gender roles
2. Had a seasonal round of activities
3. Population grew
a) Fueled by abundant food
b) Reached 1,000,000 between 9,000 and 3,000 years ago.
4. Bands grew more distinct
a) Different activities depending on environment
b) More than 375 languages spoken by 1492
c) Traded with one another
C. Farming
1. Started in Mesoamerica
2. Maize, Squash, and Beans
3. Slowly spread northward
4. Many tribes chose not to adopt it
a) The growing season was too short in the north
b) They could survive without it along the coast
D. Hohokam and Anasazi
1. Built complex irrigation systems
2. Built sturdy permanent towns
3. Growing population strained resources
a) Led to violent feuds and malnutrition
b) Eventually fled towns
E. Mississippi
1. Didn’t need to irrigate
2. Built permanent towns and religious fixtures
3. Many small towns paid tribute to the leading city
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a) Led to violence and the construction of permanent defense
structures
4. Largest city was Cahokia
a) Population of 10,000. Covered 6 square miles.
b) Housed the 3rd largest pyramid
c) Abandoned when population strained resources.
F. European Maritime Improvement
1. Between 1519-22, the Spanish circumnavigated the globe
a) Established worldwide trade
2. Puts them ahead of the more powerful Muslim world
G. Spain
1. Queen Isabella and Prince Ferdinand marry (1469)
a) They combine their kingdoms to form Spain.
2. Reconquested Iberia
a) Long and violent crusade
3. Gaunches
a) People of the Canary Islands
b) Spain conquered and enslaved them.
c) Very many died of disease
4. Columbus
a) Looking for a trade route to China
b) Landed in the Bahamas, thought it was India
c) Got funding to colonize
i. The natives (Tiano) were forced into hard labour, and died of
that or disease.
d) Died believing he had reached India
i. This is why Native Americans are called Indians
ii. America is named after Amerigo Vespucci, who figured out
this was a “New World”
H. Disease
1. Spread of disease was very one sided
a) Native Americans went from 7% of world’s population (50-100
million) in 1492, to <1% in 1800.
b) Europeans only contracted Syphilis, not usually fatal.
c) European population went from 11% in 1492, to 20% in 1800.
i. Supplemented by better food from the Americas (Columbian
Exchange)
2. Natives blamed an angry God
3. Europeans felt cheated out of labourers
a) Began the importation of slaves from Africa in 1518
I. Columbian Exchange
1. New World grains were more efficient to grow than Old World
a) Cassava, Maize, Potatoes
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b) Could survive in harsher climates
2. Plant New World crops overseas
a) Greatly expands food supply in Europe and Africa
3. Colonists brought animals + plants
a) Domesticated livestock - bees, pigs, HORSES, mules,
sheep, cows
b) Plants- Wheat, barley, rye, oats, grapes
c) Stowaways- Rats and weeds
d) New species messed with the environment
i. Sparked conflict between colonists and Natives
II. New Spain
A. Spanish
1. Conquistadores raided mainland for new slaves
a) Needed them to work their gold mines, cattle ranches, and sugar plantations
2. Learned about rich Aztec empire in Mexico from their captives
B. Hernan Cortes
1. Led 600 armed conquistadores from Cuba to coast of Mexico to invade this Aztec
empire
2. Built from it a new Spanish capital, Mexico City
3. Other conquistadores (like Francisco Pizarro) followed his footsteps and extended the
massive empire through Central and South America
C. How did they do it?
1. Ruthless brutality
2. Their steel technology of spears, pikes and crossbows resulted superior to the stone
weapons of the natives
D. Expeditions
1. Led by the Crown “to extend the realm of their monarch and to expand the church of
their Christian God”
2. Commanders came from Spanish gentry and soldiers were young men from middle rank
of society
E. Viceroyalties
1. The Crown divided the empire into two “viceroyalties”
a) “Spain” and “Peru”
b) Spain consisted of Mexico, Central America and Caribbean Islands
c) Peru included all of South America (except for Brazil, which was already
colonized by the Portuguese)
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