Native American Life Pre-Contact and Early Colonization

Introduction

• Pre-Contact: Over 10,000 years before Columbus "discovered" America, people migrated via the Bering Strait, known as Native Americans.
• Diverse Cultures: Developed various social, political, and economic structures based on interactions and environment.
• Animism: Many Native American religions centered around nature, believing non-human things possess a spiritual essence.

Key Regions and Tribes

• Southwest (e.g., Pueblo Indians):
  • Arid land, reliant on irrigation for maize cultivation.
  • Maize cultivation led to population growth.
• Great Basin and Great Plains (e.g., Lakota Sioux):
  • Nomadic lifestyle due to lack of natural resources.
  • Dependent on buffalo.
• Atlantic Coast and Northeast (e.g., Iroquois):
  • Mix of agriculture and hunting-gathering.
  • Establishment of permanent villages and the Iroquois Confederation.

European Exploration and Colonization

• Reasons for Exploration: 3 G's - Gold, Glory, and God.
  • Wealth: New trade routes and sources of wealth.
  • Status: Increase power and status of countries/individuals.
  • Religion: Convert native populations to Christianity.
• 1492: Columbus's arrival marks a turning point leading to demographic and social changes.

Columbian Exchange

• Transatlantic exchange of people, diseases, food, trade, and ideas between the Western Hemisphere, Africa, and Europe.
• Impact on Native Americans:
  • Introduction of horses increased mobility.
  • Diseases like smallpox caused massive population decline (90% death rate).
• Impact on Europeans:
  • Introduction of maize (corn) led to population growth.

Spanish and Portuguese Colonization

• Treaty of Tordesillas: Divided the New World; Spain (west) and Portugal (east).
• First Permanent Settlement: St. Augustine, 1565 (Florida).
• Encomienda System: Spanish colonists received land with native people for labor (mining and agriculture).
• Conversion to Catholicism: Significant aspect of Spanish colonization.
• Racial Mixing: Emergence of mestizos (Indian-European) and mulattos (white-African).

Resistance to Colonization

• Pueblo Revolt (1680): Led by Popé, resulted in the temporary expulsion of Spanish and destruction of Catholic churches.
• Accommodation: Spanish were forced to allow some native cultural practices upon return.

Debates on Native American Treatment

• Juan de Sepulveda: Justified colonization in "Just Causes for War Against the Indians".
• Bartolomé de las Casas: Criticized Spanish treatment in "A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies".

Other European Colonies

• Protestant England: Will challenge Spanish colonization in North America.
• French and Dutch: Focus on trade and complex relationships with natives, unlike the English.
• Mercantilism: Economic theory driving colonization; colonies exist to enrich the mother country.
  • Provide raw materials (e.g., sugar, tobacco) and precious metals.

Conclusion

• Overview of colonization motives and impacts.
• Influence of mercantilism on European expansion.

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