Chapter 1, Ancient America and Africa
I. The Peoples of America Before Columbus
A. Migration to the Americas
1. Arrival of humans in America is approx. 35,000 B.C.E.
a. Nomadic bands migrated to follow big game animals
b. Nomads moved across land bridge of Bering Strait
i. glaciers contained most of earth 's moisture - part of Bering Sea floor exposed
2. Main migration 11,000 – 14,000 years ago or earlier
B. Hunters, Farmers, and Environmental Factors
1. Movement from north to south to east
2. By late 1400s, Indians were part of diverse & complex societies
3. Archaeologists and anthropologists divide Native Am. history into several phrases
a. Beringian period - ended 14,000 years ago
i. initial migration
b. Paleo-Indian period – 14,000 to 10,000 years ago
i. big
…show more content…
belief in supreme Creator, honored spiritual forces of nature & ancestors
3. Shared religious feeling with slave owners → African Christianity
a. older religious customs lost some power
4. Similar hierarchy as Europeans (common people lived beneath rulers & nobles)
III. Europe on the Eve of Invading the Americas
A. The Rebirth of Europe
1. Revival of long-distance trading from Italian ports brought wealth & power
2. Feudalism weakened as kings reasserted power
a. England: Magna Carta/ Parliament, France: unrest after Henry III assassinated, Spain: conquest of Muslims & Jews strengthened monarchy
3. Peasants faced famine, Black Death → economic issues, worker strikes, uprisings
a. treated better after plague b/c more valuable
b. 16th century Enclosure Movement turned many peasants into wage laborers
B. The New Monarchies and the Expansionist Impulse
1. Monarchs in France, England, Spain created social & political stability
a. strong armies, bureaucracies, taxes → economic revival
b. Renaissance (innovation, freedom of thought) → impulse to expand
2. Goals of expansion: find oceanic route to Asia & tap African gold at source
3. Portugal (poor country) lead expansion b/c used certain principles