Exam 1 Flashcards
Mayan Civilization
-Capital- Teotihuacan
-Southern Mexico & Central Americara
-Fell around 1000 CE (drought)
Aztec Empire
-Capital city- Tenochtitlan – 250,000 inhabitants
-Southern Mexico
Search for resources for increasing population – through warfare–1400s to 1500s
- Conquered other tribes and became unified- allowed other tribes to self-govern for tributes
-Gold, amber, pelts, feathers, beans, corn, cacao, cotton, rubber, shells
-Humans – slaves / sacrifice victims
Inca empire
Andes Mountains- Chile and Peru- 1400s and 1500s
-Cuzco- capital city
needed.
-Searched for new lands & resorces to sustain population.
-Conquered and relocated other tribes- tributes (corn, potatoes) came in through vast road system
Anasazi Civilization (Puebloans)
Southwestern US- Four Corners
-100 CE to 1400 CE
-Built Pueblo Bonita city in New Mexico.
-land degradation & drought in 1300 CE —> collapse of unified civilization-split into individual cities, fought each other for dwindling
resources
Christopher Columbus
-Italian trading family, interested in gold (left 100 men)
-endorsed by Queen Isabella of Spain -Landed in the Bahamas, 1492
-3 ships- Nina, pinta, santa maria
-Made 4 total trips to the Americas- thought he reached India
Hernando Cortez
Landed in S. Mexico, 1519- Aztec capital city
-Treated like a god by Montezuma II
-United enemies of the Aztecs- destroyed by 1521
Francisco Pizarro
Landed in the Inca empire- destroyed w/in a year- 1532
Columbian Exchange
- Between Spain & natives
-Spain gave animals (Horses, Pigs, Cows, goats, chickens), Foods (Wheat, Rice, Bananas) and disease
(Smallpox, Measles, Flu)
-Natives gave Foods (potatoes, beans, peanuts, corn, squash, apples, citrus, cocoa, tomatoes), Syphilis, and Silver and Gold
-Potatoes easy for Europeans to grow- prevented famine
-Revolutions in transportation, communication & nutrition
Virginia and Jamestown
Named for King James and Elizabeth I - Rulers of England
Sponsored by Virginia Company
-Around 100 men
-Spent time looking for gold instead of planting crops and preparing for winter
-By 1608, only 38 left / 400 in 1609, but 65 left in 1610
-Helped by Chief Powhatan and daughter, Pocahontas in 1608-09
High death rate, poor workers, no women- by 1610 only 65 alive
John Smith
“Every man may be the master and owner of his own labor and land”
Established Jamestown, Virginia, 1607- James River, 60 miles inward from Chesapeake bay
Regime of forced labor- “He that will not work, shall not eat”
Headright System + other motivators to stay in Virginia
Headright system (1618) 50 Acres for every colonist who paid their way over + 50 extra for everyone along with them
-Marketable commodity – Tobacco. Causes scramble for land and more
immigration
-Company paid women to migrate
-Company allowed for the creation for a House of Burgesses 1619 – a regional legislature (self-government)
House of Burgesses
1619- Only freemen could vote- Virginia company / governor had ultimate say
Political Precedent for Democracy in the colonies
Wars in Virginia
First Anglo- Powhatan war- 1610- over stolen crops- Pocahontas held hostage- converted to Christianity, married John Rolfe (tobacco exporter)
Peace from 1614- 1622
Second Anglo- Powhatan war- 1622- Powhatan’s brother- Opechancanough led a surprise attack- Eventual English victory
3rd War- 1644- colonists outnumbered Powhatans- forced a treaty moving them to reservations
End of Virginia Company
-1624- King James dissolves the company due to war, mismanagement and corruption
-Virginia is made a royal colony – House of Burgesses allowed to stay
Massachusetts & the Puritans
Plymouth Colony- Founded by around 100 Separatist Puritans- Plymouth Bay Company, left on the Mayflower in 1620
-KNOWN AS PILGRIMS
-Landed at Massachusetts Bay and signed the Mayflower Compact before
leaving the ship
-Nearly all dead by the first winter- helped by Sqanto and the Wampanoags
Separatist Puritans
English Calvinists who sought to separate from the Church of England
John Calvin- Only God leads the church
Calvinism is a branch of Protestantism- Martian Luther
Mayflower Compact
The compact was chiefly concerned with survival.
-Ensured majority rule-
-Colonists were loyal to the King of England
-Christians who served God
-would make fair and just laws
-would work together for the good of the Colony.
Massachusetts Bay Colony
Founded by John Winthrop and 1000 non-separatist Puritans, 1630- Landed at Massachusetts Bay
-Ruling body known as the General Court —-> two-
house legislature, Governor and a court
-Economy was run not for profit, but common good
-Founded Boston & Harvard College
-Women and men were spiritual equals. Women could interpret &
teach the bible-could not be leaders; Average woman had 7 children!!
-By 1650s-60s strict Puritanism giving way to merchant / economic domination- Succeeding generations since 1629 were less religious and sought political and economic freedom
Great Migration
1629 – 1642: 21000 Puritans migrate to New World
-wanted to be an example to Britain and the Church of England- change and purify the C of E
Rhode Island Colony
Founded by Puritans led by Roger Williams (Banished from Massachusetts)
-Did not agree with other Puritans views of the Church of England
(Massachusetts Bay Colony)
-Williams promoted separation of church and state – religion and government
should be separate
-No official religion, Haven for religious dissenters
-Founded Providence
Colonial Assembly elected twice a year and governor annually
Native American and English Views of Land
Natives saw land as communal property- not truly bought by English but given permission to use
English saw land as individually bought and owned- led to conflict w/ natives
English also overhunted, built walls (restricting transport) and let livestock roam free.
Why did Slavery Develop in the Colonies and why in the South in Particular?
-The south had favorable climate and soil for the growth of cash crops (tobacco, rice, indigo.) -These crops are very labor-intensive- plantation owners wanted a cheap way to find labor
-Northerners had religious beliefs opposing slavery (Quakers).
Colonial Atlantic Trade
Disrupted the British Mercantilism system- colonies send materials, Britain sends manufactured goods- colonies reliant on England
Southern colonies - New England - West Indies- New England- West Africa- Southern Colonies
Sugar from SC sent to port- manufactured into molasses in WE- Made to rum in NE - sold in WA- slaves bought and sent to SC
The Tea Act
1773- Parliament awarded the East India Tea Company a monopoly on tea sale and trade in the colonies
Many tea shippers and merchants lost profit and work
Led to the Boston Tea Party
Coercive (Intolerable) Acts
Boston Port Act- Port closed until EIC had been repaid for lost tea
Quartering Act- Homes & other buildings could be used to house British
troops.
Administration of Justice Act- British officials accused of crimes in colonies tried in Britain
Massachusetts Government Act- Political power in colonies held & all colonial appointments made by the King, town meetings allowed only once a year
Declaration of Independence
Congress- appointed committee- Jefferson, Franklin and Adams
Influenced by the ideas of many people
Ideas and People that influenced the Declaration
Religious leaders- John Winthrop and Roger Williams
Winthrop- God is in charge, not governments or kings.
Williams- Church and state should be separated.
Philosophers – John Locke, Thomas Hobbes and Jean Jacque Rousseau
Locke- Kings do not have absolute power. The people have basic rights of life, liberty and property and can overthrow
government if those rights are threatened. ( People are innately good, they can be trusted. A strong central authority (government) controlling people is not needed.)
Hobbes- People form a contract (agreement) together to create
government. The people give power, not God. (People are bad, they cannot be trusted. A
strong central authority is needed to control people.)
(Quote - “Life is nasty, brutish and short.”)
Rousseau: Agreement between the people to create government is known as a social contract. The social contract
is formed by the people; therefore government works for the
people.
Political Philosophy of Republicanism
-Majority of Americans had this philosophy
- Government must be a Republic; Political authority comes from the people
-The people can define and limit government power through written
constitutions
-People can vote: property owning men–> all taxpaying white men could vote
b. People have right to private property- 60-85% of Americans were private property owners
c. Women are property of fathers, husbands and brothers (if father passes away and she is not married)
Articles of Confederation (Problems of)
Created by Continental Congress in 1777- ratified by states in 1781
One House Congress. Each state has one vote- Smaller less-populated states have disproportionate
power in lawmaking
Most proposed legislation requires approval of 9 of
13 state-
Most legislation is not passed (a simple majority
would have been much better-7 votes)
Only one branch of government- No judicial or
executive branch
No checks and balances. Legislative abuses are
unchecked
Congress cannot raise an army- Hampered the war effort; once the war was over, states were no longer willing to provide support
Amendments to the Articles requires approval of all state legislatures- Articles were never changed and unable to meet the
needs of the United States
The Great Compromise
Compromise between the Virginia and New Jersey Plans
Virginia Plan (large state plan)- Congressional representation should be based on population, Congress should consist of two houses (Representatives and Senate), First house elects the second
New Jersey Plan (small state plan)- Congressional representation should be equal- Congress should consist of one house
Compromise:
-Representation based on population in the House of
Representatives (“lower house”)
-Each state has two representatives in the Senate- (“upper house”)
Three Fifths Compromise
-Result of the Great Compromise
-States with low population found fault with the Great Compromise -threatened passage of the Constitution
-Less populous states in the South/ More populous in the North; North would have more representation in the House
-South feared northern domination of national economy/ north illegalizing slavery
-Each slave counted as three-fifths of a person for purposes of
representation
Federalism vs. Anti-Federalism on Bill of Rights
The Federalists - Did not want a Bill of Rights
-Bill of rights not needed since government only has expressed power
-All the rights the people need all already in the Constitution
-Feared the naming of specific rights would lead an all-powerful
government to take away any rights not specifically named
Anti-Federalists- wanted a Bill of Rights
-Bill of Rights would defend against abuse of implied power
-A Bill of Rights would defend citizens from an all-powerful government
Jeffersonian Republicans
Thomas Jefferson, President 1800-1808- Founded Democratic- Republican Party/Jeffersonian Republicans. Largely antifederalists
- Agrarian Republic
-Farmers are the epitome of liberty for democracy
-Spread out - Weak national government
-Weak President, Congress and Courts
-A large republic would be difficult for a strong national government to control.
-Strong states - Economic Equality
- Farmers will not be threatened by elites
- Expansion
-Big nation = more land for farms and liberty - Slavery OK
- This issue unified farmers and white men in general - Low Spending and Taxes
-This would stop the growth of a national government - Low US Debt
o Small and weak national government would not spend and borrow
