Introduction to US History

• Historical Methods

• Periodization

• Themes

HM: The Problem of Evidence

• Primary

• Secondary

• Tertiary

• Bias

HM: The Problem of Objectivity

• Source Bias

• Historian Bias

• Is Objective History Possible?

HM: The Problem of Causation

• Great Men?

• Impersonal Forces

HM: The Problem of Motives

• Deciphering Witness Statements

• Lack of Witness Statements

• Actions Speak Louder Than Words

• Economic vs. Idealistic

Themes

• Land Hunger and Agriculture

• The Ever Moving Frontier and Social Class

• Indian Relations

• Foreign Entanglements

• The Development of American Democracy

• The Sectionalization of America

• The Shadow of the Civil War

Periodization: Colonial America (1492-1783)

• Economy: Agriculture

• Political: Propertied People Vote

• Religion: Only New England is very religious.

• Slavery: Exists in all colonies.

• Social: Fronteir vs. Settled Areas

Periodization: Early Republic (1783-1828)

• Economy: Agriculture, growing foreign trade. • Political: Increased Democracy For White Men.• Religion: Second Great Awakening• Slavery: Sectional Differentiation

• Social: Growing Classes but Frontiersmen defy this.

Periodization: Antebellum America (1828-1860)

• Economy: Industrial North; Slave Agricultural South

• Political: Universal White Manhood Suffrage

• Religion: Catholic vs. Protestant.

• Slavery: North grows Anti-Slavery; South defends it fanatically.

• Social: Rise of the Middle Class and gender ideologies

Periodization: Civil War (1861-1865)

and Reconstruction (1865-1877) • Economy: Industry triumphs.

• Political: Blacks gain right to vote, though often denied it.

• Religion: Rise of the Black Churches.

• Slavery: Slavery is abolished.

• Social: Veterans dominate society for the rest of the century.

The World in 1500

Rise of Nation States:Absolute Monarchy: France

• Hundred Year’s War• French Absolutism, Taxes, and Military Power• France will dominate Europe by 1650

Rise of Nation States:Limited Monarchy: England

• Defeat in the Hundred Year's War

• England in Decline: – International Impotence

– Limited Monarchy, Taxes, and Military Power

– But Rising Trade

Rise of Nation States:International Empire: Spain

• Spain and International Empire– Charles V: King of Many Nations

– Absolute Monarchy + Wealth of the Americas

– Most Catholic King

Rise of Nation States:International Empire: Spain

Spain and International Empire

• Charles V: King of Many Nations

• Absolute Monarchy + Wealth of the Americas

• Most Catholic King

Rise of Nation States: Republic: The Netherlands

• Cutting Edge of Capitalism• Cash Crops

• International Colonies. • Joint-Stock Companies

• The Dutch are a semi-democratic Republic.

The Dutch Revolt

Rise of Nations:The Dutch Revolt

• Protestant Revolt:• The Dutch also become one of the first Protestant

nations, leading to revolt against Spain

• This leads to 80 years of war with Spain, sapping Spain

• Dutch finance enables the Dutch to field armies which can fight

• .Spain on even terms.

The Rise of Nation States:Rising Anarchy: Holy Roman Empire

• Early Strength:

• Late Medieval Decline:

• Fragmentation:

• Reformation:

The Reformation: Problems of Renaissance Catholicism

• Temporal Power:

• Rising Heresies:

• Monastic Corruption:

• The Indulgences Issue:

The Reformation:Martin Luther

• Origins: Luther was a German Augustinian monk, who came to feel he wasn't holy enough despite being a monk, and who came to criticize the Church, leading to him nailing the famous 95 Theses (a list of complaints about the Church) to the door of his local cathedral.

• His Protests: – Sale of Indulgences

– The Focus on Penances and Works as key to salvation

– The refusal to translate the Bible into modern languages.

The Reformation: Luther’s Theology

• Salvation by Faith

• An End to Celibacy

• Sola Scriptura

• His Impact: Luther shattered the unity of the Western Church and opened the way for the creation of the several thousand Protestant denominations which exist today.

The Reformation: Anglicanism

• The Quest for Heirs:

• The Split with the Church:

• Impact:

The Reformation: The Wars of Religion

• The Holy Roman Empire Self Destructs:

• The Dutch Revolt:

• Habsburgs Bankrupt Spain:

• England and France Torn by Dissension:

Rise of International Trade and Exploration: The Silk Road and the Spice Trade

• The Silk Road

• The Rise of Islam and the Silk and Spice Routes

• The Fall of Constantinople

Rise of International Trade and Exploration: The Rise of Portuguese Exploration

• Prince Henry the Navigator (March 4, 1394–November 13, 1460): This Portuguese prince played a crucial role in the beginning of Portuguese explorations by providing funding and gathering experts to strengthen Portuguese shipping and navigation.

• Technical Innovations: – The Caravel

– Square and Lateen sails

– The Compass

– Gunpowder

Rise of International Trade and Exploration: Portugal and the East

• The Rounding of Africa: In 1488, Bartholemew Dias rounded the Cape of Good Hope.

• The problem of the Indian Ocean

Rise of International Trade and Exploration: Africa in 1500--Problems

• Climate and Disease:

• Semi-Isolation:

• Lack of Science: – Low Literacy

– Few cities

– Few schools

– Little access to Arabic and Greco-Roman philosophy and scholarship

Rise of International Trade and Exploration: Africa in 1500--Society

• Sub-Saharan Trade Route Empires

– Mali (1235 to 1645 AD)

• Tributary Empire

• Centralized military

• Large cities

• Moslem Rule

• African Artisanry

– Done by hand, not mass produced

– Luxury items for the wealthy and export

Rise of International Trade and Exploration: Africa in 1500--Economics

• African Trade

– Europeans want slaves, gold, ivory, tropical produce

– Africans want cloth, alcohol, firearms, metal tools

• African Slavery

– Not necessarily for life

– War captives or punishment for crime

– Not based on race

• European Slave Trade in Africa

– Driven by need for labor in the New World

– Coastal Africans sell interior Africans to Europeans for goods

The Isolated Americas: Initial Migration Conditions

• The Last Ice Age: Ended somewhere around 13,000 BC.

• Patterns of Migration: Push South in Waves

The Isolated Americas: Technological Isolation

• Stone age arrival

• Low levels of trade between regions

• Contrast to Europe/Asia/Africa

The Isolated Americas: Bio-Deficiencies

• Lack of Draft Animals

• Fewer indigenous diseases

• Cultural Impacts

Dominant Cultures:Aztecs

• The Valley of Mexico

• The Rise of the Aztecs

• The Aztec Empire

•

Aztec Religion and Society

• Huitzilopochtli (Sun God)

• Human Sacrifice

• Tenochtitlan

• Aztec Society

• Aztec Economy– Cacao + Cotton

'Money'

• Aztec Warfare

• Women in Aztec Society

Aztec Warfare

Aztec Warfare

Aztec Technology

Dominant Cultures:Incas

• Would you walk 2,600 miles?

• Absolute Monarchy– Mountain Irrigation– Primitive Socialism– Labor Taxes– State Employees

• Dress Codes

Inca Technology

• Expert Stonemasons

• Expert Irrigators

• Long-Distance Road and Communications Network

• No writing system (just a knot code)

• Stone age weaponry

• Little metalworking

Dominant Cultures:North America

• Forest Tribes

• Mound Builders

• Plains Tribes

• Great Basin Tribes

• Pacific Northwest

• Arid Southwest

The Colombian Exchange:Columbus

• The Portuguese Monopoly

• Columbus’ plan

• What Columbus Did

• Beginning of Spanish Colonization

The Colombian Exchange:The Conquistadores

• The Fall of Mexico

• The Fall of the Incas

• The Limits of Spanish Expansion

The Colombian Exchange:The Ravages of Disease

• Thresholds of Disease

• How Plagues Spread

• Demographic Catastrophe

The Colombian Exchange:Plants

• Americas to Africa and Europe– The Potato– Corn– Beans and Peppers

• Africa and Europe to the Americas:– The Yam– Wheat and Spices– Alcohol

The Colombian Exchange:Animals

• Europe to Americas: Horse, Cattle, Pigs, Goats, Chickens

• Americas to Europe: Turkey

• Improved Agriculture

• Improved Nomad Lifestyles