Unit 1 : 1491 - 1607 Flashcards
What were the civilizations in Central and South America like?
- 3 major civilizations
- large urban centers
- complex political systems
- well formed religions
Aztecs (aka Mexica)(Central America)
- capital city in Tenochtitlan, home to 30,000
- written language
- complex systems of irrigation
- priests
- human sacrifice
Maya (Central America)
- Yucatan Peninsula
- large cities
- complex irrigation
- large stone temples
- palaces
- ruler were believed to be descended from the gods
Inca (South America)
- Andes Mountains along pacific coast, modern day Peru
- massive empire, 16 million people, 350,000 sq miles
- success was in cultivation of fertile mountain valleys
- grew potatoes + other crops
- elaborate irrigation system
All 3 major Central and South American civilization had what?
Maize:
- corn like crop
- nutritious
- spread North into present day American Southwest
Supported:
- economic development
- settlement of peoples
- advanced irrigation
- social diversification among societies
Pueblo Peoples (North America)
- present day New Mexico, Arizona
- sedentary population
- farmers of Maize and other crops
- build Adobe and masonry homes, both in the open and right into the side of cliffs
- highly organized
- administrative offices
- religious centers
- craft shops
Great Plains + Great Basins Region (North America)
- nomadic hunter gatherers
- needed lots of land due to aridity
- Ute Peoples
Ute Peoples (Great Plains + Great Basins Region) (North America)
- small egaliterean kinship based bands
Pacific Northwest Region (North America)
- lived by the sea and settled themselves into fishing villages
- relied on elk found in abundance in their forests
- Chinook Peoples
Chinook Peoples (Pacific Northwest Region) (North America)
- made use of the great cedar trees to construct giant plank houses
- could house up to 70 members of the same kinship band
Chumash Peoples (North America)
- lived on coast, but further south in present day in California
- hunter gatherers, BUT lived in permanent settlements
- constructed settlements in places where there was enough game and vegetation to support them
Mississippi River Valley Region (North America)
- much larger, complex societies
- fertile soil surrounding the rivers
- societies could stay put, farm, and develop
Hopewell Peoples (North America)
- lived in towns of about 4000-6000 people
- traded extensively with other regions, as far as Florida and the Rocky Mountains
Cahokia Peoples
- largest settlements in that region
- up to 10000-30000 people
- government was led by powerful chieftans
- centralized
- engaged in extensive trade networks, from Great Lakes down to Gulf of Mexico
Iroquois (Northeast Region) (North America)
- lived in villages of several hundred people
- grew crops, maize, squash, beans
- lived in Longhouse, with 30-50 family members
What were the reason for exploration during this period?
- population increase after black plague
- political unification in individual European societies
– led to centralized gov. ruled by powerful monarchs - desire for luxury goods rose from agricultural and commercial profits
– wealthy upperclass wanted luxury goods imported from Asia
Why did Europeans go to sea and not land for exploration?
- during 14th - 15th centuries, land based routes were largely controlled by muslims, so Europeans couldn’t establish trade with Asia without a middleman
- wanted to find a water based route to Asia so they could trade
What was Portugal’s contribution to exploration?
- Portugal was the first to attempt finding water-based route
- Prince Henry the Navigator attempted to find a passage via Atlantic Ocean
– not to sail it, but to go around Africa - used maritime technology in new ways
Caravels
trading ships dedicated to trade as opposed to war