Period 1
EUROPEAN EXPANSION Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. I. EUROPEAN EXPANSION into the Western Hemisphere generated intense social, religious, political, and economic competition and changes within European societies. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definition from AMSCO: EUROPEAN EXPANSION was accomplished by the Spanish, English, French, and Dutch. The Spanish explorers used conquistadores to increase their gold supply by searching for gold in the Americas. The English explorer John Cabot explorers the coast of Newfoundland, but England was too caught up in other issues that they never revisited. The French based many of their voyages off of Jacques Cartier who explorer the St. Lawrence River, but the French monarchy was preoccupied with European wars as well as internal religious conflicts between Roman Catholics and French Protestants. The Dutch hired Henry Hudson, who explored what would become New Amsterdam. This led to the establishment of the Dutch West India Company, with the right to control the region for economic gain. Significance to U.S. History: European expansion into the Americas led to the establishment of the colonies that would be under the control of the monarchy. The conflict between the two powers would later lead to the American Revolution and much more conflict. Contextualization: European expansion in to the Western hemisphere is similar to European expansion in the eighteenth century that was characterized by the growth of world trade. This expansion was made possible by the economic development of Britain that led to their military successes and the expansion of its empire. This is different because it was successful based on economic resources instead of technological innovations.
DIVERGENT WORLDVIEWS Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. III. In their interactions, Europeans and Native Americans asserted DIVERGENT WORLDVIEWS regarding issues such as religion, gender roles, family, land use, and power. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definition from AMSCO: Europeans and Native Americans had DIVERGENT WORLDVIEW on issues such as religion, gender roles, family, land use and power. Many Native societies were matrilineal, Natives did not own individual land, and Natives believed in animism and were polytheistic, while the shamans held power. All of these aspects of Native American culture differed from those that the Europeans believed. Significance to U.S. History: The diverging views between Native Americans and Europeans led to future conflicts between the two parties, as well as the encroachment of the Native Americans by the Europeans who violently forced them off of their land(s). Contextualization: The divergent world views between Europeans and Native Americans is similar to the divergent worldview between Europeans and African Americans. They are similar because Europeans viewed African Americans in the same way that they viewed the Native Americans: as inferior and subordinate to them. Both of these diverging world views between the two parties led to debates over their treatment.
INTERNATIONAL TRADE Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. I. European expansion into the Western Hemisphere generated intense social, religious, political, and economic competition and changes within European societies. C) Improvements in maritime technology and more organized methods for conducting INTERNATIONAL TRADE such as joint-stock companies, helped drive changes to economies in Europe and the Americas. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definition from AMSCO: INTERNATIONAL TRADE during this time period between European kingdoms and Africa, India, and China led to the creation of new trade routes, slave trading, and African resistance. Motivated by economic interests, the Portuguese sought to find a new way to the rich Asian trade. The Portuguese also began trading for slaves from West Africa. Significance to U.S. History: Trade during this time period sparked the beginning of a global trading network that still exists in the twenty-first century today. One of the most remarkable impacts of the trade during this time period was the establishment of a slave trade, which would lead to constitutional debates and eventually the Civil War. Contextualization: International trade during this time period is similar to trade during the eighteenth century as a complex network of colonial trade was established over the North Atlantic Ocean that was partially a result of local economic conditions and dominant wind and sea current patterns. These are both similar because they used maritime technology and increased understanding of the way the world works to create more trade routes that allowed for international trade to increase.
EUROPEAN NATIONS' EFFORTS TO EXPLORE AND CONQUER THE NEW WORLD Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. I. European expansion into the Western Hemisphere generated intense social, religious, political, and economic competition and changes within European societies. A) EUROPEAN NATIONS' EFFORTS TO EXPLORE AND CONQUER THE NEW WORLD stemmed from a search for new sources of wealth, economic and military competition, and a desire to spread Christianity. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definition from AMSCO: In Europe, a rebirth of classical learning prompted scientific and technological advancements that allowed for major improvements in travel. Combined with the new maritime technology, changing economic, political, and social conditions in Europe prompted EUROPEAN NATIONS' EFFORTS TO EXPLORE AND CONQUER THE NEW WORLD, most noticeably with Christopher Columbus. Significance to U.S. History: Europe's desire to conquer the new world left an astounding impact on the Americas by instituting their control and power over the Natives that they would be held under for decades. Contextualization: European nations' efforts to explore and conquer the new world is similar to the second wave of European exploration fueled by religious motives during the eighteenth century, mainly in the Pacific region, including Australia, Tasmania, New Guinea, and New Zealand. These are both similar because of their religious motives to spread Christianity.
JOINT-STOCK COMPANIES Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. I. European expansion into the Western Hemisphere generated intense social, religious, political, and economic competition and changes within European societies. C) Improvements in maritime technology and more organized methods for conducting international trade such as JOINT-STOCK COMPANIES, helped drive changes to economies in Europe and the Americas. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definition from AMSCO: JOINT-STOCK COMPANIES are companies made up of groups of investors who bought the right to establish plantations from the king. Significance to U.S. History: The establishment of joint-stock companies were significant because many of the early settlements in the United States were established by joint-stock companies, such as Jamestown which was funded by the Virginia Company, a joint-stock company. Contextualization: Joint-stock companies from Period 1 were similar to modern corporations that sell stock to investors in order to pool resources like capital, or money, together for new product develop,t research, etc.
GREAT BASIN, GREAT PLAINS Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.1: As native populations migrated and settled across the vast expanse of North America over time, they developed distinct and increasingly complex societies by adapting to and transforming their diverse environments. I. Different native societies adapted to and transformed their environments through innovations in agriculture, resource use, and social structure. B) Societies responded to the aridity of the GREAT BASIN and the grasslands of the western GREAT PLAINS by developing largely mobile lifestyles. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definition from AMSCO: Most people who lived on the GREAT PLAINS were either nomadic hunters or sedentary people who farmed and traded. The nomadic tribes survived on hunting, especially the buffalo, which not only supplied them with food, but also with decorations, tools, and clothing. They raised corn (MAIZE), beans, and squash while trading with other tribes. The GREAT BASIN had an arid climate that changed the way people settled the land. It was bounded by the Rocky Mountains on the east and the Sierra and Cascade on the West. Its harsh expanse of dry desert and high mountains gave it the name of the watershed region. Significance to U.S. History: The advantageous climate and environment of the land of the Great Basin and Great Plains encouraged many people to migrate there so that they could use the resources of the land. This is one of the early examples of internal migration that would continue until today. Contextualization: The migration to the Great Basin and Great Plains is similar to westward expansion in the Gilded Age as people migrated in hopes of economic success. In Period 1 the motivation was the resources of the land and its geography, such as the rivers, and in the Gilded Age gold and silver and other natural resources motivated migration to the western lands.
COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE, EUROPEANS, NATIVE AMERICANS, AFRICANS Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among EUROPEANS, NATIVE AMERICANS, and AFRICANS resulted in the COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. I. European expansion into the Western Hemisphere generated intense social, religious, political, and economic competition and changes within European societies. B) The COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE brought new crops to Europe from the Americas, stimulating European population growth, and new sources of mineral wealth, which facilitated the European shift from feudalism to capitalism. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definition from AMSCO: The COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE was a transfer of plants, animals, and germs from one side of the Atlantic to the other for the first time. EUROPEANS learned about many new plants and foods, including beans, corn, sweet and white potatoes, tomatoes, and tobacco. They also contracted new diseases that millions died from as the NATIVES had no immunity to the importation of EUROPEAN importation of germs and diseases. The decrease in population of NATIVE AMERICANS led to a labor shortage that eventually contributed to the establishment of AFRICAN slavery. Significance to U.S. History: The Columbian Exchange was very significant to U.S. History because these biological and cultural exchanges led to entire tribal communities and millions of natives dying from new diseases, new crops that produced large yields and could support larger populations, and forms of technology that revolutionized the way that people lived. The contribution the Columbian Exchange had on African slavery would lead to future conflicts such as the Civil War and civil service reforms. Contextualization: The Columbian Exchange is similar to when immigrants from Ireland and Germany traveled to the United States in search of wealth because the Columbian Exchange led to increased European migration to get resources from America. Additionally, the immigrants from Ireland and Germany brought cultures, traditions, and languages that altered life for Americans like the Columbian Exchange did.
ENCOMIENDA SYSTEM Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. II. The Columbian Exchange and development of the Spanish empire in the Western Hemisphere resulted in extensive demographic, economic, and social change. B) In the ENCOMIENDA SYSTEM, Spanish colonial economies marshaled Native American labor to support plantation-based agriculture and extract precious metals and other resources. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definition from AMSCO: The ENCOMIENDA SYSTEM was instituted by the Spanish after seizing the wealth of the Indian empires, with the king of Spain giving grants of land and natives to individual Spaniards. These conquered Indians had to farm or work in the mines, while the fruits of their labors went to their Spanish masters, who in turn had to "care" for them. Significance to U.S. History: This was one of the earlier forms of coercive labor, which would eventually lead to more harsh and inhumane labor systems, such as slavery. Contextualization: The encomienda system was similar to feudalism during the 9th century that was a combination of legal and military customs in medieval Europe. This was a way of structuring society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service of labor. The encomienda system was when the person is assigned a number of slaves/workers to do things for them such as hard labor and in feudalism the high ranked person orders the low ranked person to work for them. Therefore, they are both similar in how they functioned.
MAIZE CULTIVATION, MEXICO, AMERICAN SOUTHWEST Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.1: As native populations migrated and settled across the vast expanse of North America over time, they developed distinct and increasingly complex societies by adapting to and transforming their diverse environments. I. Different native societies adapted to and transformed their environments through innovations in agriculture, resource use, and social structure. A) The spread of MAIZE CULTIVATION from present-day MEXICO northward into the present-day AMERICAN SOUTHWEST and beyond supported economic development, settlement, advanced irrigation, and social diversification among societies. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definitions from Wikipedia.org: MAIZE, also known in English-speaking countries as corn, is a large grain plant domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. MAIZE originally developed in MEXICO and would have long term effects on the Americas. The AMERICAN SOUTHWEST was a dry region were multifaceted societies evolved supported by farming with irrigation systems. Significance to U.S. History: The cultivation of Maize allowed for agricultural development and settlement of the American Southwest even with its environmental challenges. Contextualization: The cultivation of maize is similar to the use of cotton because in both situations, the agricultural product led to both increased settlement of lands and economic impacts. Cotton led to the establishment of plantations as well as a demand for cheap labor, slavery, to cultivate the cotton.
MARITIME TECHNOLOGY Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. I. European expansion into the Western Hemisphere generated intense social, religious, political, and economic competition and changes within European societies. C) Improvements in MARITIME TECHNOLOGY and more organized methods for conducting international trade, such as joint-stock companies, helped drive changes to economies in Europe and the Americas. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definition: MARITIME TECHNOLOGY in Period 1 included the sextant, astrolabe, compass, and caravel ships that allowed for an increase in exploration and trade around the world as travelling become more efficient. Significance to U.S. History: This advance in technology represented a time of rebirth of classical learning and artistic and scientific activity in Europe known as the Renaissance. It was with these new advancements that Christopher Columbus was able to come to the Americas, leading to an increase in European presence and dominance in the land, which was very threatening to the Natives and would have serious implications in throughout the next couple decades. Contextualization: The development of maritime technology is similar to the development of more maritime technology during the 18th century such as naval maps and square rigged sailing ships. These innovations had impacts on international trade and exploration and allowed for advancements in both of these categories.
EXTENDED CONTACT, DEBATE Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. III. In their interactions, Europeans and Native Americans asserted divergent worldviews regarding issues such as religion, gender roles, family, land use, and power. C) EXTENDED CONTACT with Native Americans and Africans fostered a DEBATE among European religious and political leaders about how non-Europeans should be treated, as well as evolving religious, cultural, and racial justifications for the subjugation of Africans and Native Americans. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definitions from AMSCO: Europeans had EXTENDED CONTACT with Native Americans and Africans as they exploited them for their labor. This led to a DEBATE over their rights and how they should be treated in comparison to Europeans. Significance to U.S. History: For hundreds of years, racial discrimination meant that people of other nationalities or races were discriminated against and treated inhumanely. Contextualization: The debate among Europeans about how non-Europeans such as Africans and Native Americans should be treated is similar to the debate about how Americans should treat the African-Americans as slaves during the Civil War. Both utilized religious, cultural, and racial justifications for the subjugation of the two parties, such as claiming that nowhere in the Bible was slavery mentioned as a sin.
MUTUAL MISUNDERSTANDINGS, INTERACTION AND TRADE, EUROPEAN ENCROACHMENTS Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. III. In their interactions, Europeans and Native Americans asserted divergent worldviews regarding issues such as religion, gender roles, family, land use, and power. A) MUTUAL MISUNDERSTANDINGS between Europeans and Native Americans often defined the early years of INTERACTION AND TRADE as each group sought to make sense of the other. Over time, Europeans and Native Americans adopted some useful aspects of each other's culture. B) As EUROPEAN ENCROACHMENTS on Native Americans' lands and demands on their labor increased, native peoples sought to defend and maintain their political sovereignty, economic prosperity, religious beliefs, and concepts of gender relations through diplomatic negotiations and military resistance. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definitions from AMSCO: Most Europeans looked down upon the Native Americans and viewed them as inferior people who could be exploited for economic gain, converted to Christianity, and used as military allies. Initially, the European goods motivated the two parties to interact, but after the Columbus Exchange and the violence of disease of the Europeans that killed millions of Natives, the tribes had to adopt to new ways to survive. The French promoted INTERACTION AND TRADE with the Native Americans by exchanging French goods for beaver pelts and other furs collected by American Indians. However, the English had no respect for American Indian cultures, and this led to MISUNDERSTANDINGS as they forced tribes to move away from the coast. Both the Spanish and English settlers were examples of EUROPEAN ENCROACHMENTS upon the American Indians. Significance to U.S. History: The tribes allied themselves with one European power or another in hopes of gaining support in order to survive. A number of tribes simply migrated to new land to get away from the slowly encroaching settlers. This was the beginning of a long period of conflict for the Native Americans who were being threatened in their home land by people who had taken over. Even into the Gilded Age, Native Americans were not able to freely live in the land that they had discovered in the first place. Contextualization: The misunderstandings between Europeans and Native Americans is similar to the belief of white supremacy present largely during the Civil War as whites believed that they were superior to those of color (African Americans). In both situations, one group of people believed that they had more rights than the other simply based on race and nationality.
NORTHWEST, CALIFORNIA Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.1: As native populations migrated and settled across the vast expanse of North America over time, they developed distinct and increasingly complex societies by adapting to and transforming their diverse environments. I. Different native societies adapted to and transformed their environments through innovations in agriculture, resource use, and social structure. D) Societies in the NORTHWEST and present-day CALIFORNIA supported themselves by hunting and gathering, and in some areas developed settled communities supported by the vast resources of the ocean. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definitions from AMSCO: NORTHWEST settlements were along the Pacific coast from what is Alaska to northern CALIFORNIA were characterized by permanent longhouses/plank houses with a rich diet based on hunting, fishing, and gathering nuts, berries, and roots. They also used large totem poles to save their stories and legends and myths that were a large part of their culture. The high mountain ranges in this region isolated tribes from one another, creating barriers to development. The Spanish established permanent settlements in CALIFORNIA at San Diego and San Francisco and established missions or settlements along the CALIFORNIA coast. Significance to U.S. History: New advances in tools allowed for permanent settlements that relied off of agriculture and farming. This was a significant change from semi-permanent settlements to permanent settlements and a decrease in the nomadic lifestyle. Contextualization: The agricultural innovations that allowed for the settlement of the northwest and California is similar to the agricultural innovations that allowed for more and better quality food that led to increased populations and settlement of the Americas during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
SLAVERY, CASTE SYSTEM Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. II. The Columbian Exchange and development of the Spanish empire in the Western Hemisphere resulted in extensive demographic, economic, and social change. C) European traders partnered with some West African groups who practiced SLAVERY to forcibly extract slave labor for the Americas. The Spanish imported enslaved Africans to labor in plantation agriculture and mining. D) The Spanish developed a CASTE SYSTEM that incorporated, and carefully defined the status of, the diverse population of Europeans, Africans, and Native Americans in their empire. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definitions from AMSCO: Since ancient times people in Europe, Africa, and Asia had enslaved people captured in wars. In the 1400s, the Portuguese began trading for SLAVES from West Africa. They used these SLAVES to work newly established sugar plantations, which proved profitable. The CASTE SYSTEM was a social structure in which classes are determined by heredity, a set of rigid social categories that determined not only a person's occupation and economic potential, but also his or her position in society. Significance to U.S. History: The use of slavery by the Portuguese was so profitable that when Europeans established colonies in the Americas, they used the slave system as well, which would have implications leading up to the Civil War. Contextualization: Indentured servitude was similar and different in many ways when compared to slavery. Indentured servants had opportunity for freedom once they finished their average seven years of labor, while slaves were indebted for their whole entire lifespan. Both worked under poor conditions; however, slaves were punished far more brutally. Both provided labor for Europeans and plantations.
SPANISH EMPIRE, SPANISH EXPLORATION Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.2: Contact among Europeans, Native Americans, and Africans resulted in the Columbian Exchange and significant social, cultural, and political changes on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. II. The Columbian Exchange and development of the SPANISH EMPIRE in the Western Hemisphere resulted in extensive demographic, economic, and social change. A) SPANISH EXPLORATION and conquest of the Americas were accompanied and furthered by widespread deadly epidemics that devastated native populations and by the introduction of crops and animals not found in the Americas. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definitions from AMSCO: Spanish settlements developed slowly in North America as a result of limited mineral resources and strong opposition from the American Indians. The SPANISH EMPIRE as a result of SPANISH EXPLORATION of the Americas was present in Florida, New Mexico, Texas, and California where motives were primarily religious. Significance to U.S. History: Spanish exploration of the Americans led to an increase in their gold supply by more than 500%, making Spain the most rich and powerful nation Europe. Spain's success encouraged other nations to turn to the Americas in search of gold and power, marking the beginning of an age of exploration. Contextualization: Spanish exploration during the Age of Exploration is similar to European exploration during the mid-19th century as they began colonizing Australia and New Zealand. Both of these periods of exploration had religious motivations.
NORTHEAST, MISSISSIPPI RIVER VALLEY, ATLANTIC SEABOARD Period 1, 1491-1607 Key Concept 1.1: As native populations migrated and settled across the vast expanse of North America over time, they developed distinct and increasingly complex societies by adapting to and transforming their diverse environments. I. Different native societies adapted to and transformed their environments through innovations in agriculture, resource use, and social structure. C) In the NORTHEAST, the MISSISSIPPI RIVER VALLEY, and along the ATLANTIC SEABOARD some societies developed mixed agricultural and hunter-gatherer economies that favored the development of permanent villages. (Source: 2015 Revised College Board Content Outline for A.P. U.S. History)
Definitions from AMSCO: The Woodland American Indians who lived East of the Mississippi River prospered with a rich food supply supported by hunting, fishing, and agriculture. They lived in permanent settlements along the MISSISSIPPI RIVER VALLEY. Those living in the NORTHEAST settlements had a culture that combined hunting and farming. However, their farming techniques exhausted the soil quickly so they had to move to fresh land frequently. The ATLANTIC SEABOARD settlements utilized the rivers and the Atlantic Ocean with a rich source of food as well as building timber and bark lodgings. Significance to U.S. History: Settlements in these parts of America set the foundation for future societies to come. They led to the establishment of permanent societies through their advances in agriculture that allowed them to not have to constantly move to find new land. This was a unique part of the time period that would have implications for many years to come as people settled the rest of the nation. Contextualization: The settlement of certain lands because of abundant resources is something that has remained constant over the time of many eras. For example, the West was settled during a time of Manifest Destiny because of its rich resources of gold and silver. However, this is different because gold and silver promised economic success, while the Mississippi River Valley, Northeast, and Atlantic Seaboard were not settled for economic success, but for survival.
