Today the people once called American Indians, prefer to be called Native Americans.
First settlers – 20,000-30,000 years ago from Siberia, Asia came to Alaska across a land bridge where the Bering Strait is today.
1492 – Columbus, 1,5 mln NA lived in America – Indians (mistaking the place where Columbus landed). English explore new territories: motive vs other colonists.
Indians: concept of private property; attribute to environment; wars between English & NA; kidnapping (похищение людей) for slavery; European diseases.
17-18 century: control over vast territory, “middle ground” – neither supreme rules, coexistence, cooperation;
18-19: wars w/Europeans, “tray of tears” – unexplored areas, intertribal conflicts.
19: a tightening circle (British+Europeans wars), poor management of reservations, poor supplies; diseases.
20: assimilation of NA into mainstream America; vanishing race; 1924 – granting citizenship, modern reservation: about 300 jurisdictions of Indian tribes – no taxes on land; each tribe = sovereign nation; since 1824 – Bureau of Indian Affairs.
21: 300 federal reservations – 2,5% of US territory (mostly west of the Mississippi river); 200 american indian languages. 2,5 mln American Indians + Alaska Natives.
Indians gave settlers food, taught them planting (corn, potatoes, tomato banana, pineapple: cacao, tobacco),hunting and fishing, introduce them cloths, methods of transportation. The influence of Indian culture: mount-s, lakes, rivers, cities have Indian names (Chicago, Ohio, Montana, Michigan, Idaho, Mississippi, Missouri).
The US government began setting aside special territories (reservations) for the Indians. They were pushed into these lands which was the worst lands. There reser-s were mostly in the s w & the n w of the US. 19th- they were kept in the reser-s and forbidden to leave them without permission. Today-270 reser-s for the Native Indians. By 1890, as the result of white cruelty, poverty and poor living conditions the Indian population in the US had decreased to about 240th.
The Indians began to protest against such treatment receiving more and more support from the American public. As the result, American treatment of I-ns began to improve. Today, there are about 2.5 mln Native Am-ns living in the US. The majority live in or near the federal reservation, but they are free to leave. Most of them – s w (Arizona, California). On the reserve-s traditional Indian customs, languages have survived. But nevertheless they are unhappy. To improve the quality of life for Indians, the US government established the Bureau of Indian Affairs – better life of Indian (free schools, hospitals). But in comparison with most other Americans, the Indians on the reservations live a poor life.
The beginning of the colonization of NA by the first settlers from Europe. What considerations influenced many people to move to America? The Pilgrim Fathers. Why are they held so high by the Americans? The May flower Compact.
The 1st American immigrants (more 20.000 years) were intercontinental wanderers: hunters & their families following animal herds from Asia to NA.
A party of Icelandic Vikings under Leif Ericson sailed to the e-ern coast of NA (travelling west from Greenland where they had founded a settlement in 985), Vinland
The USA was opened to European colonization by the first voyage of Christopher Columbus in 1492, he reached the Bahamas and then landed in Cuba, which took for China. He called the natives Indians, cos he thought it was “West Indies”.
After Columbus there were many expeditions organized by the Spanish, English, French & Dutch.
On this basis Spain claimed the whole of the New World. It was a possible source of wealth. The Spaniards were only interested in gold and treasures, and found it in the South America. Spanish colonization of America was a private enterprise. People had to equip and finance their own expeditions and obtain a royal license, that gave them right to one tenth of the found wealth. Spanish destroyed the native tribes and killed them – the Aztecs, the Mayas, the Inks. For three centuries the Spanish Empire flourished due to South America.
Spaniards created a profitable agricultural economy. They brought their language, knowledge, tools, vegetables, fruits (oranges, grapes), domestic animals (cows, pigs, horses).
1513 – Juan Ponce de Leon discovered and named Florida (searching for the fountain of Youth). 1540 – Francisco Coronado discovered the Grand Canyon. The Spaniards occupied large territories, but didn’t people them – they lost interest in this land, cos they didn’t find gold there.
Traits of the Spanish colonization:
Many mixed marriages =› they dissolved within the native population; they didn’t establish any political institution independent from the Crown; they took many wealth from their colonies; stifled economy.
1524 – Francis I sent Verrazano to find a new way to Asia. He landed in the harbour of New York. Jacques Cartier made three round trips across the Atlantic between 1534 and 1542, discovered St. Lawrence river and went along it to the places of pr-day Quebec and Montreal. Called this province New France. He reported, that there were a lot of fish and fur-bearing animals. He gave France a claim to what has become Canada. The French established contacts with Indians and traded fur for 300 years. 1603 – the area of the lower St Lawrence was declared a French Royal Province. 1609 – Samuel de Champlain founded Quebec. A few colonies were established in North America. Detroit and Chicago – former French settlements. 1661 – Louis XVI made New France a royal province. A port of New Orleans was set as the base for the new colony of Louisiana.
The English were the dominant ethnic group among early settlers of what became the USA.
Elizabeth I planned to establish a stream of colonies b-n Florida & Newfoundland. Grounds for these claims – John Cabot, sent by Henry VIII, was the first to land at Newfoundland in 1497.
1585 – first group of settlers. Didn’t survive, the rest returned to Britain.
1587 – John White’s group, 120 ppl. His daughter gave birth to the 1st American. John White had to return to Britain – the war w/Spain. When he returned two years later, he found no sign of the colony. (the Lost Colony)
1606 – James I divided America b-n the London Virginia Company (which was to colonize the South) & the Plymouth Company (colonized North).
1622 – the Indians unexpectedly attacked and killed 400 ppl.
An important event in the colonization of North Am. took place in 1620 when a group of colonists known as the Pilgrim Fathers came to North Am. on the famous ship the Mayflower and settled at Plymouth. They were separatists in England, or members of the Puritan movement wishing to purify the Church of England by making religious services simpler and discipline stricter. That is why they were called Puritans (to make pure). They hoped to build “a city upon a hill” – an ideal society and were very intolerant to those who disagreed.
The Pilgrim leaders knew that in order to organize their lives in the new land they had to establish rules of behavior. So 41 men aboard the Mayflower signed a special document known as the Mayfl. Comp. to abide by “just and equal laws” drafted by leaders of their own choosing, which was the 1st agreement for self-government in America. They also chose their first governor. That winter more than half of them died of cold and disease, but neighboring Indians provided information that would sustain them: how to grow crops. The next summer they raised good crops, and in the fall a ship brought new settlers. Their resolution never faltered and the colony continued to expand. Then in rapid succession other English colonies emerged. 1st Thanksgiving – establish traditions (4th Thursday in November)
First settler’s motives: ship-building; colonization experience; expanding population. English motives for colon: threat of spanish invasion, overpopulation & poverty, search for religious freedom.
Colonies: New France (Lousiana), New Spain (South: Florida, Arizona, CA), Russian Alaska, New Amsterdam (was seized by England) – NY (Duke of York).
#5 The War of Independence (1775-1783)
The last half of the 18th – 13 colonies (New Hampshire, MA, NY, RI, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, NJ, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, N&S Carolina, Georgia).
Reasons: growing opposition colonies vs B; 7 years’ war àBritain expenses à colonies to pay war debts; 1763 – B issued Royal proclamation à no right to settle west of Appalachian mountains; taxes on sugar, coffee, textiles; 1765 - the Quartering Act – to house and feed British soldiers; 1765 - Stamp Act – stamps to legal newspapers, documents - opposition was so widespread that the B-sh G was forced to repeal the Stamp Act à hostility opposition of Americans; slogan “no taxation without representation”; The colonists demanded that taxes only be introduced with the consent of colonial assemblies. To defuse the situation the B-sh G abolished many of the new taxes except that on tea.
1773 - a band of men (Mohawk Indians) boarded 3 B-sh ships lying at anchor in Boston harbor and dumped 342 crates of tea into the waters of the port. It was a form of protest à Boston Tea Party à B-sh G closed the port to all the shipping.
1774 - 1st Continental Congress was convened (Phil) à quiet soon the growing confrontation broke into open fire.
1775 - the commander of the English garrison in Boston sent a unit of soldiers to Concord to seize arms by the colonists. The brit.troops reached Lexington on their way and encountered a band of 70 minutemen. Someone fired a shot, and a major exchange of fire took place leaving 8 dead and 10 wounded - “the shot heard round the world” à the American War of Independence
The English took Lexington and Concord. But when they reached Boston they suffered more than 250 killed and wounded. The Americans lost 93 men.
1775 - a 2nd Continent. Congr. met (Phil) and assumed the powers of a national government. It formed continental Army and Navy under the Command of Colonel G.Washington. The Congress printed its own paper money and sought to establish diplomatic relations with foreign countries.
1776 - the Congress finally decided that united colonies of right ought to be free and independent, adopted a Declaration of Independence (“life, liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”), which was drafted by T.Jefferson. The Declaration not only announced the birth of a new nation, but also set forth the principles of human freedom.
It was one thing to proclaim independence, but another to win independence in the course of resolute struggle. At 1st, the war didn’t go well for the poorly equipped and badly trained Americ. army. At times it seemed that the Brit. Army of Redcoats would win, but little by little the situation changed when the Americ. army was joined by 1000-s of volunteers.
1777 - the Brit.Army suffered heavy defeat at Saratoga in northern N.Y. After this victory France seized the opportunity to humble Britain.
1778 - Franco-American alliance was signed. The Americans began to receive financial and military help from France & the French navy supported the Americans at sea.
1781 - the brit.army was surrounded by a French fleet from the sea and a combined French-American army under G.Washington. Soon the Brit.governm. asked for peace.
1783 - B finally recognized the independence of the USA by signing the Treaty of Paris.
The 13 colonies were free. The events of the war are termed as the American Revolution because with the formation of the USA a republic was established as a result of the struggle of the American colonists who overthrow a monarchy based on colonial exploitation and denial of civil and political rights. The Americ. people cherish the democratic gains of the American Revolution + the Am.Revol had a great impact on the development of events in Europe (helping to trigger the French Revolution of 1789.).
Consequence: 1787 – Constitution, 1st president – G. Washington; economic (population growth, industry – Massachusetts & RI, network of roads and canals), for 15 mln. Mexico had to give large territory, British Canada gave Oregon, Washington, Idaho to US, colonization of new territories. “all men are created equal”
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