The American Journey
Section 1: Age of Exploration c. 1270-1600




Once Europeans came in contact with
Asian goods, they wanted a faster way to get them!
◦ Land routes = slooooowww
Kings and queens wanted more loot!
Better technology allowed it


Explorers could improve maps
◦ Popular misconception : Most people knew the world was round, and Columbus did not set sail to prove it wasn’t flat.
◦ However, everyone thought the world was much smaller than it is (explorers didn’t know about the Americas).




They wanted a way to sail WEST and reach Asia (which is east of Europe).
◦ Such a route would be much quicker.
A note about these “stupid” mistakes…
A note about the often cruel treatment toward natives and others…

So you can see why they were so surprised when America turned up and the world was larger than they thought!





#1: Technology & animals
◦ Guns, ships, horses, dogs, etc. (think Avatar)
#2: Disease
◦ Natives hadn’t seen cattle-bred diseases
#3: Geography
◦ Alignment of Americas (N/S) vs. Europe (E/W)
◦ Proximity of population/animals (disease again)
◦ Distance between tribes (no one to help)
#4: Ignorance
◦ Thought Spanish were gods & trusted them




Spain used pueblos, presidios, and
missions to Christianize natives
◦ …which is why California has so many Spanish place names (San Diego, Los Angeles, etc.).
Many English explorers landed in Canada and the Northeast
◦ …which is why we have New England, New
Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, etc.
Many French explorers landed in Canada
◦ …which is why they still speak French.

The American Journey
Section 2: Rise of Modern Capitalism c. 1350-1600’s


Capitalism is a free-market system.
◦ Competition is encouraged between businesses.
◦ Businesses are privately owned, not government-controlled.
◦ The purpose of capitalism is to make money.
 Capital is a term meaning money.
◦ People own shares of companies (stock, etc.)
◦ One who participates in this system is called a capitalist.




Before the 1600’s, most places were not defined as a country or a nation.
◦ Most powerful places were cities or kingdoms.
As the world expanded, cultures encountered one another.
◦ This led to larger, more powerful nations.
◦ These nations wanted new ways to make $$!
Exploration was a great way to make $$!
◦ But it cost a lot to send explorers…
◦ How to pay for it? Hmmmmm…



Initially rulers borrowed from banks.
Eventually, people set up joint-stock companies.
◦ These companies sold stock, or shares of the company.
◦ In this way, the company raised little sums of money, but from LOTS of people.
◦ If the company did well, so did the
shareholders, so people wanted to invest.
◦ If the company did poorly, each person was only out a little money.



Soon such companies became very powerful and wanted to make more $$.
Entrepreneurs came up with ideas, got money, bought materials, and made their own businesses.
◦ This was much riskier, but the entrepreneur got to keep all his profits.
◦ Because the work was done at home, the entrepreneurial system became known as the
“cottage industry.”




Mercantilism was the idea that countries should make themselves rich by storing up bullion, or gold and silver.
◦ Many countries, especially Spain, went to other lands to plunder their bullion.
Gold plundered through mercantilism plus the money raised through joint-stock companies and entrepreneurs led to very, very rich empires (capitalists).
All these advancements together are called The Commercial Revolution.



What do you think happens when nations get rich? [discuss]
◦ Life expectancy goes up
◦ More babies survive
◦ Overcrowding
◦ More leisure time to go elsewhere
◦ Demand for more material goods
What happens when rich nations encounter each other? [discuss]
◦ Trade
◦ Competition
◦ War!



All these factors led to colonialism, the belief that nations should control other lands through colonies.
◦ A colony is a settlement of people in a new country controlled by their home country.
Colonies allowed countries to expand to new lands, open up new trade, control more empires, and get more goods.
◦ America was a French, Spanish, Dutch, and
British colony.



The Columbian Exchange, named for
Christopher Columbus, was the vast network of trade that opened up between the Old World (Europe & West Asia) and the New World (Americas, East Asia, parts of Africa).
What was “exchanged”? [discuss]
◦ Look at pg. 96: Crops, food, gold, money, animals, practices, religion, language, etc.
◦ Most important and unfortunate: slaves and diseases



Once Europeans began to grow crops in the Caribbean, they needed workers.
◦ Originally they used Native Americans.
◦ Africans were later preferred, however.
Between 1550 and 1870, 10-12 million
Africans were transported from West
Africa to the Americas
◦ The long, brutal voyage by ship was called
“The Middle Passage.”

The American Journey
Section 3: The Enlightenment c. 17 th -18 th Century


The Enlightenment was a time between the 17 th Century (1600’s) and about 1800 when reason and careful analysis replaced blind faith and the Catholic Church as the primary means of learning.




Greeks and Romans developed philosophy.
◦ Greek philo (love) + sophia (wisdom)
Greeks developed democracy, wherein each person voted directly on all laws and policies.
◦ Greek dêmos (people) + krátos (power)
The Romans set up a republic, wherein each person elected representatives to vote and conduct business.
◦ Latin republica (public interest/affair)
Ideas behind the Enlightenment


Take note: The United States is not a democracy!
◦ It is a democratic republic (we have direct voting on some issues, but we primarily elect our leaders, who in turn vote for us).

Rome also came up with the idea of rule
of law, which stated that all laws apply to all equally.
Ideas behind the Enlightenment



Jews believe that God has a covenant, or binding agreement between himself and his people.
◦ This idea of the covenant influenced
Enlightenment thinkers to make contracts between leaders and the people.
Another important figure was Yeshua Bar
Joseph.
◦ Who’s he? [discuss]
◦ Jesus (whose last name was not Christ!)
◦ Christian values spread everywhere.
Ideas behind the Enlightenment



Arab Muslims had a huge influence on
Enlightenment thinkers.
◦ Medical, mathematical, and scholastic influence
◦ Beginning of universities
The Renaissance was a rebirth (French
renaissance means rebirth) of arts, science, culture, and knowledge.
◦ Remember how capitalism made nations wealthy?
◦ Now that they were wealthy, they could afford art, learning, science, and other ventures.
Ideas behind the Enlightenment




The Protestant Reformation, in which
Martin Luther formally broke from the
Catholic Church, laid the groundwork for people to question church authority.
Soon after, King Henry VIII took power from the Pope and formed the Anglican
Church (Church of England).
Puritans did not like the Anglican Church under James I and wanted to purify it.
◦ The Pilgrims, who sailed from England and landed at Plymouth, Mass., were Puritans.
Ideas behind the Enlightenment



Why did the Puritans sail for America?
◦ They were dissatisfied with the Anglican Church.
◦ They disagreed with absolute monarchy, which stated that the king has total power.
In 1688, English Parliament forced out
James II and replaced him with William and Mary, his son-in-law and daughter.
◦ William and Mary signed the English Bill of
Rights, which guaranteed certain rights to citizens.
◦ It inspired our Bill of Rights.
Ideas behind the Enlightenment

Not this John Locke.
THIS John Locke.



Thomas Hobbes said that absolute monarchy is the best way to govern, since the people would make life “nasty, brutish, and short.”
However, John Locke said that government should be based on natural,
God-given rights and that the government was answerable to the people.
◦ If the government got out of hand, the people should be able to kick it out (social contract)!
◦ American colonists accepted Locke’s ideas.
◦ Do you agree? [discuss]
Ideas behind the Enlightenment


Charles de Montesquieu wrote that
English government (Parliament) was best, because powers were divided.
◦ Executive, legislative, and judicial branches.
◦ The Founding Fathers adopted these ideas.
Ideas behind the Enlightenment



So…to review, when colonists settled in
America, they brought with them…
◦ 1. Ideas of limited governmental power
◦ 2. The belief in natural rights for all people
◦ 3. Democratic and republican ideals, in which people got a say in affairs of state
◦ 4. Ideas of a divided government
◦ 5. Philosophy and reason
◦ 6. Contracts between powers and people
◦ 7. Capitalism
How well did they do? [discuss]
Ideas behind the Enlightenment

FIN