Native American cultures and political structures at European arrival

Native Americans in 1492

The characteristics of Europe, Eurasia and Asia in the pre-1450 period were vast, complex, and differed highly from culture to culture. Civilizations in Asia and Eurasia had risen, prospered and declined (Egypt, Babylon, Persia, the Indus Valley, China, and others.) However, other than brief forays most recently discovered, it is unlikely that any major exploration of the New World occurred from these older civilizations (Menzies, 2004.)

Europe, however, was exploding in all fronts from the High Middle Ages on (roughly 1100 +) through the Renaissance into the historical period known as the Age of Exploration (15th through 17th centuries. Several factors acted in synergy to cause this upsurge: increase in technology (ship building, navigation), increased desire for trade with the Middle and Far East (spice, slaves, gems, etc.), spikes in European population after the Black Death, a desire for the major powers to establish colonies and secure trade routes to the East, and the general competitive nature of the ruling classes of the time. In general, the characteristic of Europe from the Renaissance to the late 1700s was organized expansion; capitalistic acquiring of goods, and establishment of secure and defendable trade routes (Discovery and Exploration, 2000).

There have been numerous historical works on the Great Explorers, Columbus, DeSoto, Cortes, Pizzaro, etc. But one thing that emerges from their accounts of the New World was that North America was populated sparsely and by groups of unorganized "tribal" cultures with no written language, no large architectural monuments, and no advanced civilization. However, new excavations and scholarship shows this to be a falsehood: North America was vase, and there were numerous indigenous cultures that had significant architectural technology and more (the Anazai, Cahokia, and literally hundreds of tribal cultures). The fallacy came about with the view that North American "history" began in 1492, forgetting that many cultures had already passed their peak in North America prior to then (Lord and Burke, 1991).

In fact, recent revelations have shown that it is possible that the first Americans actually arrived 10-20,000 years prior to Columbus from the Pacific Coast; the Amerindian cultures were for more urban, had larger populations, and were far more technologically advanced than earlier assumed; and, instead of being the stoic "guardians of nature," the indigenous cultures often shaped the geography and natural history of the areas of habitation. (Mann, 2005).

In Asia, the periods known in Europe as the Middle Ages and Renaissance were rich with key technological, philosophical, and political innovations. Chinese and Japanese dynasties were rich with power, tradition, and a hierarchical caste system. Technological breakthroughs included plumbing, gunpowder, celestial navigation, and fairly advanced medicine. The Middle East had consolidation of power, numerous scientific and mathematical breakthroughs, and probably reached the height of Islamic Civilization prior to Columbus landing in North America. The Crusades were over, the spice trade was enriching the Mid -- and Far-Eastern empires, as well as providing acculturation and hunger for exploration in Europe (Farah, 2001).

Toltec, Aztec, Maya as an Example - What is now considered Mesoamerica had a rich and varied pre-Colombian cultural history that dated to around 9,000 years ago. The Olmec, Toltec, Maya and the Aztec were all well-developed civilizations with a good understanding of plant and animal husbandry, architecture, mathematics, astronomy, medicine, and theology. At its zenith, for instance, the Aztec city of Teotihuacan had a population of over 150,000 people, a vital trade economy reaching well into the modern United States and as far south as the Incan Empire in Peru. Prior to the landing of the Spanish, the population was estimated to have been upwards of 20 million, making these Mesoamerican cultures some of the most advanced in certain areas with the ability to sustain a large population (Hamnett, 1999).

The geographic area now known as the West Indies, Caribbean Islands, Mexico and Central America were very different places just a few short years prior to 1492. Central to the vast cultural and ecological changes in this area were the ways in which the European explorers impacted the native civilizations, decimating many through disease, and the manner in which the native cultures molded, mediated, and refracted into a new world order, creating a hybrid culture that is neither European nor Amerindian.

For historians, anthropologists, and ecologists alike, the widespread exchange of plants, animals, food, human populations, communicable diseases, and ideas that occurred between Europe and the so-called "New World" after 1492 is known as the Colombian Exchange. Historically, it is one of the most significant events in human history; inexorably changing the ecology, agriculture, and culture for an entire two continents. In fact, this exchange affected almost the entire globe -- disease (some from Asia) depopulated many cultures; changed the agriculture base worldwide; circulated crops and livestock as never before; and changed even changed the population dynamics of Africa and Asia with the introduction of sustainable plants. Sadly though, this "exchange" brought with it tragedy; many experts estimate that nearly 80% of the native populations in the New World died as a result of European and Asian disease, clearly the major reason a relative few could overpower hundreds of thousands of indigenous peoples. As one native wrote nostalgically about the pre-Spanish days:

There was then no sickness; they had no aching bones…. No high fever… no smallpox… no burning chest… no consumption… the course of humanity was orderly. The foreigners made it otherwise when they arrived here (Crosby, 1972, 36)