AP World HistoryDevelopments in the Americas, 600 C.E. to

1400 C.E.

PrePresentation Outline

1) Neolithic Civilization in Mesoamerica (Olmecs)

2) Maya

3) Aztecs

4) Inca

5) Comparisons (Social + Political)

11) Neolithic Civilization in Mesoamerica (Olmecs)

• Olmecs were the first civilization to emerge in Mesoamerica between 1600 and 400 B.C.E.

• Olmecs built villages and trade networks

• They developed the first written language

• Olmecs did not create the kinds of institutions seen in Mesopotamia or Egypt

• First to develop Mesoamerican ball game

• Brutal spectator sport which also included ritual sacrifice

lOlmecs-Decline

• Archaeological evidence suggests that several volcanic eruptions and devastating earthquakes occurred in Southern Mexico which led to the collapse of Olmec civilization

2) Maya

•Southern Mexico (Yucatan Peninsula), Central America•Began around 800 B.C.E and lasted until around 800C.E.

Maya - Political

The Maya were organized into city states ruled by a single King.

• City-states– Relatively autonomous, but united under one

king

• Warfare– Cites within Mayan territory were often at odds

with one another and war was for capturing slaves or sacrificial victims for religious purposes.

Maya – Social, CulturalTheir largely agricultural peasant population was bound to nobility by ties of loyalty and religion.

• Social structure– Kings, priests, nobility– Merchants– Peasants, slaves

• Gender– Traditional roles for women

Maya - Economic

• Agricultural– Slash and burn– Terrace, ridge field– Maize, cotton

Maya - Decline

• The decline of the Maya is unclear.• Around 800 CE they bean to abandon

their cities.• Disease, drought, internal unrest

have all been proposed as possible reasons for their demise.

3)Aztecs

• 1150 C.E.- 1450 C.E.• Central Mexico• Capital city was

Tenochtitlan

Aztecs - Political• More than anything the Aztecs are known for their

expansionist policy and professional army which allowed them to dominate nearby states and demand heavy taxes and captives. *Remember they are Expansionist + militaristic– Built an empire of 12 million people, but despite this

they didn’t have a bureaucratic form of government.– Autonomy was given to conquered areas as long as

they paid the tribute (taxes) demanded of them. – Roads built to link the empire = trade grew.

• Inter-territorial trade

Aztecs – Social, Cultural• Social Structure

– Due to expansion the Warrior elite become dominant (majority of people were peasants or slaves)

• Gender– Women were subordinate; polygamy was common– Women could inherit could property– Generally had to run the household, skilled crafts (weaving)

and to some extent commerce

• Religion– Military and religion were interlinked– Obtaining sacrifices was a military goal– Various deities were worshiped– Tens of thousands killed annually.

4)Inca

• Early 13th century- 1450 C.E.

• Peruvian Andes• Capital city =

Cuzco

Inca - Political• Expansionist like the Aztecs.

– Controlled 2000 miles of South American coastline.

– Professional standing army– Each new ruler had to ensure his place in

eternity by securing new land due to the practice of split inheritance = conquest.

Most united empire!1. Established a bureaucracy managed by nobles2. Had a unified spoken language (Quechua)3. Also built a complex system of roads

• The Inca practice of Split Inheritance was the process in which a ruler's chosen successor obtained all political power and rights, while the ruler's other male descendants received all the monetary treasures

• For this reason, effort was made by rulers to secure as much land as possible, to ensure not only wealth for one's descendants but also to secure a place for eternity. The Inca believed that the quality of afterlife one would experience was dependent on how much one gained on earth.

Inca – Social, Cultural• Society

– Like the Mayans and Aztecs they had no large animals = the prime source of labor was human. (THIS WHY THEY RELIED ON SLAVES SO MUCH!!)

– Most of the population were peasants who worked the land or construction projects.

– Peasants had to give a proportion of their harvest to the ruling classes and to support famine relief and large cities.

• Gender– Women subordinate - had to run the household, skilled

crafts (weaving) and to some extent commerce– Could Inherit property and pass property onto daughters– Women could play a role in religion.

• Inti: sun god, owns all– The concept of private property didn’t exist.– The ruler was viewed as having descended from the sun and

therefore owning everything on earth.– Smaller-scale sacrifice compared to the Aztecs and Mayans

(often sacrificed material goods or animals)– Very strong Moral quality = rewards for good behavior and

punishments for bad behavior.– Like the Egyptians the Incas mummified their rulers after death.– Excellent builders = Machu Picchu– But never developed a writing system.– They keep account of the harvests by using quipu, a set of

knotted strings.

Inca – Religion

5) Comparisons - Politically

• Motivations for expansion– Maya: slaves– Aztec: territory, sacrifices– Inca: religious

• Centralization– Aztec and Maya: city-state autonomy– Inca: most centralized

• Bureaucracy• Unified language (Quechua)• Roads

Comparison - Socially

• All– Peasant majority– Slavery of conquered peoples– Women subordinate except

• Inherit land• Commerce

• Maya: Priests, Merchant class• Aztec: Warrior elite• Inca: Religious elite, god-king (el Inca)

Compare Aztecs to Romans• 1. Both built roads to tie together their empire• 2. Generally they allowed the people the

conquered to govern themselves as along as they paid their taxes or tribute

• 3. Adapted ideas from conquered peoples• 4. Polytheistic

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