CHAPTER 15


Empires in the Americas


IN THIS CHAPTER


Summary: Before the voyages of Columbus and the conquests of the Spanish, the civilizations and societies of the Americas developed in isolation from the remainder of the world. Within the Western Hemisphere, many of the peoples of the Americas engaged in long-distance as well as regional trade. When the Europeans arrived in the Americas, they encountered not only societies with their own rich traditions but also mighty empires that dazzled their conquerors.

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Key Terms

Anasazi

ayllus *

calpulli *

Chimor

chinampas *

Inca*

Mexica*

Mississippians

mita *

Moundbuilders

parallel descent*

Quechua*

quipus *

Toltecs


Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica

After the decline of Teotihuacán and of the Mayan civilization, nomadic peoples such as the Toltecs moved into central Mexico. Establishing a capital at Tula in the mid-tenth century, the Toltecs created an empire in central Mexico. Their empire included the city of Chichén Itzá in the Yucatán peninsula. The Toltecs carried on long-distance trade, exchanging obsidian from northern Mexico for turquoise obtained from the Anasazi people in present-day southwestern United States. Another legacy of the Toltecs was the legend of the god Quetzalcóatl, a tradition that would circulate among the various inhabitants of Mesoamerica.

Moundbuilders of North America

A second major concentration of pre-Columbian Native Americans was found among the Moundbuilders of North America from about 700 to 1500 CE. Also called the Mississippians , these early Americans established their settlements along major rivers such as the Mississippi and the Ohio. Agricultural people, they constructed large earthen mounds that served as burial places or ceremonial centers. Among the most well-known and largest mounds are those found at Cahokia, in present-day southern Illinois. Some historians believe that the pyramid shape of these mounds suggests contact between the Mississippians and the early peoples of Mesoamerica.

The Rise of the Aztecs

When the Toltec empire fell in the mid-twelfth century, perhaps to invaders, another people called the Aztecs, or Mexica , were a nomadic people migrating throughout central Mexico. By the mid-thirteenth century, they had settled in the valley of Mexico, establishing their capital city at Tenochtitlán about 1325. Constructed on an island in the center of Lake Texcoco, Tenochtitlán was linked to the mainland by four causeways. To provide additional land for farming, the Aztecs fashioned chinampas , or platforms constructed of twisted vines on which they placed layers of soil. These garden plots floated in the canals that ran through the city of Tenochtitlán. Maize and beans became the staple crops of the Aztecs. Like other Mesoamerican peoples, they engaged in agriculture and construction without the use of the wheel or large beasts of burden.

By the mid-fifteenth century, the Aztecs had emerged as the dominant power of central Mexico. After conquering neighboring peoples, the Aztecs established a tribute empire. The Aztec military seized prisoners of war for use as human sacrifices. Although seen in other Mesoamerican and South American societies, human sacrifice was most widely practiced among the Aztecs. Sacrifices were carried out atop truncated, or trapezoid-shaped, pyramids in the Mesoamerican tradition. The Aztecs also worshipped the numerous gods of nature of their Mesoamerican predecessors, among them Quetzalcóatl and the rain god Tlaloc. The chief Aztec god was their own deity, Huitzilopochtli, the god of the sun. Human sacrifices were dedicated to this regional god in the belief that the gods were nourished by the sacrifice of human life. Another aspect of Aztec religious life was its calendar, which was similar to that of the Mayans.

Aztec society was stratified, with classes of nobles, peasants, and slaves, who were often war captives. The social structure was further organized into clans, or calpulli, that began as kinship groups but later expanded to include neighboring peoples. Economic life included a marketplace under government regulation that featured items obtained by long-distance trade. Records were kept through a system of picture writing, or hieroglyphics.

Women who died in childbirth were granted the same honored status as soldiers who died in battle. Aztec women who displayed a talent for intricate weaving also were highly regarded. Although Aztec women were politically subordinate to men, they could inherit property and will it to their heirs.

The Incas

Around 1300, about the time that the Aztecs were moving into the central valley of Mexico, the Incas, or Quechua , rose to power in the Andes Mountains of western South America. Their empire, or Twantinsuyu, became a model of organization. Building on the contributions of previous Andean societies, the Incas mastered the integration of diverse peoples within their empire.

The immediate predecessors of the Incas were the Chimor , who established a kingdom along the western coastal region of South America from 900 CE until the Incas conquered them in 1465 by taking over their irrigation system. At the same time, the southern Andean homelands were inhabited by a number of peoples, among them several ayllus, or clans, that spoke the Quechua language. About 1438, under the direction of their ruler, or Inca , called Pachacuti, they gained control of the large area around Lake Titicaca. On the eve of its conquest by the Spanish, the Inca Empire extended from present-day Colombia to the northern portion of Argentina. As a tribute empire it required its subjects to supply the mita, or labor on government-controlled lands.

Structure of the Inca Empire

The most noteworthy achievement of Inca rulers was their ability to integrate approximately 11 million people of diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds under one empire. Unlike the Aztecs, who ruled conquered peoples harshly, the Incas incorporated the conquered into their way of life. The Quechua language was purposely spread throughout the empire to serve as a unifying force. Inca rulers sent groups of Quechua-speaking people to settle throughout the empire to protect it from uprisings among conquered peoples. Another Inca strategy was to settle conquered peoples in an area far from their original homeland. The royal family forged marriage alliances that prevented rivals from obtaining power within their empire.

Although ruins of other urban areas have been discovered, the center of the empire was the capital city of Cuzco. Accurate imperial records were maintained without a system of writing by devices called quipus. Quipus were groups of knotted cords, with the knots of various sizes and colors to represent categories of information, such as finances or religion. The Incas further strengthened the organization of their empire by a dual system of roads, one running across the Andes highlands and the other across the lowlands. Way stations were set up about a day’s walking distance apart to serve citizens and armies traveling these roads.

Inca Society and Religion

A polytheistic people, the Incas centered their worship around the sun god, while the creator god, or Viracocha, was also a key element of Inca religion. Local deities were worshipped as well. Society was organized into clans called ayllus . Women carried out traditional childcare roles, worked in fields, and achieved special recognition for their skill in weaving cloth for religious and state use. Inheritance was organized along lines of parallel descent , with inheritances passed along through both male and female sides of the family.

The Incas based their economy on the cultivation of the potato. They cultivated maize as a supplemental crop. State regulation of trade left little opportunity for long-distance trade, and there was not a separate merchant class among the Incas.

Images Rapid Review


Although the Aztecs built on Mesoamerican tradition to establish a powerful empire in the valley of Mexico, the Andean highlands also saw the emergence of an extremely native empire in the centuries before European conquest. The Aztecs ruled other peoples with brutality, whereas the Incas concentrated on integrating subject peoples into their empire. Aztec peoples engaged in long-distance trade, while the Incas were noted for the careful organization of their empire and their system of roads. In addition to the natives of Mesoamerica and Andean America, native peoples of the Mississippian culture of North America also constructed large mounds used for ceremonial and burial purposes.

Images Review Questions


1 .    Both the Aztecs and Incas

      (A)  allowed women a significant role in public life

      (B)  were originally nomadic people

      (C)  built on the traditions of their predecessors

      (D)  integrated conquered peoples into their empire

2 .    Aztec and Inca religions

      (A)  restricted the worship of subject peoples

      (B)  stressed a personal relationship with their gods

      (C)  placed women in a subordinate position

      (D)  reflected the agrarian nature of their respective societies

3 .    The natives of North America

      (A)  built empires on the scale of those of Mesoamerica

      (B)  demonstrated no signs of contact with Mesoamerican or Andean societies or civilizations

      (C)  established tribute empires

      (D)  used architectural designs similar to those of Mesoamerica

4 .    Which of the American societies altered their environment most extensively?

      (A)  The Aztecs

      (B)  The Mississippians

      (C)  The Toltecs

      (D)  The Incas

5 .    The Aztec and Inca civilizations differed most significantly in their

      (A)  religious institutions

      (B)  technological skill

      (C)  system of recordkeeping

      (D)  social structure

6 .    Trade among the peoples of the Americas

      (A)  united the Chimor and Inca people

      (B)  was most similar in the Aztec and Toltec societies

      (C)  was facilitated in the Andes by geography

      (D)  remained local

7 .    Which of the American peoples was closest to the Persians in their administrative style?

      (A)  The Mayas

      (B)  The Mississippians

      (C)  The Aztecs

      (D)  The Incas

8 .    Both the Aztecs and Incas

      (A)  gained the cooperation of subject peoples

      (B)  showed limited signs of urbanization

      (C)  lacked a merchant class

      (D)  were tribute empires

Images Answers and Explanations


1 .   C   The Aztecs built on a number of Mesoamerican traditions, including polytheism, architectural patterns, the use of a calendar, and the legend of Quetzalcóatl. The Incas continued the use of irrigation systems used by the Chimor, practiced polytheism, and organized their society into ayllus . Although Aztec and Incan women were valued as bearers of children and weavers and both could will property to their heirs, public life was male-dominated in both civilizations (A). Whereas the Aztecs were nomads, the Incas were a settled people (B). Only the Incas integrated conquered peoples into their empire (D).

2 .   D   Two of the chief gods in the Aztec pantheon were the gods of the sun and of rain; Incan worship centered around the sun. Neither the Aztecs nor the Incas resisted the religious beliefs of subject peoples (A). Their religions were based on the appeasement of the gods, not on a personal relationship with them (B). Aztec and Inca religions did not place women in a subordinate position. Aztec women were respected for their childbearing roles and Inca women received recognition for their skill in weaving cloth for religious use (C).

3 .   D   The pyramid-shaped mounds of the Mississippian culture were similar to the truncated pyramids of Mesoamerican and Andean societies. This observation has led some historians to suggest contact between the Mississippian culture and those of Mesoamerica and the Andes (B). The natives of North America did not establish tribute empires (C). While they sometimes built up regional confederations, they did not establish empires like those of Mesoamerica (A).

4 .   A   The Aztecs extensively altered the environment of the central valley of Mexico by building Tenochtitlán on an island in the center of a lake and by constructing causeways to link the city to the mainland. They also constructed chinampas to increase the amount of agricultural land. The mounds of the Mississippians (B), the pyramids of the Toltecs (C), and the roads of the Incas (D), although noteworthy adaptations, did not involve the extensive environmental modifications as did the building of Tenochtitlán.

5 .   C   Although the Aztecs had a system of picture writing, the Incas, who did not develop a writing system, used quipus to record information. Both civilizations were polytheistic, worshipping gods of nature (A). Technological skill was demonstrated by the Aztecs’ construction of Tenochtitlán and by their pyramids, while the Incas also constructed pyramids in addition to their dual system of roads (B). Both had stratified societies (D) and an economy based largely on agriculture.

6 .   B   Both the Aztecs and Toltecs participated in long-distance trade. Rather than trade with the Chimor, the Incas conquered their society (A). The rugged Andes hindered trade among Andean societies (C). Although the Inca government did not sponsor long-distance trade (D), both regional and long-distance trade were common in Mesoamerica.

7 .   D   Like the Persians, the Incas were adept at integrating subject peoples into their empire as long as their subjects refrained from rebellion. Both the Incas and the Persians also constructed roads to serve as communication links to the various parts of their empires. The Aztecs were noted for their exceptionally harsh treatment of conquered peoples (C). The Mayas (A) did not demonstrate the imperial organizational skills of the Incas, while the Mississippians did not establish an empire (B).

8 .   D   Both collected tribute from subject peoples. The Aztecs were despised by subject peoples (A). Both developed urban centers, most notably their capital cities of Tenochtitlán and Cuzco (B). Only the Incas lacked a merchant class (C).

PERIOD 3 Summary: Regional and Transregional Interactions (c. 600 CE to c. 1450)

Timeline

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Key Comparisons

   1. Feudalism in Japan and Western Europe

   2. Mongol rule in Russia and China

   3. Muslim Spain and feudal Europe

   4. The spread of Islam and the spread of Buddhism

   5. Chinese and European presence in the Indian Ocean

   6. Urban areas in the Islamic world, non-Islamic Europe, and China

   7. Acceptance of Islam in Africa and Europe

   8. Mesoamerican and Andean civilizations

   9. Polynesian, Viking, and Bantu migrations

10. Gender roles in early Islam and under the caliphate

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Change/Continuity Chart

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