Intro:Though history books usually emphasize specific parts of the Americas and its natives

after Columbus "discovered them", the trans-Saharan trade routes and how early civilizations thrived from the routes

passing through their kingdoms,and how all of the technologies that we have today were born from European ingenuity. Most people know very little or nothing about what life was like for these groups in that time period, especially when it comes to they way their societies worked or the forms of governments that were in use. We

hear very little about their traditions and customs, and we struggle with the little that we know "In fourteen-hundred and ninety-two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue". We are here to show you, what most history books tend to leave out. These are the stories

that textbooks neglect to mention:   

Main idea

Welcome reader. In this chapter you will learn about Europe, during the era of rebirth (Renaissance). We will focus mainly on three points, which are; Society, Government, and Innovations from this time period. 

                                The innovations that the textbooks left out were the main cause for the true change that occurred in the fifteenth century Europe. Textbooks are known for stretching the truth or making someone or something more important or amazing then they really were. They also almost never mention information about things like firearms. First of all the innovation of firearms started a new era in Europe. Through the innovations of firearms it was easier to expand and conquer the lands of the unknown. Secondly the idea of mounting weapons on boats gave Europe the biggest military advantage in the world. Boats were the most advanced piece of technology, and we know this because whoever had the strongest navy fleet, usually had the most power. Therefore by adding bigger guns they became a bigger threat than ever. Also, the invention of the mechanical printing press revolutionized communication throughout Europe. The printing press allowed faster spreading of Europe's expeditions and Europe's reign, spreading fear around the world. As well as that the Europeans virtually perfected naval technology when they adopted different aspects of the middle eastern boats. By using Muslim sailing line designs they were able to sail against the wind.  Lastly was the innovation of Bureaucracy. By giving everybody a class or amount of power it was easier for them to

collaborate as a nation. Lastly with all these European innovations, we can now fully grasp how they were able to dominate and control their surroundings.

The fundamental building block of any nation is and has always been its government. One major force back in the 15th century was the Church. Even though the Nation's Monarchs had control over the government structure, The Roman Catholic church was very influential in the everyday lives of most Europeans. Sadly later on, this became a problem due to corruption within the church which led to the Protestant Reformation. In fifteenth century Europe, there were a lot of things that revolved around the current style of government. One good example is how almost every nation in Europe was ruled by an Absolute Monarchy. Most of the countries in fifteenth century Europe had a king and/or a queen that ruled over the people.But also even though the King/ Queen ruled the Church always had their hands in government matters.  Another interesting fact is that even with the monarch, most people followed whatever the church said. At the time, Catholicism was what drove the people to do whatever it was that they would do. As well as this there is the interesting information about Queen Isabella. Queen Isabella was the most powerful woman in the world because of her head over the government. All in all, the government is and always has been the cornerstone in a nation.

Critical thinking:

1. Construct a hierarchy using the people at your school.

Society is and will be the leading force behind the government. In fifteenth century Europe, the whole of society was split by a Hierarchy. At the top of this hierarchical triangle one could find the monarchs, closely followed by nobles and the church. As stated in the previous paragraph, the church was very influential back then and had its hands inside most political institutions. Anyways, strangely enough this hierarchy is a basic form of Elitism because only a select had power and the bigger the population the lower the rank (i.e: peasants were usually amongst the highest in number and the lowest in class unless there were slaves) The society was run by the elite, the Roman Catholic church and everyone else had to put up with it. Roman Catholicism was the main religion of those times and due to that mostly all people were catholic. Due to many conflicts and the corruption that occurred within the church some people decided that they weren't going to take it anymore. One such man Martin Luther was disgusted with all this corruption. This fury brought on by the way the catholic church was practicing its doctrine brought him to posting his thoughts .The ninety-five theses, as this was called, were Martin Luther's way of denouncing hypocrisy from the church. This is the base of the society during the Renaissance in Europe.So as you can see Europe went through this era of "Rebirth". This brought about many innovations. Corruption from within the church's structure led to the protestant reformation and a vast change in European society. The governments of those times have come and gone.

Asess: how Martin Luther’s 95 theses, influenced the pilgrims landing on Plymouth rock?

This is an image of the 95 thesis that Martin Luther wrote and nailed to a church door.Journey with Jesus. Daniel B. Clendenin. Web. 10 Sept. 2009. http://www.journeywithjesus.net/Essays/20051024JJ.shtml.

   

Why this matters now:

 This is important because without all the the changes that occurred in Europe during the 15th century, we would not have the technology we have today. It is important that we have the right state of mind and heart, when we either curse or thank them for what they have discovered, and what it might mean for the future.

Vocabulary

Bureaucracy: government by many bureaus, administrators, and petty officials.

Absolute Monarchy: A form nation solely governed by one ruler.

Hierarchy: Set of ranks based upon one's status (wealth, class, etc)

Elitism: control or rule by a class

Hypocrisy: Falsehood

Renaissance: the activity, spirit, or time of the great revival of art, literature, and learning in Europe beginning in the 14th century and extending to the 17th century, marking the transition from the medieval to the modern world.

Important People

Martin Luther: German monk, Leader of the Protestant Reformation.

Main idea

        Welcome reader. In this chapter you will learn about the Americas, during the era of rebirth (Renaissance). We will focus mainly on three points, which are; Society, Government, and Innovations from this time period. 

Native American society was majorly different from those that Europeans were accustomed to. One example is, European society focused more on the nuclear family while native Americans tended to live with their whole families. The Native American people thought everyone related to them was just as important as there own brother or parents. Many of the Native Americans that would hunt and gather food because it was easier. Cultivating food took hours out of the day whereas hunting and gathering took little time. The native American society changed when settlers came in. When settlers first came in, they tried to civilize the natives, but it turned out to be a failure when the Indians started revolting.The native American society revolved around the belief in spirits. Native Americans believed that everything around them was a spirit or had something to do with spirits."The native Americans believe that nature was filled with spirits. Each form of life, such as plants and animals, had a spirit. Earth and air held spirits too. They believed that people were never alone.They shared their lives with the spirits of nature"  

Critical thinking:

1. Compare the extended family with nuclear family.

        The Native American people had many innovations that helped them adapt to the lifestyle that they underwent. The Native American people were able to create a waterproof carrying device. They would use their incredible wit to weave plants airtight so that no air could get through. After trade they did not make more weave baskets because there skills depleted once they started trading.  We can infer that the Native American people were genius hunters.Native Americans were the first to create spears. Instead of trying to do there weaving work, they realized catching beavers was easier and they would catch a bunch and trade them for kettle pots.

Indians would have better food nutrition wise than we have nowadays. This is because of the many methods that they would use to draw more nutrients from such things as soil. It is obvious to see that the Native Americans could not have survived without there many innovations.

2. Rate the ideas that the Native Americans had and how well they helped them.

         Native Americans have something that may not necessarily have been considered government, but it is the same thing. It is possible that Native Americans have influenced the idea of a democracy. Through the long contact between settlers, some Native American tribes stood as an example to what we follow today. Some Native American tribes were outstanding examples of how to run a government. In the lies my teacher told me article, it says “Congress wrote, “let us hearken to their council and teach our children to follow it.”” (Page 111 of “lies my teacher told me”) The biggest thing about native Americans though was there true representation of Liberty. Some have asked why did Colonist dress as Native Americans to start the Boston tea party. It is well put in Lies my teacher told me stating, “they chose to dress as Indians, not to blame Indians for the demonstration but to appropriate a symbol identified with liberty.” As you can see, Native Americans, though not having a labeled government, followed standards that are like our government nowadays.

    WHY DOES IT MATTER?It matters because these are the Human Beings who lived in America before the Europeans came and took their land. It also matters

   http://www.the-wild-west.co.uk/images/native-americans.jpg This picture is related to the native Americans because these are the Native people who lived in America before the Europeans came to America and conquered it. This Natives lived all around the land we live on right know called states.

Main idea

        Welcome reader. In this chapter you will learn about Western Africa, during the era of rebirth (Renaissance). We will focus mainly on three points, which are; Society, Government, and Innovations from this time period. 

        The first African Americans are composed of a broad spectrum of diversity when it comes to the social and cultural backgrounds. This is due to the slave trade all the different cultures that are intermixed with the African-Americans. The African Americans were farmers and they lived in hamlets of villages full of family or clan members. They were able to live in clans but they were not allowed to marry there extended family. The social class of women were that they were property of there husband. Since the women had no say men were allowed to have more than one. Buttuta was shocked that women in Western Africa was allowed to have men companions other than there husband. It shocked them because it was not in there custom for women to talk to any men except their husbands. The start of the social class is the monarchs, these monarchs were the men who controlled the armies, taxed commerce, and acquired lots of wealth. Underneath the monarchs were the nobles, warriors, peasants, and the bureaucrats. Underneath the nobles are the Blacksmiths, butchers, weavers, woodcarvers, tanners and the histories that were called or still are called griots. Then last but not least is slavery which you readers should be familiar with since we are a country who got rid of slavery. Even though slavery has been in society since ancient times doesn't exactly mean that it was right. Most slaves that were slaves were either held because the were captured during a war or they owed debt. Since there was so much diversity in Western Africa they had two diverse religions as well. The Africans had two different religions. One they had the religion of Islam which was brought to Africa by the Arabian traders. The religion of Islam is the worship of one god which is Allah and the founder of this religion is Muhammad. The second is the religion of indigenous which is basically polythestic. In this religion the Africans believed in spirits that represented the gods of the forces of nature. This means that the Africans saw that everything that they saw had a god in it and that there was gods all around them. Art was a religious practice of Africans, this was an act of religious custom because it included the pictures of there ancestors and would bring them to the ritual gatherings, funerals, medical practce and coming-of-age ceremonies.  

 

      "the town seemeth to be very great; when you enter into it, you go int o a broad street, which seems to be seven or eight times broader than the Warmoes street in Amsterdam;....The house on this street stand in good order, one close and even with the other, as the houses in Holland stand...The king's court is very great, within it having many great four square plains, which round about them have galleries, wherein there is always watch kept.....It seems that the king has many soldiers; he also has many

gentlemen, who when they come to the court ride upon horses....There are also many men slaves seen in the town, that carry water, yams, and palm-wine , which they say is for the King; and many carry grass, which is for their horses; and all of this is carried into the court."  From a letter that a dutch visitor wrote describing Benin City   

 The Western African government system was a very complex system. The laws that the people had was what decided who's possessions go to where. Your family line was what gave you rights to the possessions of your ancestors. Age was a good thing in their government as well. Whoever was the oldest in the group was sort of the representing elders of the tribe. The political leaders within the African tribes were in complete control of religion and they knew it. We can prove this because the ruler of the If kingdom within Africa said that he was the decent of the first man on earth. There were many different levels of power within the African culture. There were tribes that had the oldest members as leaders and those that had a ruler like a king. Different tribes had different societies which meant different forms of government. If your tribe was nomadic, then it probably had leaders as opposed to a monarch. There were a lot of small monarch societies within Western African culture. In agriculturally styled land, lots of small kingdoms emerged which means many rulers had to emerge. In conclusion, Western African Government varied in many ways which allowed a more diverse styles of government.

Critical Thinking:1. Critique the idea of a monarch based government.

2. Differentiate the idea of a monarch ruling, and elders to ruling.

 

 Some major innovations that sprung up arouns this time period were blacksmithing, taxation, metal working, and of course the trans-saharan trade. The trans saharan trade routes were the cause of many kingdoms wealth. Such is the story of Songhai, whose wealth was so great due to so many trade routes that passed through. The trans-saharan trade was one major cause for syncretism. Syncretism is the sharing or exchange of beliefs, ideas and goods. The trans-saharan trade routes were traveled by many people whose backgrounds were different, this made it easier for the different kingdoms to not only sell their products but also to obtain these from other tribes and kingdoms. This trade route also helped spread the seed of Islam and its traditions. The trade route also inspired what we have come to know as taxation. Since variety of products were passing through the major cities, rulers decided to implement taxes on certain items or products for passing through their lands.Another great example of innovation from this era, is the delegation of power. This may be considered an early form of beuracracy. This system consisted of the overall leader appointing power and jurisdiction to individuals (the equivelant of a mayor or governer) in different districts to have a more organized nation.

Why it matters now:

the trade that took place between Western Africa's and Europe changed how society would have been in many ways.

http://www.aui.ma/personal/~E.Ross/Sahara_map.jpg   This picture represents the trade between the different countries that the Aricans traded with. THis picture is called the Trans Sahara Trade. The major trade routes are still there today.

Vocabulary

Hamlets: A small village

Griots: a member of the African tribe that is in charge of telling the oral history for the tribe or village and they also have to entertain them with songs and poems.

polytheistic: the doctrine or belief in believing in more than one god or many gods 

Work Cited Page

Danzer, Gerald A., Larry S Krieger Krieger, Louis E. Wilson, and Nancy Woloch. The Americans. McDougal Littel. Print.

The wild west. Graham Larson. Web. 15 Sept. 2009. <http://www.the-wild-west.co.uk/images/native-americans.jpg>.