AP World History: State Building in the Americas & Africa (1200–1450 CE)

‭State Building in the Americas (1200-1450 CE)‬
1‭ .‬ G ‭ eography:‬
‭-‬ ‭Unlike Afro-Eurasia, the Americas were‬‭isolated‬‭until the late 1400s‬
‭-‬ ‭Aztec‬‭(Mexico)‬‭&‬‭Inca‬‭(Peru)‬‭:‬‭high-altitude empires (>7,000 ft), cooler/drier than‬
‭tropical lowlands‬
‭-‬ ‭Both were‬‭independent centers of civilization‬‭, not shaped by outside “core” powers‬
‭2.‬ ‭Civilizational Background:‬
‭-‬ ‭Mesoamerica‬‭:‬‭succession of urbanized societies:‬‭Olmec → Maya → Toltec → Aztec‬
‭-‬ ‭Andes‬‭:‬‭Moche‬→ ‭ ‬‭Tiwanaku‬→
‭ ‬‭Wari‬→
‭ ‬‭Chimu‬→
‭ ‬‭Inca‬
‭-‬ ‭North America‬‭:‬‭some urbanization (Pueblos in Southwest, mound-builders in Ohio‬
‭Valley)‬
‭-‬ ‭Amazon Basin‬‭:‬‭evidence of more complex societies emerging (archaeology still‬
‭developing)‬




‭Southwestern Desert Cultures (300-1450 CE)‬
‭Agriculture & Mesoamerican Influence‬
🌽
‭-‬ ‭Irrigation agriculture (esp.‬‭Maize‬‭ ) spread from‬‭Mesoamerica‬
‭-‬ ‭Allowed two harvests per year → population growth & permanent villages‬
‭-‬ ‭Key tech/crop‬‭:‬‭Irrigation & maize‬

‭Hohokam (Salt & Gila River Valleys, AZ)‬
‭-‬ ‭Strongest Mesoamerican influence‬
‭-‬ ‭Built platform mounds, ball courts‬
‭-‬ ‭Pottery, figurines, copper bells, turquoise mosaics‬
‭-‬ ‭By 1000 CE → elaborate irrigation system‬

‭Anasazi (Four Corners: AZ, NM, CO, UT)‬
‭-‬ ‭Based on‬‭maize‬‭,‬‭beans‬‭,‬‭squash‬
‭-‬ ‭Built‬‭Kivas‬‭(underground ritual rooms)‬
‭-‬ ‭By 900 CEE → large multistory towns‬
‭-‬ ‭Chaco Canyon‬‭(919 CE Pueblo Bonito)‬‭: 650+ rooms, 36 kivas, sacred & political hub‬
‭-‬ ‭Extensive trade (turquoise for copper bells, shells, macaws)‬

‭Mesa Verde (C0)‬
‭-‬ ‭Cliff Dwellings‬‭(~7,000 people)‬
‭-‬ ‭Built into caves for protection during warfare‬

, ‭Decline‬
‭-‬ ‭12th century drought‬‭+ agricultural collapse‬
‭-‬ ‭Continued in cliff dwellings, but‬‭rising warfare‬‭&‬‭land‬‭pressure‬‭forced abandonment‬




‭Mound Builders: The Hopewell & Mississippian Cultures‬
‭Hopewell Culture (100-400 CE)‬
‭-‬ ‭Location‬‭: Ohio River Valley (influenced areas as far as NY, FL, and WI)‬
‭-‬ ‭Society‬‭: Early‬‭chiefdoms‬‭(pop. up to 10,000), hereditary rulers with‬‭religious‬‭+‬‭secular‬
‭power‬
‭-‬ ‭Economy‬‭: Hunting, gathering, and limited farming. Long-distance‬‭trade for luxury‬
‭goods‬
‭-‬ ‭Culture‬‭: Built‬‭mounds‬‭for burials and rituals, some aligned with sun/moon cycles‬
‭-‬ ‭Decline‬‭: Abandoned major centers by 400 CE‬

‭Mississippian Culture (800-1500 CE)‬
‭-‬ ‭Agriculture‬‭: Based on‬‭maize, beans, squash‬‭(from Mesoamerica via trade)‬
‭-‬ ‭Society‬‭: Urbanized‬‭chiefdoms‬→ ‭ population growth,‬‭stratification‬‭, central plazas +‬
‭platform mounds‬
‭-‬ ‭Center‬‭:‬‭Cahokia‬‭(near St. Louis, 20,000 people at peak, 1200 CE)‬
‭-‬ ‭Religion & politics‬‭: Pilgrimage site, elite organized tribute + labor‬
‭-‬ ‭Monument:‬‭Monk’s Mound‬‭(largest in N. America)‬
‭-‬ ‭Culture‬‭: Chunky game = social + religious function (like Mesoamerican ball‬
‭game)‬
‭-‬ ‭Trade‬‭: Controlled via Mississippi/Missouri/Illinois Rivers →‬‭seashells, copper,‬
‭mica, flint‬
‭-‬ ‭Burials: Rich rulers with‬‭human sacrifices‬→
‭ highly stratified‬

‭Decline: (after 1250 CE)‬
‭-‬ ‭Defensive walls show warfare/civil war‬
‭-‬ ‭Climate change, flooding, deforestation, population pressure → collapse‬
‭-‬ ‭Legacy‬‭: Smaller Mississippian centers‬‭survived until Europeans arrived‬




‭Mesoamerica: The Aztecs‬
‭The Aztecs (Mexica)‬

‭ rigins‬‭: Migrated into central Mexico after Toltec collapse. Organized first as‬‭alepetl‬
‭-‬ O
‭(ethnic state)‬‭ruled by a‬‭tlatoani‬‭. Built capitals‬‭Tenochtitlan‬‭+‬‭Tlatelolco‬‭(1325 CE)‬