Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Impact of geography on mid-Atlantic colonies and New England colonies
Inca aztec empire
Inca aztec empire
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
The documentary of Guns Germs And Steel – Conquest tells the history of the Spanish conquistadors and the empire of the Inca. It begins in 1532 when Francisco Pizarro, the general of a group of 168 Spanish soldiers reaches the new world and comes in contact with a tribe. The tribe today is known as the Inca, they were an empire who were located in modern day Peru who had never seen a horse, and that taught the Spanish were gods. They had never seen these animals according to Jared Diamond because of Geography, he states in (8:21) of the video of a land known as the Fertile Crescent located in a part of the middle east that spread crops and animals all along long Eurasia, but not all the way to South America. They explain how Atahualpa the Inca emperor, had a plan to set a trap for the Spaniards at Cajamarca but what he didn’t realize is that the soldiers had the best weapons in the world. This was his demise, on November 15th, 1532 not knowing what writing was Atahualpa took the bible of the Spanish and believed it had no power. The Spanish retaliated by killing 7,000 Incas with a surprise attack strategy and kidnapping the Emperor and …show more content…
I do not believe this was the most crucial advantage the Europeans had in their success. I believe that the most crucial advantage the Europeans had at their disposal was their intelligence. The video states in (20:22) that making the rapier the swords that the conquistadors used to defeat the Inca was “high point in a very sophisticated metal working technology” The Europeans mastered how to make these swords perfectly not too brittle but not soft. This was already a sign of higher intelligence to be able to master such a difficult practice and apply it in the battlefield was genius. Geography doesn’t play a part here it natural
Jared Diamond, author of the Pulitzer Prize Winning, National Best Selling book Guns, Germs and Steel, summarizes his book by saying the following: "History followed different courses for different peoples because of differences among peoples' environments, not because of biological differences among peoples themselves." Guns, Germs and Steel is historical literature that documents Jared Diamond's views on how the world as we know it developed. However, is his thesis that environmental factors contribute so greatly to the development of society and culture valid? Traditions & Encounters: A Brief Global History is the textbook used for this class and it poses several different accounts of how society and culture developed that differ from Diamond's claims. However, neither Diamond nor Traditions are incorrect. Each poses varying, yet true, accounts of the same historical events. Each text chose to analyze history in a different manner. Not without flaws, Jared Diamond makes many claims throughout his work, and provides numerous examples and evidence to support his theories. In this essay, I will summarize Jared Diamond's accounts of world history and evolution of culture, and compare and contrast it with what I have learned using the textbook for this class.
Guns, Germs, and Steel was published by Jared Diamond in 1977. Diamond is a UCLA professor and a scientist and his book has received remarkable response all around the world, in fact the book has won Pulitizer Prizer and was New York’s bestseller. Despite, of being highly regarded, the book is known as one of the most controversial book of its time. A lot critics has accused this book but the critic which stood out the most was William H. McNeill. McNeill is a historian and I agree with his criticism regarding the book and its conclusion.
Jared Diamond's fundamental argument in Guns, Germs, and Steel is that Eurasians were able to conquer the Americas, sub-Saharan Africa, and Australia because continental differences set Eurasia on a different, better trajectory than the other continents. His argument addresses a simple question: Why did human development proceed at such different rates on different continents? According to the author, the most important continental differences appear in domesticable plants and animals, germs, orientation of continental axes, and ecological barriers. Throughout the book, he refers back to the "Collision at Cajamarca," or the first encounter between the Incan emperor Atahuallpa and the Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro, as a "broad window onto world history." The encounter is effective in capturing his argument, nam...
According to Mexicolore.com, the Aztecs standard strategy was that it would usually start off with a barrage of arrows and slings while both sides advance. While running, the front row soldier would use their atlatl to do some damage before they meet. Once close enough, the barrage would stop, to avoid friendly fire, and the battle would begin. Those in the front row would fight for a while and rotate out of battle to rest their arms. During the battle, the Aztec would also capture some prisoners. But the Spanish had a different strategy. Their tactic was to walk in rows of men with muskets. When the first row shoots, they will drop back to reload, while the second row fires a second round of shots, and fall back to reload, followed by another row, and so on. The most preferred battlefield is a flat terrain or open ground, so there will be no obstacles in the way, when shooting. Another tactic was called the Conquistador’s Formula. According to the notes, this is when the Spanish would act peacefully in a new region, and figure out which area was the most powerful. They would then invite the leader of the most powerful group to a meeting and exchange gifts. They would then kidnap the leader and threaten to kill him, unless the followers obeyed their orders. The Spanish will then take over the land and use the people as slaves. One similarity is that their tactics both involve
The Inca Empire Janos Gyarmati’s Paria la Viexa and an expanding empire: Provincial centers in the political economy of the Inca Empire proved that the Inca’s built an empire unlike any other. From 1440 to 1532 A.D., the Inca Empire dominated the Americas. Known as “the fastest growing and largest territorial empire”(Gyarmati 37) of its time, the Inca Empire left a mark with their complex, perpetual and innovative economic, road, and settlement system. The Inca’s were advanced for their time, however, they lacked a system that would guarantee the survival of their kin. In order to strive, for the long-term, the Inca’s created provincial centers that would ensure their growth and economy for the generations to come.
Two of the biggest and greatest civilization in the Americas were the Aztecs and Incas. These two civilization were both said to be conquered by the Spanish, but it wasn’t just the Spanish who conquered them. These two civilizations both fell from a combination of a weak government, lack of technology, new disease introduced by the invaders, and not being prepared for the invaders. For many centuries the Aztec civilization revolved around a ideological, social, and political system in which expansion was the cornerstone. Expansion was the cornerstone of their whole civilization, because their religion requested that a large number of human sacrifices where to be made to the gods.
I believe that the environment deiced whether a society will or will not have technology, militaristic and farming abilities imbedded within the society. That will give an advantage so that one society is better equipped than others.
“Thunder on their ships” can be used to describe Herman Cortes when he landed at what is now Veracruz, Mexico in 1519 A.D. The light skinned and bearded Spaniard led his men into territory occupied by the Aztec civilization. Little did Cortes know, but that happened to be the same year in the Aztec culture when a white and bearded deity was expected to arrive. Montezuma, the Aztec’s ruler, greeted Cortes with honors fit for a God and opened up his empire for Spanish invasion. Cortes and his followers, equipped with the most up to date technology of the time, successfully caused the demise of the Aztec civilization. However, the most contemporary weaponry and technology did not solely destroy the Aztecs. Smallpox, a deadly disease introduced to the Americas by Spanish soldiers, infected the non-immune natives who died rapidly after exposure (Ehrlich, 253). This epidemic swept through the Aztec population, decreasing numbers from twenty-five million to six million (Ponting, 230). The European invasion of the Aztec civilization is just one of many examples of how European expansion affected the world. For centuries, Europeans were the leaders of expansion and exploration to many areas of the world. However, expansion of other, less researched civilizations, such as the Aztecs, occurred on a much smaller scale. The differences between the movement of the Aztec people and the Europeans as well as their effects on the environment are directly correlated to cultural and technological factors of both...
Little is known about Pedro de Cieza de Leon’s youth. Historians have discovered that Pedro de Cieza de Leon was a Spaniard, a conquistador, and a writer of Peru’s history. Pedro de Cieza de Leon was not well educated and had only the most basic education from his local school parish (Atlantis). Although he did not have a superior education, his four part book is reliable because he wrote about what he observed as a conquistador. This document is full of interesting information for the reader to discover the Inca’s way of living.
This is a source from Francisco Pizarro’s brother, Hernando Pizarro. Both Francisco and Hernando were Spanish conquistadors known for their conquest of the Inca Empire in the 16th c. This source provides a description of the Pizarro brother's travels throughout the empire, along with their observations and thoughts about Incan society, and the current status quo of the Amerindian empire. In addition, it seeks to provide an accurate account of their explorations to counteract the false narratives that have been told to Spanish authorities.
In this essay I will tell how the Aztec and Inca empires ended, and also I will compare the fall of both empires, using for a point of departure the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in the land of Mexico. Wherever the Spanish went always the same thing happened, from my point of view. Innocent people were killed for no good reason, cities were massacred, civilizations were destroyed or forced to convert to Christianity. And so, I think now is the time to reevaluate the actions of the European explorers who subjugated the native American peoples and their civilizations. Undoubtedly the most glorified and heroically portrayed of these figures of the European conquest of the New World were the conquistadors, the Spanish conquerors of Mexico and Peru in the 16-th century. These men, under leaders such as Hernan Cortes and Francisco Pizzaro nearly eliminated the Aztec and Inca peoples. Surely many of these soldiers were extremely cruel and intolerant of the native populations. But it is important to consider, with the push of both sides toward territorial expansion, how these groups (European and American) could remain isolated from each other. Furthermore, with meeting of these two imperialist cultures, it must be considered whether it would be possible for the two to peacefully coexist.
What is the importance of the gun? The gun is one of the most important tools in the defense of our nation. Guns are responsible for a lot of death and injuries, but these things were going on before the existence of the gun. Guns aren't the reason for the death and injuries, they are just a means to it. They are tools and an engineering marvel of our age. The gun has evolved from a simple weapon that caused limited destruction to the modern gun that is so fast and powerful it is capable of mass destruction. Through the evolution of the gun, it has become a political tool.
This misunderstanding stems from many primary sources excluding Native and African allies when speaking of victory. For reference, Ilarione da Bergamo wrote accounts of his battles in Mexico, and he credited Spanish wins to excellent swordplay when outnumbered by his enemies. There was no mention of Native or African allies helping them defeat enemy natives, no, it was all due to the Spanish’s impressive skills. (45) Despite many conquistadors leaving out their critical military allies in references of victory, heavily combed sources of the Mexican conquest find men in passing mention the support of natives and Africans. One such letter from Alavarado to Cortes states there were 250 Spaniards and at least 5,000 natives in their unit.
In the early 16th century Hernán Cortés wrote a letter to King Charles I of Spain. The letter being a statement of great accomplishment and power wasn’t just a simple letter; to Hernán Cortés it was a symbol of authority and a step forward towards expansion. The letter acknowledged their achievements of this expedition; the first being their success and the discovery of land to be colonized and this amazing empire known as the Aztec empire. Steel, armor, canons, firearms, and horses presented Cortés and his crew the advantage over the native people they encountered which helped justify the Spanish overcoming of the Aztec empire.
There is nothing better then realizing that each indigenous people evolved into something better or that they found ways to survive in situations they weren’t use too. There were many changes that happened over time that cause for situations to change for everyone around them. But it also has helped with being able to progress with the way they lived. Jared diamond the author of Guns, Germs and Steel interpret his famous theory oh how we came to be. How the geography luck helped each country developed more rapidly than others as well as being able to expand more. However they also had geography luck when it came to how many advantages they had with the technology nevertheless, germs also was a big part of how the conquered most of the lands because it would kill instantly millions of european and