The Great Exchange-: Crops and Animals of the New and Old World

 

The interaction between the Europeans and the Indigenous people can be described as both positive and negative. The following website highlights the different crops, animals and diseases that were exchanged amongst the "two worlds".

http://www.vos.noaa.gov/MWL/dec_08/great_exchange.shtml

A "Brief" History of the Caribbean (Pre 1492-1898)

The following website contains a brief synopsis of the history of the Caribbean from the time of the indigenous people to the end of the Spanish colonies of the Caribbean. It focuses on the following details:

• The arrival of the Indigenous people to the region
• The arrival of Columbus under the Spanish flag
• The Spanish Caribbean in the 16th century
• The arrival of the British and French to the region
• Sugar and Slavery
• Toussaint L'Ouverture and Haiti
• The End of the Spanish Empire in the Caribbean

http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?groupid=232&HistoryID=aa23&gtrack=pthc

Christopher Columbus: The Untold Story

The following website contains an article which looks at another side of the "Great" explorer that was Christopher Columbus. The article contains the following details:

• Details of his business contract with Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand
• Details of his wishes to convert the native people
• Details about the proposed enslavement of the indigenous people
• The beginning of Spain's hold on the "New World"

http://www.understandingprejudice.org/nativeiq/columbus.htm

Columbus, The Indians and Human Progress

The following website contains an excerpt of a book by Howard Zinn which takes a look into the Indigenous people of the Americas from the European perspective. It contains the following information:

• The Europeans initial view of the Amerindians and their islands
• The treatment and Decline of the Amerindians

http://www.historyisaweapon.com/defcon1/zinncol1.html

The Americas Before Columbus

The following video is an in-depth look into:

• The reasons why Christopher Columbus made his initial voyage
• The conditions of Europe before his voyage
• The condition of the Americas before his arrival

Ancient Mayan Econmy and Trade

The following website contains information about the Maya Civilization:

• Economy and Trade
• Subsistence Items and Trade
• Prestige Items and Trade
• Obsidian Trade
• Recent Advances in the Study of the Mayan Economy
• Importance of Mayan Economy and Trade

*The website also contains links to other pages which discuss:

• What Happened to the Ancient Maya?
• The Golden Age of the Ancient Maya Civilization
• 10 Things You Did Not Know about the Ancient Maya

http://latinamericanhistory.about.com/od/Maya/p/Ancient-Maya-Economy-And-Trade.htm

The Ancient Americas The Maya and the Aztects

The following video is a brief documentary about two of the groups which inhabited the mainland of the Americas. It contains the following information about the Maya:

• Agriculture
• Art
• Social Organization
• Trade
• Math and Science
• Location
• Recreation