Arguably the greatest effect European settlement had on indigenous American people was exposing them to diseases to which they had no immunity, including smallpox, measles, influenza, and other viruses. As a result, epidemics soon became a common occurrence after contact between the two cultures. Sometimes entire communities were wiped out.
What problems did Native Americans face during the colonial era?
This caused rifts that kept some Native American tribes from working together to stop European takeover. Native Americans were also vulnerable during the colonial era because they had never been exposed to European diseases, like smallpox, so they didn’t have any immunity to the disease, as some Europeans did.
What was the effect of European settlement in the Americas?
The effect of European settlement in the Americas was devastating to the indigenous populations. It is thought that the native population was reduced by as much as ninety percent in the first century after first contact as the result of diseases inadvertently introduced from Europe. Whole civilizations vanished and societies...
How did the arrival of the Europeans affect Native Americans?
Over hundreds of years, the Native Americans were negatively impacted by the arrival of the Europeans to the Americas. That negative impact continues to this very day. European settlers to "the New World" had a major, and mostly negative effect on the indigenous populations across North and South America.
How did European diseases affect the Native Americans?
European settlers brought these new diseases with them when they settled, and the illnesses decimated the Native Americans—by some estimates killing as much as 90 percent of their population.
What were the consequences of European settlement?
Slavery was another major and unfortunate consequence of European settlement. The Europeans realized they needed labor to help build houses and clear fields in the new land. Instead of using their own workers, they began to trade goods such as tools and weapons to certain American Indian tribes in exchange for other Indians captured in tribal wars. The Europeans then utilized these captured Indians as slaves.
What were the early relations between the colonists and the Indians?
Early relations between the colonists and the Indians were an uneasy balance of cooperation and conflict. Although the Europeans brought access to new technology and trade, including weapons, tools and other goods, which was a life changing experience for the Native Americans ’ way of life, conflict became more regular and brutal as the Europeans began to seek more and more land in the New World as their own.
Why did Native Americans resist the Europeans?
They resisted the efforts of the Europeans to gain more of their land and control through both warfare and diplomacy. But problems arose for the Native Americans, which held them back from their goal, including new diseases, the slave trade, and the ever-growing European population in North America. In the 17 th century, as European nations ...
What made Native Americans vulnerable?
Another aspect of the colonial era that made the Native Americans vulnerable was the slave trade. As a result of the wars between the European nations, Native Americans allied with the losing side were often indentured or enslaved. There were even Native Americans shipped out of colonies like South Carolina into slavery in other places, like Canada.
What were the consequences of allying with Europeans?
Another consequence of allying with Europeans was that Native Americans were often fighting neighboring tribes. This caused rifts that kept some Native American tribes from working together to stop European takeover.
Which two groups were allied in the French and Indian War?
Some famous alliances were formed during the French and Indian War of 1754–1763. The English allied with the Iroquois Confederacy, while the Algonquian-speaking tribes joined forces with the French and the Spanish. The English won the war, and claimed all of the land east of the Mississippi River.