Before the Revolution : America's Ancient Pasts

In this epic synthesis, Richter reveals a new America. Surveying many centuries prior to the American Revolution, we discover the tumultuous encounters between the peoples of North America, Africa, and Europe and see how the present is the accumulation of the ancient layers of the past. America began, we are often told, with the Founding Fathers, the men who waged a revolution and created a unique place called the United States. We may acknowledge the early Jamestown and Puritan colonists and mourn the dispossession of Native Americans, but we rarely grapple with the complexity of the nation's pre-revolutionary past. In this pathbreaking revision, Daniel Richter shows that the United States has a much deeper history than is apparent--that far from beginning with a clean slate, it is a nation with multiple pasts that stretch back as far as the Middle Ages, pasts whose legacies continue to shape the present. Exploring a vast range of original sources, Before the Revolution spans more than seven centuries and ranges across North America, Europe, and Africa. Richter recovers the lives of a stunning array of peoples--Indians, Spaniards, French, Dutch, Africans, English--as they struggled with one another and with their own people for control of land and resources. Their struggles occurred in a global context and built upon the remains of what came before. Gradually and unpredictably, distinctive patterns of North American culture took shape on a continent where no one yet imagined there would be nations called the United States, Canada, or Mexico. By seeing these trajectories on their own dynamic terms, rather than merely as a prelude to independence, Richter's epic vision reveals the deepest origins of American history. Contents 8 Prologue: Layered Pasts 12 Progenitors 18 1. Legacies of Power from Medieval North America 20 2. Legacies of Conquest from Medieval Europe 46 Conquistadores 90 3. Crusades of the Christ-Bearers to the Americas 92 4. Crusades of the Protestants to New Worlds 113 Traders 144 5. Native Americans and the Power of Trade 146 6. Epidemics, War, and the Remapping of a Continent 168 Planters 208 7. Searching for Order in New and Old England 210 8. Planting Patriarchy in New England and Virginia 226 9. Dutch, French, Spanish, and English Counterpoints 251 Imperialists 278 10. Monarchical Power Reborn 280 11. Planters Besieged 304 12. Revolution, War, and a New Transatlantic Order 334 Atlanteans 378 13. Producing and Consuming in an Atlantic Empire 380 14. People in Motion, Enslaved and Free 399 15. Contending for a Continent 422 16. Gloomy and Dark Days 441 Epilogue: Present Pasts 470 Notes 478 Further Reading 503 Credits 515 Acknowledgments 523 Index 526 Prologue : Layered Pasts -- Progenitors -- Legacies Of Power From Medieval North America -- Legacies Of Conquest From Medieval Europe -- Conquistadores -- Crusades Of The Christ-bearers To The Americas -- Crusades Of The Protestants To New Worlds -- Traders -- Native Americans And The Power Of Trade -- Epidemics, Wars, And The Remapping Of A Continent -- Planters -- Searching For Order In New And Old England -- Planting Patriarchy In New England And Virginia -- Dutch, French, Spanish, And English Alternatives -- Imperialists -- Monarchical Power Reborn -- Planters Besieged -- Revolution, Warfare, And A New Transatlantic Order -- Atlanteans -- Producing And Consuming In An Atlantic Empire -- People In Motion In Slavery And Freedom -- Contending For A Continent -- Gloomy And Dark Days -- Epilogue : Present Pasts. Daniel K. Richter. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. This work is an investigation of North American history in the seven centuries before the founding of the United States, looking at how the sequential cultural layers defined by people the author calls the progenitors, conquistadores, traders, planters, imperialists, and Atlanteans contributed to the society, culture, and politics of the U.S. as it emerged after the Revolutionary War. It includes sections on Albany, New York; Boston, Massachusetts; Charleston, South Carolina; corn; fur trade; Florida; Jamestown, Virginia; Maryland; Massachusetts Bay Colony; New York City; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Rhode Island; St. Augustine, Florida; and Virginia. Exploring a vast range of original stories, this book spans more than seven centuries and ranges across North America, Europe, and Africa. Richter recovers the lives of a stunning array of peoples as they struggled with one another and with their own people for control of land and resources