Early American history 1450 to 1820 Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Early American history 1450 to 1820 - Term Paper Example The Columbian exchange refers to the movement of people, their belongings, plants, animals, and diseases from Europe to America after Columbus’s discovery of America. Such a drastic change in environment and ecology adversely affected the Native Americans making Columbus exchange one of the reasons of the prosperity of Europeans while a reason of downfall for the Native Americans (Brogan, 2001). Another important happening during this period is the French and Indian War which was fought during the late 1750s. The war was very much significant as it would determine the future and stability of North America. The French and Indian had an upper hand in terms of organization and strategy and this is the reason for their domination during the initial years of war. Seeing their colonial allies getting defeated, the British soon jumped into the battle and the tides turned in favor of the Americans. Even though the British eventually won the struggle for freedom, the struggle never rea lly ended because the Native Americans wanted freedom also from their colonial masters (Brogan, 2001). The tension between the British and the Americans increases which ultimately erupted into an open conflict referred to as the American Revolution. The most important event during this time period, as regarded by the historians is perhaps the American Revolution. The American Revolution which started in the year 1763 shattered the foundations on which the Old America was established and provided the idea of a United States of America. The American Revolution was a fight against the monarchy and aristocracy and the public openly stood against the English rulers. Even though initially the revolution was a struggle to overthrow the colonial system, it grew into something much more fundamental and important to the American community as a whole. The American Revolution provided the foundation of a unified America in which all the states fought for a unified cause (Bailyn, 1992). The valu es instilled in the participants are still there and are looked up to as an inspiration as America could not have achieved its current stature without this Revolution. For a long time the British had exercised their superiority and domination over the over the Americans, intercepting their ships and searching them. In 1812, the Americans waged war on the British. It was through this war that the Americans got their national anthem even though the war did not end decisively. A treaty was formed soon after the battle, the terms of which made it look more like a cease fire (Brogan, 2001). The war was not only important because the national anthem was composed during it but also two future presidents of the country began their political careers during this war. The start of the eighteenth century marked many important developments in the economic sector of the country. The most important of these is the market revolution. The market revolution is the name given to the series of steps ta ken by the steps to develop transportation within their respective cities which ultimately provided easier and greater access to markets. This proved to be very beneficial for the economy which boomed during this period (Brogan, 2001). The beginning of the eighteenth century also witnessed some ‘revolutionary’ changes in the political system of America. Jefferson became president in 1801, bringing