What did the Europeans bring to the new world that caused the deaths of millions of Native American?

Answer 1

The colonist brought several things with them that helped destroy the Native American culture. The first thing most people think of concerning this is disease. Disease was a huge factor in the deaths of many Native Americans, but other things came with the colonist that brought longer more subtle changes to the lives of the Native Americans and helped destroy their way of life. Before the fist colony of Jamestown the Powhatan Indians carefully managed the lands they inhabited. They burned undergrowth to keep the forest open, relocated villages when crops depleted soils, and ranged widely to fish, hunt, and gather all they needed, moving with the seasons. Most live on the riverfront that held the richest soils and the marshes contained wild foodstuffs that could be eaten in the lean months. It was an unfenced landscape with no domestic animals except dogs and they had no need for fences. Boys with bows and arrows would kill wildlife that ate the crops. Crops were mixed to grow corn, squash, and beans together in a method that preserved the land, kept soils moist and kept away pests. This all changed when the English ships arrived.

After settlement by the English they set off cataclysmic changes. They were an alien presence themselves and they brought animals, insects, and plants that would literally change the ground beneath the Indians feet. The English concept of a "civilized" landscape was one which ownership of the land was made clear by Fencing and raising livestock. At first the domestic animals didn't do well, but soon the colonist lost control of them. The worse were the pigs. Smart, strong, and always hungry they ate nuts, fruits, shellfish, and corn, turning up the soil for edible roots. Among these was the tuckahoe that was a starchy tuber that the Indians ate when times were hard and their crops failed. The natives found themselves competing for food with packs of pigs. The livestock were destructive grazers and soils compactors.

But the largest impact was the honey bee. In early 1622 a ship arrived in Jamestown loaded with exotic things for the colonist to experiment with. Grapevines cuttings, silkworm eggs, and beehives. The bees quickly swarmed from their hives and set up shop throughout America. The colonist also carried another thing with them and that was a malaria causing parasite in their blood. Mosquitoes along the Chesapeake were infected by the colonist and spread the parasite to other humans. Black rats also came on the ships and ate Indian corn stores from Maine to Florida.

Finally, there was the tobacco. Once it proved to bring a profit is was planted over huge stretches of land that destroyed the soil. Before long the area looked more like England than it did before the ships arrived. The English didn't discover a new world, they created one and in the process destroyed the old world they had found.

Answer 2

diseases

Answer 3

contagious diseases

Answer 4

contagious Diseases

Answer 5

disease