An Alternate history: What if Disease Didn't Wipe Out the Native Americans?By the time the British colonies were established in North America, The Native American population was just ten percent of what it had been.
What if Disease Didn't Wipe Out the Native Americans?
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| What if Disease Didn't Wipe Out the Native Americans?- whatifhub.com |
Now I'm not telling Native American people all had gleaming cities. Well, some did. But it's often overlooked just how much disease played a part into Europe's conquering of the New World.
Using alternate history, we ask a question. What if the disease had not wiped out the Native Americans? How would you interact with the Americas go?
Well here is one scenario. In our timeline, the Columbian exchange was the trade between the New World and the Old.
alternate history native American
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It broke down tribes, decimated villages, and paved the way for the Europeans. It's difficult to predict accurately just how much history would have changed had the plagues not occurred.
Almost all intercommunications Europeans had with native people were with the post-disease survivors.
Squanto, the famous native who saved the Pilgrims from starvation, did so because his tribe who previously lived on the land all died from the disease.
Then he disappeared from the disease. There's going to be a lot of death in this article. Had the tribes of North America not lost most of their population, it's undoubtedly early English Colonies like Jamestown would have been destroyed.
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| What if Disease Didn't Wipe Out the Native Americans?- whatifhub.com |
Since natives didn't have a definition of borders like Europeans did, the arrival of fenced-in areas cut off access to previously tribal hunting grounds.
This, causing tensions, usually fell into war. In our timeline, these war/rebellions always ended in British destruction.
But in this alternate scenario, just the absolute number of natives overwhelmed the British. With a much larger population, it would have been a dangerous endeavor to remove tribes.
Since wars were costly and counter-productive, it's most likely colonist policy would be more towards trade than fight. Just because you can't go to war if you are the vast, vast minority.
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| What if Disease Didn't Wipe Out the Native Americans?- whatifhub.com |
The English colonies and the future United States would only be possible because the land was opened up. It's likely the English, French, and Spanish would exert control over the tribes.
Picking sides and tribal battles and making alliances with them, and against each other. European outposts/cities would be established on the coast with influence similar to that in India and China.
Trades of guns, metal, and other Western Technology bring an entirely new face to native Americans. Propped up by their European allies, Native states could ultimately evolve to compete against other tribes/ White colonists.
However, over the centuries, once France and Britain gained a better foothold in the Americas, They begin annexing tribal land, similar to the Middle East in Africa.
what would have happened to native Americans
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what would have happened to Native Americans- whatifhub.com |
Had these never occurred, the Spanish would still be able to conquer both civilizations eventually. Not popular with local tribes, Do that whole human sacrifice thing, the Spanish even led a revolt against the Aztec rule.
The Inca put up more of a fight, but it would be impossible for the new world civilizations to fend off success forever. Just because of the technological difference, the New World would have been conquered and influenced no matter what.
The variety though, in this alternate timeline, is the Demographics. Even if the European nations did claim land in the Americas, the native people would stay an aggressive population in their homeland, like with Africa in the 19th century.
Would they gain independence? Would native nations be formed where the United States is in our timeline?
I'll let you figure that out. So much changed by the plague not occurring; It's difficult to predict how much this affected the world accurately.
* This article was originally published here
