Why were Native Americans unable to defend North America from European invasion?

Answer 1

Nothing to do with diseases or weapons, simply that they lacked unity. If the "Native Americans" had acted together as one people they could have resisted any number of swords, canons, horses and muskets. But they behaved as a series of independent and separate groups - each could easily be defeated in turn.

Before whites arrived, each tribe fought its neighbours as a way of life. Inter-tribal warfare continued after the arrival of Europeans and was encouraged. In such an environment it is easy for a small group to take over.

In Mexico, some groups, such as the Tlaxcalans, actively helped the conquistadors against the Mexica (Aztecs), so they can not even be said to be on the same side in the struggle.

Answer 2

European Invasion Of North America

Answer 3

I agree with Vintageexxpress except on a couple of points. The most important is that there were Indian polities which transcended ethnicity, such as the Mississippian cultures of the Southeast. These exercised dominance over large areas and many people and peoples, and like all such things, when people started heading for the capital or other urban centers (to the degree that "urban" properly characterizes these places) they would tend to mix and mingle, losing their distinctly ethnic character. Perhaps this created a new ethnicity at a place like Cahokia, which is said by archaeologists to have had as many people as most European cities at the time. When things like this broke apart, and their people died, disappeared, scattered, etc., how do you count the ethnicity of dispersed survivors? To keep this at the time of European arrival, consider that Cahokia was long gone by then, but other such arrangements endured elsewhere. DeSoto (1540) encountered a city in South Carolina (Cofitachequi) which controlled, or had controlled until recently, most of the central portion of that state. But subsequent Spanish explorations found few people, and mostly ruins at Cofitachequi. Also, I don't think the "Clovis First" theory can hold much water any more. Archaeologists at the Topper Site in South Carolina claim to have found human artifacts in soil levels dating back 16,000 years ago, at least. Recent work there has turned up what they claim to be artifacts from much earlier, as much as 50,000 years, some of which much resemble those found in Europe and dating back to around the same time, raising the intriguing possibility that the first humans in North America may have come by way of Europe and the Atlantic Shelf rather than by way of Asia and the Pacific Shelf. We're learning new things about pre-Columbian American almost every day!

Answer 4

blueevent47 is right that the short answer was disease and on the estimates of how may died. The white man did have better weapons, but the Native Americans were experienced in warfare, and did well with their bows and arrows. The white man couldn't rely on just their better technology to win, and resorted to biological warfare. Yes the same thing we call terrorism these days. The white man would infect their trade goods with small pox to infest the tribes with sickness. Then once they were too weak to defend themselves, they would go in and slaughter whole villages. It was the main weapon that lead to the downfall of the Native Americans not just gun powder, and guns.

Answer 5

A combination of events

Disease broke the cultures(introduced by very early European explorers and colonist), the inability of the survivors to organize and work together made them vulnerable to concentrated efforts by opponents. Especially when the survivors were little better that neolithic farmers with little independent metal working.

Answer 6

Disease, alcohol and weaponry were the main reasons. Also have to remember that the Native Americans tried to share the land because they didn't believe the land belonged to anyone in particular. Unfortunately the Native Americans never encountered greed on the scale of the Europeans. . .

Answer 7

The short answer is disease. Many of the worst diseases of the Afro-Eurasian landmass came about from the active practice of animal husbandry and more broadly agriculture. These diseases developed in humans after the practice of agriculture began (about 9 to 10 thousand years ago).

People of the New World, however, built no immunities to these diseases for two reasons: first, they did not actively domesticate animals, which meant they did not develop similar sorts of diseases; second, they arrived in the New World between 15 to 20 thousand years ago--before the development of these diseases in Africa, Europe and Asia.

The introduction of these diseases--particularly small pox--with European contact had a devastating impact upon the peoples of America. Best estimates are that within 100 years of contact, some 90% of the population of the New World had died off. The death of so many American Indians meant it became easier for Europeans to invade and dominate the hemisphere.

It also explains, incidentally, why the Europeans were not similarly affected by disease. Because the New World population didn't domesticate animals and develop a series of potentially life-threatening diseases, Europeans were relatively safe.

Cheers.

ADDITIONAL NOTE: In spite of Brother Ranaulf's obvious skills in Anglo-Norman literature (I hope you have your Capelli handy), in point of fact most historians accept the reality of the power of disease. In point of fact, Hernando Cortez' initial foray into the Aztec Empire failed the first time around and he barely escaped with his life. But in the following year, plague swept the Aztecs, creating political and social fragmentation, and Cortez was successful.

We should of course not forget also the contribution of the Mother Church: the destruction of native religion and culture, and forced enslavement.

Cheers.

Answer 8

bows and arrows along with spears and other ancient weapons could not compete with firearms.

there was also a difference in tactics as the Native Americans were not really interested in killing their opponents but rather in counting coup.

Answer 9

Because of the superior technology of the Europeans: muskets(guns) and the horse.

Wotan

Answer 10

There are several factors but the primary ones are technology, disease and greed. All three were possesed in quantity by the invaders, all three were largely unknown and therefore devistating if not deadly to the natives.