Indigenous continent: the epic contest for North America
(Book)

Book Cover
Your Rating: 0 stars
Star rating for

Average user rating: 4 stars
User ratings:
5 star
 
(0)
4 star
 
(1)
3 star
 
(0)
2 star
 
(0)
1 star
 
(0)
Published:
New York, NY : Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W.W. Norton & Company, 2023, c2022.
Format:
Book
Edition:
Liveright paperback edition.
Physical Desc:
xiv, 571 pages : illustrations (black and white), maps (black and white) ; 21 cm
Status:

Description

There is an old, deeply rooted story about America that goes like this: Columbus "discovers" a strange continent and brings back tales of untold riches. The European empires rush over, eager to stake out as much of this astonishing "New World" as possible. Though Indigenous peoples fight back, they cannot stop the onslaught. White imperialists are destined to rule the continent, and history is an irreversible march toward Indigenous destruction. Yet as with other long-accepted origin stories, this one, too, turns out to be based in myth and distortion. In Indigenous Continent, acclaimed historian Pekka Hämäläinen presents a sweeping counternarrative that shatters the most basic assumptions about American history. Shifting our perspective away from Jamestown, Plymouth Rock, the Revolution, and other well-trodden episodes on the conventional timeline, he depicts a sovereign world of Native nations whose members, far from helpless victims of colonial violence, dominated the continent for centuries after the first European arrivals. From the Iroquois in the Northeast to the Comanches on the Plains, and from the Pueblos in the Southwest to the Cherokees in the Southeast, Native nations frequently decimated white newcomers in battle. Even as the white population exploded and colonists' land greed grew more extravagant, Indigenous peoples flourished due to sophisticated diplomacy and leadership structures. By 1776, various colonial powers claimed nearly all of the continent, but Indigenous peoples still controlled it--as Hämäläinen points out, the maps in modern textbooks that paint much of North America in neat, color-coded blocks confuse outlandish imperial boasts for actual holdings. In fact, Native power peaked in the late nineteenth century, with the Lakota victory in 1876 at Little Big Horn, which was not an American blunder, but an all-too-expected outcome. Hämäläinen ultimately contends that the very notion of "colonial America" is misleading, and that we should speak instead of an "Indigenous America" that was only slowly and unevenly becoming colonial. The evidence of Indigenous defiance is apparent today in the hundreds of Native nations that still dot the United States and Canada. Necessary reading for anyone who cares about America's past, present, and future, Indigenous Continent restores Native peoples to their rightful place at the very fulcrum of American history.

Also in This Series

Copies

Location
Call Number
Status
Meriden Holocaust Collection
970.0049 HA
On Shelf
Old Saybrook/Acton Adult Book Discussion
DISCUSSION BOOK 970.004 HAMALAINEN
On Shelf
Old Saybrook/Acton Adult Book Discussion
DISCUSSION BOOK 970.004 HAMALAINEN
On Shelf

More Like This

Other Editions and Formats

More Details

Language:
English
ISBN:
9781324094067, 1324094060

Notes

Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages [467]-538) and index.
Description
There is an old, deeply rooted story about America that goes like this: Columbus "discovers" a strange continent and brings back tales of untold riches. The European empires rush over, eager to stake out as much of this astonishing "New World" as possible. Though Indigenous peoples fight back, they cannot stop the onslaught. White imperialists are destined to rule the continent, and history is an irreversible march toward Indigenous destruction. Yet as with other long-accepted origin stories, this one, too, turns out to be based in myth and distortion. In Indigenous Continent, acclaimed historian Pekka Hämäläinen presents a sweeping counternarrative that shatters the most basic assumptions about American history. Shifting our perspective away from Jamestown, Plymouth Rock, the Revolution, and other well-trodden episodes on the conventional timeline, he depicts a sovereign world of Native nations whose members, far from helpless victims of colonial violence, dominated the continent for centuries after the first European arrivals. From the Iroquois in the Northeast to the Comanches on the Plains, and from the Pueblos in the Southwest to the Cherokees in the Southeast, Native nations frequently decimated white newcomers in battle. Even as the white population exploded and colonists' land greed grew more extravagant, Indigenous peoples flourished due to sophisticated diplomacy and leadership structures. By 1776, various colonial powers claimed nearly all of the continent, but Indigenous peoples still controlled it--as Hämäläinen points out, the maps in modern textbooks that paint much of North America in neat, color-coded blocks confuse outlandish imperial boasts for actual holdings. In fact, Native power peaked in the late nineteenth century, with the Lakota victory in 1876 at Little Big Horn, which was not an American blunder, but an all-too-expected outcome. Hämäläinen ultimately contends that the very notion of "colonial America" is misleading, and that we should speak instead of an "Indigenous America" that was only slowly and unevenly becoming colonial. The evidence of Indigenous defiance is apparent today in the hundreds of Native nations that still dot the United States and Canada. Necessary reading for anyone who cares about America's past, present, and future, Indigenous Continent restores Native peoples to their rightful place at the very fulcrum of American history.

Reviews from GoodReads

Loading GoodReads Reviews.

Citations

APA Citation (style guide)

Hämäläinen, P. (20232022). Indigenous continent: the epic contest for North America. Liveright paperback edition. New York, NY, Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W.W. Norton & Company.

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)

Hämäläinen, Pekka, 1967-. 20232022. Indigenous Continent: The Epic Contest for North America. New York, NY, Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W.W. Norton & Company.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)

Hämäläinen, Pekka, 1967-, Indigenous Continent: The Epic Contest for North America. New York, NY, Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W.W. Norton & Company, 20232022.

MLA Citation (style guide)

Hämäläinen, Pekka. Indigenous Continent: The Epic Contest for North America. Liveright paperback edition. New York, NY, Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W.W. Norton & Company, 20232022.

Note! Citation formats are based on standards as of July 2022. Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy.

Staff View

Grouped Work ID:
1704f481-8719-79a1-f963-e1c0072b8ce1
Go To Grouped Work

Record Information

Last Sierra Extract TimeNov 26, 2024 04:09:45 PM
Last File Modification TimeNov 26, 2024 04:09:54 PM
Last Grouped Work Modification TimeNov 26, 2024 04:09:52 PM

MARC Record

LEADER05910cam 2200481 i 4500
001on1362866274
003OCoLC
00520231004081622.0
008230129t20232022nyuab  e      001 0 eng d
015 |a GBC3D5779 |2 bnb
0167 |a 021143860 |2 Uk
020 |a 9781324094067 |q (paperback)
020 |a 1324094060 |q (paperback)
035 |a ocm1362866274
040 |a YDX |b eng |c YDX |d BDX |d UKMGB |d OCLCQ |d BRG |d CNTCS |d ICK
043 |a n------
049 |a CKEA
0504 |a E77 |b .H197 2023
0820 |a 970.004/97 |2 23
1001 |a Hämäläinen, Pekka, |d 1967- |e author.
24510 |a Indigenous continent : |b the epic contest for North America / |c Pekka Hämäläinen.
250 |a Liveright paperback edition.
2641 |a New York, NY : |b Liveright Publishing Corporation, a division of W.W. Norton & Company, |c 2023, c2022.
300 |a xiv, 571 pages : |b illustrations (black and white), maps (black and white) ; |c 21 cm
336 |a text |b txt |2 rdacontent
336 |a still image |b sti |2 rdacontent
336 |a cartographic image |b cri |2 rdacontent
337 |a unmediated |2 rdamedia
338 |a volume |2 rdacarrier
386 |a Men |2 lcdgt
386 |a History teachers |2 lcdgt
386 |a University and college faculty members |2 lcdgt
386 |a English |2 lcdgt
504 |a Includes bibliographical references (pages [467]-538) and index.
50500 |t Introduction : The myth of colonial America -- |g Part One: |t The dawn of the indigenous continent (the first seventy millennia) -- |t The world on the turtle's back -- |t The egalitarian continent -- |t Blind conquests -- |g Part Two: |t Appear at a distance like giants (the long sixteenth century) -- |t Terra nullius -- |t The Powhatan empire -- |t Wars at the water's edge -- |t The Pequots shall no more be called Pequots -- |g Part Three: |t The conquest for the great American interior (early and mid-seventeenth century) -- |t The rise of the five nations league -- |t Enemies of the faith -- |t The power of weakness -- |g Part Four: |t The indigenous backlash (late seventeenth century) -- |t The English as a little child -- |t Metacom's challenge -- |t Virginia's civil and uncivil wars -- |t The great southwestern rebellion -- |g Part Five: |t The enduring indigenous continent (early eighteenth century) -- |t Holding the line -- |t They smelled like alligators -- |t An infinity of rancherías -- |g Part Six: |t The heart of the continent (mid- and late eighteenth century) -- |t Magic dogs -- |t Wars to the end of the world -- |t British America besieged -- |t Worldly and otherworldly wars of independence -- |t A second Chinese wall -- |g Part Seven: |t American revolutions (late eighteenth to early nineteenth century) -- |t The American crucible -- |t Western promises -- |t The white devil with his mouth wide open -- |g Part Eight: |t The age of equestrian empires (nineteenth century) -- |t The long removal era -- |t The Comanche ascendancy -- |t The Lakota shield -- |t Epilogue : Revenge and revival.
520 |a There is an old, deeply rooted story about America that goes like this: Columbus "discovers" a strange continent and brings back tales of untold riches. The European empires rush over, eager to stake out as much of this astonishing "New World" as possible. Though Indigenous peoples fight back, they cannot stop the onslaught. White imperialists are destined to rule the continent, and history is an irreversible march toward Indigenous destruction. Yet as with other long-accepted origin stories, this one, too, turns out to be based in myth and distortion. In Indigenous Continent, acclaimed historian Pekka Hämäläinen presents a sweeping counternarrative that shatters the most basic assumptions about American history. Shifting our perspective away from Jamestown, Plymouth Rock, the Revolution, and other well-trodden episodes on the conventional timeline, he depicts a sovereign world of Native nations whose members, far from helpless victims of colonial violence, dominated the continent for centuries after the first European arrivals. From the Iroquois in the Northeast to the Comanches on the Plains, and from the Pueblos in the Southwest to the Cherokees in the Southeast, Native nations frequently decimated white newcomers in battle. Even as the white population exploded and colonists' land greed grew more extravagant, Indigenous peoples flourished due to sophisticated diplomacy and leadership structures. By 1776, various colonial powers claimed nearly all of the continent, but Indigenous peoples still controlled it--as Hämäläinen points out, the maps in modern textbooks that paint much of North America in neat, color-coded blocks confuse outlandish imperial boasts for actual holdings. In fact, Native power peaked in the late nineteenth century, with the Lakota victory in 1876 at Little Big Horn, which was not an American blunder, but an all-too-expected outcome. Hämäläinen ultimately contends that the very notion of "colonial America" is misleading, and that we should speak instead of an "Indigenous America" that was only slowly and unevenly becoming colonial. The evidence of Indigenous defiance is apparent today in the hundreds of Native nations that still dot the United States and Canada. Necessary reading for anyone who cares about America's past, present, and future, Indigenous Continent restores Native peoples to their rightful place at the very fulcrum of American history.
6500 |a Indigenous peoples |z North America |x History.
6500 |a Indigenous peoples |z North America |x Government relations |y 1789-1869.
907 |a .b27770722
945 |y .i70197799 |i 20906004641 |l mehc |s - |h  |u 0 |x 0 |w 0 |v 0 |t 2 |z 09-05-24 |o - |a 970.0049 HA
945 |y .i70343317 |i 33520001587672 |l osabd |s - |h  |u 0 |x 0 |w 0 |v 0 |t 2 |z 10-22-24 |o - |a DISCUSSION BOOK 970.004 HAMALAINEN
945 |y .i70343329 |i 33520001587631 |l osabd |s - |h  |u 0 |x 0 |w 0 |v 0 |t 2 |z 10-22-24 |o - |a DISCUSSION BOOK 970.004 HAMALAINEN
998 |e - |d a  |f eng |a me |a os