1. Theme 1: A Difficult past, How The Americas Changed PowerPoint by Ben Ely

2. Background Readings In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries: (almost) All land in the western hemisphere had won their independence from European colonial powers American people quickly struggled to build a society based on the age of independence United states built most powerful region in the western hemisphere and embarked on westward push Dealt with the “Legacy of Enlightenment”, in other words the effort to build societies based on: Freedom, equality, Constitutional government

3. (cont.) Background Readings Age of independence pertained to not only the United States, but Canada and Latin America as well Characterized by Mass Migration “Explosive” economic growth. Economic stagnation Civil war Ethnic voilence Class conflict Battles of Racial/sexual equality

4. “The Little Ice Age” Brought colder winters to parts of Europe and mainly North America. Canals/rivers frequently being frozen over in places like Great Britain and the Netherlands. Extreme weather eventually led to years of death and famine throughout Europpe, and general food shortages elsewhere in the northern hemisphere Frozen rivers gave way to the Netherlands French invasion, and freezing of harbors cutting off supplies and shipping drastically

6. (Cont.) The Louisiana purchase The acquisition by the U.S. of around 828,800 square miles of France’s claim to the Louisiana territory. Took a total sum of 15 million dollars, actually only equivalent to 219 million dollars in modern day 2010 Opposed by the House of Representatives (deemed somewhat unconstitutional) The Federalists strongly opposed the purchase, fearing the U.S. has just paid a large sum of money to declare war on Spain. Signed on Saturday, April 30th, 1803

7. Crossroads of Freedom: The Napoleonic wars A series of conflict declared against the French Empire from 1803 to 1815 sparked by the wars of the French Revolution Worked well for a while, incredibly expanding Napoleon’s empire throughout Europe until the disastrous turning point marked by the invasion of Russia in 1812 Events preceding the Battle of Maloyaroslavets marked the end of Napoleons grand army, as they got devoured by an extreme shortage of food and supplies from the onset of the Russian Winter, mixed with constant guerilla warfare by Russian peasants and irregular troops Ended in complete military defeat resulting in the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy in France

9. The final battle which marked an end to it all was the battle of Vertiereson November 18th 1803, fought between haitian rebels led by Jea Jacques Dessalines, and the French colonial army

12. War on the Ottoman Empire ultimately was reinitiated on April 24th 1877 through nationalist unrest and the Balkin’s lost of prestige within the Russian empire