IndigAg Midterm2

Question 1

What is colonization?

Answer 1

The process where one group of people takes control over another group, their land, and resources, often imposing political, economic, and cultural systems.

Question 2

Who are the two groups involved in colonization?

Answer 2

The colonizers (those taking control) and the colonized (those being controlled).

Question 3

List the four main steps of the colonizing process.

Answer 3

1. reconnaissance (exploring and gathering intelligence)
2. invasion (military and political takeover)
3. occupation (settlement and establishing control)
4. assimilation (imposing the colonizer’s culture).

Question 4

What motivated European exploration and discovery?

Answer 4

Economic interests (mercantilism) and religious motivations (Doctrine of Discovery).

Question 5

What is mercantilism?

Answer 5

An economic theory promoting profitable trade by maximizing exports, minimizing imports, and accumulating resources through colonies.

Question 6

How did mercantilism relate to colonization?

Answer 6

Colonies supplied cheap raw materials to Europe, supporting wealth accumulation and industrial production.

Question 7

What was the Doctrine of Discovery?

Answer 7

A religious and legal principle that justified European sovereignty over non-Christian lands and peoples.

Question 8

What was the religious motivation behind the Doctrine of Discovery?

Answer 8

The belief that Christian nations had a duty to convert and dominate non-Christians for their ‘spiritual good.’

Question 9

Who issued the first Papal Bulls supporting the Doctrine of Discovery?

Answer 9

Pope Nicholas V and Pope Alexander VI.

Question 10

What was the 1493 Papal Bull ‘Inter caetera’?

Answer 10

A decree granting Spain the right to claim lands west of a demarcation line not previously discovered by Christians.

Question 11

What was the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494)?

Answer 11

An agreement between Spain and Portugal moving the division line westward, granting Portugal control over Brazil.

Question 12

What is ‘terra nullius’?

Answer 12

A concept meaning ‘empty land’—used by Europeans to justify taking lands they deemed uninhabited or uncivilized.

Question 13

How did England and France apply the Doctrine of Discovery?

Answer 13

They added the requirement of ‘actual occupancy’ and possession to claim title by discovery.

Question 14

What role did international law play in colonization?

Answer 14

It legitimized European claims to Indigenous lands through discovery and conquest principles.

Question 15

When did the fur trade begin?

Answer 15

In the 1400s, lasting roughly 250 years.

Question 16

What motivated Europeans to expand into the interior during the fur trade?

Answer 16

To secure furs and control trade networks with Indigenous nations.

Question 17

What are the three phases of the fur trade?

Answer 17

1. Indigenous agency
2. Indigenous dependency
3. European dominance.

Question 18

What characterized Phase 1 of the fur trade?

Answer 18

Indigenous peoples controlled trade terms and maintained agency.

Question 19

What characterized Phase 2 of the fur trade?

Answer 19

Indigenous dependency increased as European goods became essential.

Question 20

What characterized Phase 3 of the fur trade?

Answer 20

Europeans gained control over trade and territory.

Question 21

What was the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC)?

Answer 21

A company granted a royal charter in 1670, giving it sole trade rights over Rupert’s Land.

Question 22

What was the impact of HBC’s charter?

Answer 22

It made HBC the de facto government in much of northern North America until 1869.

Question 23

What were the impacts of the fur trade on Indigenous societies?

Answer 23

Territorial realignment
adoption of new technologies
rise of the Métis Nation
spread of diseases.

Question 24

What is a ‘virgin soil epidemic’?

Answer 24

An outbreak of disease in a population with no previous exposure or immunity.

Question 25

What diseases devastated Indigenous populations during early contact?

Answer 25

Smallpox, measles, and influenza.

Question 26

What percentage of some Indigenous communities were killed by smallpox?

Answer 26

Up to 90–95% in extreme cases.

Question 27

What is a treaty?

Answer 27

A formal, legally binding agreement between two or more sovereign nations outlining rights and obligations.

Question 28

What are the evolutions of treaty-making?

Answer 28

1. Commercial compacts -17th century onward 2. Treaties of peace, friendship, and alliance -Beginning late 17th century, flourished in 18th century 3. Territorial treaties. -Emerged 1760s (18th century) and dominated relations between Indigenous and settler peoples until early 1920s

Question 29

What was the Royal Proclamation of 1763?

Answer 29

A British document recognizing Indigenous land rights and setting the framework for treaty-making.

Question 30

Why is the Royal Proclamation of 1763 significant?

Answer 30

It established that Indigenous land could only be ceded through treaties with the Crown.

Question 31

What are the five characteristics of private property?

Answer 31

1. Property is owned by an individual. 2. The individual owner has the power to exclude others. 3. The individual owner has the power to use and manage the property as he wishes. 4. The individual owner has the power to keep all the surplus earned by using the property. 5. The individual owner has the power to sell it.

Question 32

How do Indigenous territorial systems differ from private property?

Answer 32

They emphasize collective stewardship spiritual relationships with land communal use rather than ownership.

Question 33

How was Ag used against Indigenous peoples in the 1800s?

Answer 33

They viewed agriculture as a tool to 'civilize' Indigenous peoples.

Question 34

What was the Gradual Civilization Act of 1857?

Answer 34

A law encouraging enfranchisement by offering citizenship to Indigenous men who renounced their status. ## Footnote The act established a voluntary process allowing recognized male Indigenous individuals over the age of 21 to apply for enfranchisement, which would grant them British subject status, the right to vote, and an individual land allotment of up to fifty acres from their band's reserve

Question 35

What was Manifest Destiny?

Answer 35

The belief that settlers were destined to expand westward across North America.

Question 36

What was the National Policy?

Answer 36

A 19th-century Canadian economic plan promoting westward settlement, immigration, and railway development. And protective tarrifs

Question 37

What were the conditions leading to the Numbered Treaties?

Answer 37

Declining bison herds, spread of disease, and Indigenous desire for agricultural security.

Question 38

Why were Indigenous communities anxious to sign treaties?

Answer 38

They sought protection, resources, and help transitioning to agriculture as the bison declined.

Question 39

What is a keystone species?

Answer 39

A species that has a disproportionately large effect on its ecosystem relative to its abundance.

Question 40

What is a cultural keystone species?

Answer 40

A species vital to the cultural identity and survival of a community, such as the bison for Plains Nations.

Question 41

What caused the collapse of the bison herds?

Answer 41

Overhunting, habitat loss, commercial slaughter, and government policies encouraging extermination.

Question 42

What were the Numbered Treaties?

Answer 42

A series of 11 treaties signed between 1871 and 1921 between Indigenous nations and the Crown.

Question 43

What did Indigenous groups expect from the treaties?

Answer 43

Mutual sharing of land, agricultural assistance, and protection of traditional livelihoods.

Question 44

What did the Crown expect from the treaties?

Answer 44

Land surrender and peaceful settlement for European expansion.

Question 45

What was unique about Treaty 6?

Answer 45

It included a 'medicine chest' clause and famine relief promises, acknowledging ongoing Crown responsibility.

Question 46

What were Treaty 6 agricultural clauses?

Answer 46

They promised equipment, animals, and instruction to support Indigenous transition to farming.

Question 47

How did treaty commissioners negotiate land surrender?

Answer 47

They often avoided explicit discussion of land cession, focusing on friendship and shared use.

Question 48

What caused divergent interpretations of treaties?

Answer 48

Indigenous oral traditions emphasized sharing, while written texts emphasized surrender.

Question 49

What challenges arose after treaty negotiations?

Answer 49

Limited support, withheld equipment, and discriminatory policies stifled Indigenous farming efforts.

Question 50

What was the Home Farm Experiment?

Answer 50

A government project to teach farming to Indigenous communities that failed due to poor implementation.

Question 51

What characterized reserve farming in the late 1880s?

Answer 51

Experimentation, mechanization, and initial success among Indigenous farmers.

Question 52

How did settlers react to Indigenous agricultural success?

Answer 52

They complained of unfair competition, prompting restrictive government policies.

Question 53

What was the permit system?

Answer 53

A policy requiring Department of Indian Affairs approval for Indigenous people to sell goods or make transactions.

Question 54

How did the permit system affect Indigenous farmers?

Answer 54

It restricted economic independence and access to markets.

Question 55

What was the pass system?

Answer 55

A policy requiring Indigenous people to obtain written permission to leave reserves.

Question 56

What was the purpose of the pass system?

Answer 56

To control Indigenous movement and prevent organizing or economic independence.

Question 57

What was the severalty policy?

Answer 57

A policy dividing reserve lands into individual plots (usually 160 acres) to promote private ownership.

Question 58

What was the purpose of the severalty policy?

Answer 58

To undermine communal landholding and assimilate Indigenous farmers into settler systems.

Question 59

What was the Peasant Farming Policy?

Answer 59

A policy restricting Indigenous farmers to hand tools and small plots, preventing mechanized farming.

Question 60

What was the stated goal of the Peasant Farming Policy?

Answer 60

To 'train' Indigenous people to be self-sufficient gradually.

Question 61

What was the real impact of the Peasant Farming Policy?

Answer 61

It stunted progress, reinforced dependency, and blocked Indigenous agricultural success.

Question 62

What is the Indian Act?

Answer 62

A Canadian federal law governing: Indian status band governance reserve land management funding.

Question 63

When was the Indian Act first passed?

Answer 63

1876

Question 64

What was the overall purpose of the Indian Act?

Answer 64

To control nearly every aspect of Indigenous life and facilitate assimilation.

Question 65

What was the main economic motivation behind colonization?

Answer 65

To exploit resources and establish trade systems benefiting the colonizer.

Question 66

What did Indigenous leaders seek during treaty negotiations?

Answer 66

Security, peace, and tools to adapt economically after the loss of traditional livelihoods.

Question 67

Why did the Crown view treaties differently than Indigenous peoples?

Answer 67

The Crown saw land cession; Indigenous peoples saw agreements of coexistence.

Question 68

How did agricultural policies enforce assimilation?

Answer 68

By: restricting Indigenous autonomy controlling tools land market access.

Question 69

How did mercantilism shape European colonization of North America?

Answer 69

It encouraged establishing colonies as sources of raw materials and markets for European goods.

Question 70

How did the Doctrine of Discovery affect Indigenous sovereignty?

Answer 70

It denied Indigenous nations recognition as sovereign entities under international law.

Question 71

What was a major outcome of the fur trade for Métis people?

Answer 71

Formation of a distinct Métis Nation blending Indigenous and European cultures.

Question 72

What was the long-term effect of the Royal Proclamation?

Answer 72

It set a precedent for recognizing Indigenous land rights and the need for treaties.

Question 73

How did European contact affect Indigenous social structures?

Answer 73

It caused population loss, leadership disruption, and shifts in trade and alliance networks.

Question 74

Why was agriculture seen as a tool for 'civilization'?

Answer 74

Colonial officials believed farming would assimilate Indigenous peoples into Euro-Canadian norms.

Question 75

What economic conditions pushed treaty negotiations?

Answer 75

Collapse of bison economy, food shortages, and dependency on rations.

Question 76

How did the National Policy impact Indigenous peoples?

Answer 76

It promoted settler expansion and resource extraction at the expense of Indigenous sovereignty.

Question 77

Why did the Peasant Farming Policy fail?

Answer 77

It ignored local conditions and limited Indigenous farmers’ ability to compete or sustain production.

Question 78

What legacy did 19th-century agricultural policy leave?

Answer 78

Systemic barriers to Indigenous economic self-sufficiency lasting into the 20th century.