Trail of Tears

Trail of Tears Trail of Tears Running head: TRAIL OF TEARS 1TRAIL OF TEARS 5HIS220October 4, 2014Will PalmerTrail of TearsLong before Amerigo Vespucci and other European explorers reached the New World, Native Americans successfully inhabited the land. There has been much debate as to how many people were here. It has been documented as high as 16 million to as low as under four million (Brinkley, 2008). The Europeans' relationship with the Native Americans was that of give and take. Both taught each other techniques for cultivating crops, the introduction of domestic livestock and basic survival. The Europeans not only bought with them diseases that killed millions of Native Americans, but also their conviction that their own civilization was greatly superior to that of the natives (Brinkley, 2008). This discussion will include Andrew Jackson's opinion and policy concerning Native Americans, white Americans' opinion of Native Americans, the "Five Civilized Tribes," and the Trail of Tears.Trails of Tears (English version)Before becoming the President of the United States, Andrew Jackson had already made a name for himself in history. He was a lawyer, politician and judge, wealthy planter and merchant, and in 1801 received the appointment of the commander of the Tennessee militia. During the War of 1812, white settlers near the Spanish owned Florida border were under attack by the Creek Indians. According to Brinkley (2008), on March 27, 1814, in the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, Jackson and his men retaliated and slaughtered Creek women, children, and warriors. Jackson received a commission to major general in the United States Army. Later in the year, during the Seminole War, Jackson captured Spanish forts at Pensacola and St. Marks in Florida. In 1821, he served as Florida's military governor for nine months.Jackson, 1828, won the election for the...