Analyze the Relationship Between Amerindians and the: 1. English 2. Spanish 3. French

Before any Europeans “discovered” the New World, there was already an abundance of people living on the land, carrying on mostly peaceful existences. These people were what we know as Native Americans. Their lives were abruptly intruded when European explorers first set foot on their homelands. The Europeans that made contact with these people included the Spanish, the English, and the French. Each one of these groups had a different kind of relationship with these native people. The best and least abrasive relationship with the natives was that of the French, the English were a bit worse, and the Spanish were the most destructive. The French came as closer to treating the Amerindians as equals than any European group did. Instead of viewing them as barbaric invalids, they made alliances with certain groups and commerced with them just as they would civilized men. The Fur Trade business was the largest contributing factor to the healthy relationship between the French and Amerindians. The Iroquois League and the Apache tribe were virtually France’s only native enemies, and that was simply due to their alliances with opposing tribes. These good graces between the two peoples continued on until the French and Indian War of 1754. France’s relationship with the native people of America was, by far, better than those of the English and Spanish. English settlers and explorers were not as amicable to the natives as the French were. All was well when first the English arrived on the foreign soil without any idea of how to survive and in desperate need of guidance. The Amerindians, being a mostly friendly people, were of great succor to the early English settlers. They taught them how to plant staple crops, showed them how to hunt, and revealed the secrets that were vital to living in the area to them. Soon after the English had gotten on their feet and established themselves, they turned on the natives. They viewed these people who were there long before them as