If the age of discovery happened a couple centuries earlier during the high middle ages, could more traditional aspect of medieval culture like feudalism and castles and mounted armored knights have been brought to the Americas?
The further development of guns changed medieval European warfare and later it proved to be one of the causes of the European supremacy over the New World. There wouldn't be any colonization without early modern technology, European borders wouldn't be enough consolidated to form true centralized nation states capable of sponsoring long-distance voyages through the oceans.
The Vikings were able to reach North America albeit in limited numbers during the early middle ages. Couldn't similar expeditions have been even more successful a few centuries later?
Would true early modern nation states have been needed for a significant European presence to develop in at least Eastern North America?
Wasn't feudalism in Spanish colonies the case ?If the age of discovery happened a couple centuries earlier during the high middle ages, could more traditional aspect of medieval culture like feudalism and castles and mounted armored knights have been brought to the Americas?
I'm not an expert on Vinland, but wasn't the climate an issue for the Nordics to maintain their presence also in Greenland? Would the technology of the day capable of crossing the Arctic without stopping in Greenland? And, above all, there would be an economic interest to maintain contact with Europe?
The Vikings were able to reach North America albeit in limited numbers during the early middle ages. Couldn't similar expeditions have been even more successful a few centuries later?
Would true early modern nation states have been needed for a significant European presence to develop in at least Eastern North America?
Who said the movement had to be voluntary?Even if the Europeans reach Europe in say 1360, as in carlton_bach's fun timeline, feudalism won't be the norm. Feudalism works when you have a captive peasantry, but who would voluntarily move to America to remain a serf?
If the age of discovery happened a couple centuries earlier during the high middle ages, could more traditional aspect of medieval culture like feudalism and castles and mounted armored knights have been brought to the Americas?
The Incas and Aztecs weren't very impressed with conquistador firearms. They were however, scared shitless of the armoured lancers the Spanish relied on, who were basically just men-at-arms with somewhat lighter armour and thinner lances. They actually survived much longer in the New World than they did in Europe, where they were replaced by heavily armoured pistoleers instead.The further development of guns changed medieval European warfare and later it proved to be one of the causes of the European supremacy over the New World. There wouldn't be any colonization without early modern technology, European borders wouldn't be enough consolidated to form true centralized nation states capable of sponsoring long-distance voyages through the oceans.
The Incas and Aztecs weren't very impressed with conquistador firearms. They were however, scared shitless of the armoured lancers the Spanish relied on, who were basically just men-at-arms with somewhat lighter armour and thinner lances. They actually survived much longer in the New World than they did in Europe, where they were replaced by heavily armoured pistoleers instead.
The Indians would get trashed by disease anyway, making them easy prey, and the steel weapons and armour of European troops would give them a decisive advantage even without firearms.
If the age of discovery happened a couple centuries earlier during the high middle ages, could more traditional aspect of medieval culture like feudalism and castles and mounted armored knights have been brought to the Americas?
No, it isn´t. The King needs some way to rein in the Conquistadors setting up to make themselves Skraeling chiefs without reference to the King. If he cannot, then the conquistadors become nobles.The issue is that the sheer amount of land has the potential to "overload" the Feudal system, since there was just so. much. land. and so many resources, and all without pesky nobles trying to get their hands on it. It is too easy for a King to gain so much power from the New World that it cripples the power of the nobles in the Old.
Who said the movement had to be voluntary?
De-facto feudalism survived longer in the New World than it did in OTL Western Europe.
Feudalism as an economic system was default in Latin America since independence to the second quarter of 20th century with a wave of industrialist nationalist politics. In many countries, only land-owners were allowed to vote, disregarding the petite bourgeoisie and peasants. Peasants were paid with food stamps.
The issue is that the sheer amount of land has the potential to "overload" the Feudal system, since there was just so. much. land. and so many resources, and all without pesky nobles trying to get their hands on it. It is too easy for a King to gain so much power from the New World that it cripples the power of the nobles in the Old.
Are you thinking of Latin America, or Quebec?
This is why I don't think we can call the Spanish system in América "feudalism" (even if it is true that in some marginal regions of Spanish América the Criollo elite was very powerfull, and even defied the Central government ocassionaly -in areas that didn't question the State's religion and the Supreme authority if the monarchs, of course).
Oui. If you have a look at satellite imagery of those areas of Eastern Canada that France colonized, such as:Didn't the French have a seigneurial system in Canada? So, no castles, but still a feudal style of land distribution and management.