Spanish Colonization of the Americas

1. Spanish Colonization of the Americas

2. Gold, Glory & God

3. Technology • Caravels • Lateen Sails • Astrolabe improvements • Compass

4. Portuguese • Colonize the east primarily • Also the Canaries and Madeiras • Sugarcane – plantation economy • African Slave Trade • Later taken over by the Spanish

5. Three Commonalities Between All Nations • Mercantilism (see map) • Intra-colonial trading system • The Columbian Exchange • Disease killed 90% • African Slave Trade (see map)

6. Christopher Columbus – (1492 – 1504) • Thought world was smaller than most believed – He was wrong • Queen Isabella supported him • Took four voyages • Reason to believe he knew he reached the new world

7. Treaty of Tordesillas - 1494

8. Hernan Cortes & Francisco Pizarro Conquers Aztecs – 1521 Established estates in New World Dies a wealthy man Conquers Incas - 1532 How was Cortes able to conquer so many with so few?

9. Economics of Spanish Colonies • Established plantations on W. Indian islands • Silver & gold mines of Central and South America • Both required manual labor

10. Pirates • Spanish transported lots of wealth • Opened the door to privateers and eventually pirates • Channel between Florida and the Bahamas was the best place to go after Spanish merchant ships • Spanish founded St. Augustine – 1565 • Oldest city in US

11. Labor System - Encomienda • Encomienda - The expedition commander would give trusteeship over parcels of land and that land’s inhabitants to his conquistadores. • Encomiendero collected taxes from natives and force them to work • Encomiendero would provide protection and Catholicism to the natives. • Used on mainland

12. African Slavery • Used primarily on the islands of the Caribbean • Sugar, coffee, tobacco plantations • Native had died from disease

13. Colonial Government under Crown Control • Conquistador autonomy concerned the Spanish crown • Created two provinces: • In Mexico - New Spain, • In Peru - New Castile • Each governed by a viceroy. Voice of the king • All important decisions on colonial management came from Spain.

14. Caste System • Peninsulars • Creoles • Mestizo • Mulattoes

15. Bartolome de las Casas • Catholic Priest • Came to the Americas shortly after Columbus • Critic of the American conquest & encomienda system • Fought to preserve rights of Native Americans

16. DeSoto & Coronado • De Soto – unleashed violence through SE and Florida • Coronado – Unleashed violence through the Great Plains • The City of Cibola

17. Spanish in North America • Why did they not conquer periphery Indians (North America)?

18. New Mexico Colony • Santa Fe (1608) was founded as a religious colony • In the sticks • Little respect for Natives • Pueblo Indians were willing to add Christian beliefs

19. Pope’s Rebellion - 1680 • Pueblo Indians resent the Spanish • infringing on Pueblo culture • Disrespectful • Making natives second class citizens • Pueblos attack New Mexico settlements • Kill priests & settlers • Burned settlements • Set Spanish back in that area

20. Fall of the Spanish colonial Empire • Defeat of the Armada 1588 • Centralized Control • Increase in wealth caused inflation • Exploitation colony • Conversion efforts drew focus away from economic gains.