Effects of the
Conquistadors
Spanish Settlements
• Hernan Cortes- captured the
Aztec Empire
• Francisco Pizarro- captured the
Inca Empire
• New Spain- Spain’s government
wanted to control migration to
the Americas and create a
Spanish Empire
Spanish Empire
Social Structure
• These explorers convinced people
from Spain to come to the Americas
and settle
o Social structure:
• Peninsulares- Born in Spain
• Creoles- Born in the New World to Spanish
parents
• Mestizos- People born to Spanish and
Native American parents
• Mulattoes- People born to Spanish and
African parents
Spanish Treatment of Native
Americans and Slaves
• In 1650, the Spanish Empire was made up of
3-4 million people- 80% were Native
Americans
• Forced Labor
o Encomienda System- a system which gave
settlers the right to tax local Native Americans or
to demand their labor in exchange for protecting
them and converting them to Christianity
*****More often, the Spanish treated the
Native Americans as slaves and were
cruel and abusive toward them****
Plantations
• Plantations- large farms
that grew just one kind of
crop
oPlantations made a lot of
money for the owner, but
required a lot of labor which
was done by Native
Americans
Diseases
• Millions of Native Americans
died due to diseases they got
from contact with the Europeans
within years of the arrival of
Columbus
• Due to a decreasing population
of Natives, and therefore a
decreasing labor force, the
Spanish agreed to turn to slaves
from West Africa for labor
Middle Passage
• The voyage across the
Atlantic Ocean that
brought slaves from
Africa to the Americas
Search for the Northwest
Passage
• Northwest Passage- a
non-existent water route
through North America
that would allow ships to
sail from the Atlantic to the
Pacific Ocean
Search for the Northwest
Passage
• Many Explorers tried looking for the Northwest
Passage
o English-sent John Cabot- he led England to the
Americas
o French- sent Jacques Cartier- he claimed parts of
Canada for France
o Dutch- sent Henry Hudson- landed in New York
(Hudson Bay/ Hudson River)
o None of these explorers found a Northwest Passage,
however their explorations led to increased European
interest in North America
o People began to have interest in creating colonies in
North America