Colonial Empires:
The Americas
Europe begins to take colonies
► Portugal
continues to expand its influence in
the Indian Ocean
► Spain began to build up a colonial empire in
the Americas.
► Soon, other European nations will start
colonies
Portuguese Activity in Indian Ocean
► Use
of force to take over weaker areas
 Traded with more powerful societies
► Portuguese
Conquest
 1510: seized Goa (India)
 1511: took over Malacca and Sri Lanka
►Malacca
important to spice trade
 Set up strongholds along Africa’s Swahili Coast
Spanish Conquest of the Americas
► Conquistadors
in early 1500’s
began conquest of Americas
 1513: Ponce de Leon in Florida
 1521: Aztecs fall to Hernan Cortes
 1530’s: Inca fall to Francisco Pizarro
► See
Americas as opportunity to accumulate
wealth
 Begin exploiting environment and the Native
Population
Spanish Conquest in the Americas
► How
were Europeans able to defeat the
native civilizations (Aztec, Inca, etc)?
 Weaponry & horses= military superiority
 Divide-and-conquer; stir up rivalry so natives
fight among themselves
 Diseases decimated the native population
►Smallpox,
influenza, measles, etc.
Columbian Exchange
► Quickly
begin to set up colonies
► A network of exchange developed between
the “Old” and “New” Worlds
 Columbian Exchange: movement of people,
goods, plants/animals, ideas, and diseases
Columbian Exchange
► What
is the impact of this exchange????
 Spread of diseases to places where they had
not been before
 Demographic changes
►Depopulation
of natives, rapid influx of Europeans in
Americas, transport of Africans to Americas
 Introduction of new plant/animal species
Mercantilism
► One
of the biggest factors motivating Europe was
money
► Mercantilism: policy of using overseas trade and
colonies to accumulate wealth
 Wealth measured in gold and silver
► Long-term
impact:
► Mercantilism
kept Latin America from developing their own
economic potential
► Latin American economies still largely underdeveloped due to
exploitation and lack of economic development
Colonial Economy
► Exploitation
of Native Population and Environment
to achieve wealth
 Extracting natural resources
► Silver
most important metal
► Sugar
Cane most important ag. product
 Large mines in Mexico and Potosi in Bolivia
 Spain used silver to trade with Asia, global influx of silver
► Began
by using Native Labor
 Encomienda: system of forced labor
► Many
forced to work in mines
► Mita system: Amerindian males required to work in mines for
half of the year
 Rotated laborers
 Corrupted version of Incan mita system
Colonial Economy
►
Europeans began to seek new sources of labor




►
Why??????
Native population in decline due to disease
Many Natives ran away, could blend in
Clergy began to protest against treatment of Native workers
Slave trade supplied a new source of labor
 African Slaves imported to work on plantations
► Atlantic
Slave Trade began in 1441
► Estimates of 12 million slaves taken to Americas between 1400’s and
1800’s
►
Sugar plantations
 Very Labor intensive
Colonial Economy
► Portuguese
colonies
Brazil was much like the Spanish
 Brazil was the largest importer of African slaves
►Last
American nation to outlaw slavery (1888)
 Used Africans on sugar plantations
Colonial Government
► Latin
American Colonies divided into Viceroyalties
 Ran by Viceroys from Europe
► Enjoyed
broad power due to distance form Spain
 Most government officials born in Spain
► Local-born
► Large
members grew in numbers as time progressed
Bureaucracies
 Funded by taxes from gold and silver mines
 Spain and Portugal tended to pay more attention to the
colonies than other European colonial powers
Colonial Society
► Colonial
society was a unique combination
of European, Amerindian, and African
cultures
► Social Stratification:
 Rigid social hierarchy with Spanish at top
See diagram on next page
Peninsulares:
Born in Europe
Creoles
Born in
Americas, but to
European
Parents
Castas
Mixed ancestry
European and Native (Mestizo)
European and African (Mulatto)
African and Native (Zambo)
Native Americans and African Slaves
Colonial Society
► Native
populations were decimated and
their belief systems weakened by European
conquest
 Many were forced to assimilate to European
culture
►Catholic
Church helps spread European culture
►Spanish (native languages used less often)
 Native belief systems continued, but largely
under the surface
Other European Colonies
► As
time progressed, other European nations
began their own colonies
► English: 13 colonies in North America as
well as islands in the Caribbean
► French: Canada and islands in Carib.
► Dutch: New Amsterdam and islands in Carib
Labor Systems in the Colonies
► Europeans
started out using Natives and
Indentured servants for labor, Eventually
turn to slaves
 Indentured Servants:
►Agreed
to work for 3-4 years to pay for passage to
colonies, were then free to buy their own land
►Short term of contract kept demand for labor high
Slave Trade
► Slavery
had long existed before the
discovery of the Americas
 Muslims had been acquiring African Slaves for
centuries
► However,
the volume of slaves being traded
dramatically increased with the Atlantic
Slave Trade.
Atlantic Slave Trade
► Slaves
were acquired by Europeans through trade
with African Elites
► Kingdoms along the West Coast of Africa would
sell slaves in exchange for guns, textiles, and
other manufactured goods
 Most slaves were POW’s or had been kidnapped from
the interior of sub-Saharan Africa
► Slaves
were then transported to colonies in the
Americas
 “Middle Passage”- high mortality rates aboard slave
ships
 Most went to sugar plantations
Plantation Life
► In
order to increase efficiency, planters created
huge plantations
 Grew one specific crop (sugar, cotton, etc.)
 Required many slaves to keep operation going
► Sugar-cane
economies
production dominated Caribbean
 Labor intensive
 Harmful to environment due to soil depletion and
deforestation
► Cleared
new land once the fields grew infertile
Plantation Life
► Slaves
duties
organized into “gangs” to perform
 Most worked in fields (even women)
 Punished by “driver” for lack of productivity
► Plantations
were productive b/c
 They specialized in one crop
►Harmful
later on b/c economy lacks diversification
 Used threats and force to keep slaves working
Plantation Life
► Life
of a slave:
 18 (or more) hour work day
 Off on Sunday, but had to then tidy their cabins
and tend to their own small gardens
 Men outnumbered women
 Low fertility (due to poor diet and exhaustion)
 High mortality due to disease
 Life expectancy of 23 years for men, 25 years
for women
Plantation Life
► Manumission:
 Slaves could often buy their freedom
►saved
money earned from growing small gardens
and selling their produce
► Over
time, the numbers of free blacks grew
in Spanish and Caribbean colonies
 Manumission less common in English colonies
African Culture in the Americas
► Plantation
owners tried to subdue traditional
African cultures
► Many slaves continued to pass on their
native culture
 Music very important
 Traditional herbal medicine practiced
 Religions (often blended with Christianity)
►Ex.
Vodun (Voodoo) in Haiti is a mixture of African
beliefs and Christianity