7 CHARACTERISTICS OF COLONIES IN AMERICA - HISTORY - 2024

Some of the characteristics of the colonies in America were religious imposition, control from the European metropolis, the exploitation of raw materials, planned urbanization, new technological contributions and syncretism.

The colonial period in America began from the time Christopher Columbus set foot on Guanahaní in 1492 until the 19th century, when the independence of the continental American possessions began.

Throughout these nearly four centuries of colonialism, Europeans carried out bloody and unethical initiatives, but they also left a lasting legacy that has served the peoples of the Americas to prosper.

Characteristics of the colonies in America

Imposition of religious beliefs

The territories that were conquered by the Spanish went through a process of Christianization, since they considered that the natives were human beings with a soul.

In fact, it was a papal obligation imposed by Alexander VI in his Inter Caetera hoax. For this reason, the Spanish crown sent many missionaries to convert the natives and have them reject their pagan beliefs.

Scene from the movie Apocalypto (2006) in which the arrival of the Spanish settlers on American soil is recreated with a flag and cross as banners.

This generated much controversy and was the subject of many conflicts. The result was that those who refused to convert to Christianity were singled out, persecuted, harassed, and even sentenced to death.

Over time, European religious began to become more aware of the problems of the indigenous people, educating them, exercising charity with them and even defending them against the injustices of the conquerors.

Planned urbanization

Unlike the English or French settlers, the Spanish have promoted the development of their territorial possessions, for example when building not only markets, hospitals or even universities, but entire cities that today are World Heritage Sites (Cartagena de Indias or Sucre, for example).

For example, the first hospital on the continent was founded by Hernán Cortés in Mexico City 1521, being called Hospital de Jesús and maintaining its activity to this day.

Internal facade of Hospital de Jesús, Diego Delso / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

When Harvard University was founded in 1636, in the Spanish colonies up to 13 universities were already underway in cities such as Mexico City, Lima, Córdoba, Bogotá, Quito or Sucre.

Exploitation of raw material

The natural resources of the American lands were exploited by the Spanish since their arrival on the continent, helping to make them the most powerful empire of the time.

The Spanish crown sent conquerors and explorers the need to find territories rich in precious metals and send them to the peninsula. In some cases they were achieved by exchanging resources with the natives, in others it was simply stolen.

The use of these resources was destined to finance wars on the European continent and to supply its armies with arsenal.

Slavery and entrustment

Normally the exploitation of raw materials entails the slavery of the natives. During the colonization of America these practices were carried out for a long time by both the British, the Portuguese and the Spanish.

However, in the case of Spanish colonization, being contrary to slavery, it established the encomienda in the conquered territories, which is based on the submission of Native Americans to the Crown, but preserving their rights as human beings.

This right was not possessed by blacks, who were brought into American territory from Africa to help as slave labor.

Introduction of new technologies

The Europeans were far superior to the indigenous peoples of America, the main reason being that the conquest was simple. The Indians did not work iron, they did not have firearms, their knowledge in cartography was very basic, they had barely developed livestock or had no pack animals such as horses or donkeys.

They were able to develop all this thanks to the arrival of the Spaniards, who introduced cows and sheep, cultivated grapes, oranges, lemons or apples, worked materials such as flax or hemp, or showed them new handicraft techniques.

Civil engineering was another revolution, as the natives were unaware of the arch and had no canals, causeways or roads. Hydraulic techniques such as reservoirs, irrigation systems or aqueducts were another of the most notable developments.

The clock, the printing press, the water wheel, the mill, the leather goods or the wheel and the pulley are some of the historical inventions that the Spanish introduced in the colonies.

The figure of the Viceroy

The Spanish crown, in order to better manage the conquered territories, divided them into viceroyalties, with the figure of the viceroy at the head.

This person appointed to govern the town was faithful to the Spanish crown, possessing some of the characteristics such as divinity or total superiority over any person in his viceroyalty.

Antonio de Mendoza, the only viceroy with unlimited appointment Source: Manuel Rivera Cambas (1840-1917)

The viceroy managed all governmental and economic aspects, always with the power of the Spanish crown, which was aware of everything that happened in the American territories.

The viceroy was the one who presided over the audiences, always accompanying him by eight other people, who in case a viceroy could not fulfill his functions, could assume the mandate for a specified time.

Division and stratification by skin color

As a consequence of the miscegenation between whites and indigenous people, the Europeans established a division in which they assigned you a rank. This was called “castes” and they were determined by the skin color produced by the crossing between different races.

Mixed family. See page for author / Public domain

For example, the son between a Spaniard and an indigenous woman was a mestizo. If the parents did not take care of him, that person was condemned to live with the shame of being that color.

References

1. "Latin American History: Introduction to the Colonial Era" Thought Co. June 18, 2017. Accessed September 12, 2017.
2. «The Spanish Colonization» History Classes. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
3. «La Colonia, a time of“ classifications ”and castes» Free Press. September 17, 2016. Accessed September 12, 2017.
4. «The Political Structure of the Colony» MSC Peru. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
5. «The miscegenation, the castes» Secondary Blog. October 6, 2015. Accessed September 12, 2017.