Spanish Influence On American Culture

Great Essays
The first age of colonization, puts a spotlight on the birth of European exploration of the Americas and the peoples who inhabited them. Numerous countries of Europe sent adventurers to explore, with primary intentions to discover resources, to trade, and spread Catholicism to the “uncivilized” natives of the areas. Spain, after the Reconquista, started their golden age. After Columbus’ discovery of the new world, explorers and treasure ships made their way to the Americas. The Spanish conquest through South America was a huge success in terms of Spanish influence, power, and economy. Further north in Europe, the French, chose to live amongst the natives in harmony through trade, while also sharing their religious beliefs with them. Arriving …show more content…
However, the French refrained from the use of slavery in its Northern American territory. On the other hand, the French indulged themselves into the ways of the Northern natives, more specifically the Huron Tribe, before being driven west by the Iroquois confederacy. In doing so, the French gained trapping techniques, where then gifts, trade, and an alliance was shared. The mass fur trade in the north stimulated the French economy, which made New France a vital colony over income. Quebec, the center of the fur trading industry was from then on to be ruled by a governor, with military, religious and educational support supplied by France. Until the Seven Years War ended in 1763, the French prospered in the area, until losing its Canadian and Louisiana territory to England and …show more content…
Between Spain, France, and England the reasons for exploring hardly differed, but what each country inherited greatly contrasted. As France introduced the fur trade industry to Europe, in doing so, establishing good relations with the natives. While Spain brought masses of treasures back, along with a moral deficit due to mass genocide and the enslavement of natives. On the other hand, England’s economy was stimulated by the imports of raw materials from its colonies, such as tobacco and sugar. Although tensions with natives were sporadic and brutal, it could not match the unethical amount of slaves imported into the colonies, in order to work the labor intensive crop. All in all, the race for territory in the new world continued until mid 17th century, where there the natives of the land, the resources, and the slaves, were all dealt with differently by each

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The English and Spanish differences during the Age of Exploration within their government, religion, and economy led to many advantages and disadvantages that changed the New World’s fate. The Spanish were the first to arrive to North America, and mainly wanted to explore. They were motivated by gold, glory, and god. Their government was tight, watched strictly, and rich.…

    • 629 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Hispanic vs. American Culture What makes the Hispanic values so distinctive? Some might believe there’s no much difference but the differences are obscure. Despite bearing some minor similarities, the differences between American and Hispanic culture are pronounced. Family’s role, religion, household composition, cuisine and wife’s role are key cultural differences between the two.…

    • 744 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Columbus’ misunderstanding and of the Native Americans and the New World was reflective of most of Europe in the late 15th century. This new land mass was seen as a commodity to exploit for money and its people as the new battlefield of the Holy Wars. The primitivation and racism that clouds most of Columbus’ writings also unfortunately colored the thoughts of leaders and explorers back in the Old World. Analyze the impact of colonization on Spain. Colonization allowed Spain to assert its newfound dominance, after successfully driving away the Muslims, into new lucrative frontier.…

    • 702 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Imagine waking up on a ship filled with salty sea dogs being possibly sea sick or just plain starving; this is what the European settlers went through. They went across the ocean just so they could just own a another chunk of monopoly in the New World. They went through tough times for this chunk of monopoly and why for power or to be the one with the most land. They came for many reasons and these reasons will include gold land and materials. From how they settled, to where they went, and their final outcome, Spain, France and England conquered the new world .…

    • 671 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Spanish Exploration lasted from 1492-1588 and impacted the development of the New World. This is significant because it featured the Columbian Exchange, which was the exchange of food, vegetation, resources, and diseases. For example, the exchange of diseases lead to the unintended consequence of almost wiping out the Tanio Native population toward extinction. While this happened, at the same time the Treaty of Tordesillas was established, which separated Spain and Portugal’s claim on the New World. As a result, it exposed the New World to the three G’s- gold, glory, and God.…

    • 288 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    For tens of thousands of people, the search for opportunity in the new world drove them to leave England and risk everything to cross the Atlantic on a perilous three thousand mile journey. The nearly ten million squares miles of unexplored land held untold riches and promised to offer new beginnings for people of all backgrounds seeking to escape religious persecution, poverty and overcrowding in Europe. English colonization in the 16th and 17th centuries opened the door to the world, as it is known today. Colonization not only allowed people to grow, but also allowed ideas, technologies, economies and knowledge to flourish and take new directions never thought possible. Columbus’s return to Europe with the sensational news of untold riches,…

    • 1518 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The key difference between the colonies of New Spain and New France and those of Virginia and New England was the way their settlers interacted with the surrounding Native Americans. Whether it be through exploiting the Indians for labor, as was done by the Spanish, or forging alliances with them, like the French, both New Spain and New France became frontiers of inclusion, where natives were incorporated into colonial society. On the contrary, England began massive immigration to Virginia and New England in order to provide workers for tobacco cultivation. Because its colonies were populated with families, there was no need for Indians to be incorporated into society, neither as workers nor as marriage partners. Therefore, the English set…

    • 131 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The British laid siege on Quebec city and the British had finally conquered the capital but Montcalm's successor Chevalier de Lévis took command and fought the British and they laid siege but British ship came along and Chevalier de Lévis retreated to Montreal. The British troop attack Montreal but there was no reinforcement from the french so the french surrendered of the terms of their surrendered they gave up all their colonized land to Britain even New France. The British made the royal proclamation which made the french lose all its power and they had to live under British rule and there was no need to have the first nation as allies so they were treated…

    • 550 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Rather, the Frenchmen were able to find wildlife in abundance and set up profitable fur trades while their colonies in the Caribbean provided sugar. All these were done to make each country more…

    • 1058 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Age of Exploration was famously known as the time period for European conquests and settlements. These explorations paved the way for life as we know it today. However, there have been divided views of the European cultural and historical legacy especially concerning the Spaniards. Most of division occurs concerning the Indian of Hispaniola who were subjected to almost slavery and to inhumane treatment. During the Age of Exploration, the Spanish conquistadors wanted wealth and to spread the Catholic faith, as well as justified their treatment of the natives by calling them inferior.…

    • 731 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    People debate the oncoming of Spanish and Portuguese as being an encounter. The truth is that the Portuguese and Spanish had a dramatic negative impact on the Native Americans lives. They were changed forever because of their harsh attempts to Christianize the Americas. The Spanish empire gained control of much of the Americas and sent Spanish colonists there to enlist the help of encomiendas or Native American laborers. The natives had to be profitable to the Spanish in the eyes of the crown.…

    • 1325 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the year of 1492, the Spanish monarchs funded Christopher Columbus on his voyage to what was later called “the New World,” initiating a race between European countries to send out explorers to become the continent’s dominating power. Driven by the promise of wealth, status, and new beginnings, explorers conquered the lands of North and South America, resulting in their direct disruption of the indigenous peoples’ lives. Following this contact, the lives of both Native Americans and Europeans were permanently transformed by the Europeans’ desire for wealth and need to spread and dominate through religion. While providing beneficial outcomes for Europeans, these motives ultimately incited the deterioration of once-thriving native civilizations…

    • 1171 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Imperialism of Latin America throughout History Latin America has constantly been colonized or influenced by outside entities since the new world was discovered in the sixteenth century. Subsequently, these outside influences have constantly shaped Latin America into a part of the world that continuously benefits a small number of elites, and foreign interests. While the average Latin American citizen does not gain any advantage from outside influence, they are constantly fighting for a voice of change and future autonomy. Latin America has a large socio-economic problem that is instigated by the constant involvement of foreign countries. This problem can be directly traced to the sixteenth century when the Spanish and Portuguese colonized…

    • 1118 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Trailblazers: The Success of the Spanish Colonies The fate of global civilization was radically changed when Christopher Columbus embarked for the New World in 1492, launching the leading European powers into a race for colonization and exploration. During this time, each country achieved varying degrees of success by employing different tactics to best conquer the uncharted territory of the Americas; for example, the French exploited the trade of beaver pelts to obtain territory and economic success (Kennedy & Cohen 99). Many of these European colonies grew into flourishing cities and centers of culture and newfound traditions. However, especially in the case of the Spanish conquest, each colony faced adversity when interacting with the indigenous…

    • 1115 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Spanish Colonization Essay

    • 1274 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The Spanish exploration of America brought many new foods, types of plants, and forms of wealth to the European world. The wealth brought to Spain from the Americas came at a cost that was paid for by the enslavement and the sufferings of Native Americans and eventually the Africans. The Spanish colonization from 1492 to 1700 was motivated by religious conversion of all peoples in America and the desire for wealth and profit that had a significant impact on the lives of Native Americans and Africans. First, colonization by the Spanish was motivated by religious conversion. Columbus first “discovered” America in 1492.…

    • 1274 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays