1525+-+1600

South America

 1525 - 1600

Economy People of the Iberian peninsula came to Latin America to conquer, to begin life as a new nobility class, using the native peoples as slaves and workers. The patriarchal family soon began adapting to Latin American land, having large estates and encomiendas, American Indian workers, to cultivate the land. The encomenderos, the owners of an encomienda, were able to tax or sell their "serfs". Living in an agricultural society, they relied on the farmland and it's Natives to care for it. Spanish and Portuguese merchants began to visit the American colonies. Portugal had in fact been settling in the African coast since 1415, however it had taken to establishing trading posts rather than colonies. In the Atlantic islands, there were settlements which would eventually lead to a slave trade with Africa. Brazil used these settlements as its base but expanded upon them, starting out with nothing more than a trade factory. It then moved to the Atlantic islands to work on plantation agriculture. An emerging Atlantic economy was linked to the areas of immigration, commerce, and exploitation of the natives.

Culture/Society As bureaucrats, merchants, and colonists began to steadily replace the original conquerers of Latin America, the Native Americans became the slaves and peasantry of their new leaders. As the slaves trade from Africa began to gain popularity, part of the peasantry population was African slaves, used to work on the plantation. With the disease and conquest brought on by the visitors, the original population of Latin America was virtually wiped out. It was only after seeing the annihilation of thousands of these peoples that Bartolome de Las Casas, conquistador turned priest, began the struggle for justice. Philosophically speaking he felt that, albeit they were slaves, they had souls and ought not to be treated so poorly. Many fought against this thought, claiming that control of 'Indian' labor was necessary for Spain's rule. Seeing as how the Indians were not Christian, many believed that what the Spanish had done to them was nothing short of salvation. Furthermore, arguments based on the works of Aristotle were used to prove that the Indians were not fully human but 'born to serve'.

Politics The politics in Latin America depended on a professional bureaucracy, made up of lawyers and judges. This sort of system of government had been used in many parts of Asia as well.

The politics were mainly comprised of religion and the church. The church and state were very closely related. To maintain rule, the Spanish made up institutions: governorship, treasury offices, and the royal courtship of appeals - where professional magistrates worked. Laws were developed that were based on those of Spain, however they were supplemented by American experiences.