Topic 1.5: Labor, Slavery & Caste in the Spanish Colonial System

Which European nation was the first to attempt reaching Asian markets by sailing west across the Atlantic?

Spain.

How many voyages did Christopher Columbus make to the Caribbean, and over what time span?

Four voyages over about a decade.

What did Columbus attempt to establish in the Caribbean?

He tried to build houses and towns that he would rule as governor.

What did the Spaniards accompanying Columbus mainly seek?

Gold.

How did the Spanish respond when indigenous groups cut off trade?

They began taking resources by force.

After conquering various Caribbean islands, what did Spain desire next?

More wealth and expansion through conquest of the mainland.

What document did King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella issue to justify conquest?

The Requerimiento.

What did the Requerimiento claim?

That the Pope had given Spain divine authority to rule the Americas.

What did the Requerimiento threaten to those who refused to submit?

Violence and subjugation.

Why was the Requerimiento meaningless to the indigenous people?

It was read in Spanish, a language they did not understand, and its premise was absurd to them.

What was the purpose of the Requerimiento for the Spanish?

To justify to themselves their right to conquer and enslave indigenous peoples.

Which European nation was the most dominant imperial power in the Americas between 1491 and 1607?

Spain.

Which conquistador conquered the Aztec Empire?

Hernán Cortés.

In what year did Cortés conquer the Aztecs?

1521.

What two advantages helped Cortés defeat the Aztecs?

European diseases like smallpox and alliances with indigenous groups oppressed by the Aztecs.

Which conquistador conquered the Inca Empire?

Francisco Pizarro.

What did Spain gain from the conquest of the Aztec and Inca Empires?

Massive quantities of gold and silver, increasing Spanish wealth and colonization efforts.

What system did Spain introduce to keep colonial revenue flowing?

The encomienda system.

What was the encomienda system?

A system of coerced labor where the Spanish crown granted tracts of land to encomenderos who could compel indigenous people to work in exchange for supposed protection and Christianization.

What was the Spanish justification for the encomienda system?

They believed it was a mutually beneficial arrangement providing religious instruction and protection in return for labor.

What was the encomienda system in practice?

Essentially a form of slavery.

What were the two main sources of wealth under the encomienda system?

Mining for gold and silver, and the export of cash crops like sugar cane, tobacco, and cotton.

Why did the Spanish encomienda system begin to decline?

Indigenous workers knew the land and frequently escaped, and many died from disease and brutality.

What two problems caused Spain to reconsider relying on indigenous labor?

Frequent escapes and high mortality rates among Native laborers.

How did Spain solve its labor problem?

By importing enslaved Africans to work in mines and plantations.

Who partnered with Spain to supply enslaved Africans?

West African merchants and rulers.

What goods did European powers trade to African groups in exchange for enslaved people?

Manufactured goods, with guns being the most sought after.

How did the European demand for slaves affect Africa?

It increased warfare and the capture of prisoners to sell into slavery.

What was the Middle Passage?

The transatlantic journey enslaved Africans endured while being transported to the Americas.

What was the condition of enslaved Africans on the Middle Passage ships?

They were crammed tightly together, suffered from disease and malnutrition, and faced horrific conditions.

What was the approximate death rate during the Middle Passage?

Around 20%.

Why were Africans considered more “reliable” workers than indigenous peoples?

They were unfamiliar with the land and less likely to escape, and they had immunities to diseases like smallpox and measles.

What labor system became dominant in the Americas?

African slavery.

What major social system did the Spanish impose in the Americas?

The Casta (or caste) system.

What was the purpose of the Casta system?

To organize colonial society into a rigid social hierarchy based on race and heredity.

What was the Casta system also called?

The caste system.

What earlier system did the Spanish caste system resemble?

The Indian caste system, which divided society into rigid levels based on birth.

How was the Spanish caste system in the Americas different from the Indian one?

It was newly created by Spanish colonizers to control and organize diverse peoples under Spanish rule.

Why did the Spanish elite create the Casta system in the New World?

Because few Spanish nobles migrated from Spain, conquistadors and settlers wanted to recreate a system that preserved wealth and power.

What determined a person’s social rank in the Casta system?

The amount of Spanish (European) blood they possessed.

Who held the most power in the Casta system?

Pure-blooded Spaniards.

Who were at the bottom of the Casta system?

Indigenous peoples and Africans.

How many divisions or categories existed within the Casta system?

Around forty distinct racial categories.

What did the Casta system erase?

Much of the indigenous peoples’ linguistic and cultural diversity.

What did the Casta system determine for individuals?

Their education, occupation, tax obligations, and level of tribute payments.

How did the Casta system affect Spanish towns and cities?

It dictated where people could live — elites resided near the center, while lower classes lived on the outskirts.

What buildings were typically found in the center of Spanish settlements?

A church and a town hall.

Where were lower-status individuals forced to live?

On the outskirts of the settlement.

What was the overall effect of the Casta system on Spanish colonial society?

It consolidated Spanish control over their American possessions and maintained racial and social hierarchies.