Spanish Exploration and Colonization

$1492$ Discovery: Christopher Columbus arrived at Hispaniola with $3$ ships and $90$ men; returned to Spain with evidence of riches.
Doctrine of Discovery (May $1493$ ): A papal bull granting any land not inhabited by Christians to be claimed; mandated the spread of faith to "barbarous nations."
Treaty of Tordesillas ( $1493$ / $94$ ): Issued by the Pope to divide newly discovered lands; Spain received all land to the West and Portugal received all land to the East.

Caribbean Control: Spain controlled the West Indies by $1511$ , primarily for sugar production.
Mainland Settlements: First Spanish mainland settlement established in $1508$ .
Vasco Balboa: Explored the region in $1513$ .
Hernan Cortes: Conquistadore who engaged the Aztecs in $1519$ .
Territorial Reach: By $1550$ , Spain controlled both the Caribbean and Central America.

The Best Weapon: Disease, specifically smallpox, measles, and typhus, enabled the conquest of native populations.
Tenochtitlan: A force of $500$ Spaniards defeated the city of over $200,000$ natives.
Human Impact: Indigenous people died in heaps; due to the inability to bury the dead, houses were pulled down to serve as tombs.

Encomienda System: A feudal structure where an encomendero was granted land and native labor; ideally, natives received protection and Christian teachings in exchange for work.
Forced Labor: In reality, natives were subjected to hard labor in mining and sugar cultivation.
Atlantic Slave Trade: The labor demands of the colonial system impacted the development and growth of slave trade.
Columbian Exchange: Systematic transfer of wealth including gold, silver, cacao, hides, sugar, and tobacco across the Atlantic.
Maritime Technology: Evolution of Spanish ships from the caravel to the galleon for transporting goods.