Inspired by tales of rivers of gold and timid, malleable native peoples, later Spanish explorers were relentless in their quest for land and gold. Spanish explorers with hopes of conquest in the New World were known as conquistadores. ... Above all, the Aztec wealth in gold fascinated the Spanish explorers.

What were the Spanish seeking in the new world?

The Spanish conquistadors invaded areas of Central and South America looking for riches, ultimately destroying the powerful Aztec and Inca cultures.

What things were the Spanish looking for?

After Columbus brought news of the new world to Europe many people went to the new world in search of land and riches. The Spanish Conquistadors were some of the first men to travel to the new world. They got their name from being both conquerors and explorers. They were mostly in search of gold and treasure.

What was the Spanish goal for the New World?

Motivations for colonization: Spain's colonization goals were to extract gold and silver from the Americas, to stimulate the Spanish economy and make Spain a more powerful country. Spain also aimed to convert Native Americans to Christianity.

Why was Spain interested in the new world?

Spain soon grew rich from ample deposits of gold and silver in Mexico, Central America, and South America. In addition to the quest for gold, however, Spain sought to spread Christianity.

Spanish Exploration of the New World

37 related questions found

How were the Spanish able to conquer and colonize so much of the New World?

Spanish conquistadors, who were primarily poor nobles from the impoverished west and south of Spain, were able to conquer the huge empires of the New World with the help of superior military technology, disease (which weakened indigenous resistance), and military tactics including surprise attacks and powerful ...

Why did the Spanish explore the Americas?

Spain's motives for colonization were threefold: to locate mineral wealth, convert the Indians to Christianity, and counter French and English efforts. The Spanish colonization system was highly successful. First, an armed force subdued the natives and established forts, or presidios, for future protection.

What was the goal of the Spanish missions?

The main goal of the California missions was to convert Native Americans into devoted Christians and Spanish citizens. Spain used mission work to influence the natives with cultural and religious instruction.

What was the major purpose of the Spanish fort?

What was the major purpose of the Spanish fort? To trade without the use of money by exchanging goods or services.

What was the main goal of Spanish explorers?

Spain was considered to have as three main goals behind its expeditions to North America: the expansion of its empire, the attainment of wealth, and the spread of Christianity.

What was Columbus searching for?

Columbus wanted to find a new route to India, China, Japan and the Spice Islands. If he could reach these lands, he would be able to bring back rich cargoes of silks and spices.

What did the Spanish explorers bring with them to the New World?

Christopher Columbus introduced horses, sugar plants, and disease to the New World, while facilitating the introduction of New World commodities like sugar, tobacco, chocolate, and potatoes to the Old World. The process by which commodities, people, and diseases crossed the Atlantic is known as the Columbian Exchange.

How did the Spanish treat the natives in the New World?

1. What did the Spanish do to the Natives? They enslaved them and took their food.

What were the three reasons for Spanish exploration?

Historians generally recognize three motives for European exploration and colonization in the New World: God, gold, and glory.

Was the Spanish exploration successful?

After Columbus, the Spanish colonization of the Americas was led by a series of soldier-explorers, called conquistadors. ... It was the first step in a long campaign that took decades of fighting, but ended in Spanish victory in 1572 and colonization of the region as the Viceroyalty of Peru.

Who initially brought Spanish to the New World?

Beginning with the 1492 arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Caribbean and gaining control over more territory for over three centuries, the Spanish Empire would expand across the Caribbean Islands, half of South America, most of Central America and much of North America.

What was the mission system used by Spain?

The Spanish mission was a frontier institution that sought to incorporate indigenous people into the Spanish colonial empire, its Catholic religion, and certain aspects of its Hispanic culture through the formal establishment or recognition of sedentary Indian communities entrusted to the tutelage of missionaries under ...

What is a modern day result of the Spanish colonization of the Americas?

What was a result of the fact that Spain was the first European country in the New World? Spain controlled more of North and South America than the other countries. ... Which of these is a modern day result of the Spanish colonization of the Americas? Most people south of the United States still speak Spanish.

What lesson did the Spanish explorers learn from the failure of the first missions?

What lesson did the Spanish explorers learn from the failure of the first missions? The Native Texan population declined. What effect did the European Explorers have on Native Texans? The concern that the French would settle in the area and challenge Spanish claims.

What resources were Spanish explorers looking for when exploring?

Columbus's discovery opened a floodgate of Spanish exploration. Inspired by tales of rivers of gold and timid, malleable native peoples, later Spanish explorers were relentless in their quest for land and gold. Spanish explorers with hopes of conquest in the New World were known as conquistadores.

What impact did Spanish exploration and colonization have on the native peoples in the New World?

Overview. Colonization ruptured many ecosystems, bringing in new organisms while eliminating others. The Europeans brought many diseases with them that decimated Native American populations. Colonists and Native Americans alike looked to new plants as possible medicinal resources.

What were the effects of Spanish exploration?

This involved an exchange of plants, goods, ideas, and diseases from Europe to the Americas. This exchange benefitted Europeans more than Native Americans because Europeans spread smallpox , a deadly disease, to Native Americans when they came into contact with them.

How were the Spanish able to colonize the Americas?

Spain shifted strategies after the military expeditions wove their way through the southern and western half of North America. Missions became the engine of colonization in North America. Missionaries, most of whom were members of the Franciscan religious order, provided Spain with an advance guard in North America.

How did the Spanish colonize?

Beginning with Columbus in 1492 and continuing for nearly 350 years, Spain conquered and settled most of South America, the Caribbean, and the American Southwest. ... To add insult to smallpox, the Spanish explorers enslaved the Native Americans who weren't killed and then took their natural resources.

What became the overall Spanish legacy to the New World?

The Spanish contribution to the Independence of the United States of America and the discovery and exploration of the Pacific - an early example of globalization - are also an aspect of this legacy.