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How Did Spain Influence North America

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The history of the colonies focuses primarily around the struggle between the global superpowers during that time period, Spain and Britain, to win control of North America. Prior to 1763, these entities battled over territory on the continent, eventually leading the Britain’s dominance. The economic, social, and political differences between the Spanish and British colonization efforts created the opportunity to Britain to overtake North America. To begin, economic factors greatly contributed to the power of each entity. Both British and Spanish wealth flourished from the economies of the colonies. Yet, the differences cause Britain to overshadow Spain. For instance, the British colonies had a variety of economic activities, …show more content…

Conquistadores, soldiers, and missionaries were the first to colonize North America for the Spanish. Not until later, did farmers and traders come. The different social classes between the colonies created a completely different atmosphere, causing the British colonists to be more connected to the development of the colonies and overall to the dominance of Britain. Therefore, the working middle-class in the British colonies contributed to the economy and good welfare of Britain. Moreover, the political set up in the British and Spanish colonies shows a lack in continuity between the citizens and the government in Spanish colonies, causing unrest. The British colonies’ government was distance from England. To illustrate, both governments watched over the colonies. The British colonies had a parliament and the Spanish colonies were governed by crown-appointed viceroys or governors. However, the parliament in the British colonies was weak and allowed for the colonies to establish their own governments under the condition that they did not fight against the Crown. In the Spanish colonies, the government was much stricter. The settlers had to obey the ling’s laws and could make none of their own. The Spanish colonists were given no freedom to expand themselves, causing resentment towards the Spanish crown and later political unrest. Overall, strength resulted from the British

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