Examine the Role of the Church in Spain’s Conquest and Colonization of Continental America.

labor. Eventually, this had lead to Spain’s failure and resulted in a time of "rapid inflation

Because of this the pope require Spain to spread Catholicism around the Americas. The Spanish say that their main goal of colonization was to rescue the Indians from their barbaric ways, and to prevent them from becoming Protestants. They did not want to eliminate the Indians, instead they wanted to help change them into obedient Christians. Along with Spain's goal of

Ferdinand and Isabella knew that in order to bolster Spain they needed new sources of funding themselves. They turned to the pope and he gave them rights to build the Catholic Church in areas where the Moors had been driven from. He also published decrees giving them control over the funds in the Americas. The Church became a crucial utensil in developing royal absolutism. The New World also proved to be a great source of revenue for Spain (“Ferdinand V”).

Spanish exploration and settlement of the western hemisphere lasted from 1492 until 1898, from Christopher Columbus’s first voyage to the loss of its last colonies in the Spanish-American war. As with all major seafaring European nations, they were in pursuit of the fabled Northwest Passage, a direct route to Asia. This was how Christopher Columbus stumbled upon the Americas, on his quest for this route. The Spanish were after more though, specifically gold and spread of the Christian faith. With this page we will discuss multiple historical figures, places, and ideas that emphasized what the Spanish found most important at the time, God and gold.

During the sixteenth century Spain had control over land in the Caribbeans and America that was ten times the size of Spain. One of the most famous conquerors was a man by the name of Cortes. His first target was the Aztec Empire one of the richest empires in America. After a very bloody battle Cortes successfully conquered the empire “converting” its people to Christianity and taking their gold. From this Cortes became on of the richest men in the world. This event inspired many others to do the same with many choosing the life of a conquistador to find their riches in the new world. The amount of conquistadors started to make Spain worry if they were to try and rule New Spain and that they were killing more Indians instead of converting

Since the sixteenth century, the Spanish expanded their religious, Catholicism, to the America and settle their belief into the Native American. During the time period of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the religious upheavals caused many changes in the society not only in the America but also some Europe countries. This put a huge impact on the life of people in many countries.

Religious beliefs are one of the key factors that have shaped our world society today. The Spanish religious conquest was one of the first early history examples that played a big role in America. As soon as the Spanish landed in New Spain it changed the Native Mexican culture. The consequence of the spiritual conquest was the loss of the native people beliefs, buildings, and customs. However, the Native Mexicans did not respond well to the conquest, it caused them to rebelling against the Spanish, but with time they started to accept the Spanish ways.

The missionary schools were to educate and civilize the natives. The spanish felt superior to them and in order for the indians to be considered “gente de razon” (people with reason) they had to be baptized into this new religion. It was a way of expanding the Spanish power once the indians were baptized they

The greed for gold and the race for El Dorado were the main inducements of the Spaniards who, at the peril of their lives, crossed the ocean in unfit vessels in a mad pursuit after the gold and all other precious property of the Indians” (Peace 479). The royal rulers of Spain made it a rule that nothing would jeopardize their ability to rob the land from the native people of Latin America. The missionary process, “had to be encouraged, but the missionaries could not be permitted to dominate the colony at the cost of royal rule” (Gibson 76). The European governments established missionaries to cleanse their minds of any guilt aroused by the slaughtering of innocent men, women, and children. When European “ships arrived in the 16th century to colonize the land and exploit its natural resources, they killed indigenous people and brought black slaves from Africa. Millions of indigenous people were slain and their cultures completely destroyed by the process of colonization” (Ribero). The overall devastations caused by the Christianization of the native inhabitants created a blend of cultures within the indigenous civilizations which gradually isolated old native ways into a small population of oppressed people. The Christianized people became a symbol of loyalty to the European powers and were left alone simply on their religious status. This long term mission of total religious replacement caused very strong and advanced

Before Columbus landed in the West Indies in 1492, The Spanish Inquisition made it known to anyone within Spain’s domain of influence that if a person was not of the Catholic religion, they were to be punished severely and sometimes even fatally. This influence would undoubtedly be brought over to the Americas a century later, as the colonization of the New World would begin by then. While it was very essential for the Spanish (as well as the Portuguese) to improve their economy by using the resources they found in Latin America, it seemed to a number of them as if that was the only reason for being there, or the main reason at the very least. During the Spanish Inquisition and from that point after, it was the Pope’s main goal, to

In the article it talks about the conquest of mexico while the progress was still going on. Cortes wrote to the Emperor asking for the missionaries and they arrived within a few months and twelve Franciscan friars arrived. they destroy all of the indians churches and images of their gods. the indians where temporal power of charles V and the pope. supposedly They went to help out the indians in their perpetual salvation, they didn't want to sek in there benefits like there land sliver and gold. they wanted to teach children because children will be able to understand easily the doctrines spanish where teaching. after teaching the children they are going to teach adults the things that they taught children. The missionaries gathered the children into the schools where they learned the rudiments of Catholic practice and they built churches and other building with large room to teach the indians. The indians, Aztecs, Mayas, Incas, and other people work at whatever occupation require for them to build new buildings. Thew indians request baptise them and if the missionaries did not come to them the indians would take long roads and travels hundreds of miles to be baptism remarriage. Some indians got baptize over and over again because they believe it please the spaniards. Also faine was growing by the hundreds of churches. Also women teachers brought to mexico in 1534 to make a school for girls. in a lot of school young Indians were to be doctrinero. indians were accepted Christianity has been a subject for amazement.

In the end, isolation and indoctrination would remove the old religion and replace it with the religion of the west. For many of the Jesuit mission towns, isolation and indoctrination did not always have virtuous motivations. On the other hand, in the case of the Guaraní and their Jesuit missionaries, both sides had positive motivations for establishing the Reduction of Nuestra Señora de la Encarnación.

1. Three arguments’ that Juan Gines de Sepulveda used to justify enslaving the Native Americans were for gold, ore deposits, and for God’s sake and man’s faith in him. 2. Three arguments that Bartolome de las Casas gave in attacking Spanish clonial policies in the New World were the Indians eating human flesh, worshiping false gods, and also, he believed that the Indians were cowardly and timid. 3. For comparisons that Sepulveda used, in lines 1-7, to express the inferiority of the Indians was their prudence, skill virtues, and humanity were inferior to the Spanish as children to adults, or even apes to men. Comparisons he used to dismiss the significance of the Indians

All throughout the world’s history, there have been many distinct cultures and religions in the world today, however, if one has no affiliation among those religions, they presumingly will not understand much concerning them. Two religions in particular, Christianity and Hinduism, are two of the most prominent religions to have been brought forth into the world. Additionally, Christianitianity is the utmost practiced religion in the world with Hinduism coming in fourth. These religions, both have unique foundations, exclusive beliefs, and individual effects upon the world.

In the sixteenth century, both Spain and Portugal established enormous colonial empires around the world. Spain ruled most of South America and parts of Central America and North America. Portugal primarily ruled the country of Brazil. These lands of Central and South America became known as Latin America. The Spaniards and Portuguese rulers, in my opinion, did not reflect the love of Christ through their interactions with the indigenous people. The colonial social structure, colonial economic system and the colonial state and church implemented by the new rulers as well as their interactions with the indigenous people will support my opinion.