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Similarities Between The Spanish And English Colonies In 1492

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The arrival of Christopher Columbus in the New World in 1492 began a new period of colonization lasting until 1763. In that time period, the Spanish and English rushed to claim, conquer, control, and colonize as much of North and South America as possible. Of course, two different countries resulted in two different methods of colonization as a result of the differing religions and systems of government. The small similarities and significant differences between the Spanish and English colonies in the New World were due to their systems of government and the influence of European leaders, differences in religion and religious importance, and their treatment of the indigenous peoples of the New World.

The momentous differences and minor …show more content…

He controlled the assembly of Maryland forcing legislature he supported, like the Maryland Toleration Act. The Act protected religious freedom in the colony. In Plymouth, the Mayflower Compact was their constitution and held that the “consent of the governed” was needed to pass legislature. Therefore, the colony was ruled by all who resided there through town meetings and the use of direct democracy. The majorities’ ideas and decisions would be passed and made into law. In Massachusetts Bay, a governing board met in the colony led by John Winthrop and other Puritan leaders. This governing body was the first assembly that met in the colonies and wasn’t influenced by Britain. Later on, the King of England would revoke all charters and create royal charters for all the colonies so each was under his direct control. He would assign a royal governor to each colony that would carry out his bidding. The small similarity between the two colonies was that both the Spanish and English colonies ended up being controlled by their respective monarchs, but originally both colonies had very diverse methods of government due to the different goals of each colony. While every Spanish colony had the

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