Question

State your opinion.

European nations were at the forefront of establishing colonies.

Answer 1

Portugal and Spain were at the forefront in the competition among the European nations to establish colonies. Portugal brought Brazil to the American continent under their rule and so did Spain by taking hold of Mexico. There they discovered gold mines. Spanish colonizers brought slaves from Africa to cultivate sugarcane and tobacco in the American fields. However, once the Spanish discovered the mines of gold and silver, they concentrated more on mining the precious metals than agriculture. They established control over the entire coastline of South America. The coastal region from Florida to California was held by the Spanish. Here, they engaged the native Americans and the African slaves in farming. Farming and mining earned them enormous wealth. Spain appointed governors to administer these regions. The King of Spain was the supreme authority. An organization, called ‘Council of the Indies’ was established to rule the colonies. This council was also in charge of the Spanish trade in the colonies. Essential raw materials were exported out to Spain and the finished goods used to be imported for sale in the local markets of the colonies. The trade of gold and silver acquired from these colonies earned huge profits for the king. Witnessing Spain’s prosperity England, Holland and France also began to establish their colonies in America.