Similarities Between Spanish And New England Colonies

After Christopher Columbus’s exploration in 1492, a widespread colonization occurred because of the wonderful opportunities the New World promised to the European countries. While sharing a continent, the Spanish and New England colonies had major similarities and a plethora amount of differences. The Spanish and New England colonies shared significant similarities with the treatment of the natives, yet these colonies had extreme differences with the role of religion and the control of European government. The Spanish and New England colonies shared significant similarities with the treatment of the natives because both colonies required the natives to convert to the religion of the colony and to work for the colonists in order to
Similar to the missionary system, Spaniards created the encomienda system. This system allowed for Spanish royalty to rent plots of land and the people of the land to the Spaniards. The Spaniards would then convert these people to Christianity. The Puritans of the New England colony set up Praying Towns that forced the natives of the region to Christianity. This greatly upset the Wampanoag people and lead to the start of King Phillip’s War. As well as the forced conversions, the natives of the Americas were forced to work for the colonies in order to pay back debts for being converted and taken care of. To pay debts back to the friars and the renters of the land from the encomienda system, the natives had to work the lands for the Spaniards. Although the natives were not slaves and could not be traded or sold, Native Americans were often worked to death and treated harshly. The Pueblo Revolt occurred after the Spanish had captured 46 religious leaders of the natives in 1609 which drove away the Spanish from the region until 1682. Although the Spanish yet again conquered these people, the Pueblo natives were given more religious freedom than that of other tribes. On the other hand,