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Difficulty: EasySpanish Encomienda and Labor Systems

"Since the native Indians of this island of Hispaniola are weak and fragile people, not accustomed to hard labor, and have died in great numbers from the work in the mines and the pestilence sent by God, it is of the greatest urgency that Your Majesty grant permission to import Negroes from Africa. These Negroes are strong and accustomed to labor, and one of them will do more work than four Indians. This will relieve the Indians of their burdens, preserve their lives, and ensure that the gold mines continue to yield profit for the Crown."

— Alonso de Zuazo, Spanish official, letter to the Spanish Crown, 1518

Which of the following developments in the Spanish colonies during the sixteenth century does the recommendation in the excerpt best reflect?

  1. The transition from relying on coerced Indigenous labor to importing enslaved AfricansAnswer
  2. B
    The complete abolition of all forms of coerced labor in favor of a system of voluntary wage contracts
  3. C
    The establishment of an indentured servitude system modeled on English agricultural contracts
  4. D
    The unification of diverse Indigenous groups into a single empire to resist Spanish labor demands

Answer

The transition from relying on coerced Indigenous labor to importing enslaved Africans
The correct answer is correct because the Spanish colonial labor system transitioned from relying on coerced Indigenous labor under the encomienda system to importing enslaved Africans due to the demographic collapse of the Native population from disease and overwork.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus document and identify the author's primary recommendation.
The author recommends importing West Africans to replace Indigenous laborers in the gold mines of Hispaniola.
This establishes the historical context of labor demands and population shift in the early Spanish Caribbean.
2
Determine the cause of the recommended change mentioned in the text.
The author notes that the Indigenous population was dying rapidly due to forced labor in mines and infectious disease (pestilence).
This explains the demographic collapse of Native Americans that prompted the search for a new labor source.
3
Connect the document's proposal to broader historical trends of Period 1 (1491-1607).
The proposal aligns with the transition from the encomienda system to the transatlantic slave trade to sustain Spanish plantation and mining economies.
This identifies the correct development among the multiple-choice options.

Key Concept

The decline of the Indigenous population under the encomienda system led to the introduction of African slave labor in the Spanish Americas.
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Topics

Spanish Encomienda and Labor Systems

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