Spain

While the Portuguese thought to sail through the Pacific Ocean, the Spanish sailed eastward through the Atlantic Ocean. With lesser numbers and many more recourses the Spanish fleets under the guidance on Christopher Columbus had began the establishment of a relatively small overseas empire in the Americas that all started in what we know today as Cuba, the Bahamas, Hispaniola and also he lays claim to having discovered the Americas in 1496. media type="youtube" key="60MKSBT_wWM" width="816" height="366" align="center"

Other Spanish conquers who explored the Americas where called Conquistadors. These explorers had amazing success in conquering new empires. Herman Cortes and his army conquered the Aztec Empire in three years and had conquered Central Mexico by 1850.  Another army, in South America under the command of Francisco Pizzarro took over control of the Incan Empire. After merely 300 years western Latin America had been brought under Spanish command. An overseas empire had been made by the Spanish in little more than 300 years. In 1535 Queen Isabella had decided to create a system of Colonial Administration to help her new found overseas empire. Also she gave the Spanish Encomienda the right to use Native Americans as labourers. Which they did, many Spanish men used Native Americans to mine for gold, silver and cut sugar cane.  Also, near after the defeat of the natives, catholic missionaries were shipped from Spain to the Bahamas to baptise many of the Native people. The missionaries brought schooling, hospitals and electricity. This caused Native culture to fall and be replaced with European culture, government, religion and language. However, while everything seemed good for the Spanish, the natives being forced to work for days and days, where dying of starvation and diseases such as small pox, measles and typhus. Most Native Americans did survive this time of trial. By 1938, there were only 500 Native Americans who were alive. Mexico's population dropped declined greatly during this time in 1519 there were 25 million native workers, but by 1630 there were only four billion left.