Asia in Transition
Section 4: The Spanish and Dutch Empires
In this section
1. you will find out how Spain extended its power abroad and at home.
2. You will discover why the Dutch were successful in creating a colonial empire.
3. Finally, you will learn why the Spanish Empire declined.
Section 4 Summary
In the 1500s Spain was the most powerful nation in Europe, with the largest overseas empire. In 1513 Spanish explorer Ponce de León sailed north from the Caribbean towhat is now Florida and claimed it for Spain. In 1519, Hernán Cortés, with 600 men, invaded Mexico. He seized the Aztec ruler Moctezuma II, or Montezuma, and destroyedthe great Aztec city, Tenochtitlán. Spanish horses and guns, unknown to the Americas, and a smallpox epidemic helped the Spanish defeat the Aztec.In 1530 Francisco Pizarro traveled south and overthrew the Inca Empire, claiming its vast lands, gold, and silver for Spain. Spain soon controlled southern andwestern North America, Central America, and much of South America. It established settlements and colonial governments everywhere. Officials called viceroys representedthe monarchy in the colonies. But European diseases killed millions of Native Americans. Whole cultures were wiped out in a few years. To keep the wealth to themselves, the Spanish government made laws keeping foreigners out of their colonies.
The French, Dutch, and English tried to capture some of the wealth. They traded in Spanish American ports, and their monarchs encouraged pirates to attack Spanish ships and colonial towns. Meanwhile, Spanish kings expanded their authority at home. A Habsburg, Charles V, became Holy Roman Emperor as well as king of Spain. He was torn between Spanish interests, German interests, and defending Europe against the Ottoman Turks. Continuous religious wars drained Spain’s human and financial resources. Realizing that the Spanish and Holy Roman empires were too large for one man to rule, Charles divided his throne and lands. His son Philip II received Spain and its possessions. Charles’s brother Ferdinand I became Holy Roman Emperor. Philip controlled every facet of Spain’s government, paralyzing his administration. He ordered the Spanish Inquisition to stamp out heresy and involved Spain in wars to defend Catholicism. Taxes could not keep up with the wars, and loans multiplied.
Philip defeated the Ottoman Empire, but his attempt to invade Protestant England was disastrous. Philip II also inherited rule of the Netherlands. He ruled harshly, ignoring the country’s long tradition of self-rule by nobles. He heavily taxed Dutch trade and persecuted Calvinists. In 1568 William of Orange, a Dutch nobleman and Calvinist, led a revolt. The people opened the dikes and flooded the countryside, stranding Philip’s army. William ordered swift raids by small bands of soldiers, a technique known today as guerrilla warfare. The northern provinces declared independence, although the Catholic southern provinces remained under Spanish control. With efficient ships and expert sailors, the Dutch ruled European commerce in the 1600s. Amsterdam became a world financial center and lively cultural center. The Dutch East India Company established colonies in the East Indies, West Indies, South America, and North America.
The Dutch never tried to force their religion, language, or laws onpeople in their colonies. The Dutch came simply as traders and businesspeople. For this reason, the Japanese allowed them to establish a trading center in Nagasaki.Several major problems led to the decline of the Spanish Empire. First, its growing population had growing needs. Increases in the costs of goods and services, combinedwith a shortage of basic goods, led to a general decline in Spain’s industry and commercial activity. Spain had no industries, partly because it had expelled first the Jews and then the Moriscos—Moorish converts to Christianity.
Spain thus lost many skilled bankers, businesspeople, commercial leaders, and artisans. Much of Spain’s wealthsimply passed through Spain. It purchased goods from countries with industries, which grew wealthy at Spain’s expense. Finally, many people became discontented with high taxes, inflation, and crop failures and left the country.