Undergraduate Research Journal
Abstract
Slavery was a bedrock component in the development of the New World. While slavery did not begin in the Western Hemisphere, it most definitely grew, developed, and evolved within it. Before the Spanish set out to colonize the New World, they had already been participating in the practice of slavery, particularly race-based slavery. Upon discovering and colonizing the West, the Spanish may have viewed the initial source of unfree labor as those indigenous populations of the areas they conquered. However, the expansion of Atlantic trade and the precious commodity of African slaves would soon be introduced to the Spanish colonial world. The everyday lives of African slaves in the Spanish colonies were harsh and grueling. This in turn led to instances of slave resistance and even rebellion in Spanish colonial holdings. Overall, the peculiar institution of slavery, as applied in the context of the Spanish colonial world, was dynamic and ever changing whether it be through conquest, trade, or rebellion.
Recommended Citation
Langley, Paige
(2021)
"A Peculiar Institution: What Brought African Slavery to the Spanish Colonial World and How Did it Evolve?,"
Undergraduate Research Journal: Vol. 25, Article 4.
Available at:
https://openspaces.unk.edu/undergraduate-research-journal/vol25/iss1/4