por when talking about New Spain and its relations with the world it alludes to the commercial structure that Spain established after colonizing the territories of America. The Spanish Empire wanted to protect its colonies through the application of restrictions related to trade and navigation.
The sea routes were controlled by Spain, which promoted commercial relations with various European nations such as France, the United Kingdom, Germany and Italy, but strongly restricted the trade routes, to ensure and maintain its monopoly in America.
Through these actions, Spain managed to maintain the commercial monopoly in the New World area. However, in the long term it was a wrong strategy for the country, which brought negative consequences for the development of its production processes.
This is explained because Spain ended up depending to a large extent on the resources it obtained from America, while the other European nations embarked on manufacturing projects that contributed to the economic development of those countries.
Spain’s participation in the world market was as a buyer instead of as a producer, and this meant a delay in its development in the industrial field.
Background
Once the New World was discovered, a more or less free and irregular trade began to develop between it and Spain. There was still no awareness of the relevance of the commercial activity and the routes were not getting the most out of them.
At that time, at the beginning of the 16th century, there were many attacks on ships and many shipwrecks, since navigation was not under any regulation and could be dangerous.
regulations
As a result of these events, in 1561 norms that regulated navigation were promulgated. Among the considerations, he highlighted the obligation to assemble the fleets, a regulation regarding the size of the ships and the use of warships with the aim of escorting the transferred merchandise.
The regulatory system became more sophisticated over time and two main fleets were created: one that made the Veracruz-Seville route and another that arrived in Panama. These fleets remained in operation until the 18th century.
In 1778 there was an adjustment in the commercial situation and the Free Trade Regulations of America were promulgated, through which the fleets were closed, and it was the Council of the Indies (through the House of Trade) that decided which fleet would leave. and when he did it.
This implied a limitation on trade that strongly harmed the inhabitants of America, who on many occasions were not supplied regularly to create shortages and to raise prices.
Spanish ships
Another element stipulated in the new regulation indicated that all the ships in the fleets had to be Spanish.
In addition, the goods were examined in detail when they left and when they arrived at the port. Among other things, the nationality of the shipowners was verified as well as the state in which the ships were.
All these limitations eventually played against Spain, which found itself increasingly dependent on the wealth of America and did not maintain its focus on developing as a producer in the industrial field.
main routes
Trade between Spain and America put Seville in a privileged place. Although this port was already relevant before the discovery of the New World, it was after Seville gained much more importance in the commercial field thanks to its port.
The reason for choosing Seville as the main port was its location, more protected than other ports in the area. It was an inland port located about 100 kilometers from the sea, a distance that protected it from possible pirate attacks or attacks perpetrated by other nations.
Added to this strategic location is the fact that Seville’s tradition as a port goes back to ancient times, so this area had the experience required to carry out commercial processes of this nature.
However, despite the many advantages of the port of Seville, there were also drawbacks generated by the nature of the route.
For example, the last meters of the route were rough and shallow, which is why it was not possible for ships of more than 400 tons to pass through it. As a result, many ships were shipwrecked in their attempt to enter the port.
Urdaneta or Pacific Route
This route was also called the tornaviaje, and was discovered by the soldier and sailor Andrés de Urdaneta at the request of Felipe II.
Through this route, which crossed the Pacific Ocean, Asia and America were united, since the connection was made between the New World and the Philippines.
The operation was carried out incognito because these actions contradicted the Treaty of Tordesillas, through which Spain and Portugal had divided up the territories of America.
The fleet that transited the Urdaneta route was called the Manila Galleon and the main product of Spanish exchange was silver, which was exchanged for oriental products.
This trade route was so important that it remained in force for two centuries, when steamships appeared.
Veracruz-Seville or Atlantic route
The galleons left from the Gulf of Mexico and transported various products, among which gold, silver, precious gems, cocoa and spices stood out.
The group of ships that carried out these voyages was called the New Spain Fleet. They mainly departed from Veracruz, although they also loaded from Honduras, Cuba, Panama and Hispaniola. On their way to Spain, they crossed the Bermuda Islands and the Azores.
Route Seville-Portobello
The port where the ships arrived was called Nombre de Dios and was located on the Isthmus of Panama. The Fleet of Tierra Firme Galleons was in charge of transiting this route.
Acapulco-Spain route
Through this route the entire Isthmus of Panama was crossed, then the ships passed through the capital of Cuba and from there they embarked directly to Spain.
Main activities
The main activities carried out between New Spain and the rest of the world were based on the commercialization of various products, which served to supply the Spanish Empire, the inhabitants of America and other countries with which Spain had a commercial relationship, both in Europe like on other continents.
silver trade
Mining was a fairly developed activity, since the new lands were rich in various minerals of great value.
Spain was heavily dependent on American metals, especially silver and gold. According to information from the French historian Pierre Chaunu, it is estimated that between 1503 and 1660 Spain extracted 25 million kilos of silver and 300,000 kilos of gold from the New World.
Silver was also a fairly traded item with other nations. For example, the Philippines was a regular buyer of silver, and from that country it was distributed to other nations such as India or China.
Thanks to the silver from America, Spain was able to increase its economic and military power, since it was able to become an important power by stimulating international trade.
Trade of oriental products
Through the Urdaneta route it was possible to link Asia with America. A commercial relationship began between these regions through which Asian objects were transferred from the Philippines, Japan, China, Cambodia and India, among other countries, to New Spain.
In principle, the final destination of much of the merchandise was Spain, but eventually New Spain had such a capacity to pay that most of the objects exported remained on American soil.
From Asia, products such as silk, porcelain, furniture, fabrics made with cotton, Filipino drinks and waxes, among other objects, arrived in New Spain. There was also trade in Asian slaves, called «Chinese Indians.»
All of these items were exchanged for precious metals (especially silver, gold bars, and lead), cocoa, vinegar, leather, vanilla, dyes, and other products. The East also received food, such as beans and corn, widely produced in America.
trade restriction
In this context of exchange, Spain carried out a series of actions to restrict trade and protect its monopoly.
One of these actions was the construction of large walls and forts in the surroundings of Campeche and Veracruz, highly vulnerable areas as they are the main embarkation and disembarkation points for products destined for foreign trade.
Another important limitation was establishing that only the Spanish could trade with the Philippines, in order to keep the benefits of this trade route for themselves.
These restrictions were not enough, since the demand for these products in other countries increased over time, so smuggling routes were created with which it was possible to open the commercial market.
References
Maritime routes. Recovered from loscaminosdelaplata.com.
The port of Seville in the 16th century. Recovered from us.es.
New Spain economy. Foreign trade. Retrieved from portalacademico.cch.unam.mx.