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Spanish Conquest & Exploration in North America in the 16th century
A map illustrating Spain’s drive to expand its empire following the 1492 Reconquista of the Iberian Peninsula and Columbus's discovery of America. Inspired by tales of land and instant riches, thousands flocked to the New World with hopes for wealth and status. The Spanish rapidly conquered territory (much of the lands they claimed remained unsettled for centuries,) overthrowing the Aztec and Inca Empires and, by the mid-sixteenth century, gaining control of most of Central and western South America, Mexico, and the southern half of the modern United States, from Florida to the Pacific Coast, in addition to solidifying earlier Caribbean conquests.
