When was Portugal colonized by Spain?

Colonialism in modern times has generally experienced four periods: emergence, development, imperialism and neocolonialism. The period of colonialism was roughly1early 5th century to1early 9th century. The colonial powers in this period mainly included Portugal, Spain, Netherlands, Britain, France and Russia. Among them, Portugal and Spain are in the forefront. This paper attempts to summarize and compare the early colonial activities of Portugal and Spain, and welcome to correct me.

First of all, about the same aspect.

Portugal and Spain are two feudal countries on the Iberian Peninsula. Due to the same factors, similar historical background and the purpose of colonial activities, there are many similarities between Portuguese and Spanish colonial activities.

1. In terms of time, among all the colonial countries in modern times, Portugal and Spain first embarked on the road of exploration and colonial expansion in Shanghai.

As early as the15th century, Portugal and Spain began colonial exploration activities. By the middle of the16th century, the two countries had established the basic outlines of their respective colonial empires, and the first world partition took place between Portugal and Spain. The colonial expansion of the Netherlands, Britain and France did not begin until the late 6th century and the early 7th century. So why did Portugal and Spain first embark on the road of colonial conquest? There are roughly three reasons. First, at that time, both countries were centralized feudal countries, which was the political premise of their first colonial conquest. /kloc-In the second half of the 0/5th century, other European countries just ended the Hundred Years' War and fell into the whirlpool of wars of the roses, Italian war or resistance from the big feudal lords. Although they have a strong desire to explore new routes, they have to lag behind Portugal and Spain to realize this desire. Second, Portugal and Spain are both on the Atlantic coast, which is convenient for maritime exploration. Third, they have mastered rich navigation knowledge and advanced navigation technology.

2. In terms of organization and means, the colonial activities of Portugal and Spain are mainly organized by the state, and conquest by force is the main means of their external expansion.

At that time, Portugal and Spain were still under feudal rule, and the domestic industrial and commercial foundation was weak. Because merchants are weak and unable to organize external expansion alone, the colonial exploration activities of the two countries are mainly organized by the state. The three most important voyages in human history led by Columbus, Da Gama and Magellan were all organized by the government. It can be said that the feudal government was the main organizer, leader and funder of colonial activities at that time. Because there are few domestic commodities in the two countries, it is impossible to trade with the colonies with many commodities, so military conquest is the main means of their external expansion, and trade is only a by-product. Robbing gold, killing aborigines and seizing land became the trilogy of Columbus and his successors. Since then, colonial countries such as the Netherlands, Britain and France have developed commercial capital, and their foreign colonization is not arranged by the government, but organized by commercial companies (such as London Company and East India Company). With the support of the state power. The main means is not military conquest, but commercial colonization.

3. The colonial activities of Portugal and Spain belong to feudal colonial conquest in nature, not capitalist expansion.

The reasons are as follows: First, the colonial conquest of the two countries was the product of the development of social commodity economy in the late Middle Ages in Europe. At that time, the nature of social goods in Europe was basically feudal, and the capitalist relations of production were only sporadic and the foundation was not solid. Second, the colonial conquest of the two countries was carried out by nobles under the direct planning and control of the feudal royal family. Third, the purpose of organizing and supporting colonial conquest by the royal families of the two countries is to expand the scope of feudal rule. Fourth, both countries have established huge feudal empires. On the colonial land, they focused on plundering gold, silver and land, and rarely engaged in capitalist management. Moreover, the wealth gained was not converted into capital in his own country, but spent on the luxury enjoyment of feudal lords.

Therefore, no matter from the reasons, organizations, purposes or results of colonial conquest, the colonial activities of the two countries are feudal.

Second, different aspects.

Although there are many similarities in the colonial activities of Portugal and Spain, their colonial activities also have their own characteristics because of their different national conditions.

1. In terms of time, Portugal's colonial activities were earlier than Spain's.

The earliest Portuguese colonial activity was the occupation of Ceuta, Morocco in 14 15. Since then, the Portuguese have been committed to opening up a new air route that bypasses the southern tip of Africa and goes eastward. Spanish colonial activities began after Columbus discovered the New World, and in 1493, it occupied Noel, Espa (now Haiti), which was the first Spanish colony. Why did Portugal take the lead in colonial expansion than Spain? First of all, Portugal formed a unified country and established centralization earlier. After the Arabs invaded the Iberian Peninsula in the 7th century, local residents began to recover their lost land and establish their own country. Among them, the Kingdom of Portugal was formed in the middle of12nd century, and the Kingdom of Spain was formed in the late of15th century. Secondly, Portugal is a small country surrounded by Spanish territory on three sides. Since the times of King Alfonso III (1248- 1279) and Denis (1279- 1325), kings of all dynasties have devoted themselves to developing maritime power and have no intention of intervening in disputes on the European continent. Finally, Portugal has more knowledge of navigation and is more advanced in geography than the Spanish. For example, in 1484, Columbus asked the Portuguese king for help and was rejected. Because the Portuguese think that the earth is bigger than Columbus thought and the ocean is wider than he thought, the shortest way to the east is to bypass Africa instead of crossing the Atlantic Ocean. As a result, Columbus completed the trip under the sponsorship of the Spanish royal family.

2. In terms of space, the main direction of Portuguese colonial activities is from west to east, with emphasis on Asia and Africa; Spain goes from east to west, with emphasis on America.

The Portuguese royal family supported Diaz and da Gama to sail from west to east, and the colonial focus was on Asia and Africa; The Spanish royal family supported Columbus and Magellan to sail from east to west, and the colonial focus was on America. The spatial difference of colonial activities between Portugal and Spain is the result of the struggle for colonial hegemony between the two countries. As early as the first half of the15th century, Portugal had just emerged as a hegemon when it was conducting colonial exploration on the coast of West Africa. The Portuguese government has repeatedly announced that no ship from any country can sail on the coast of West Africa without Portugal's permission. 1455, Pope Nicholas V also issued a privilege order granting Portugal maritime hegemony, to the effect that the places occupied by Portuguese colonists are their spheres of influence, and the places that are not occupied and are about to be occupied are also their spheres of influence. According to the Pope's decree, the Portuguese ruler calls himself "the overlord of the sea". After Columbus discovered the New World, Portugal's maritime hegemony was challenged by Spain, so Portugal and Spain did not give in to each other and embarked on the road of competing for colonial hegemony. Under the mediation of the Pope, the two countries signed the Treaty of Tod Silias in June 1494, agreeing to draw a line from the North Pole to the South Pole at 370 leagues west of Cape Verde Islands, the so-called papal meridian, which belongs to Portuguese sphere of influence in the east and Spanish sphere of influence in the west. But this "meridian" ignores that the earth is round, and any place in the world is the east and west sides of the line. Therefore, after Magellan's fleet sailed around the world, the two countries had another dispute in the Pacific Ocean. For this reason, 1529 signed the Treaty of Zaragoza, which stipulated that a line should be drawn at 17 degrees east of the Moluccas, and the west and east of the line belonged to Portugal and Spain respectively. According to the above two dividing lines, the earth is divided into two parts. Spain almost ruled America, while Portugal ruled Brazil in Africa, Asia and South America. These two treaties will be the theoretical basis for the colonial activities of Portugal and Spain for a long time to come.

3. In the way of plunder, Portugal mainly occupies "points" by "lines" and plunders wealth mainly through fraudulent trade; Spain, on the other hand, seized a large area of land (that is, "noodles") and directly plundered gold and silver.

By the beginning of16th century, the Portuguese had occupied some strongholds on the west coast of Africa, the east coast of Africa and the west coast of the Indian Ocean, and controlled the route from Europe to India. Then, Portugal occupied Malacca, mastered the traffic throat from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, and monopolized the spice trade line from Europe to the Moluccas. Later, commercial stations were established in India and some places in Southeast Asia. Therefore, Portugal mainly occupied military strongholds in Asia and Africa, and at the same time seized a lot of wealth by monopolizing trade routes, establishing trade posts and conducting fraudulent trade. Spain, on the other hand, occupies a large area of Central and South America. From the end of15th century to the middle of16th century, the vast areas of Central and South America except Brazil were all incorporated into the territory of Spain's huge colonial empire. The main reasons for the different plundering methods between Portugal and Spain are: First, the strength of the two countries, especially the military strength. Due to the differences in land area and population between Portugal and Spain, Portugal's military strength is relatively weak, while Spain's military strength is strong. Second, the colonial targets of the two countries are different, and the targets of Portuguese aggression are mostly feudal countries with developed economy and dense population. Spain invaded America, which was far behind Europe and sparsely populated. At that time, the degree of disunity and division of Indians in some major areas of America (such as Mexico and Peru) was far more serious than that of some Africans at that time. Therefore, Portugal, which is relatively weak, is facing a powerful feudal country, and it is difficult to go deep into the hinterland of Asia and Africa and conquer the vast inland areas. It can only occupy some relatively remote coastal ports and islands as strongholds and conduct indirect plunder by fraudulent trade. Spain, which is relatively strong, faces the United States, which is sparsely populated and scattered. It can easily occupy a large area of land and plunder gold and silver directly.