What kind of colonial system did Spain establish in American colonies after discovering the New World?

After Spain discovered the New World, it basically copied the local administration and authority to the colonies. There are also some institutions added to adapt to the special local conditions, but they are generally a pyramid-shaped colonial system with strict supervision and high centralization.

The first is the highest-ranking governor. In order to subdue Spanish immigrants and Indians, the Spanish king entrusted the power of the monarch to the governor. The American Empire was finally composed of four viceroy jurisdictions: New Spain, Peru, New Granada and La Plata. The regions of these four governors cover almost most of Latin America. The post of governor has a strong military nature, and it is necessary to guard against the invasion of Indians at home and other foreign powers. He has an army under his command, and he can also command generals whose powers and responsibilities are second only to those of the governor in wartime. The general's ruling area is close to the governor's jurisdiction and has a semi-independent status.

Under the jurisdiction of the Governor, there is also a procuratorate court district and a provincial government. The procuratorate is a miniature version of the governor. It carries out the governor's orders within its jurisdiction, reflects the situation, and can command the army if necessary. When there is a vacancy in the superior head, they are the highest governance authorities. In order to ensure mutual checks with the Governor, judicial functions were granted to the court of first instance, which was also the highest court in the colony. In the judicial aspect, they can communicate directly with the king, disobey the governor and generals, and even send the governor and generals to trial.

From time to time, the king sends a powerful imperial envoy to inspect the colony without saying hello. Through this overlapping "decentralization" setting, the king can not only conduct a comprehensive inspection of the colony, but also ensure that the kingship firmly controls this treasure house. The situation is different at the municipal level below the provincial level. The towns managed by the king's representative are still a miniature version of the province, but they enjoy extensive autonomy in towns far from the central cities. The local landlords elected the officials of the city council, as well as judges, treasurers and police chiefs, and then the city council members pushed each other. The municipal Council has the right to levy taxes to promote office work, build roads and bridges, and supervise sanitation. Municipal meetings are far from democracy and are often controlled by a few landlords.