Answer:
Between 1513, when Juan Ponce de Leon first set foot in Florida, and 1821, when Mexico gained her independence, as well as the Spanish possessions in the present United States, Spain left an indelible influence in the United States. Spain was the leading European power in the early imperial rivalry for control of North America and for centuries, dominated the Southeastern and Southwestern parts of what was later the United States — particularly the States of Florida, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. Her possessions reached their maximum extent between 1783 and 1803 when they ranged in a crescent from Florida to California.
Spain’s motives for colonization were threefold: to locate mineral wealth, to convert the Indians to Christianity, and to counter French and English efforts. The Spanish colonization system was highly successful. First, an armed force subdued the natives and established forts, or presidios, for future protection. Then, zealous missionaries moved in to convert the Indians to the religion of Spain and teach them the arts of civilization. Finally, representatives of the King founded civil settlements in conjunction with the presidios and missions. The Crown controlled the highly centralized process through a bureaucracy that burgeoned as the empire expanded. But, the story begins in the first years of the 16th century, when Spain first realized that Christopher Columbus had discovered, not island outposts of Cathay (China), but a New World!
Explanation:
