Question

4. In the eighteenth century, the viceroyalty of New Spain was the largest and most prosperous European colony on the North American continent. Why do you think the modern Spanish-speaking countries, which were once part of the Spanish domain, are now "third world" countries, while the "United States" is a dominant, "first world" country? Explain your answer.

Answer 1

In order to answer these questions, you must look at the geographical differences that lead to different objectives and colonies for the Spanish and British Empire. In Southern America, there was an abundance of golds and silvers in the region, which lead to Spain to have a desire for investing in metals and silvers. There was little focus or concentration in other resources in New Spain, and these mines were not focused at all on long term investment. Also, the Spanish colonies had strong Spanish authority and influence, making the colonies extraction to get the most profit out of them and the land. This hurt most South American nations when they became independent as they possessed very weak infrastructure with little knowledge of self independence. 

The British colonies in North America originally were set up to find gold as well but to no fortune. Even though Britain did create profits through certain cash crops like tobacco, the colonies for the most part relied almost independently on themselves at first. This is especially true for those leaving for religious purposes, such as the Pilgrims or Quakers. This created a reliance for the British colonists to take care of themselves, which in turn began to develop their own economies over time and quickly develop political independence.