Answer:
The Viceroyalty of New Spain was a colonial administrative entity belonging to Spain, which existed in the territory of what is now the southeast of the United States, Mexico and Central America between the years 1535 and 1821. This viceroyalty was the main Spanish colony in the American continent, both in economic and political terms.
Its economy was based fundamentally on the exploitation of raw materials, and in particular, on the exploitation of precious metals such as gold and silver, which were taken to Spain to mint money and thus increase the treasury coffers of the crown.
In order to carry out this exploitation, the first labor used was that of the natives, who were used through the Encomienda system as quasi slaves, that is, free labor in exchange for "evangelization". Later, they were joined by African slaves who were taken to the continent to carry out these tasks.
