About the lecture

In this module, we explore the environmental and other factors that shaped the development and expansion of the Spanish colonies in North America. The Spanish first developed colonies in the Caribbean but soon spread into Mexico and up into the North American continent. They used plantation slavery and mining as a means to extract value from their possessions but also attempted to spread Christianity throughout the continent with an elaborate series of missions from California to Florida. By the 18th century, Spanish power in the region had ebbed due to competition from European rivals and opposition from natives.

About the lecturer

Alan Taylor is the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation Professor of History at the University of Virginia. He is a specialist in the early history of the United States and has written extensively about the colonial history of the United States, the American Revolution and the early American Republic. Taylor has received two Pulitzer Prizes and the Bancroft Prize, and was also a finalist for the National Book Award for non-fiction.