The Caste & Encomienda Systems (College Board AP® US History)
Study Guide
Written by: Barbara Keese
Reviewed by: Bridgette Barrett
Diversity of population through the caste system
The Spanish used a hierarchical system known as Sistema de Castas (Society of Castes)
This system determined social, economic, and political status in the “New World”
The caste system used race, color, physical features, occupation, and wealth to determine an individual’s status in Spanish communities within the Americas
Español (Spaniard) was the most desirable classification
Negro, the term given to those of African ancestry, was at the bottom of the system.
Examiner Tips and Tricks
The word “Negro” is appropriate to use within this context of history and in the exam. But it is offensive in modern society.
Peninsulares were people “from the peninsula”
Spain is on the Iberian Peninsula
Peninsulares were individuals born in Spain, but they lived in the “New World”
Creoles were individuals with parents who had been born in Spain
Anyone considered a creole had been born in the “New World”
Mestizos were individuals who had one Indigenous person and one Spaniard as parents
Indigenous people and enslaved people were the lowest classifications in Sistema de Castas
Some African people spoke Spanish and became known as ladinos (Spanish speakers)
Labor based on the Encomienda System
The Encomienda system began as a way for the Spanish monarchy to protect Indigenous peoples from abuse
An encomendero (derived from a Spanish word meaning “to entrust”) received a grant to watch over Indigenous people in Spanish territories
The encomendero pledged to:
protect the Indigenous people in the area
teach them about Christianity
Indigenous people were forced into labor in return for this protection
At first, the Encomienda system did not include any land
Over time, however, encomenderos began to take control of land and ignore their promises to Indigenous people
Encomiendas became estates of land on which there were plantations and mines,
Indigenous people worked these lands
Indigenous people were exploited and overworked
Eventually, their population declined due to disease and abuse
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Thesis Statements
Your thesis statement is usually part of your introduction in an essay. It can also be part of the conclusion. Any thesis statement should establish an idea that will be discussed in the essay or a reason the essay has been written. Reasons can include things like analyzing, explaining, comparing, contrasting, or defending. Simply restating or rephrasing the prompt is not a reason for writing the essay.
Worked Example
Contrast the importance Indigenous and Black peoples had to the success of Spanish colonies with the social status they held in those colonies.
Answer:
The social status of Indigenous and Black people in Spanish colonies was completely opposite to the importance they had to the success of the colonies. Indigenous peoples provided the labor force for the encomiendas that became plantations and mines. However, their social status put them toward the bottom of the Spanish caste system. Despite supporting the colonies by providing labor and settling the Spanish frontier, Black people were also designated as a low social class.
This thesis statement earns the point because it explicitly contrasts the importance Indigenous and Black people had with the social status they held in the Spanish colonies. The essay’s thesis states the two concepts have an opposite relationship to each other.
Black and Indigenous peoples provided vital labor in the Spanish colonies, but they held low statuses in the Spanish social structure.
Here is a minimally acceptable thesis statement for this prompt. The thesis includes contrast with the word “but”. However, the sentence does not explicitly identify an opposite or inverse relationship.
Indigenous people and Black people performed hard labor in Spanish colonies and had low social status.
This thesis statement establishes a weak relationship between the pieces of information. The information is true, but there is no mention of a contrasting relationship.
History shows there is a relationship between the importance that Indigenous and Black peoples had to the success of Spanish colonies and the social status they held in those colonies.
This thesis statement is a restatement. The prompt asks students to contrast the two ideas, so you already know a relationship exists between Indigenous and Black peoples.
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