The European powers had taken major parts of the world, including the Caribbean. In the 15th century, the Europeans claimed the region following the establishment of Spanish settlements and conquest of the Aztec and Inca empires (Horne, 2018). Due to the conquest, it was easy for the Spanish to invade Mexico and Peru through exploration in strategic points of the Caribbean region. Following the Spanish invasion of the Caribbean in the 17th century, other European powers such as the British and French started settling in pivotal points such as the island of Tortuga and later moved to Jamaica (Horne, 2018). By mid-century, many non-Hispanic privateers had established permanent colonies and trading zones in Caribbean islands.
The profitability in terms of wealth enabled rise of conquest to Caribbean region. First, it was easy to obtain gold, which was among the region’s key aspects of the scramble. The existence of Christopher Columbus in the region had shown the way for other leaders to set colonies (Horne, 2018). Second, there was the availability of a labor force drawn from the African continent as black people were used as slaves to work in the industrial openings in the area.
Due to the decline of Spanish power in the region, majorly as a result of reduced native population of the area, the other European powers boosted their presence in areas that Columbus had covered. For example, Francis Drake, a privateer from England, attacked many Spanish settlements (Horne, 2018). The collaborative base between the French, British and Dutch made it possible for European powers to conquer the significant area of the Caribbean. After start of the competitive nature of colonies, sovereign battles emerged that led to stiff wars that made it hard for the Caribbean islands to unite against European rule (Horne, 2018). Because of the emergence of agricultural activities, the Atlantic slave trade saw many Africans work for the Europeans in the Caribbean, strengthening their colonialism in the area hence conquering the region significantly.
Reference
Horne, G. (2018). The apocalypse of settler colonialism: The roots of slavery, white supremacy, and capitalism in 17th century North America and the Caribbean. New York University Press.