Unit 1 - Analysis - Spanish Colonial Caste System

The Spanish imposed a racial hierarchy in their American colonies that privileged those of pure European blood.This caste system grouped people into categories based on ancestry and skin color, with social status and rights declining with more indigenous or African blood. At the top were peninsulares, born in Spain, and criollos, Spaniards born in the colonies; they dominated politics and the economy. Below were mestizos of mixed Spanish and native blood, and mulattos of mixed Spanish and African blood. Castas paintings illustrated the system's complexity.