![Pedro de Alvarado (Tomás Povedano)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Pedro_de_Alvarado_%28Tom%C3%A1s_Povedano%29.jpg)
The arrival of the
Spaniards
Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex history, including a number of different languages, both in ...
in
Guatemala began in 1524 with the conquest of the
Guatemalan Highlands
The Guatemalan Highlands is an upland region in southern Guatemala, lying between the Sierra Madre de Chiapas to the south and the Petén lowlands to the north.
Description
The highlands are made up of a series of high valleys enclosed by mou ...
and neighbouring Pacific plain under the command of
Pedro de Alvarado. After the conquest and the
colonial
Colonial or The Colonial may refer to:
* Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology)
Architecture
* American colonial architecture
* French Colonial
* Spanish Colonial architecture
Automobiles
* Colonial (1920 au ...
era, more people came to the country not as conquerors, but to do business or daily activities.
History
![Manuelestradaretrato](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Manuelestradaretrato.jpg)
Early
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
an immigrants to Guatemala were Spaniards who conquered the indigenous
Maya
Maya may refer to:
Civilizations
* Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America
** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples
** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples
* Maya (Ethiopia), a popul ...
population in 1524. They ruled for almost 300 years. Although the
Spanish conquest of Guatemala
In a protracted conflict during the Spanish colonization of the Americas, Spanish colonisers gradually incorporated the territory that became the modern country of Guatemala into the colonial Viceroyalty of New Spain. Before the conquest, this te ...
was primarily the result of its technical superiority, the Spaniards were helped by Nahua allies from central Mexico, and by indigenous Maya who were already involved in bitter struggles between rival kingdoms. Following the Spaniards' arrival, European epidemics and oppression of conquerors reduced the indigenous population from 14 million to 2 million in two generations. Currently, the population of
indigenous people
Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...
is nearly 5 million.
Despite being greatly outnumbered by the Maya - historians estimate that only a few thousand Spaniards settled in Guatemala before independence - the latter were able to impose their colonial system through a reign of terror. As a result of Guatemala having few naturally-rich resources, like gold and silver, the
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
conquest focused their efforts on forced labor of the indigenous population.
The Spaniards established a system of domination that ensured slaves worked the land and paid taxes in the form of goods. The system was structured to exploit the indigenous population without destroying it. In 1663, King
Philip IV of Spain
Philip IV ( es, Felipe, pt, Filipe; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered ...
tried to abolish slavery in the colonies, but the
criollos
In Hispanic America, criollo () is a term used originally to describe people of Spanish descent born in the colonies. In different Latin American countries the word has come to have different meanings, sometimes referring to the local-born majo ...
(those of
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
origin born in Guatemala), fought fervently to ensure that forced labor continued to practice until the early 20th century.
However, when legislation to safeguard these lands was abolished in the 19th century, the criollos (from
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and
Switzerland) and
Ladino soon came and established
plantation
A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...
s producing export crops, turning the rural population into a mass of unemployed migrant farm workers.
In 1821, the Republic of Guatemala - which included the
Soconusco
Soconusco is a region in the southwest corner of the state of Chiapas in Mexico along its border with Guatemala. It is a narrow strip of land wedged between the Sierra Madre de Chiapas mountains and the Pacific Ocean. It is the southernmost par ...
region (now part of southern
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
), as well as what are now the countries of
El Salvador,
Honduras,
Nicaragua
Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the countr ...
and
Costa Rica - had just 1.5 million inhabitants, mostly concentrated in the urban centers of the republic. In 1823, after a brief period as part of the
Mexican Empire Mexican Empire may refer to:
* First Mexican Empire, the regime under Agustín de Iturbide (Agustín I) from 1821 to 1823
* Second Mexican Empire
The Second Mexican Empire (), officially the Mexican Empire (), was a constitutional monarchy est ...
, the republic became known as the
United Provinces of Central America
The Federal Republic of Central America ( es, República Federal de Centroamérica), originally named the United Provinces of Central America ( es, Provincias Unidas del Centro de América), and sometimes simply called Central America, in it ...
.
After a period of political instability exacerbated by the collapse of the world market for
indigo
Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...
, main exporter in the region of Europe, each province seceded from the federation, starting with
Costa Rica. The federation collapsed between 1838 and 1840, when Guatemala became an independent nation.
8,507,511 (probably 55% of mestizo and Whites; Ladinos).
Culture
Spanish architecture
Spanish architecture refers to architecture in any area of what is now Spain, and by Spanish architects worldwide. The term includes buildings which were constructed within the current borders of Spain prior to its existence as a nation, when ...
s and constructions found in
Antigua Guatemala was part of the colonial period in Guatemala.
Notable Spanish Guatemalans
* Mariano Beltranena y Llano.
*
Jorge Ubico
Jorge Ubico Castañeda (10 November 1878 – 14 June 1946), nicknamed Number Five or also Central America's Napoleon, was a Guatemalan dictator. A general in the Guatemalan army, he was elected to the presidency in 1931, in an election where ...
.
* María Dolores Bedoya.
*
Pedro Molina.
*
Edwin Escobar Hill.
*
Álvaro Arzú
Álvaro Enrique Arzú Yrigoyen (; 14 March 1946 – 27 April 2018) was a Guatemalan politician and businessman who served as the 32nd President of Guatemala from 14 January 1996 until 14 January 2000. He was elected Mayor of Guatemala City on ...
.
*
Harold Caballeros.
* Cecilia Arimani de Caballeros.
*
Irma Flaquer.
*
Justo Rufino Barrios
Justo Rufino Barrios Auyón (19 July 1835 – 2 April 1885) was a Guatemalan politician and military general who served as President of Guatemala from 1873 to his death in 1885. He was known for his liberal reforms and his attempts to reuni ...
.
*
Juan Bautista Gutiérrez.
*
Isabel Gutiérrez de Bosch.
See also
*
Guatemala–Spain relations
External links
Madrileños por el mundo: Guatemala''Tele Madrid''
Españoles en Guatemala
References
{{Spanish diaspora
Guatemalan people of Spanish descent
Guatemala
Guatemala–Spain relations
Immigration to Guatemala
European Guatemalan