A treasure fleet is being loaded with riches.

Beginning in the 16th century, the Spanish treasure fleets (or simply West Indies Fleet from Spanish Flota de Indias) transported various metal resources and agricultural goods, including silver, gold, gems, spices, cocoa, silk, and other exotic goods, from the Spanish colonies to Spain. The Crown of Spain took a fifth of the wares and precious metals of private merchants, a tax known as the quinto. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... This article is about the chemical element. ... GOLD refers to one of the following: GOLD (IEEE) is an IEEE program designed to garner more student members at the university level (Graduates of the Last Decade). ... For other uses, see Gemstone (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Spice (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Cocoa (disambiguation). ... For other uses of this word, see Silk (disambiguation). ... This article needs cleanup. ... Quinto is a municipality in the district of Leventina, in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland. ...

The treasure fleets consisted of two convoys: the Spanish Caribbean fleet or Flota de Indias, which sailed from a network of ports including Havana, Veracruz, Portobelo and Cartagena to Spain, and the Manila Galleons or Galeón de Manila which linked the Philippines to Acapulco in Mexico. From Acapulco, the Asian goods were transhipped to Veracruz to join the Caribbean treasure fleet, for shipment to Spain. The Spanish West Indies (also known as Las Antillas) consist of Cuba, Hispaniola (present-day Dominican Republic and Haiti), Puerto Rico, Jamaica (until the 1655) , the Cayman Islands, Trinidad (until 1797) and Bay Islands (until 1643). ... This article is about the capital of Cuba. ... Location within Mexico Country Capital Municipalities 212 Largest City Veracruz Government  - Governor Fidel Herrera Beltrán (PRI)  - Federal Deputies PRI: 6 PAN: 11 PRD: 2 Convergencia: 2  - Federal Senators PRD: 1 PAN: 1 Convergencia: 1 Area Ranked 11th  - Total 71,699 km² (27,683. ... Portobelo (formerly Puerto Bello) is a port in Panama. ... Cartagena is the name of two cities: Cartagena, Spain Cartagena, Colombia This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... A painting of a Spanish galleon. ... For other uses, see Acapulco (disambiguation). ... Transshipment is the shipment of goods to an intermediate destination, and then from there to yet another destination. ... Veracruz is the name of a city and a state in Mexico. ...

Spanish ships had brought treasure from the New World since Christopher Columbus' first expedition of 1492, but a system of convoys started to be developed in the 1520s in response to attacks by privateers. Under this system, two fleets sailed each year from Seville (Cádiz from 1707), consisting of galleons, heavily armed with cannons, and merchant carracks, carrying manufactured goods (and later occasionally slaves). One fleet sailed to the Caribbean, the other to the South American ports of Cartagena, Nombre de Dios (and later Porto Bello); after completing their trade the fleets rendezvoused at Havana in Cuba for the return trip. Frontispiece of Peter Martyr dAnghieras De orbe novo (On the New World). Carte dAmérique, Guillaume Delisle, 1722. ... Christopher Columbus (1451 – May 20, 1506) was a navigator, colonizer, and explorer and one of the first Europeans to explore the Americas after the Vikings. ... Also film, 1492: Conquest of Paradise. ... For other uses, see Convoy (disambiguation). ... ... For other uses, see Privateer (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Seville (disambiguation). ... Location Location of Cádiz Coordinates : Time Zone : General information Native name Cádiz (Spanish) Spanish name Cádiz Postal code – Website http://www. ... A Spanish galleon. ... For other uses, see Cannon (disambiguation). ... The Santa Maria at anchor by Andries van Eertvelt, painted c. ... Slave redirects here. ... For other places with the same name, see Cartagena (disambiguation). ... Nombre de Dios (Spanish: Name of God) is a town on the Atlantic coast of Panama, near the mouth of the Río Chagres. ... Portobelo (formerly Puerto Bello) is a port in Panama. ... This article is about the capital of Cuba. ...

Spain strictly controlled this trade through the Casa de Contratación based in Seville. By law, the colonies could only trade with the one designated port in the mother country. Maritime archaeology has shown that the quantity of metals really transported was usually much higher than that recorded at the Archivo General de Indias, as Spanish merchants and Spaniards acting as fronts (cargadores) for foreign merchants resorted to contraband to transport their riches untaxed. La Casa de Contratación (The House of Trade) was a government agency under the Spanish Empire of the 16th and 17th centuries, which attempted to control all Spanish exploration and colonization. ... For other uses, see Seville (disambiguation). ... Maritime archaeology (also known as marine archaeology) is a discipline that studies human interaction with the sea, lakes and rivers through the study of vessels, shore side facilities, cargoes, human remains and submerged landscapes. ... The Archivo de Indias, Seville The Archivo General de Indias (General Archive of the Indies) is the document repository, housed in Seville in the ancient merchants exchange, the Casa Lonja de Mercederes, of extremely valuable archival documents illustrating the history of the Spanish empire in the Americas and the Philippines. ... Contraband consists of items of which possession may be illegal, depending on the variety and the country or the age or sex of the possessor. ...

View of Seville in the 16th century

This monopsony lasted for over two centuries, in which Spain first became the richest country in Europe and used this wealth to fight numerous wars in the 17th and 18th centuries against the Ottoman Empire and most of the major European powers (except the Holy Roman Empire). However, due to inflation in the 17th century, the flow of precious metals from the Indies gradually damaged the Spanish economy. For other uses, see Seville (disambiguation). ... In economics, a monopsony (from Ancient Greek μόνος (monos) single + ὀψωνία (opsōnia) purchase) is a market form with only one buyer, called monopsonist, facing many sellers. ... List of Spanish wars 1568 - 1648 Eighty Years War 1585 - 1604 Anglo-Spanish War (1585) 1618 - 1648 Thirty Years War 1654 - 1660 Anglo-Spanish War (1654) 1667 - 1668 War of Devolution 1672 - 1678 Franco-Dutch War 1683 - 1684 War of the Reunions 1702 - 1713 War of the Spanish Succession 1718... Motto دولت ابد مدت Devlet-i Ebed-müddet (The Eternal State) Anthem Ottoman imperial anthem Borders in 1683, see: list of territories Capital Söğüt (1299–1326) Bursa (1326–1365) Edirne (1365–1453) Constantinople (1453–1922) Government Monarchy Sultans  - 1281–1326 (first) Osman I  - 1918–22 (last) Mehmed VI Grand Viziers  - 1320... This article is about the medieval empire. ... Used generally to describe a series of economic events from the second half of the 15th century to the first half of the 17th, the price revolution refers most specifically to the high rate of inflation that characterized the period across Western Europe, with prices on average rising perhaps sixfold...

This economic importance also declined with the drop of production of the American precious metals mines, such as Potosí. The fleets which numbered just 17 ships in 1550 had reached just over 50 much larger vessels by the end of the century. In the middle of the next century, that number had dwindled to around half of its peak and continued to shrink. However, the fleet began to expand again as trade gradually recovered from the last decades of the 17th century. Potosí is a city, the capital of the department of Potosí in Bolivia. ...

The Urca de Lima and ten other treasure ships are sunk by a hurricane off the coast of Florida in 1715. Contemporary oil painting.

The Spanish trade of goods and precious metals was continually threatened until the mid 18th century, as Spain's colonial rivals seized bases or established their own along the Spanish Main and the Spanish West Indies: the English acquired St Kitts in 1624, the French Saint-Domingue in 1625 and the Dutch Curaçao in 1634. In 1739, Admiral Edward Vernon raided Porto Bello (though this proved a mere irritant), and in 1762, the British occupied Havana and Manila, briefly disrupting the treasure fleets. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The Urca de Lima is a shipwreck (which sank in 1715) near Fort Pierce, Florida, United States. ... This article is about weather phenomena. ... The Spanish Man was a name given to the Caribbean coast of the Spanish Empire in mainland Central and South America. ... The Spanish West Indies (also known as Las Antillas) consist of Cuba, Hispaniola (present-day Dominican Republic and Haiti), Puerto Rico, Jamaica (until the 1655) , the Cayman Islands, Trinidad (until 1797) and Bay Islands (until 1643). ... Motto Country Above Self Anthem O Land of Beauty! Royal anthem God Save the Queen Capital (and largest city) Basseterre Official languages English Government  -  Monarch Queen Elizabeth II  -  Governor-General Sir Cuthbert Sebastian  -  Prime Minister Dr. Denzil Douglas Independence  -  19 September 1983  Area  -  Total 261 km² (207th) 101 sq mi... Saint-Domingue was a French colony from 1697 to 1804 that is today the independent nation of Haiti. ... For other uses, see Curaçao (disambiguation). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Portobelo (formerly Puerto Bello) is a port in Panama. ... Combatants Britain Philippines Spain Commanders William Draper Archbishop Manuel Rojo Strength 1,750 regulars, 4,500 sailors and marines 4,000 Filipino troops 1,000 regulars, 9,000 natives East Indies Campaign 1757–1763 Plassey – Cuddalore – Negapatam – Pondicherry – Manila The Battle of Manila of 1762 was fought in the Seven...

Charles III began loosening the system in 1765, and in the 1780s Spain opened its colonies to free trade. In 1790, the Casa de Contratación was abolished. The last regular treasure fleet sailed that year. Thereafter small groups of navy frigates would then be assigned to the transfer of bullion as required. Charles III of Spain - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

Despite the general perception that many Spanish galleons were captured by English or Dutch pirates or privateers, the fact is that very few fleets were actually lost to enemies in the course of flota's long career. Treasure fleets were captured by Piet Hein in 1628 and destroyed in 1656 and 1657 by Robert Blake. The 1702 treasure fleet was also destroyed in the Battle of Vigo Bay when surprised at port, but had already unloaded most of its silver. In the case of the Manila galleons, only four were ever captured. These losses and those due to hurricanes were heavy economic blows when they occurred, but overall the treasure fleets must be counted as among the most successful naval operations in history. Pirates may refer to: A group of people committing any of these activities: Piracy at sea or on a river/lake. ... This article is about the concept in naval history. ... Piet Heyn, 1577-1629 Piet Pieterszoon Hein (also written as Heyn) (November 25, 1577 – June 18, 1629) was a Dutch naval officer and folk hero during the Eighty Years War between the Netherlands and Spain. ... Robert Blake, General at Sea, 1599–1657 by Henry Perronet Briggs, painted 1829. ... The Battle of Vigo Bay, 23 October 1702 by Ludolf Bakhuizen, painted c. ...

Wrecks of Spanish treasure ships, whether sunk in naval combat or by storms (those of 1622, 1715 and 1733 being among the worst), are naturally enough a prime target for modern treasure hunters, and many have been salvaged, like the Nuestra Señora de Atocha. Wreck may mean: a collision of an automobile or airplane, or other vehicle a shipwreck, where a ship has hit another, or run aground on rocks WREK FM at Georgia Tech, named for the Rambling Wreck   This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might... Naval tactics in the Age of Sail were used from the early 1600s when sailing ships replaced oared galleys to the 1860s when steam-powered ironclad warships rendered sailing line of battle ships obsolete. ... Gems may be found by treasure hunters. ... Marine salvage is the process of rescuing a ship, its cargo and sometimes the crew from peril. ... Nuestra Señora de Atocha was the most famous of a fleet of Spanish ships that sunk in 1622 off the Florida Keys while carrying copper, silver, gold, tobacco, and indigo from Spanish ports at Cartagena, Colombia, Porto Bello in New Granada and Havana bound for Spain. ...

See also

• Álvaro de Bazán
• The Asiento, a monopoly on the trade of African slaves to Spanish America, held by the English after the War of the Spanish Succession
• Convoy
• Piracy in the Caribbean
• Spanish Empire

Don Álvaro de Bazán, marqués de Santa Cruz de Mudela Don Álvaro de Bazán, 1st Marquis of Santa Cruz (es: Don Álvaro de Bazán, marqués de Santa Cruz de Mudela) (12 December 1526 – February 9, 1588), was a Spanish admiral born at Granada. ... In the history of slavery, asiento (or assiento, meaning assent ) refers to the permission given by the Spanish government to other countries to sell slaves to the Spanish colonies, from the years 1543-1834. ... Combatants Habsburg Empire England (1701-6) Great Britain (1707-14)[1] Dutch Republic Kingdom of Portugal Crown of Aragon Duchy of Savoy [2] Kingdom of France Kingdom of Spain Electorate of Bavaria Hungarian Rebels [3] Commanders Eugene of Savoy Margrave of Baden Count Starhemberg Duke of Marlborough Marquis de Ruvigny... For other uses, see Convoy (disambiguation). ... Central America and the Caribbean (detailed pdf map) An 18th-century pirate flag. ... An anachronous map of the overseas Spanish Empire (1492-1898) in red, and the Spanish Habsburg realms in Europe (1516-1714) in orange. ...

References

• Cynthia Zarin, "Green Dreams", The New Yorker, November 21, 2005, pp. 76-83 www.newyorker.com

For other uses, see New Yorker. ...

External links

• Spanish Mariners, 1492-1805
• History Hunters