The Conquest of the Americas was quite a diverse process, in terms of duration and ethnic variety. The Spanish arrived in the Caribbean in the 15th century and totally exterminated some of the peoples they encountered, such as the inhabitants of Cuba and Hispaniola. Other groups were integrated into the Spanish Empire following the feudal model that was common in Europe and to some extent familiar to the great agricultural civilizations of Mesoamerica and the Andes.

In Peru and Mexico the Spanish appeared as a disruptive military power. For example, in Mesoamerica there was a conflict between Tlaxcalans and Mexicas. Tlaxcala, initially waged war, signed an alliance whit the conquerors. Moctezuma, tlatoani of the triple alliance, tried to ally with the Spaniards, but their excessive demands led to a confrontation with the elite of the Mexica empire and the total conquest of Tenochtitlan.

After the great conquests of the 16th century, the Mexica and Inca empires were integrated into the Spanish Empire. Just as in the Iberian Peninsula the Kingdom of Castile and Aragon conquered and integrated the kingdoms of Andalusia and Granada. For the American nobility these arrangements were not strange, many had already accepted the vassalage in similar terms before, to the the Incas or Aztecs. Even accepting the imposition of new gods was common practice (although the Spanish obsession with denying all other religions was something new).

The English colonial process was different. It began more than a century later and was initially carried out by communities seeking a place to settle and self-govern, rather than territorial conquest.

Although the English and French would later attempt conquest expeditions, they never encountered civilizations with a feudal organization like those previously conquered by the Spanish. This meant that North America never merge a complete kingdom within a European empire, as was the case in Central and South America. The English would achieve this later with the conquest of India.

Finally, in the 18th century, the industrial revolution, the theory of evolution and centuries of military superiority convinced Western Europeans that they were a superior race. Although ethnocentrism is common in all ages and societies, in this period it reached absurd levels. The idea that the white, civilized man had a mission to evangelize the world led to the planned and sustained practice of establishing colonies throughout the world. Coexistence with the indigenous people was no longer acceptable, they had to be controlled and civilized. Thus was born the system of reservarions, where a population is taken and confined in a territory under the control of the metropolis.

This process also occurred in South America, but Spanish American society was much more integrated. It was impossible to totally separate Americans from Europeans after centuries of miscegenation. However, racialist laws began to be enacted that gave special privileges to those who proved greater "purity of Spanish blood".

In conclusion, Spain absorbed entire empires along with their institutions. Although in the process these empires were totally changed, they remained sufficiently organized to maintain their organization even after independence. On the other hand, throughout the Americas the Europeans encountered decentralized societies that were either totally annihilated or were confined to the reservations.