When did the Spanish conquer Central America and What was the first long term Spanish colony?

Photo of author

Karen Hill

The Spanish conquered Central America around the same time they were conquering South America.

Spanish conquistador Vasco Nutiez de Balboa (1475-1519) founded the first lasting Spanish colony in Central America at Darien, in what is now Panama, in 1510.

Later that century, the Spanish pushed north from Panama and south from Mexico. They conquered most of Central America, the heavily forested tropical region that links North and South America.

The Spanish colonies in Central America became the basis for the modern countries of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama, but not Belize.

Related Posts

  1. Which Countries Are Located In Central America and How Many People Live In Central America?
  2. Which Highway Runs From North America Through Central America and Into South America?
  3. Why didn’t Brazil become a Spanish colony during the Spanish colonization of the Americas?
  4. Who lived in Central America before the Spanish colonists arrived in 1519?
  5. What race are Central Americans and Where do Central Americans come from?
  6. How did New York City build Central Park and When was Central Park built?