ABSTRACT
The early Latin American city was a center of culture, religion, government, education, and Spanish values. A wave of city construction by Spaniards in America occurred from 1492 to about 1570. When the Spanish entered America in 1492, their very first task was to organize, charter, and build cities. One central characteristic of Spaniards is their affinity for cities and city life. Guanajuato, the important mining center north of Mexico City, was founded shortly thereafter in 1554, as the Spaniards generally established cities at sites where native communities were settled and where resources were abundant. Of course, there were significant differences between the coastal cities and the cities in the interior. The coastal cities, such as Havana, Santo Domingo, Cartagena, Veracruz, and Portobelo, were integrated into the world economy; slaves entered at Cartagena, Veracruz, Rio de Janeiro, and Salvador.
