Document 6
…Spanish administrators established two main centers of authority in the Americas—Mexico
(which they called New Spain) and Peru (known as New Castile)—each governed by a viceroy
who was responsible to the king in Spain. In Mexico they built a new capital, Mexico City, on top
of Tenochtitlán. In Peru they originally hoped to rule from the Inca capital of Cuzco, but they
considered the high altitude unpleasant and also found the Andean city too inaccessible for their
purposes. In 1535 they founded [the city of] Lima and transferred the government to the coast
where it was accessible to Spanish shipping.…
Source: Bentley and Ziegler, Traditions & Encounters: A Global Perspective on the Past,
3rd edition, McGraw-Hill (adapted)
According to Bentley and Ziegler, what was one way the Spanish changed the Americas?
