Final answer:
The wars in America reflected the global contest for power amongst European empires, with France and the Netherlands seeking to undermine Spanish and Portuguese control through trade and colonization efforts, causing a shift in the balance of power.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Wars in seventeenth and eighteenth century America were symptomatic of the broader geopolitical tensions between Great Britain and its rivals, including the Netherlands, France, and Spain. These contests were about diminishing Spanish hegemony in the New World following the Treaty of Tordesillas, which initially carved out large portions of the Americas for Spanish and Portuguese control.
By exploiting economic activities such as trade and piracy, and establishing strategic colonies, France and the Netherlands contributed to a multipolar power contest in the region, directly and indirectly challenging Spanish and Portuguese authority.
The French established a lucrative fur trade in North America and attempted to undermine Spanish influence by trying to create a colony in Spanish Florida.
Meanwhile, the Dutch, through the Dutch West Indies Company, concentrated on weakening Spanish power economically, engaging in piracy and seizing key areas from Portugal in Brazil. Across the Atlantic, Europe itself was a battleground of wars for territorial rights, like the War of the Spanish Succession, which affected the balance of power in the Americas.