Final answer:
The Spanish encomienda system was a brutal labor system under which Spanish colonists could compel indigenous labor in the Americas, under the guise of providing protection and religious instruction. In practice, it was often comparable to slavery, leading to significant hardship and decline of native populations.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Spanish were expected to care for their Native American workers under a system known as the encomienda. This system, established during the Spanish colonization of the Americas, allowed Spanish colonists, or encomenderos, to receive a grant from the Spanish Crown authorizing them to compel the labor of indigenous people within a specific geographic area.
In return, the encomenderos were supposed to defend the natives, instruct them in the Christian faith, and protect them. However, in reality, the encomienda system was renowned for its brutality and exploitation, resembling chattel slavery. The work demanded under this system was so harsh that it often led to the devastation of native populations. Notably, the encomienda system was not about land ownership but rather about labor and the right to demand it from the native people.