Venezuela

The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is composed of territories in which the Spanish empire established its domain in the Americas from the 16th century to the early 18th century. The territories were not as rich in precious metals as those territories that later became Mexico and Peru or even Colombia. Even then, the colony of Venezuela was of secondary importance for Spain. However, the roots of the current Venezuelan levels of poverty have been inherited from the colonial system of exploitation since a strong social stratification was shaped around the cacao crop. Black people were at the bottom of society; they were slaves without either the right of social mobility or the possession of money. After blacks came the native Indian population, who had rights ...