The arrangement granted by the Spanish crown to private individuals or companies the exclusive right to provide enslaved Africans to Spanish colonies in the Americas. This system replaced earlier, less formalized methods of procuring labor and became a significant aspect of the transatlantic slave trade during the colonial period. An example would be the British South Sea Company acquiring this right for a period, enabling them to profit immensely from the transportation and sale of enslaved people.
This system was crucial to the development of plantation economies in Spanish America. It not only supplied a workforce essential for the production of valuable commodities such as sugar and tobacco but also generated considerable revenue for both the Spanish crown through licensing fees and the private contractors involved. The competition for and control of this right were significant factors in international relations, leading to conflicts and shifting alliances among European powers vying for economic dominance in the New World.
