Spanish Main

“Spanish Main” is the contemporary English term for the South American Caribbean coast that ran from the mouth of the Orinoco west to the Isthmus of Panama, and northward across the Caribbean to include the Caribbean coast of Mexico. It was the collection-point coast for the Spanish silver economy: the bullion of Peru came north overland to Portobelo and Cartagena de Indias for embarkation on the Atlantic flotas; the silver of New Spain went to Veracruz. For most of the seventeenth century the buccaneers worked the Spanish Main as their principal theatre, raiding the harbour towns and the inland approaches between fleet sailings.